Episode 8

***Skate 8 - Yuri vs Yuri! The Horror!! Rostelecom Cup, Short Program** (第8滑走: 勇利VSユーリ！おそロシア！！ロシア大会 ショートプログラム, Dai hachi Kassō: Yūri VS Yūri! Oso Roshia!! Roshia taikai shōto puroguramu)* is the eighth episode of *Yuri!!! on Ice*.

## Official Preview

At the Rostelecom Cup in Moscow, Yuuri Katsuki vows to flaunt his love to the people of Russia. Yuri struggles to escape the curse of local hosting. It seems that JJ, a new force from North America, may also be standing in the way...!?

## Synopsis

The Rostelecom Cup is the final competition of the Grand Prix series, taking place in Russia. Yuri is excited to return to Moscow to reunite with his grandfather. Yuuri tries to avoid attention at the hotel lift lobby, but finds himself among competitors - Korean skater Seung-gil Lee, Czech skater Emil Nekola, and Italian skater Michele Crispino, the latter accompanied by his younger sister Sara. During the competition, Yuri, upset that his grandfather will not be watching him, finds it difficult to pull off his short program. Yuuri on the other hand, though having delivered a flawless performance, comes in second to Canadian skater Jean-Jacques Leroy. In an unexpected turn of events, Yuuri and Victor discover that Victor's dog Makkachin has choked on manjū (sticky buns) and Victor returns to Japan, leaving Yuuri alone in Russia.

## Summary

At the Sheremetyevo International Airport in Moscow, Yuri, Lilia, Yakov, and Mila arrive. As they're walking through, a crowd of fans begin cheering on Yakov's team. Yuri suddenly tells Mila to watch his bags before disappearing. Mila reports this to Yakov, but he isn't surprised, as his family in Moscow was supposed to be coming and picking him up.

Outside the airport, Yuri looks around the crowded area before spotting his grandpa. His grandfather calls out to him and Yuri happily runs over to him jumping into his arms. This ends up hurting Nikolai's back, and he falls over, clutching at it. Yuri apologizes and says that he forgot he had a bad back.

In his car, Nikolai tells his grandson that he made his usual pirozhkis for him. Starting to eat it, Yuri asks his grandfather if he had ever had a pork cutlet bowl. Yuri says that he had them in Japan and they were really good. Looking ahead, Nikolai asks if the pirozhkis aren't good enough. Yuri, embarrassed, apologizes and says that it wasn't what he meant.

On the radio, the host says that their national hero, Victor Nikiforov has returned to Russia as a coach in the Figure Skating Grand Prix Series. With pirozhki still in his mouth, Yuri listens intently.

At a Star Hotel, a reporter asks how Victor feels about returning to Russia. Another asks when he will return to skating. Victor says that until the Grand Prix Final is over, he won't comment on any future plans. He says that now, he sees a lot of potential in Yuuri Katsuki's skating. As he's saying this, Yuri walks in. Victor continues that he'd like them all to focus on Yuuri at the Rostelecom Cup. Jealous at his comment, Yuri thinks to himself that he's in it too. A reporter asks that if Yuuri has that much charisma, that doesn't he want to face him as a fellow competitor. Victor smiles lightly and Yuuri seems to brace for his answer. Victor suddenly points at Yuri and exclaims, causing the group of reporters to turn to him.

Victor walks over to him and pulls him into his side, taking off his sunglasses. He asks them if they have seen the short program that he had put together for Yuri. Yuri slaps the coffee our of Victor's hand, spilling it. He tells Victor to stop acting like he's still the top Russian figure skater and says that he will be the star in this event. This doesn't seem to bother Victor and he continues to smile at him.

At an elevator, Yuuri presses the button waiting for it to come. As he does this, Seung-gil Lee walks up and begins waiting for it too. Yuuri nervously thinks to himself that, unlike the Cup of China, there's no one there that he's friendly with.

As the elevator arrives, Michele Crispino, his younger twin sister Sara Crispino, and Emil Nekola seem to be having a heated discussion. With Sara against his chest, Michael yells to Emil that if he wants to date his little sister, he'll have to beat him first. Emil laughs and apologizes, causing Michael to become angrier. Sara scolds him and says that they were just going out for a bite. Michael says that Sara's leagues above any other women and calls Emil an idiot. Sara notices Yuuri and Seung-il watching, so she greets them and asks if they want to come eat with them, before Seung-gil cuts her off, curtly refusing her offer. Sara scolds him, saying that if he's going to turn a lady down, he should be more considerate. Seung-gil stares at her briefly before asking if he gets any benefits out of being friendly with her. This shocks Sara and her brother, and Michael asks how dare he speak that way to Sara. As they continue arguing, Yuuri sneaks off to the adjacent elevator.

As the door is about to close, Yuri sticks his foot in and asks why he's sneaking around. Yuri says that it's been a while. The pair awkwardly stand in the elevator together before Yuuri wishes him good luck at the Rostelecom Cup. Yuri tells Yuuri that he'll suffer a miserable defeat there in Moscow and that he's going to have Victor stay in Russia. Though Yuuri doesn't seem bothered by this and continues to smile at Yuuri, after thinking it over, he begins to worry.

He thinks to himself that if he can't rank higher than fourth in that event, he won't make it to the Grand Prix Final. He wonders what Victor will do if he doesn't.

An announcer begins explaining the skaters' current standings and on screen. It shows the following places:

* 1: Otabek Altin
* 2: Christophe Giacometti
* 3: Phichit Chulanont
* 4: Jean Jacques Leroy
* 5: Yuri Plisetsky
* 6: Yuuri Katsuki
* 7: Seung-gil Lee
* 8: Michele Crispino
* 9: Emil Nekola

He explains that only the top six skaters will compete in the Grand Prix Final. Currently, there are only two confirmed qualifiers: Otabek Altin of Kazakhstan who placed second in Skate America and then won the NHK. The second is Christophe Giacometti who placed third in the Cup of China and first at the Trophee de France. The last four spots in the Final will be fought over by the following skaters:

* Canada's Jean-Jacques Leroy, who's on a roll after winning on his home turf at Skate Canada.
* Korea's Seung-gil Lee, a newcomer to the Grand Prix Series who made great strides by placing second in the NHK Trophy.
* Michele Crispino of Italy, here today with his sister, Sara after placing third in the NHK Trophy.
* Emil Nekola, a rising star from the Czech Republic who took third at Skate Canada.
* Russia's Yuri Plisetsky, who made a brilliant senior debut with a second-place finish at Skate Canada.
* Yuuri Katsuki of Japan, who placed second in the Cup of China. He will be skating in the final group.

The Rostelecom Cup results will also determine whether Thailand's Phichit Chulanont will advance to the Grand Prix Final.

Back in Japan, Minako complains that she keeps getting disconnected from the live stream and that she should have gone to Russia. Yuuko Nishigori scolds her three daughters, who are watching the live stream under a blanket, though they start crying and saying they don't want to go to bed and that they want to watch it.

Back in Russia, the announcer says that Group One's six-minute warm-up has ended.

Seung-gil Lee is shown with his coach; annoyed, she asks if he's listening. She says that everything he does is for 2018 Winter Olympics Pyeongchang. She starts to tell him what he should be focused on, but he ignores her and skates away. The announcer introduces him to the crowd. He explains that in his first event, the NHK Trophy, he drove the crowd wild by skating to this music, "Almavivo."

He begins skating and the announcer says that his first jump will be a quad. So far in the world, only Seung-gil Lee has landed this jump in competition. He successfully lands his quadruple loop. Seung-gil thinks that the base value is 12.0.

The announcer explains that his theme this season is "greed" and that he'd like to approach this season with a different masculine sex appeal than before.

In Japan, Minako, blushing, says that his theme is similar to Yuuri's and that it's sex appeal inflation. Hidden under a blanket, the triplets remark that he's overflowing the masculine sex appeal.

Seung-gil continues to skate, and the announcer says that even with the quadruple loop under his belt, with the arsenal necessary to compete on the world stage, Seung-gil still wants to break new ground and personally requested to skate mambo.

As he skates, he attempts a triple axel but falls. He thinks to himself that he had enough rotation. The jump was in the second half, so he gets a 1.1 multiplier, which means a 9.35 with a deduction of 1. He then does a triple Lutz, triple toe loop with no mistakes. He again thinks that with a 1.1 multiplier, that got him 11.11 points. And prepares to do the final element, a step sequence.

The announcer remarks that the step sequence is very passionate. He says that his polished execution should be well-received by the judges.

Watching on her laptop, Minako says that his face is expressionless, but his steps are out of this world. The triplets remark that he's evolved even further since the NHK Trophy.

Seung-gil finishes and the crowd begins to cheer. At the side, Sara, watches and blushes, Michele stares as Emil, annoyed, and Emil looks on, twirling his hair. Emil remarks that it's a hard act to follow. Sara says that it was hot, while Michele remarks that he's never seen Emil nervous. Emil says that the three of them should go to Barcelona together.

Seung-gil Lee receives a score of 91.83, a personal best. He is currently in first place. The announcer introduces the next skater, Emil Nekola.

Seung-gil Lee tells reporters that cheers from the crowd never affect his performance. As he says this, the crowd cheers and he turns to look.

Emil begins his skate, and Michele, annoyed, notes that he's good at jumping, but his performance is lackluster. Sara thinks that once Michele's done, it's almost time for group 2.

Jean-Jacques Leroy winks and asks Victor and Yuuri if they heard that Emil landed a quadruple loop. Yuuri takes out his earbuds out and says that he didn't hear him. Jean says that Victor did the same jump at last year's exhibition and says that he wants to see it again. Victor says that he can't recall.

It's announced the Emil received a score of 82.43, putting him in second place. Emil shouts to Mickey asking if he'll one-up him. Mickey ignores him, though he tries desperately to get his attention, as he kisses his sister's hand.

The announcer says that he will skate to "L'homme Arme" from the movie Destiny of Knights. Thinking to himself, he hopes Sara will see his chivalry. He lands a triple axel and Sara cheers. He thinks to himself that he's defeated every man who's tried to approach her so far and that he wants to skate with her forever. He says that his love will take a back seat to no man. He attempts a quadruple Salchow, but falls.

He thinks that he doesn't want her feeling down because of him as her short program is coming up. As her older brother, and as a man, only his love, the kind that doesn't rely on physical love, can protect her as a lady.

The next jump combination is a triple Lutz, triple toe loop, but it turns into a triple Lutz, triple loop; a combination with very high difficulty. Among active skaters, only his sister attempts this combination.

Michele thinks that he's sure she'll be able to jump that combination like he just did. She shouldn't worry, because they'll always be together. He finishes and the crowd cheers.

Sara thinks that he has to reach a place where he can win without her being around. He goes to her and they embrace. She thinks that if something doesn't change, they'll both go down.

Victor ties Yuuri's skates and they look seriously at each other. Michele receives an 89.65 and the twins embrace once again. Yuri realizes that his grandfather isn't coming.

In Japan, Victor's dog, Makkachin, looks at a package of steamed buns at the family altar and begins drooling. Minako complains that she is still unable to connect and that the event isn't aired on live television. It starts to work right before Yuuri's turn. The triplets yell out good luck, but their mother yanks the blanket from on top of them and yells at them to knock it off.

The crowd begins cheering for Victor as the announcer tells how Yuuri won second place in the Cup of China with the power of love. And wonders what kind of performance he'll give now. Victor happily waves to the crowd before Yuuri suddenly pulls Victor close to his face using his tie. Blushing, Yuuri says that the performance has already begun. Victor says that he's right. Yuuri tells him not to worry, as he'll show his love to the whole of Russia before he skates away.

Yuuri thinks that that was really embarrassing as he starts his skate, but he knows that before the crowd can intimidate him in enemy territory, so he has to intimidate them. Yuuri begins his performance, starting by licking his lips and blowing a kiss. The announcer introduces him as 23 and from Japan, and that he's skating to "On Love" Eros." He says that Yuuri has been beating his short program personal bests since the first even in the series, but that he'll need to finish fourth or higher to advance to the Grand Prix Final.

Yuuri thinks that if he loses at the Rostelecom Cup, it may become the last time he can skate in that program with Victor as his coach. He thinks that maybe no one in Russia, or even the entire world, wants him to win, thinking that runs chills down his spine, but he knows that he's the only one who can change that world.

Captivated by Yuuri's performance, Victor thinks to himself that when Yuuri's competing away, where expectations are lower, he's much more motivated. But, at any rate, this is his best form so far.

Hisashi announces that his first planned jump is a triple axel from a spread eagle. He completes this cleanly. He then completes a quadruple Salchow. Smiling, from the side, Victor cheers him on. He then does a quadruple toe loop, triple toe loop, nailing his combinations. From the sidelines, Yuri is taken back that Yuuri's improved so such since the Hot Springs on Ice event. After this, Yuuri flawlessly completes his performance and the crowd gives him a standing ovation.

Yuuri waves as people throw stuffed animals and food onto the ice. He thinks to himself that his skating must have gotten his message across.

Yuri curses to himself, and bitterly thinks that he thought he'd be able to perfect "agape" by having his grandfather watch. Lilia takes off his jacket for him and he approaches the rink where Victor is standing. Victor continues to cheer on Yuuri but is distracted as he sees Yuri beside him. As Yuuri exits the rink, he is also shocked at Yuuri's appearance and begins staring at him. Annoyed, Yuri tells him off, calling him a pig. The two are still awestruck as Yuri walks past him, Yuuri commenting that it's his "real agape." They both say to each other that he looks great and happily turn to watch him.

Women in the crowd begin cheering while Yuri talks to his coaches. Yakov tells him not to get nervous because it's the Rostelecom Cup. Lilia tells him that all the work he did in practice won't betray him and to have confidence in himself. Their words begin to fade and Yuri thinks that he can't hear very well. Panicking, he tells himself to calm down. His hearing suddenly returns as it's announced that Yuuri received a score of 109.97. Victor pulls Yuuri into his side, congratulating him. Hisashi notes that he surpassed his personal best again and is now in first place. With Yuuri sitting in a chair, Victor, knealing, pulls Yuuri's foot close to his mouth and kisses his skate. Yuri, revolted, watches in disgust. When Yuuri notices him watching, he yells "Davai!" Victor stands up and begins cheering him on as well. Yuri begins shaking with rage and rushes out to the center of the rink, leaving his angry coach behind.

Hisashi announces Yuri as the usurper skater of Russia, of age 15, and that his program was choreographed by Victor Nikiforov. Yuri thinks to himself that he isn't so down on his luck that he needs them to cheer him on. Hisashi notes that he's skating to "On Love: Agape." A different arrangement of the music used in Yuuri's program with an opposing theme. Yuri curses to himself, thinking that he's not feeling agape at all because he's angry.

Hisashi notes that his first jump is a triple axel. Yuri falls but quickly gets back up. He angrily thinks to himself that since the previous year, he hadn't missed that triple axel until now. The announcer announces his next move: A flying sit spin. He notes that his position is quite beautiful. Yuri thinks that he's been pouring blood, sweat, and tears into this since his humiliation at the Onsen on Ice. He thinks that he just lacks overall experience. The announcer says that the first quad will come in a combination. He successfully completes a quadruple Salchow, triple toe loop. The announcer notes that he had a fantastic jump combination with great height and flow. He says that with such polish, it's hard to believe that he only started doing that this season. He lands a quadruple toe loop, as the crowd cheers and the announcer exclaims that he truly has remarkable talent.

Yakov thinks to himself that even when Yuri wasn't at his best, he always analyzed his performance mid-program to make a strong comeback. Lilia mentally tells Yuri to have pride in himself as a work of art until the very end. Yuri thinks to himself that it's really difficult, but finishes without a problem as the crowd cheers. The announcer says that he has delivered a beautiful short program in response to the local supporters' high expectations.

The crowd begins throwing stuffies onto the rink and, somehow, white cat ears manage to fall onto Yuri’s head, to his disdain, and the girls squeal how cute he is. As he leaves the ice, he finds JJ standing there clapping slowly. He moves to the side and says "ladies first." Furious, Yuri thinks that he forgot that there was someone even more annoying than Yuuri and Victor.

Yuri receives a score of 98.09, putting him in second, with Yuuri still in first place. This leaves him and his coaches unimpressed and annoyed.

Jean-Jacques Leroy then skates to an original song composed just for him, "Theme of King JJ." It is revealed that he won third place in the Grand Prix the year before, so he is in a good state for this year's competition.

He starts off his program with a quadruple toe loop followed by a triple toe loop, which immediately differentiates himself from the other skaters who opt to put all their jumps in the second half of their performances. He then lands a triple axel a little while afterwards. The members of the audience are shown to be visibly excited, as many of them sing along to his theme.

He concludes his program with a quadruple lutz, which is a jump that is so difficult that even Victor has not attempted it so close to the end of his programs. With all of his jumps having been perfected, JJ earns a 113.56, which is even higher than his personal best in Skate Canada and puts him in first place. He kisses the ice once his performance is over.

Yuuri steps outside upon receiving a phone call from home, where his sister informs him that Makkachin has choked on some meat buns at home and is not doing well. Yuuri tells Victor to return to Japan immediately, but Victor is shown to be conflicted, as going back to be with his dog will mean that Yuuri will be without his coach for the free skate.

At this moment, Yakov enters with Yuri and Lilia. Victor hurriedly tells Yakov, "You're the only coach for me," which leads Yakov to falsely conclude that Victor had decided to go back to training in Russia. However, this is not actually his intention. Victor then asks Yakov to coach for Yuuri while Victor is gone, which leaves everyone in the room in a state of shock.

## Characters in Order of Appearance

Yuri Plisetsky

Lilia Baranovskaya

Yakov Feltsman

Mila Babicheva

Nikolai Plisetsky

Victor Nikiforov

Yuuri Katsuki

Seung-gil Lee

Michele Crispino

Sara Crispino

Emil Nekola

Hisashi Morooka

Minako Okukawa

Yuuko Nishigori

Axel, Lutz, and Loop Nishigori

Jean-Jacques Leroy

Makkachin

## Trivia

* The official synopsis mentions that JJ is from North America, which is the continent where Canada is located in, and should not be confused with the United States of America.

## References

1. ↑ GPS最終戦ロシア大会の地・モスクワで「ロシア中に僕の愛を見せつけるから・・・」といきごむ勝生勇利。
地元開催の呪縛から逃れようともがくユリオ。そこには北米の新勢力JJが立ちはだかり・・・！？