Outside of a couple good jokes and a rather sweet speech from Kao at the end, this is still just ticking off the boxes for all your favorite shojo tropes. I do appreciate them delving into Nagisa’s backstory a bit more during the scene with the coach/teacher, but this story is not breaking the mould.
Rivalries flare and battle is declared and Kiryu basically drags Kao out on a date via subterfuge (yeah, that’ll be a great basis for a relationship). With the story’s outcome never in doubt, however, this is Kanye 2020 levels of wasting the reader’s time on something that will amount to nothing.
There’s not a lot to really comment on in this one. Nothing surprising at all and never a moment’s doubt where things are headed. It’s very competent, and I like the series, but it’s not top tier or anything.