Aina reminds us why Iori and Kouhei still call Aina “Cakey” after Uncle Kotegawa reveals a family secret.
Episode 3 — “Association”
Grand Blue Makes Me Go Hmm.
Have you heard of the blood-brain barrier? It’s the protective layer inside your brain’s blood vessels that protects the brain from harmful substances. But did you know that anime has a version of the blood-brain barrier? It’s true! Being related by blood blocks erotic thoughts from entering the brain! But if you remove that barrier, like in Kiss X Sis or last season’s The Shiunji Family Children, incest becomes wincest! Grand Blue shows us how lifting anime’s blood-brain barrier drove Aina crazy.
Uncle Kotegawa’s bombshell was that Iori and his cousins (Nanaka and Chisa) are technically unrelated. What? How? Uncle married Iori’s aunt, but his father is her adoptive brother. The kissing cousins can do much more than that without fear of inbreeding that could pass along potentially harmful recessive genes. Dominant traits and domination games? But Grand Blue doesn’t show Iori, Chisa, or Nanaka worrying about these issues because they grew up together. It was no big deal to them that the Kitahara family adopted Iori’s father. Their anime blood-brain barriers are robust. But the other Peek-a-boo diving club members only heard about it TODAY. The sudden dissolution of their blood-brain barriers immediately devolved into an insane drinking party.
Here’s a deeper question, though. Can the anime blood-brain barrier heal after the kids hear news of adoption or remarrying? I have trouble coming up with an anime where the kids go back to being siblings or kissing cousins. Can you think of one? Grand Blue is the rare anime that shows other characters going crazy about the anime blood-brain barrier rather than the non-blood-related family members. That’s where the comedy sauces flow!
Heh.
Nanaka and Iori drive Shiori back to the train station. Bye, little sister. Kouhei misses Shiori already because he’ll no longer hear her call him “Nii-sama.” And Aina still can’t get over how Shiori suggested they’d be sisters-in-law soon. The college coed’s crush on Iori is still over the top. Grand Blue’s diving bros wonder why Iori’s little sister rushed over, anyway. Azusa explains that Shiori “got the feeling” Chisa and Iori were engaged. Are the spy bunnies still working? Uncle Kotegawa says that would be ridiculous, even if they aren’t blood-related, because they’ve always thought of themselves as brother and sister. Wait. Say that middle part again!
Iori is glad his little sister is gone because he couldn’t drink and get naked. Chisa says you shouldn’t do that at all! Wasn’t Chisa an ally of nudity? No. She merely tired herself out complaining all the time. But Aina took up the slack after she joined Peek-a-boo. Iori still calls her “Cakey” because of the wig and clown makeup she used to wear. Yes, yes. Like that. Huh? This isn’t a flashback! What happened in the short time they drove Shiori to the station?
Grand Blue’s Cousins Can Do More than Kiss
Flashback — Uncle Kotegawa explains that his wife’s family (Kitahara) adopted Iori’s dad. Chisa and Nanaka are Iori’s cousins by marriage and adoption, not bloodline! This news breaks Aina’s brain. She thought the only things keeping Iori’s hands off Chisa were their family ties. Now there’s no barrier! How can Aina compete for Iori’s affection now? Kouhei volunteers to help Aina make Chisa and Iori confess whether they have feelings for each other. Useless endeavor.
And here we are. Cakey insanity. Two drinking games are on the menu for Grand Blue: chugging almost pure alcohol or playing strip rock-paper-scissors with the beer drinking nudity crew. In vino veritas is Aina’s gambit. That only works if Iori and Chisa drink, though. Iori agrees on one condition: no pancake makeup for Aina. Can she do it? She’s desperate! Suspicious behavior. It’s Kouhei’s turn if Aina can’t get these two kids drunk. Ack. He can only focus his questions on the concept of little sisters instead of expanding to cousins.
Azusa, you’re up. More drinking games in Grand Blue. Players in Association point to a person with a called-out attribute or description, and whoever gets the most points drinks. Aha. Everyone rigged the game against Iori. They point at him no matter what. Drinking “water.” Iori has been through this hell before. Oho. I see what Iori does here. He dribbles the hooch out of his mouth! The other players even point at Iori as the biggest otaku when Kouhei is right there. No mercy! Iori fooled Aina into drinking the “water.” With Aina out of the way, Iori can ask the others what the big deal is. Eh? That’s it? Iori still sees Chisa as his childhood friend and cousin, even if his dad is an adoptive brother to his aunt.
Boys Think Girls Are Pretty in Grand Blue
Uh oh. Nanaka missed all this debauchery, but she’ll walk into something even more scandalous. Boys can appreciate sexy body parts without intending to sex someone up. Observing third-person external reality! Your cousin who doesn’t turn you on has a rocking body! Ack. Nanaka heard something men can talk about among themselves that women could never hear. Awkward! Azusa understands, but Nanaka’s maiden heart can’t bear it.
Aw. Aina caught a cold after falling asleep drunk in her swimsuit. Chisa is taking care of her in the usual sick-at-home visits. Bad news for Nanaka, though. She’s alone with Iori at the diving shop. Stay far away, horny boy! How can Iori lift the awkwardness between them? Grand Blue presents a situational comedy where two people sit around talking. Would talking about something Nanaka likes help? Chisa is always at the top of her mind! Iori reels her in and stuffs the landing. Don’t compare the two sisters’ asses! That’s how Iori got into this mess.
Meanwhile, Chisa found Aina’s extensive library on how to improve bust size. None of them work, apparently. Round two for Iori and Nanaka at the Grand Blue diving shop. But his cousin is objectively smoking hot. Should he lie and call her a hag? Can a naive woman like Nanaka believe that men can separate appreciation for beauty from their emotions? NOPE! She even covered herself with a full-length coat! Har. She called Azusa for advice, “Would Iori take responsibility?” For taking off her jacket! Now Nanaka hides behind the couch. Failure upon failure for Iori. Ack! Compounding failure! Spreading his opinions of smoking hot bodies won’t help! Especially when Azusa walks into his sudden declaration.
Azusa the Nanaka Whisperer
Funny, sexy lady. She’s my favorite character in Grand Blue. Azusa loves the attention. But Nanaka can’t handle pervy talk if people direct it at her. Aha. Azusa would like to practice sexy time with Nanaka first! She’s so pragmatic. Booze solves everything! That’s the motto of the Peek-a-boo diving circle, for sure. How about a threesome? Iori can’t because he considers Nanaka a big sister. Clever girl. Azusa solved Iori’s awkwardness with smartphone eavesdropping. Did Japan have 5G cell networks in 2018? Anachronism… Nanaka liked what she heard.
Drinking time at Ryuujirou’s bar. Iori is grateful for Azusa’s efforts because Shinji and Ryuujirou would not have been helpful. But the group of four found a balanced friendship without more romantic drama. Azusa sounds like she has regrets. Will Grand Blue show what happened in flashbacks? Her advice? Take your shot while you can, shounen! And back at Aina’s apartment, Chisa reminds us that she tells everyone she’s dating Iori to stop boys sniffing around her. Boys and girls navigate the murky waters of relationships as friendship and smoking hot bodies collide. Also, Chisa reluctantly refuses to borrow any of Aina’s boob-maxing books. Reluctantly! Oh, she ended up borrowing one.
Next time, Iori walks into a hen party where chicken breasts are on the menu.
Grand Blue Dreaming Season 2 (Grand Blue Season 2) streams on Crunchyroll in Japanese audio with subtitles in multiple languages.
I boo at Iori’s blood-brain barrier stopping Azusa from having a threesome with him and Nanaka! Boo! Oh well. Azusa is still a bisexual sexpot looking for her next stew. Who’s next? Besides Iori, that is. What’s your best guess or hope? Let us know in the comments below!
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