Cinderella Girls S1 E12

## Plot

All the girls are at a reclusive place by a beach to practice for the upcoming Idol Fest. It's a training camp. All of the units are rehearsing their songs and dances. Also, how hot must it be in Japan during the summer if there are *three fans* in the same room? The producer has an announcement to make. He will be gone for awhile, so Minami will be in charge as coordinator. Also, the girls have a new group dance to learn and a new song. Morning will be for unit practice, and afternoon for the group song. So, anyways– OH GOD IT'S A GIANT CICADA! Sorry about that. I hate bugs. I didn't know cicadas lived in Japan. I swear I'll never be able to get that buzzing out of my head because of *Animal Crossing*. Erm, ***anyways,*** the girls practice the new song, but they can't get in sync with each other. That night, all the girls are uncertain about whether or not they can learn the group song in time. Mio still feels guilty about quitting and what happened at the last concert, so she plans to make up for it at the Fest. Uzuki wants to smile the whole way through this time too. Chieri is so nervous that she drops her cup. Kirari goes to get a dustpan and broom. Miku and Riina may be a unit, but they still fight a lot. They're not suddenly gonna be besties right away. They think the new song is tough. Kirari and Minami talk. Kirari knows that some of the girls are nervous, so she's starting to wonder whether or not it's a good idea to have a group song. Minami feels a little helpless. She's supposed to be the coordinator, but she doesn't know what to do. She can't sleep that night, which Anastasia notices. She says that when she couldn't sleep, her mother would hold her hand at night. She offers her hand to Minami. The two hold hands. Minami thanks her in Russian. Spasiba. Thank you. Aw. Hormones… overloading… with butterflies… and feels… Ranko also can't sleep. She wasn't in sync with anyone during the dance because she's never performed in a group before. At least all the other girls have someone else. Poor Ranko must feel so alone… Don't be upset, Ranran! The next day, the girls are a bit more in sync, but Ranko is still ahead of the others. They're really tired. Minami has everyone take a break. The job as coordinator is stressful, but Minami does it anyways, and with a smile. Then she gets an idea. She cancels practice for the day in favor of a special program. They'll be competing in a relay. Three person units will be teams. Ranko will be with Minami and Anastasia, and Riina and Miku will be the Masters of Ceremonies. Rin and Mio don't really understand why she's doing this. Mio wants to practice the group song more. During the race, Minami's team has a lead, but Mio is fast. Rin is thinking about what Minami is doing. She isn't focusing and drops the baton. Minami's team retakes the lead and wins it. Rin was a close second though. The next contest is a race for candy. Kanako obviously finds it first, but Mio wins it because she's faster. Then the three, technically four, legged race. Anastasia, Minami, and Ranko are much slower because they're not as in sync. New Generations wins it. Towards the end, the last three girls trip, but the others cheer them on. They're able to finally get in sync and complete the race. They also battle with water guns. Ranko's umbrella is apparently waterproof. Then they jump rope. The challenge is to do it thirty times. As Ranko says, "If our hearts become one…" The girls finally get what all the contests were about. They were to have them all be in sync with each other to perform the group song! Minami, you're brilliant. That's an ingenious idea! Plus it allowed the girls to have some fun and boost their morale. That night, Minami reveals that until she participated in the Cinderella project, she never thought about becoming an idol. She was happy meeting all of them and making her unit debut, but she was also uneasy. Then she was able to split that uneasiness in half, and they overcame it together. She's glad that she went on that adventure. She can't wait to see what's next. The girls nail the group song. The producer returns and wants to assign a stage leader to coordinate things at Idol Fest. The girls unanimously decide on Minami. I loved this episode! I still ship Minami and Anastasia. You'd have to be crazy not to, and I felt that there was some subtle subtext between Kanako and Chieri, who I've also starting shipping. Minami is able to step up to the challenge, and she's a great leader.