REVIEW: ‘Dance Dance Danseur,’ Episode 9 – “I Wanna Get Better, Too!

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Dance Dance Danseur is a seinen anime produced by MAPPA. Having shared their first kiss at the end of the last episode, Murao and Miyako are excited to spend more time together and explore their feelings. But their newly developing relationship, combined with a sudden conflict in the summer class may mean some rough roads are ahead for someone close to them in Dance Dance Danseur Episode 9.

This week’s episode explores a lot of different, but highly emotional topics for our characters. I don’t want to spoil them, as several are surprises that the viewer won’t necessarily see coming. At the center of it all though, are Murao and Luou. Let’s start with Luou.

Having witnessed last week’s episode-ending kiss, Luou is already in a fragile state. Miyako has been his shining light since he moved into town and he fears that she is going to disappear into her newfound relationship with Murao. While this is playing in the back of his mind, Luou finds himself confronted by their teacher, Oikawa, about the style and way he has been trained. The confrontation rattles the young man, as things he’s always seen as rock-solid are called into question.

The rest of Luou’s time in Dance Dance Danseur Episode 9 revolves around his reaction to these mounting pressures. So much can change so quickly sometimes, I can’t blame Luou for not adjusting well to any of it. It would be easy to say that he should just talk to someone, but as someone with social anxiety and self-esteem issues, I can vouch from experience that “just talking to someone” can feel far more nightmarish than the emotional turmoil you’re already in. After all, if you talk to someone, you might not get the response you are looking for, or your worst fears could come true. Talking can be terrifying.

While Luou struggles, Murao is faced with a surprise that puts him in a crisis of his own. While Luou’s struggles are mostly with his past, Murao faces big choices about what he wants from his future. The hardest thing about Murao’s choice in Dance Dance Danseur Episode 9 is that there is truly no wrong answer. Both options before him provide wonderful opportunities and which he should choose ultimately comes down to what he wants most for his future.

The final character I need to talk about in this episode is Oikawa. While the teacher is undeniably cold and lacks any sort of charisma or empathy, she does know a lot about her craft. And I’m not talking about ballet, but rather, teaching. She has a moment with Murao where she makes a handful of observations that feel fairly harsh, but I cannot help but suspect she is probably on the mark with them. Despite her being cast as a sort of antagonist, Oikawa feels like she knows what she is talking about here. I appreciate the show allowing her a moment to show that she is considering more about her students than just how they dance at this moment. She does what she does because she knows how hard their craft is and there is always more to a skill than just how well you do it.

The animation in this episode keeps up through the roller coaster of emotions that make up this story skillfully. It delivers all the strain and pain that harder plot beats cause, allowing the viewer to fully appreciate what the characters are enduring.

When all is said and done, Dance Dance Danseur Episode 9 delivers another great episode. I’m looking forward to seeing where next week’s narrative will lead the story.

Dance Dance Danseur Episode 9 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.