Toppa Bashin – Episode 32

Back to the grind!

We got the formation of Tonari’s Battle Spirits Club, so now we’re getting closer to the eventual Tournament Arc we’re expecting to get.

Unless of course we get a Hayami-centric episode?…

This is “A Letter from the Speed Star” apparently. I’m curious to see how they intend to make a Hayami episode interesting when her main claim to fame is being Bashin’s Mother.

Perhaps we’ll see Bashin’s Dad?

It appears Hayami is chillin’

Ah is this one of those scenes where a person talks to their lost love as if they were here?

I get these are meant to be like endearing or showing how much a character likes another or its an “I miss you” kind of thing. Its meant to be a cute moment, I get it.

But I am probably the most odd-member out of the audience because this shit bores me to TEARS. Watching it does nothing for me because if I want romance I’ll get it from my partner (who I love very much)

Slightly mini-Bashin, showing ALL the struggles Hayami has with being a single mother.

And Bashin’s Dad is crazily cut out of this picture so we don’t see him.

Why? We’ve yet to see a character that Hayami actually recognizes, if thats the case then its highly likely that whatever the appearance of this guy is, it’ll be entirely new.

To be honest Hayami adopted those words as well so its no surprise they ended up getting passed on to Bashin.

Ah yes, the ol’ “Popping out for Milk” trick.

The game was already pretty deep with the sheer amount of freedom you have when building a deck. We’re only scratching the surface of it with this show.

As one of my friends once said, “There’s like a bajillion cards! Pick your favourite 40!”

Hayami just tryna ask her son how his day went and the ungrateful shitlord just asks for food.

Dodged the image but today is apparently Sunday, Hayami wants to use her free time to talk to her son, which is fair.

“This is the face… that didn’t listen to a WORD you JUST said”

The Master – Doctor Who

I guess Hayami’s going to be all alone for this episode.

I’m not particularly interested in the Bashin family as a whole, Bashin’s annoying af and his deck isn’t particularly interesting (except the moments where it has some form of cohesive strategy which isn’t often)

and Hayami doesn’t battle, I don’t really have many reasons to be interested.

Is this like… The anniversary of the day Bashin’s father left? 19th of April?

Tomorrow’s 4/20.

Good plan, Deck Destruction has no specific counters at present, thus one needs to be able to win fast. Which is also appropriate at Gunslingers.

Poor plan, you had 2 cards left in Deck when Titus hit you with a 10 card Discard, your deck could have had 48 cards and you’d have still lost.

Secondly, increasing the number of cards in your Deck is a real good way to make your deck EXTREMELY inconsistent.

That will make your ability to win slower, not faster, and Blue will only need a couple more swings than usual to completely wipe you out of cards anyway.

Why does your Pet care more about your mother than you do?

Depends on the parent, in Hayami’s case she’s done nothing to warrant your distaste for her conversation, so yes it is weird.

Its kind of strange hearing Hayami call Bashin “Toppa”.

Like I get that’s his name but EVERYONE calls Bashin by his family name and the one character who doesn’t is his Mother.

His parents gave him his name so I guess its appropriate they’d want to use it but still.

Bashin is currently too young to be aware of other people’s states of mind, so he’s going to do what any other middle schooler of his age would do.

And refuse. Because he’s got uh. “Better things to do”

like winning at card games.

Port Cutlet sounds tasty, I have never tasted Eel before, if anyone has please describe to me how it tastes.

And if you say it tastes like chicken I’ll belt you.

Okay maybe its just how my family responded when situations like this came about. But while you might be able to get out of going shopping as its entirely pointless for someone who isn’t interested to go. Dinner is a social event. And as MUCH as I like eating alone more than anything else, the person who makes the food in the house, namely Hayami, is the ONLY person who gets to decide when you eat, so you can’t refuse Bashin, if she says you’re having Dinner with her you’re fucking doing it.

“Dinner is for pansies, Card games are more important”

I’m going to strangle this kid.

Now if I was Bashin’s parent I’d talk his ear off him for being a fucking ungrateful little shit and THAT would be a good reason to ban him from Card Games if its going to cause him to neglect BASIC THINGS HE HAS TO DO.

Oh, Bashin mentions a Magic that has yet to be used, I won’t review it until it does however. Since I believe we’ll see it used at some point in this series.

If your Boyfriend was just like Bashin then you picked a real shit Boyfriend I’m not gonna lie.

Animals are receptive to emotion if they are typically affectionate. And may visit you if you’re feeling sad.

Animals are NOT receptive to the loud crashing sound of smashing a plate.

Its safe to say Hayami is NOT having a good day.

I’m suspecting this will be either some kind of loredump episode or something else is going to occur.

Hayami takes this opportunity to go be the Speed Star and have a drive.

I feel like this is probably the easiest way to get into an accident, besides Driving Under Influence.

Says more about the Pilot than the Combos.

I guess he isn’t sure about mixing Red and Blue so he’s going to try a different colour combination?

Well if you weren’t so rude to her earlier maybe she wouldn’t have wanted to take that drive.

Bashin finds a letter for him, left by Hayami.

What?! No!

He was being dismissive he wasn’t saying he didn’t NEED you! This is a very drastic overreaction!

Children need parents! A 12-13 year old kid doesn’t have enough life experience to cook properly for themselves!

And she took the Pets! Dick move!

Aibou wants to help Bashin improve his game but he has declared that there is OFFICIALLY.

Something more important than card games.

And Card Games are the only reason this Mouse has the ability to speak, so that’s uh, saying something!

Aibou decides to ask Papa Navi what Hayami’s problem is today.

The date was circled, I sincerely doubt that is the only reason.

I know that sometimes Parents find it difficult to come to terms with the idea that their Child may no longer need them after having raised them for so long but other Parents can have the opposite problem where they WANT their Child to grow up and they simply aren’t.

Oh come on!

Now you’re just contradicting me for the sake of contradicting me.

Fuck you, it can be 2 things at once, I’m not wrong!

I wonder if it will have ANY discernable differences to how it is usually.

I see Bashin uses the picture frame as kind of like his “Vessel” for trying to communicate his thoughts and feelings to his father.

Bashin is given pause on the way out for some reason.

Oh you cannot be fucking serious, you fucking KNEW what that meant!?

And simply CHOSE TO BE AN IDIOT!?

Bashin literally looked at his IQ and went “I don’t need that.”

This is the densest child I’ve ever seen, I’ve met NINE YEAR OLDS who are more perceptive than this shithead.

Nine, the Nazo-Otona most interested in the Card Battler “Bashin Toppa” has now encountered Hayami.

…He’s trying to flirt with her.

This CANNOT be the reason why he’s been interested in Bashin this whole time is it? That would be REALLY weird.

Hayami did not respond well to the flirting and tried to hop away but got grabbed by Nine.

Relationship advice: Do not, EVER interrupt someone as they are attempting to leave, if they did not feel safe before, they are VERY likely not to feel safe after being prevented from leaving.

Out in the rain is the best place for ANYONE to be, lovely lady or otherwise.

Don’t be tellin’ me I can’t sit in the rain and enjoy it Nine. Come on we had a CONNECTION.

There’s a word for this, I can’t… I can’t quite put my finger on it, something that accurately describes my reaction to this, its on the tip of my tongue…

Oh I know! CRINGE.

Aibou is about as happy about Nine laying his hands on her as I am, which is to say, not at all, as one shouldn’t be.

He’s being forceful, which works in some situations but its also incredibly easy to make someone feel unsafe which can make the situation WORSE.

But she married someone who acts just like Bashin so maybe Hayami responds well to forceful.

Aibou is completely opposed to the idea that Hayami would fall in love with Nine.

I am… not.

Generally letting your spouse raise your child on their own and not even bothering to send any form of communication back to them is all they need to not bother with you and find a new source for their affections, the only person you can blame for that is yourself.

“How would he have resolved that if he couldn’t send anything back, Ace?”

He could have not left.

Yeah, good on you for uh… forgetting that.

You certainly didn’t fucking act like it a couple minutes ago. I am NOT sympathetic.

I hope he gets lost and passes out so we can make room for someone with a better head on his shoulders.

And for anyone who tells me his “Heart is in the right place”, why the fuck does it keep falling out of place and have to be POPPED BACK INTO PLACE when its convenient for Bashin to do so?

His Heart is hanging out of the “Right place” by a thread that consists purely of the rest of the brain cells left in this idiot’s head.

WHICH ISN’T MANY.

And in this tense moment, Hayami’s stomach grumbles.

Oh right, she basically watched Bashin eat Lunch, she didn’t eat herself and just went straight to washing up.

I’m sorry but does Nine own a YACHT!?

Nine, you’re polite for apologizing for asking something that might be personal behaviour.

But you are an idiot for assuming she was dieting just because she hadn’t eaten today.

People go without eating for several reasons.

Maybe she’s dieting because of a personal belief, beauty is not the only reason one diets.

Hayami thinks his flirting is now funny as opposed to weird.

I suppose that’s progress, you already got her into your boat.

“The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach… The same can also be said for literally everyone else”

Nine just has… on-hand dresses… on his Yacht?

So either he’s done this before and this isn’t the first lady or Nine’s got a hobby I’d like to see.

See, the question is, IS Nine aware of Hayami’s lineage, or is this a coincidence and Nine’s just a womanizer?

And if he is, is his aim Bashin or Hayami? Becoming Bashin’s step-father would certainly let him observe the boy much closer but it could also be that he’s jumped the middleman and got lucky enough to not have to go through Bashin to get to his Mother.

Lotsa questions.

Slow your roll Aibou, let’s see where this leads before we start pointing fingers.

So Bashin’s FIRST instinct upon looking for his Mother was to go to the Batosupi Centre ANYWAY and ask the people who have likely been there the whole day if they’ve seen his Mother who was just blown off for the sake of Battle Spirits?

Is your head on straight?

Aibou somehow makes it into the kitchen and god dammit the Anime Food trope strikes again.

Please don’t tell me we’re about to have a Rat-dropping situation, or half eaten food-

It appears Aibou is trying to prevent Nine from swaying Hayami by sabotaging the food.

Except Hayami’s actually hungry, this is probably NOT the thing you want to attack.

And Aibou goes back to exploring, and finds the ultimate prize, Mushrooms.

Guess we’re going to have to wait TWICE as long for the food.

Here’s the thing, Mice getting into a Yacht is probably the most UNLIKELY thing to occur, there’s an entire AQUATIC SEPARATION to consider.

So while yes there’s the immediate problem of a Mouse in the Kitchen, which is… bad.

Does no one wanna question how a Mouse actually got in when there’s not a lot of ways for them to do that?

Time to ruin the food EVEN MORE by chasing a mouse.

Why did they even bother taking that to them to see if they wanted it? It was obvious it wasn’t gonna go well.

…So is Nine calling himself Cruel in this instance?

And this isn’t really a good time to be flirting

Oh, Nine pulls out a Foger card. Nothing to see here folks, its just a Cost 0 Vanilla.

WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT EVEN SUPPOSED TO MEAN?! I’M SURE IT DIDN’T MAKE SENSE THE FIRST TWO TIMES YOU TRIED IT.

Nine, your Attack Step is over, pack your bags and promptly piss off of with this attempt at using Batosupi to flirt.

These lines are getting REAL poetic, but I’m guessing Hayami’s saying she’s waiting for someone.

I’m not going to blame the subber for this translation, but I will point out that what Nine says he doesn’t refer to “A Cursed Vagrant”

He says “Ho-Ro-Sha Lolo”

Which is the name of a Batosupi card by the name of The Wanderer Lolo, unfortunately I will not show you this card’s effects as its effect text contains things we’ve yet to see introduced, but for now.

But given the images I use are in Full Japanese, we should have no problems at least talking about its stats. This a good time to talk about cards and their colours. Cards are not restricted to a single colour, no sirree, they can have a myriad of colours all at once, and can even ohld multiple colours of reduction as Wanderer Lolo shows here.

This card with its stats can provide one of EVERY type of reduction at once, and if it were capable of attacking (its effects do not allow it to) it could take 6 lives at once.

This card doesn’t appear for a good while, the reason its mentioned here is because I believe the Wanderer Lolo is mentioned in Battle Spirits Lore, he creates the “Otherworld Observation Records” in the BS lore, which is probably why Nine is able to refer to him.

I’ve lost them, they’re speaking their own language.

I am either too immature to understand what the absolute deep-fried fuck they are on about or they are actually talking gibberish.

Okay Nine says something that actually makes sense now. So it appears that Hayami has somewhat expressed that she’s waiting for, well, somebody (Bashin’s Dad)

And Nine has asserted that perhaps all that pain she’s gone through was “Fate” and that his appearance is meant to be to her benefit, or basically, they were fated to meet AFTER her Husband left her.

Maybe your feet will make more sense than your mouth.

It has just occurred to me that Hayami’s marriage complicates things a bit if she was planning to move on to a new lover, considering she would need to find some way of terminating her current marriage without her Husband’s presence before she could, say, marry Nine.

But then again she could also go “Sod marriage” and just have a lover, don’t always need to tie the knot if you don’t feel the need to.

I guess given the shot shifted to Bashin, she’s more upset by his insensitivity on this day as opposed to her Husband’s disappearance.

Nine doesn’t seem too concerned about Hayami using Bashin’s catchphrase of “Shomen Toppa”. So is he aware of her identity?

Oh no, he’s not thinking straight, he sounds irritated that she’s so fondly talking about a past love and child.

No wonder he didn’t catch it.

NINE THIS IS NOT THE MOVE, NOT THE PLAY, THIS WAS NOT THE SIGNAL TO GO IN FOR A KISS.

Aibou manages to interrupt it by killing their ears.

Hayami finds the idea that Aibou might have ruined Nine’s… not very well calculated date absolutely hilarious.

You are literally the exact opposite of the person who got into her pants captain, you are the furthest from an appropriate man for her.

While I DON’T doubt that given you’re rich enough to own a Yacht and several personal members of staff who maintain you needs.

That doesn’t suddenly make you appropriate for her, that just makes you ripe for gold-digging.

Nine was apparently about as prepared to eat Eel as I was hearing that it was something she was skilled at making, apparently.

How’d you figure that one out captain? Its not like he tried to KISS you or anything!

Though she doesn’t seem too bothered by it, I guess she’s keeping her options open incase her Husband turns out to be long gone?

Or she just isn’t the type of person to be particularly bothered that someone she enjoys being around for platonic reasons wants to get into her pants.

And we get Nine’s name! Kyuusaku Kujou.

His given name has “Kyuu” in it… NINE.

And he shares a surname with a certain delinquent with a specific power to stop time.

It’s no relation I know, but I do think its funny.

He WAS aware that she was Bashin’s mother, the question is whether or not he found out halfway or before he met her.

Either way he didn’t seem too bothered that the kid he was curious about was happened to be the son of the woman he caught in the rain, so I’m going to go out on a limb and say that he knew in advance.

Interesting that he would be willing to become Bashin’s Stepfather, but I guess he was already trying to nurture his growth.

And as we say in the business. “The Jig is up”

So in other words, Bashin and Aibou are quite literally TOO LOUD to be secretive.

To quote Duke Devlin from Littlekuriboh’s abridged series.

“Awww you’re BOTH idiots!”

Duke Devlin – Yu-Gi-Oh! The Abridged Series

RIP eating, its not on the agenda today.

I see he still hasn’t found out where his mother is.

You left a stupid Middle schooler at home all by himself with a cryptic letter with no indication of when you’d get the hell home and you didn’t think the first thing he’d do was race out and look for his MUM?

Bashin left a letter for her, which is nice and cute and all but this may indicate that you have a Son that isn’t exactly getting home until he finds you.

Bashin conveniently gets home shortly after she does, either that or he gave up and just hoped she would get home, hence the letter.

And for his apology and his adorable letter, he gets a big ol’ hug from his Mum.

Hugs are nice, but this feels like an ending, and… we haven’t gotten any card games yet.

And they finally went shopping, and there’s a bunch of shoppers preparing to do irreparable damage to those shirts they’re pulling out that are on sale.

I’m not sure why she wants that small one, its too small for her and Bashin wouldn’t be caught DEAD in that colour.

You have shown us this picture frame MULTIPLE times this episode! At least give us the dignity of seeing the darn guy’s FACE.

Yep, I guess not.

Well, we learned a couple things that might not really be all that relevant, Nine’s name which is entirely pointless to his character other than that he now has something we can call him besides Nine (spoiler: We won’t)

Nine’s in love with Bashin’s Mother, which will probably never come into play again but may explain his motivation to see Bashin grow.

And Aibou’s ability to speak is now common knowledge to his Mother which might not have MUCH relevance.

Other than that, that seemed like a bit of a waste, it was episode-long drama that was resolved at the end of it with the only REAL change being that Hayami is now in a better position to advise Bashin alongside Aibou, I don’t think that was worth 30 minutes of my time. Or the 3 hours it took to write this Blog post.

I wonder what the Batosupi Lecture will cover when there is no Batosupi.

Why is it that the coolest concept of Colour mixing always crops up in Episodes that are COMPLETELY FUCKING POINTLESS

I think I’m cursed.

Anyway they DO actually show off the Blue card Bashin mentioned here, Construction.

So I guess we’ll review it, to get this taste of uselessness out of my mouth.

A Costly Magic, with a simple but powerful effect. It takes all Red, Green or Blue Nexuses in your Trash and deploys them all.

And for reference, yes, Self-milling is actually a thing Blue is capable of doing to a very limited degree, but more specifically, getting cards into the Trash costs much less than putting them on the field.

With Construction, a loaded Trash of Nexuses becomes a crapton of free cards.

Nowadays Deploying out of the Trash is an ability available on quite a fair many Blue Spirits and many of them couldn’t care less what the colour would be.

So this situational and costly Magic has been generally phased out of use, I’m not sure it has too many uses with our current card pool either.

Oh, no there is one card in BS03 that it can combo really well with, BUT I’ll wait for that card to be used before I review it.

And its not THAT amazing since it’s a 6 core combo with max reductions on both cards.

Anyway, I’m itching for CARDS and the Episode preview looks like we’re going to get them, so I’ll see you on the next one!

Toodles!