“God” Has Returned: The Second Coming of Haruhi!

I can’t believe it’s real but the just like many sites reported the eighth episode of “The Reairing of Suzumiya Haruhi” was in fact Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody marking the official start of the long-anticipated season 2. Like everyone else I’ve been waiting for new episodes every since watching the last episode of the original. In fact I refused to read the novels to keep from spoiling myself. Thinking about it now it seems a little silly especially if we never got any new episodes until 2012 like I have joked about a few times but thankfully I was wrong.

Since I never read the original story, I had to listen carefully to understand what was going on. Basically it is Tanabata and like always Haruhi is needlessly enthusiastic. She brings a piece of bamboo to the clubroom and explains to everyone that the stars Vega (Orihime) and Altair (Hikoboshi) are 25 and 16 light-years away from Earth. As such it will take years for their wishes to arrive so she orders the SOS-Dan to write two wishes for what they want 16 and 25 years in the future. Haruhi decides to go home first and Itsuki and Yuki follow. Before leaving Yuki hands Kyon a piece of paper but he doesn’t get a chance to read it.

Once the three have left Mikuru expresses her relief and tells Kyon that there is somewhere she wants to go with him. Obviously he is happy and asks where. Mikuru answers three years in the past. Mikuru goes behind him and does something that causes him to lose consciousness. When he comes to he finds himself outside sleeping on Mikuru’s lap. Mikuru is glad he woke up but soon falls asleep on his shoulder. Before long adult Mikuru shows up and gives him some advice and tells him to take care of her younger self.

Carrying Mikuru on his back Kyon encounters the first-year middle school Haruhi breaking into North High. He ends up getting coerced into doing Haruhi’s bidding as always and helps Haruhi draw a large unreadable pattern on the ground with caulk. After Haruhi leaves Mikuru wakes up but realizes that she has lost her time travel device. Looking at the pattern Kyon realizes that Yuki’s note and the pattern are the same.

Mikuru and Kyon go to Yuki’s apartment and enlist her for help after much explanation. She lets them use one of her rooms and leaves the two to sleep. As soon as Kyon closes his eyes the light turns on and Yuki returns. Yuki explains that she froze that room in time for the past 3 years after which Kyon realizes that the first time he visited her place he was simultaneously sleeping with Mikuru in the next room over. Grateful Mikuru and Kyon leave but before departing Kyon asks what the message means. Yuki says it is about the reason she is here but doesn’t elaborate any further. Other stuff happens next and the new ending rolls.

Overall Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody was a nice “first” episode and seems to be setting up a heavy Yuki-centric plot. The only real complaint I have is the distinct lack of dancing in the new ending song. That said I do like it and will definitely do lyrics for it once the single is released. I’m looking forward to the next new episode but the lack of a next episode preview makes it hard to tell when that will be.