Gojou games all night long, as Marin prepares herself for energy drink-fueled passion.
Episode 22 — “So We’re Gonna Do It All Right Now?!”
Hmm.
Have you ever seen a story that reveals a plot twist near the end that bends your mind like a corkscrew? M. Night Shyamalan turned himself into a one-trick gimmick after his breakout ghost story, The Sixth Sense (1999). After that movie, everyone paid attention to the little clues that would lead to the one-trick twist for all his subsequent titles. Even anime episodes, like this week’s My Dress-Up Darling, can use the same plot twist multiple times. What’s the gimmick this time? It was all in your head!
That device in the Coffin horror game turned a bloody murder mystery into a psycho-sexual suspense thriller. The revelation left Gojou’s mind so broken that he never needed the energy drinks that he thought would solve his sleepover problem. The twist? The main character was never a nun, and the other characters were only inventions of a suicidal girl in an insane asylum. Coffin used these mental delusions to spin a blood-soaked tale of imaginary gore and horror. But guess what. My Dress-Up Darling used the same device to turn Marin’s fun night together with Gojou into checking off all the boxes of adulthood. She was a nervous wreck because of one small mistake.
My Dress-Up Darling, All in My Head!
Marin’s anxiety started in the previous episode after she saw Gojou crouching next to the male virility and stamina potions. Of course, Gojou merely wanted something to keep him from dozing off. But Marin’s mistake made her mind interpret his actions as a wild animal stalking and pouncing on its defenseless prey. I could tell the producers of My Dress-Up Darling enjoyed animating Marin’s internal misconceptions. She prepared her body and wore suitable shoujo armor (white lingerie), but her inner thoughts were a mess. And then she fell asleep, and nothing happened. It was all in her head!
We already know that Marin has an overactive imagination. My Dress-Up Darling builds its premise on how much she enjoys anime, manga, and games, and falls in love with the characters from these titles. Marin’s understanding of her favorite characters well enough to portray them in cosplay also shows how much time she spends thinking about them. Marin identifies so much with her inner thoughts that even thinking about Gojou potentially rejecting her love confession makes her cry. Again, it was all in her head! But she can’t help it. As long as she doesn’t create imaginary family members and eat them to keep them from abandoning her, she’ll be okay. I would hope so!
My Dress-Up Darling Makes Me Go Heh.
Awkward silence, but Gojou can’t tell how nervous Marin is. She believes he brought home a male virility potion. All night long, Marin! She needs to prepare her body and night armor. White! Uh oh. The nervous Nellie remembered she had given Gojou a condom to keep in his wallet! She shouldn’t have joked about asking him to turn in his V-card. Meanwhile, Gojou is oblivious to Marin’s internal emotional conflict and strife.
How the tables have turned in My Dress-Up Darling for Gojou to relax in Marin’s apartment as she freaks out. His argument, which redefines terms (that a sleepover with no sleeping is not a sleepover), still comforts him. Reframing things can be a helpful tool, but this borders on delusion. Ah hahahaha! Did Marin plan on losing her virginity to a man wearing an ahegao sweatshirt? How did Marin acquire this men’s size hoodie? Uh oh. Gojou noticed that Marin is avoiding him. Sit closer, please, touchy-feely, loud woman!
My Dress-Up Darling with 50 Percent Fewer Calories
Oh, so here’s what the episode title means. Marin had ideas about the steps to the top stair of adulthood, but she now imagines Gojou wants to jump the entire flight in one go! Mind blown. Poof! Uh oh. Is it time for rug burns on Marin’s back? She’s too nervous! Ramen break. Marin’s actions must be so confusing to Gojou. What happened to her diet? It’s okay! Her instant cup ramen has fewer calories. Oh! Marin’s dad does live there, and he’s a nerd. My Dress-Up Darling explains how Marin became otaku-adjacent. Bedtime. Like, the snoring kind. Marin wore white for nothing!
Gojou continues playing Coffin and finally sees all the horror stuff. He never needed an energy drink to stay awake after he watched all the gore. The game turned out to be a psychological thriller. Gojou’s concerned face hilariously contrasts with Shizuku’s ahegao.
My Dress-Up Darling Breaks Minds, Ruins Appetites
Good morning, Marin. Gojou went all night long, but not with you. Ah! Marin realized she jumped to the wrong conclusion. Gojou bought regular energy drinks, not “stamina” potions. Poor Gojou. He beat the game but paid more attention to the story than the outfits. Why? Because he’s not making any costumes for Marin’s next cosplay event. Whoops. So much blood, and it ruined Gojou’s appetite, potentially for days.
Aw. Gojou talks to Sajuna and Suzuka about Coffin. They’re so happy to see how the pure, pure boy in My Dress-Up Darling reacted to the psychological horror twist in the story. The main character ate her “sisters” to keep the family “together.” That’s why fans of the game are so excited about shooting the dinner scenes for their group cosplay. Sajuna loves that horror genre stuff! And now we know why Suzuka had asked to listen to Gojou’s thoughts after he played the game. The mind-bender twist bent his mind!
Fun. Shinju made Sajuna’s wig for her costume. Meanwhile, Marin attempts to recover her poise after expecting Gojou to tackle her after imbibing tiger blood. However, Marin’s overarching regret from not “doing everything all at once” was not officially becoming a couple. It’s time for a plot inflection point in My Dress-Up Darling. How would Gojou react to her love confession? He’s been loudly adamant about their lack of a dating relationship status until now. Would he stick her in the friend zone, ghost her, or… Oh, no! Don’t cry over hypothetical situations! That’s how you wore white for your nonexistent first time! Marin remembers how Gojou avoided her for a day, but she doesn’t know why he did that.
Wake Up. Shake Up! Make Up?
Ooh. You can tell Marin is getting serious about asking Gojou out because she asked Nowa for advice. The twin tail gyaru already publicly put the doll maker on the spot in a karaoke box, so no one will express surprise if Marin and Gojou make it official. Hey, My Dress-Up Darling! We get it. Gojou pays attention to and cares about Marin. We don’t need a fried fish scene to prove that. But thank you for the food porn. Aw. It’s getting harder for Marin to say goodbye to Gojou. And she’s hesitant to start a relationship because it might not work out. Easy. Don’t let him go! Har. She calls herself weak as she fatally shoots down random pickup artists. Marin made up her mind: she’ll confess to Gojou after the Coffin cosplay!
Next time, something good happens to somebody, according to someone.
My Dress-Up Darling (Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru) streams on Crunchyroll in Japanese with multiple language subtitles.
Marin could have been braver if she had worn the red lingerie. Do you agree? Or how about nothing at all? How would the scenario have played out if she had attacked Gojou instead of waiting for his “super XXX” potion to kick in? Let us know in the comments below!
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