Strawberry Panic 7

No Yaya-chan in ep 6 so no entry. Hikari becomes embroiled in the machinations of Spica politics and becomes targetted by Kaname and Momomi of the Student Council who see her as an obstacle to their own ambitions. Unlike in MariMite, StoPa hasn't yet explained the mechanics of the Etoile system though it is implied that candidates are required to have a soeur. Haivng seen grieving Shizuma in the previous episode, it's strongly implied that something happened to Shizuma's previous partner. While my reptilian side was perfectly with two scenes of Kaname x Momomi hawt axn, their plan to "seduce" Hikari was utterly laughable.

The highlights, for me, were of course the Yaya scenes.

Yaya encourages Hikari to give her present to Amane. Mangaminx has called this Yaya's Chikane Error which I read as making the mistake of pushing her loved one in the direction she thinks said loved one wants to go. Hrmmm... given how Amane has never accepted a present from anyone before and Yaya's disappointed reaction at the end, my own take is that Yaya was hoping that Hikari would get shot down by Amane and then run back to her dear roommate's arms to be comforted and stuff. That'd probably would have been Yaya's big chance to confess. I also think Yaya's unease when advising Hikari to take things up a notch with Amane comes in two parts - not only because she is saying something she doesn't sincerely feel but that she's willing to see Hikari emotionally hurt in the short term by following this advice.

I don't think Chikane seriously expected Souma x Himeko not to work out plus there's this whole angst about being a lesbian which is completely absent from this series. Sooooo I can see where some of that parallel comes from but StoPa is just such a mindbogglingly different universe.

Yaya tries to put a brave face on as she watches helplessly from the sidelines, thinking that Amane has made a crucial move on Hikari. But then she realizes something is wrong...

Of course, it's Amane rather than Yaya who saves the day. Since we're talking about Chikane parallels, I couldn't help but think her pounding her hand after failing to save Himeko (and having Souma get the glory instead). Would have been more effective IMHO if Amane had ridden past Yaya rather than Nagisa - granted that the latter, being the lead character, needs screentime.

So the Hikari x Amane relationship is set to blossom and probably feature as an important element in the Etoile contest later in the series. Yaya, who seemed to be speaking to and about herself when advising Hikari to be more forward with her feelings, looks set to slide further into angst as her unrequited desire festers inside her. I doubt she'd go Chikane On A Dark Stormy Night on Hikari but I'm also guessing that she'll need to have an emotional confrontation with Hikari to achieve some sort of catharsis. Could probably be usefully woven into the Etoile thread as something to give Hikari some pause for thought.

Related posts:

1. Strawberry Panic 22
2. Strawberry Panic 13
3. Strawberry Panic 14