REVIEW: ‘Let’s Make a Mug Too,’ Episode 7 – “Himeno’s Piece”

Last time in the Pottery Club, Himeno learned about the 41st Minoware Contest, a pottery contest held annually in the city. This year’s theme? “Ideas for including Minoware in Your Daily Life”, which seems easy and fun! Only this isn’t all fun and games. The Pottery Contest is serious business, and now… Himeno’s feeling kind of stuck. Let’s Make a Mug Episode 7 is a direct continuation, picking up right after the events of episode 6. Will Himeno figure out a direction for her contest piece? Let’s find out!

Episode 7, “Himeno’s Piece,” focuses on Himeno figuring out just what she wants to create for the contest. Unlike Mika -who offers up one of the silliest cold opens yet- Himeno isn’t having much fun. She has even less fun when Touka forces her to, once again, calm down so she can focus.

Post-OP, we’re back with Himeno on the middle of a sizzling Japanese summer. As the cicadas cry and her fellow club members work, she tries, once more, to figure out what she’s going to make. At first, she thinks of the beautiful piece her mother made in episode 6… only to hilariously replicate a very spindly piece herself. But that’s not Himeno’s creation. It’s just mimicking what she saw. She still needs something that has her own mark. So, naturally, she consults her fellow club members, all of whom chime in with their own advice. It all comes down to, “Make something you like” which is still quite hard, when you think of it.

By a few minutes in to Let’s Make a Mug Episode 7, it’s clear that Himeno is kind of hung up on the theme. Thankfully, Touka reassures her that she will figure out what to do, and will find her own crafty way. It’s just a matter of throwing clay at the wall -figuratively- and seeing what sticks. Naturally, inspiration hits soon after, which leads Himeno to start making plates. Turns out, she has a knack for them… until she tries to smooth out the edge and ends up with a hilarious mess.

However, Himeno’s not one to give up. She’s resolute, and in the back half of Let’s Make a Mug Episode 7, proves that she can definitely rise to the occasion, as viewers knows she can. And once again, her mother -rather, the memories of her mother- are going to guide her to figure out how to create in her own amazing way.

In the live-action segment of Let’s Make a Mug Episode 7, the voice actors try their hand at pottery again. This time, they’re getting completely hands on. No pottery wheels allowed: we’re talking about sculpting using hands and creative minds only! As always, they’re quite psyched up to do some pottery crafting, this time at Voice Workshop, which they visited before in episode 2. Honestly, these segments are always such a delight, in large part because they breathe fresh life into the anime. Plus, it’s fun to see the scenes in the anime come to life with this gaggle of actors. They’re always quite enthusiastically hilarious, especially since there’s a meal at the end of all of their hard work!

Let’s Make a Mug Episode 7 really speaks to creating, creativity, and the struggle to make something that comes from the heart. In a way, I think this is the best series to tackle that this season. I say that even if Let’s Make a Mug Too is not necessarily saying anything dynamically new. Sometimes, the simplest messages resonate, and Let’s Make a Mug Episode 7, as well as the rest of the series thus far, really resonates with me as a creator. 

And that’s the true beauty of Let’s Make a Mug Too. It’s how the series encourages a fun, enjoyable relationship with creation and creativity. While the anime does, by and large, function as stellar advertising for real-life city, Tajimi, it also puts a lot of good into the world. In a time of uncertainty, grief, and general stress, I find it immensely relaxing to sit down with the anime and live-action segments once a week. It reminds me to have fun while creating, to celebrate the small moments, and to make and create from the heart. Wise words from Let’s Make a Mug Episode 7, and my new favorite “healing” anime that hopefully, viewers and readers are enjoying for themselves.

Let’s Make a Mug Too is now streaming on Crunchyroll.