As this episode of Don't Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro begins, viewers see a woman humming and shopping for groceries. She picks up a certain pink-haired psychic’s favorite treat, puttsun pudding. Those who know, know. For everyone else, check out The Disastrous Life of Saiki K, and it’ll all become amusingly clear. The woman returns home to find a young man ringing her intercom and entering her front yard when no one answers.
A look of worry and concern spread across the woman’s, Nagatoro’s older sister Anetoro, face. She continues and as she sees him peeking through the window, she snaps a gallery of photos before donning a confident, carefree demeanor and threatening to report him. The episode then continues where the last one left off, with Senpai explaining who he is and his purpose for visiting before Anetoro introduces herself. She invites him in.
Pudding For Everybody
Anetoro brings Senpai some tea and mentions that Nagatoro is napping. She teases him a little bit, joking that she’s heard he does naughty things. Senpai glances at a photo of Nagatoro in a judo gi with a medal hanging from her neck. Anetoro catches his glance and asks if he’s interested in learning more. She admits she was even considering telling him so much more about Nagatoro. He thinks to himself about how he’s never had much of an interest in other people before and reminisces over drawing her. Just as he confesses that he’d like to know more, he and Anetoro are interrupted by a yawning, bedraggled Nagatoro.
She notices Senpai is there and rushes to get herself more put together, simultaneously yelling at Senpai for suddenly showing up without giving her a heads-up. She returns to the room and greets Senpai with a slightly cranky demeanor. Anetoro tries to brighten Nagatoro’s mood with a reveal of the pudding she picked up and the exclusive pudding Senpai brought over. Nagatoro keeps pouting, so Anetoro prepares a special pudding à la mode, complete with whipped cream and several cut fruits. Nagatoro gives in, and Anetoro gives Senpai his own serving. As they’re about to sit and eat the dessert, Anetoro suggests they talk about “everything”, as she so vaguely puts it. Senpai starts to see where Nagatoro may have gotten her menacing aura from. Nagatoro takes them to her room instead to eat the dessert without her sister present.
They eat in her room and Nagatoro pouts until Senpai apologizes for showing up so suddenly. She thanks him for showing up to check on her and they both enjoy the pudding. Suddenly, Nagatoro sees an opportunity for some light teasing and tries to feed Senpai some pudding. He’s nervously hesitant, but she keeps insisting, so he leans forward to take a bite, and they’re both surprised by Anetoro bursting into the room with drinks. Nagatoro urges her to leave and as she walks out, she tells Senpai that they’ll continue their talk about Nagatoro some other time since he’s plenty interested. It’s like she tagged Nagatoro in for a team attack because as soon as she leaves, Nagatoro repeats it back at him with a mischievous tone.
Time for a Rematch
They continue eating their pudding, now with an atmosphere that’s even more awkward than before. At least, until Nagatoro challenges him to the same fighting game he beat her in before. The game starts and they’re both seriously invested. Senpai can see how much Nagatoro has improved, but he’s still able to easily counteract her attacks until she breaks his concentration by mentioning his talk with her sister. She presses him for details, and it’s enough for her to win.
In the second game, the tables have turned and Nagatoro has him on the ropes from the start. She beats him fairly this time and teases him, of course. He blames his lack of skills on not playing the game lately, as every sore loser has at one point or another. She poses a new challenge. If he beats her in the game, she’ll tell him any secret he wants to know. He accepts the challenge and the fight begins. Nagatoro teases him about what secret he would want to know. He tries to fight it off as well as he can and counters her by mentioning that he’d just want to know her first name. She’s a little taken aback and realizes that she really hasn’t given him her first name yet.
Once the shock wears off, she teases him about wanting to know her first name. The game ends with neither of them even laying a hand on the other, as they were too distracted talking. Nagatoro admits defeat but, before she can reveal her first name, Senpai cuts her off and mentions that it doesn’t feel right to earn her first name just from a bet on a game. It’s moments like these where the cultural differences between American culture and Japanese culture really show.
With how much significance and meaning Japanese culture places on first names as opposed to last names, it’s a stark difference from American culture. Knowing her first name carries a certain level of closeness and emotional connection that he feels should be earned the right way.
In the Name of Love
Then, like a real “Chad”, Senpai mentions that if he wants to know her name, then he’ll come out and ask for it properly. After her whole face turns red, she whips her noodle arms at his head and calls him a creep. Then they have an endearing moment, smiling at each other as their eyes gaze into one another. Although that doesn’t last long because Anetoro returns, this time with Nagatoro’s photo album, and suggests they go through it together with Senpai. Nagatoro isn’t feeling it, so she tries to force her out.
After some time, Nagatoro sees Senpai off to the door and bids him farewell. They’re both a little shy and awkward but, as he walks away, she playfully warns him to be ready for more teasing the next day. Senpai walks home, thinking back on watching Nagatoro and Anetoro go through her photo album. He also thinks warmly about her first name, Hayase.
This was a solid episode of Don't Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro, light on the humor and heavier on the development of the relationship between the two leads. Senpai is becoming more and more confident by the episode. Additionally, the way that smaller details about Nagatoro’s past and life outside of school are being drip-fed to the audience is helping to grow her character. This was a fun introduction to Nagatoro’s sister, Anetoro, and it’s always a joy seeing the whimsy that emerges from siblings pestering each other. It’ll be exciting to see more of Nagatoro and Senpai connecting on an emotional level.