Seven days...

After K-ON!! 17’s disappointment, I wasn’t holding out much hope for the next few episodes. I was expecting more mindless filler and pointless moeblob antics. Boy, was I in for a surprise. The episode 18 and 19 two-parter totally blew me away. I’d dare say these are my favorite episodes of the entire second season. It was an amazing feeling seeing this return to glory for the HTT girls, especially after the crap we’ve been fed the past few weeks. The jokes are great, the character interactions are spot-on and, for once, the show actually had a overarching plot. Oh, and the girls FINALLY practice too! Who knew K-ON!! could redeem itself so quickly?

Read more after the jump.

RITSU RAGE!

K-ON!! 18 opens with Ritsu and Mio being chosen to play as Romeo and Juliet in a play for the school festival. However, in a sick twist of fate, Mio is chosen as Romeo and Ritsu is chosen as Juliet, which are the polar opposite of their personalities. Despite that, they attempt to the best of their abilities to master their lines, but just can’t seem to nail it due to their mannerisms being so different from their roles. This juxtaposition makes for some hilarious character-based comedy. After that, Ritsu takes Mio to her home, and the two learn that if they pretend to be each other, they can play their roles much more effectively. Then, to help Mio get over her stage fright, they decide to spend a day as waitresses at a maid cafe.

Yes, a maid cafe. Dammit K-ON!!, you were doing so well up until this point! Why sabotage it now?

Their clothes express their personalities.

As you’ve probably already guessed, this part of the episode is pretty bad. The girls engage in the typical maid cafe antics, and Mio’s stage fright doesn’t improve in the slightest. But other than that roadbump at the end, this episode was astounding. The dialogue and character interactions were the highlight; they had me laughing out loud constantly. The strong story really helped to drive things along too; instead of random scenes of cake-eating and tea-drinking, we got to see the girls actually do something. Plus, although the maid scene was a nuisance, I’ll admit that it was cute seeing the girls in maid outfits. Overall, this was a great episode.

Tranquil as a forest...

K-ON!! 19, it starts off with Azusa and Ui getting some food for the festival and pondering whether the play will go smoothly. Mio and Ritsu are going over their lines one final time while the other girls are getting the props and costumes prepared. The play itself, once it begins, is by far one of the funniest scenes in the entire episode. Seeing Risu and Mio speak their lines had me laughing harder than I could bear. Even the girls themselves had to hold in their laughter or risk ruining the play. However, there is one problem: Juliet’s gravestone is missing, which is vital for the final scene of the play. Mugi and another girl then head over to the Occult Club (possible reference or just a coincidence?) and borrow a copy of the Rosetta Stone, thus saving the day.

But then things get even better. The girls decide to have an all-nighter at the school and–by God–PRACTICE. Reread that again. Still can’t believe it? PRACTICE. After constantly teasing, they finally did it. I cried tears of joy. K-ON!!, you have at long last vindicated yourself.

And more cuteness, of course.

I was enthralled from beginning to end with this episode; it was even better than the previous one. The Romeo and Juliet scenes were by far the best, and seeing Mio and Ritsu trying to act our their respective roles is just laugh out loud funny. Nobody could watch these two speak their lines and not at least chuckle at how out of character it is. The interactions were great, there was an actual story and it ended with a good feeling to it.

Overall, K-ON!! 18 & 19 were both great. For once, I actually can’t wait to see the next episode. The show doesn’t have much longer to go, so let’s hope they end it with a bang.