Yumeiro Patissiere episode 3 review; During troubled times, stop and smell the roses.

 

       This episode begins with Ichigo recounting her first days at St. Marie, she tells us how naive she was about thinking it would be easy, and we see that the students still have to study subjects like math in addition to their cooking. As Ichigo’s day passes, she’s a complete failure at math, French, and chemistry. Later, Ichigo will be attending a flower arranging class taught by Hanabusa’s mother, oh the stress. Well, in the flower arranging class Ichigo does a lot better because she’s able to make full use of her vivid imagination.

 

       Later, Ichigo has to study for her French class and when she seems lost in the library Yumi tells Ichigo that she’s also bad at French so lets study together. But, once Ichigo starts to study with Yumi she realises that Yumi’s great at French, so Yumi just helping Ichigo out. After studying French, Ichigo tries to stay up late studying about the sweets they’ll be making tomorrow, she doesn’t last long.

 

       Well, today’s assignment will be making choux cream, and Ichigo thinks this will be easier. While Hanabusa and Andou help and encourage Ichigo, Kashino tells her to not drag them down. Well, at first, things go good for Ichigo, but in her enthusiasm she opens the oven too soon and ruins the choux, Kashino calls her a moron. But, Hanabusa tells her there’s still time to make another batch, Ichigo in a rush to get new ingredients bumps into another girl and crashes into the ground, she humiliates herself in front of the teacher and the other students.

 

      Later, while Ichigo is sitting outside, Vanilla tries to cheer Ichigo up, but Ichigo says she might not belong here. Ichigo remembers her friends, her mother and father, and her sister, and she says everything seems so far away. Then Ichigo hears someone playing a piano tune that happens to be her mother’s favorite song and Ichigo breaks down in tears because she misses her family. Hanabusa walks up to Ichigo and offers her a handkerchief which after a moments hesitation she takes.

 

       Hanabusa takes Ichigo down to the lake where he tells her that this is the best place to come when you feel down. Soon, Ichigo smells a familiar scent and she wonders what it is? Hanabusa tells Ichigo to follow him where he leads her to a field of wild roses. Ichigo and Hanabusa talk, and she finds out that his parents met in May at a rose garden, he tells her that’s why even though he was born in October, his name, Satsuki is derived from May. Well, after “smelling the roses”, literally, Ichigo rushes off to practice making choux with Hanabusa offering to help.

 

       Ichigo goes at making the choux with renewed vigor then she remembers that Hanabusa offered to help, so she goes over to where he working. Hanabusa tells Ichigo her choux is burning, but when she rushes back she sees that he was pulling her leg. Once Ichigo and Vanilla finish the choux, Hanabusa walks over and tells her it’s not quite done yet so he makes a special creation using Ichigo’s choux and some candy wild roses.

 

       As Hanabusa offers Ichigo the first taste, Kashino, Andou, and Yumi show up with Kashino saying they have to taste first before passing judgement. As the crew digs into the snack, Vanilla says they better leave some of her.

        Later, that night, we see Ichigo writing in her computer diary a message to her grandmother that she’ll do her best to remain at  St. Marie no matter what. Then we get a live clip of patissiere Watanabe giving us some tips on making choux. Well, that’s all for this episode.

       Well, Ichigo’s struggles to become a patissiere continue in full force, while Ichigo’s energetic, lively, and full of heart, she’s just sometimes too eager for her own good. While Ichigo’s faults might be fatal in normal situations, in the shojo anime world her faults are her strengths. While the other kids laugh at Ichigo her personality traits will keep her going through tough times when others will just fold their cards and leave.

      It seems that Ichigo had her dark night of the soul in this episode. For the first time, Ichigo felt the full force of her separation from her family and friends, when she met with failure and humiliation she lacked the comforting surrounding of her old life to help her get by. But thanks to Hanabusa’s timely intervention Ichigo realised that she does have new friends to lean on and draw comfort from. In some respects Ichigo’s journey resembles the journey of a main character from a shonen anime; try something and fail, train harder, and try again and keeping training until you succeed, never give up.

      As far as Ichigo’s relationship with the princes go, it seems that Hanabusa has got it bad for our sweet Ichigo, Andou seems to be nice guy and nothing more, and I swear I think that sooner or later Kashino’s going to become all tsundere over Ichigo. One interesting thing that was hinted at in this episode is that Hanabusa just might be a pretty boy who loves his own looks a little to much, Ichigo noticed this and took note. I have one bit of advice for Ichigo; never fall for a guy who cares more about his looks than a girl.