Blue Box Episode 8: One Door Closes

Key Takeaways

Taiki loses in both doubles and singles division, missing the inter-high.
New rivals emerge in intense badminton matches, adding excitement.
Taiki’s dedication to badminton is fueled by love for the sport, not just impressing Chinatsu.

Title	Blue Box, Episode 8 “Score!”
Studio	Telecom Animation Film
Air Date	November 21, 2024

As a seasoned anime enthusiast with years of experience under my belt, I must say that the latest episode of Blue Box left me quite intrigued. The storyline is engaging, the characters are well-developed, and the pacing is spot on.

⚠️ Attention: The information below might reveal plot details from the eighth episode of Blue Box, titled “Score”, currently available on Netflix.

In the thrilling world of “Blue Box,” I’ve found myself engrossed in Episode 8, titled “Score!”. This episode is a non-stop adrenaline rush, given that badminton has always been at the forefront of this show. And guess what? The entire episode revolves around the prefectural qualifiers for badminton!

In a nutshell, Taiki didn’t win in either division and won’t be competing in this year’s inter-high competition. However, despite the string of losses, the episode was engaging due to intense matches and fresh badminton opponents emerging. Blue Box, not primarily a sports anime, still offered sports enthusiasts an experience reminiscent of watching Haikyu!! for badminton fans. Sports anime aficionados watching Blue Box would find this episode particularly captivating.

In the episodes that followed, it was implied that Chinatsu’s team had triumphed over Kagohara High, a team we saw in episode 7, “Can I Have One?”. Although their match wasn’t broadcasted, the fact that they advanced to the inter-high tournament suggests a victory against the underestimated rival team. It would have been intriguing to witness the reactions of Kagohara High’s members upon their defeat, but instead, we only got to see Chinatsu discussing their upcoming finals victory.

The End of Taiki’s Journey To Inter-High

Taiki Loses In Both The Doubles and Singles Division

For the doubles qualifiers, Taiki and Haryu advanced to the finals, where they competed against Hyodo from Sajikawa High School and Tateyama. Hyodo has been mentioned in previous episodes as a player Haryu could never defeat. Now, viewers finally get to see who Hyodo is, and he appears more intense than any other player. He’s not just all looks, though; his skills are impressive too, as Sajikawa High defeated Eimei High’s doubles team with the first set at 21-16 and an undisclosed score for the second set.

A New Rival For Taiki

In the singles qualifiers, Taiki faced off against another player from Sajikawa High named Yusa in his opening match. This new character seems to be quite laid-back, yet surprisingly skilled, much like Nagi from ‘Blue Lock’. Despite his efforts, Taiki was defeated by Yusa, with scores of 21-11 and 21-13 for the sets. The singles qualifiers were less successful than the doubles, not just because Taiki lost earlier, but also because they provided minimal details about the match between Taiki and Yusa. All we see is a shot of Taiki failing to reach a shuttlecock that fell to the ground, thus losing him the game.

Instead, let’s rephrase this in a simpler and more conversational manner: Haryu managed to reach the singles finals, where he encountered Hyodo once more. Unfortunately, Haryu didn’t win but since the prefectural qualifier’s first place and second runner-up both qualified, he still made it to the inter-high tournament.

Chinatsu’s Support and Hina’s Comfort Help Taiki To Keep Pressing Forward

The Luckiest Unluckiest Guy

Although romance takes a step back in this episode, fans still get some scenes of both sides of the love triangle moving along. Chinatsu is the person who supports Taiki before and during the prefectural qualifiers, while Hina gives him a shoulder to lean on after his losses.

Chinatsu boosted his spirits before the doubles qualifiers by joining him in morning calisthenics and cheering him on by telling him to “Score!”. She also gave him another boost between the doubles and singles qualifiers when she wrote in his notebook that she’d be doing her best right alongside him. Right after Taiki lost his singles match, Hina met up with him to give him some snacks and to chat. Their conversation helped him realize that, despite his losses, he’s still come a long way and has improved a lot, and that as long as he keeps moving forward, he’ll continue to improve.

Taiki Puts up a Brave Face but Lets His Frustrations Out in the End

Taiki’s Dedication to Badminton Is More than Just an Attempt to Impress a Crush

Episode 8 really shows how dedicated Taiki is to badminton and how much he wants to win. He doesn’t just play to impress a girl he likes (though that is part of it); he legitimately loves the sport, and his competitive nature would have driven him to this point, with or without Chinatsu.

During the entire show, Haryu, Hina, and Chinatsu each pondered about Taiki, believing him to be someone who wouldn’t let his losses burden him, instead focusing on enhancing himself for future matches. They speculated that no defeat could bring him down, a notion not unique to them alone. It seemed Taiki had trained himself to avoid feeling low after losing a game, choosing instead to channel his time and energy into training and self-improvement. However, while this approach holds some validity, suppressing emotions isn’t necessarily beneficial either. This lesson became clear to Taiki near the end of the episode when he fled home to shed tears.

Taiki was thinking, ‘Chinatsu-senpai is going to the inter-high competition. That’s great… Impressive! She always follows through on her promises… Incredible. But…and yet…and yet…at the same time…while I lost.’

Now you can start streaming the series “Blue Box” on Netflix! The ninth episode of “Blue Box” will be released on November 28, 2024, at 8:30 AM Pacific Time.

2024-11-22 20:34