Season 2 Overview

The Hidamari Yurilevels Project exists to provide a source of data from which interpretations can be drawn as to whether or not the series gets gayer with time and on which Hidamari is the gayest. As with Season One, I feel it proper to summarize the findings of Hidamari Sketch x365 and to determine larger trends, both intra-seasonal and compared to Season One. The analysis of Hidamari Sketch x365 will observe patterns within the season for episodes and characters, determine an overall Aoki reading for the season, determine overall Ume readings for each character, provide explanations for these figures, and compare the figures with the overall readings of Season One.

Analysis of Episode Readings
The episodes of Hidamari Sketch x365 have been listed below and ranked by Aoki reading:

1. Episode 05: 2.2437A
2. Episode 12: 1.7643A
3. Episode 07: 1.6913A
4. OVA 03: 1.5589A
5. Episode 13: 1.5318A
6. OVA 02: 1.4650A
7. OVA 01: 1.3957A
8. Episode 06: 1.3226A
9. Episode 03: 1.2625A
10. Episode 09: 1.1768A
11. Episode 08: 1.0602A
12. Episode 02: 1.0329A
13. Episode 01: 1.0193A
14. Episode 11: 0.8776A
15. Episode 04: 0.8449A
16. Episode 10: 0.7437A

Figure 1: Aoki Readings of Episodes - Season 2

The linear regression gives a slight increase that is slower than the trend for Season One, suggesting more consistency in Aoki readings.
Episode readings trended to be in the low- to mid-1 Aoki range, and unlike in the last season, there isn’t a clear divide between lewd episodes and non-lewd ones; Episode 04 (wherein Miyako is defiled and Sae and Hiro are caught in flagrante delicto) is probably the closest to having a consistently lewd atmosphere throughout, but it’s only one data point (though notably, it’s the second-least gay episode in the season). As such, a comparison between lewd and non-lewd episodes is not possible for Season Two. This is not to say there is no lewdness in this season, but there is certainly not as much as there was in Season One: there are no swimsuit episodes, fewer visits to the bathhouse, less frequent cosplay scenes from Yoshinoya, and fewer instances of lewdness on the whole. Most yurilevels in this season came from emotional or physical intimacy (touching of the shoulders, head, and hands which is not overtly sexual) rather than sexually-charged comments or situations. This itself is an interesting trend, and if the second season has more yuri overall than the first while being less lewd, then it could still suggest a contrast between lewdness and yuri and therefore that yuri is a pure form of love (consistent with findings in the Season One analysis).
Generally, the high-yuri episodes this season focused on the characters’ relationships with each other: first place by 0.5 Aokis went to Episode 05, which featured the Hidamaris fawning over Chika, while second and third place both featured the Hidamari residents operating as a unit (Episode 12 shows this unit under stress, while Episode 07 shows this unit being formed). The remainder of the high-yuri episodes show the Hidamaris doing things together and being friendly.
Meanwhile, the low-yuri episodes either shifted focus away from the Hidamari residents (such as Episodes 02, 03, 04, 09, and 10) or featured the Hidamaris in situations where they couldn’t convey notable intimacy with each other (such as Episodes 01 and 07), while Episode 11 is an oddity since on the surface it seemed to be high in yuri content, but was held down by its very high scene count which concentrated yuri too tightly to give it a high reading. Overall, Hidamari Sketch is gayest when focusing on the Hidamaris, which is logical.

Analysis of Character Readings
Hidamari Sketch x365 included the secondary characters much more heavily than Season One, a trend reflected in the increased number of data points for character readings:


Figure 2: Ume Readings per Episode - Season 2

On the whole, the main cast rose and fell with the general yurilevel of the episode, particularly Sae and Hiro, and until Natsume gave up on her rivalry with Sae there weren’t any major outliers affecting the overall episode readings. The side characters, who weren’t as tied to the overall readings, significantly varied in how their readings changed throughout the season: Yoshinoya and Chika stayed fairly static, the Landlady declined steadily, Kuwahara flared briefly in the third quarter, and Natsume began to decline before hitting heights no character has ever come close to matching beginning in Episode 10.
The secondary characters had two main impacts on the overall yuri of the season: by providing more data, they balanced and slightly raised episode readings, but their presence also caused there to be more scenes, which again concentrated yuri and would therefore have lowered readings. These effects seem to cancel each other out, and because they still had a minimal presence compared to the main cast it would have been a small impact anyways.

Season Yurilevel Readings
Like in Season One, overall readings were determined by treating the season like a very long episode and adjusting the formulae in the Methodology accordingly. Season Two had 18,489 seconds of scene time across 436 scenes, with a total of 1,159 yurilevel readings recorded.

Season 2: 1.2559A
Hidamari Sketch x365 was noticeably gayer than Season One, with the second season reading exceeding the previous one by 18.6 percent. As mentioned before, this increase is largely attributable to a greater focus on the intimacy and closeness between the Hidamaris. Nearly all episodes stayed between 1100 and 1200 seconds long, so no single episode had a substantially weighted effect on the season reading.

Characters:

1. Natsume: 2.588U
2. Chika: 2.152U
3. Sae: 1.653U
4. Hiro: 1.623U
5. Yuno: 1.320U
6. Miyako: 1.146U
7. Landlady: 0.849U
8. Yoshinoya: 0.834U
9. Kuwahara: 0.305U

Natsume’s string of 4.0 readings in the second half of the season and low scene time of only 688 seconds put her at the top of the chart, with Chika just behind her at second place, primarily earned through her friendliness with Yuno and through receiving most of her readings in long scenes. The gayest Hidamari continues to be Sae, though Hiro is much closer behind her than she was in Season One; this reflects how they primarily appeared together this season, as well as the increased focus on their relationship dynamic with one another. Yuno, who was previously the least gay Hidamari, moved up in the rankings to beat Miyako, which is probably an effect of the higher yuri overall since Yuno is the audience viewpoint character and is therefore more likely to take part in yuri situations. The remaining characters kept the positions they had in the previous season, but each of them, particularly Yoshinoya, got higher readings. Yoshinoya’s increase is in large part because her lewd cosplay obsession was toned down and she spent more time as a teacher, but because she was still a lewd teacher it didn’t help her significantly. Kuwahara ended at the bottom, getting a paltry 5 total yurilevels in 540 seconds of scene time, which was still enough to end at 0.3 Umes, more than Yoshinoya managed the previous season. 


Figure 3: Yurilevels of Tracked Characters - Season 2

The readings of the Hidamari residents specifically are also being tracked from season to season, since the nature of the investigation lends itself to a secondary analysis of which Hidamari is the gayest. The current order is Sae, Hiro, Yuno, and Miyako, but this is still temporary.


Figure 4: Yurilevels of Hidamari Residents - Season 2

Comparisons with Season One
Compared to Season One, x365 had more scenes, used more characters, and was more even in tone and characterization; most of these effects have already been described above. Season Two recorded over twice as many yurilevels, and the larger pool of data works to balance itself out and prevent single incidents having undue influence, which means the season reading of 1.26 Aokis is more credible than the reading from Season One (this does not mean the Season One reading is discredit, just that it has a greater margin of error).
Every character substantially increased their yurilevel readings, with two characters ending above 2.0 Umes for the entire season. Changes in the readings of the Hidamaris are reflected below: 


Figure 5: Yurilevels of Hidamari Residents - Seasons 1 & 2

Again, everybody in Hidamari Apartments got gayer, with Yuno nearly doubling her yurilevels, Hiro substantially rising, and Miyako and Sae having small but noticeable increases.

Evaluation of Expectations for Season Two
The Season One Analysis predicted that Hidamari Sketch x365 would “have more consistent yurilevel readings since the show will have a better-established identity and mood” and that “yurilevels may go up slightly, but for most characters I don’t expect significant increases (with Natsume as an exception)”. While x365 did have a more consistent tone that prevented large disparities of the type seen in Season One, there were large increases in yurilevels across the board both for episodes and characters, so this part of the prediction proved false (except for Natsume, who really did become gayer).

Expectations for Season Three
The most important difference that xHoshimittsu will bring will be the introduction of Nori and Nazuna as new main characters. This will probably cause another major increase in the number of scenes, since there will be more characters for the show to juggle, but the higher number of scenes in this season certainly didn’t prevent the show from increasing in yurilevels and I doubt it will hurt xHoshimittsu. As for group scenes, Nori and Nazuna will weigh down scene readings unless they prove just as gay as the current Hidamari residents, but because they likely will be as yuri, if not more so, I expect further across the board increases in the next season (except maybe for Natsume, since it’s hard to think of how she could get much gayer ).

Season Three analysis will begin within the next day, and at the current pace of investigation will be finished in late March to early April. The revised expected timeframe for an overall conclusion of the investigation is mid- to late-May.

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Corrections:
2/26/2013: A tabulation error in Hidamari Sketch x365 OVA 02 gave Hiro a higher reading than she should have received. Her erroneous initial reading of 1.626 Umes has been corrected to 1.623 Umes.
3/13/13: A math error caused by improperly tabulating the N value of Scene 9 resulted in an original episode reading of 1.7578 Aokis. This has been fixed; the graphs will be updated at a later time.
6/25/13: The season Aoki reading was mislabeled as an Ume reading. This has been corrected.

Hidamari Sketch x365 OVA 03

Hidamari Sketch x365 OVA 03 includes the four Hidamari residents, Yoshinoya, and Natsume, as well as Mami and Nakayama. The first half of the episode surrounds Miyako’s school uniform tearing, while the second half shows Yuno’s attempts to find her sketchbook.

Scene 1: 00:10 - 00:47
C: Yu
Yuno has a dream and wakes up. Her dream is very heavily in symbolism: it depicts her being naked and riding an umbrella through a vast sea during a rainstorm while everything except the umbrella is in black-and-white. As she tries to get the rainwater out of her umbrella, she falls into the sea and watches the umbrella sink beneath her. She too sinks, until the clouds break over her and she sees the light, at which point she wakes up. The main symbols in her dream are nudity, the umbrella, the sea, the rain, black-and-white, sinking, and light. Nudity represents emotional vulnerability and trying to hide something, and the umbrella seems to be an associated image, since it represents a cover for trying to avoid emotions with a leaking umbrella specifically meaning an inability to face her problems. The sea and sinking both represent being overwhelmed by emotion, and this emotion is likely sadness since rain and black-and-white imagery are both associated with depression. Finally, light represents insight or clarity being shone on a problem*. Applying these symbolisms, one interpretation of Yuno’s dream can be that Yuno is trying to hide something (nudity) and unprepared to confront it (leaking umbrella), so tries to ignore it (umbrella) but her inability to do so causes her great sadness (rain, black-and-white). She can’t avoid the thing she is trying to ignore (failure to get the rainwater out of the umbrella), making her feel overwhelmed (sinking), but when her emotional shield is taken away (the umbrella sinking), she can see the solution to her problem (light). None of this ends up being in any way associated with the following episode, so rather than being a Shaft-ian flair of symbolism meant to tie in with the plot, the dream is probably indicative of a deeper, more significant crisis Yuno is facing. What could Yuno be dealing with that she could be hiding, unprepared to confront, and attempting to ignore, and which is impossible to avoid and makes her feel overwhelmed? One possible answer lies in another dream with similar themes that she has in Hidamari Sketch 06, wherein she feels anxiety over her possible lesbian tendencies. Because many female homosexuals report feelings of depression and “hiding from themselves” before coming out, and since so far Yuno has not made any overtures that she would at some point admit to being homosexual, it’s acceptably plausible to extend the same meaning to this dream and conclude that it is also about her coming to terms with her innate yuri tendencies. She gets a 3.


Scene 2: 02:22 - 02:39
C: Yu
Yuno hastily packs. Her response to Miyako’s call is not notably yuri, so she ends with a 0.


Scene 3: 02:40 - 03:04
C: Yu, Mi
Miyako slips on the stairs. Yuno’s attempt to warn her about stairs and subsequent attempt to catch her as she’s falling down all the stairs show concern for her safety that leaves Yuno with a 2 overall (the ensuing physical contact is not yuri in nature since Yuno is trying to catch Miyako, not touching her for the sake of touching her). Miyako thanks her but does not convey significant gratitude, and ends with 1.


Scene 4: 03:05 - 03:38
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno apologizes for tearing Miyako’s uniform. Her insistence on taking responsibility and her desire to repair it show her remorse at having brought Miyako harm, giving her a 2, while Miyako’s assurances that it’s not her fault show her desire for Yuno not to be sad, giving her a 1 since it’s too ambiguously friendly to be yuri.


Scene 5: 03:38 - 04:30
C: Yu, Mi, Mami
Yuno attempts to heal Miyako’s uniform. Mami, an infrequently-seen acquaintance of the two, offers Yuno the use of her sewing set, and Yuno thanks her, a display of friendly terms that gives them each slight bumps. Once Yuno begins to sew a thread into the uniform to fix the strap, Miyako is forced to stop her because she is injuring herself and bleeding onto the thread. Yuno’s self-destructive determination to help Miyako conveys her commitment to ensuring Miyako’s comfort, giving her a large bump, and Miyako’s attempt to stop her shows Miyako’s desire to see Yuno safe from harm. Yuno ends with 3, Miyako with 2, Mami with 1.


Scene 6: 04:30 - 04:53
C: Mi, Yo
Yoshinoya tells Miyako to strip. While her actual intentions are not especially yuri (aside from her willingness to help a female student), her delivery is sufficiently sexual to give her a 3 for the scene. Miyako’s confusion at what she says keeps her at 0.


Scene 7: 04:57 - 05:37
C: Yu, Mi, Mami, Nakayama
Nakayama joins the others after class. She asks if Miyako is okay since Yoshinoya told her to join her after school, displaying a concern for Miyako that helps her slightly. Mami then teasingly asks Nakayama what she thought Yoshinoya meant, likely referring to the lewd atmosphere of the previous scene and altering Mami’s teasing to being a semi-flirtatious comment that gives her a large increase in yurilevels and also gives Nakayama substantial side yurilevels for not objecting. Miyako thanks Mami for the use of the sewing set despite Yuno being the one to use it; since Miyako nonetheless views Mami as being worth gratitude, she gets a boost in yurilevels to end with 1. Mami gets 3, Nakayama gets 2, and Yuno stays at 0.


Scene 8: 05:38 - 06:18
C: Sa, Hi
Sae and Hiro eat lunch. Hiro refers to Yuno and Miyako as “Yuno-san-tachi” (ゆのーさんーたち), suggesting Hiro is closer to Yuno than Miyako, which is in line with the greater intimacy that has been seen in their relationship compared to Hiro and Miyako and as such gives Hiro a slight increase. She gets additional readings for asking Sae what she’s doing after school, showing an interest in her affairs that implies a desire to be part of her plans. When they wonder if it will rain, Sae pulls on a lock of Hiro’s hair and determines there is about a 70 percent chance of rain; while this is probably a joking forecast (unless Sae knows Hiro’s hair well enough to measure its elasticity against humidity), the touching of her hair conveys an intimacy between them that enables such suggestive physical contact, though Hiro’s angry response keeps her from getting readings for it. Sae ends with 3, Hiro with 2.


Scene 9: 06:33 - 07:21
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno and Miyako have art history class (note: this is not a real class). Yuno asks Miyako to take her to the art prep room, and Miyako agrees, but since Yuno’s question is the product of curiosity about the room and not primarily a desire to be with Miyako, they each only get 1.


Scene 10: 07:22 - 08:14
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno and Miyako talk about rumors surrounding the art prep room. These rumors, including anyone who enters gets strange candy, males faint, costume parties are held, and time is dilated, don’t give Yuno and Miyako yurilevels since these are not ideas they themselves have come up with and it is not clear that they believe in them. The principal then warns them about curiosity by alluding to “The Chronicles of Narnia,” a reference which is lost on Yuno and Miyako. This lack of awareness is likely more cultural myopia than a rejection of the series’ notoriously Christian (and thus presumably anti-homosexual) morality, so again they don’t get readings for it, and both end with 0.


Scene 11: 08:23 - 09:11
C: Sa, Hi, Nt
Sae and Natsume talk in the rain. She sneaks up close behind Natsume, who, in her surprise, stammers briefly before becoming defensive and insisting she doesn’t need an umbrella. In a surprising show of understanding, Sae gives her umbrella to Natsume anyway, which Natsume takes while protesting that Sae will be defenseless against the rain, showing both a willingness to accept Sae’s aid and a concern for Sae’s comfort. Sae dismisses her fears and proceeds to get under Hiro’s umbrella and head home with her; umbrella sharing is commonly considered a romantic image in Japanese media, so though Sae and Hiro don’t act especially gay under the umbrella they get yurilevels for the symbolism. As they walk away, Natsume wistfully tells herself that she didn’t want to walk home with Sae anyway, conveying that she actually did and again invoking the symbolism of umbrella sharing to show her romantic affection for Sae. She squeezes the handle of Sae’s umbrella to reassure herself and thanks her for the umbrella (借りちゃった, “kari chatta,” more literally “I borrow” [the implication being “thank you for lending”]), a likely transfer of her emotions for Sae to Sae’s umbrella. Overall Natsume is, as has become the custom, strongly conveying feelings for Sae, and gets another 4, with Sae getting 3 and Hiro getting 2.


Scene 12: 09:13 - 11:53
C: Yu, Mi, Yo
Yoshinoya mends Miyako’s uniform. The room has posters of Yoshinoya in lewd uniforms and positions scattered about the walls, but these are likely expressions of Yoshinoya’s vanity rather than suggestions of yuri, so she doesn’t get yurilevels. As Yoshinoya shows Yuno and Miyako around the room, she notes that the male teacher is consigned to a bare desk in the corner of the room while she occupies the rest of the room, which could again be egoism but could also suggest a disdain for men, which together with Yoshinoya’s anger at him entering the room near the end of the scene is a well-supported interpretation that gives Yoshinoya a substantial increase. When she begins to work on Miyako’s uniform, she also notices that Yuno’s button is becoming undone and offers to fix her shirt; her close focus on Yuno’s clothes gives her light yurilevels. Yuno then removes her shirt, replacing it with a huipii which Yuno takes a quick liking to and compliments Yoshinoya for several times, earning yurilevels for her appreciation of Yoshinoya’s handiwork. Yuno and Miyako get slight readings for thanking Yoshinoya as they leave. Each gets 1, while Yoshinoya gets 3.


Scene 13: 11:54 - 12:04
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno and Miyako go back to class. They each compliment Yoshinoya, but too vaguely and too briefly to get significant readings. Both end at 0.


Scene 14: 12:05 - 12:32
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno and Miyako return home. Yuno expresses happiness at having the strap be fixed, empathizing with Miyako in a way that gives her slight yurilevels for friendliness. Miyako suggests the two draw later, increasing her yurilevels for her desire to be with and do things together with Yuno. She ends with 1, Yuno with 2.


Scene 15: 12:41 - 12:50
C: Yu
Yuno rummages through her room. Nothing to comment on in this scene.


Scene 16: 12:52 - 13:41
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno asks Miyako for help. At the beginning, Miyako is sketching Yuno’s smiling face, a choice of motif that shows that Miyako has positive enough feelings toward Yuno to want to represent her artistically without being prompted. Yuno arrives and asks Miyako if she has seen her sketchbook, likely going to her first since Yuno and Miyako spend so much time together (itself somewhat yuri for their close friendship), and Miyako quickly invites her in and begins looking around in her belongings, showing a readiness to help Yuno that supports this implied close friendship. Miyako has a reading of 3, Yuno 1.


Scene 17: 13:43 - 14:05
C: Yu, Sa
Yuno and Sae ask each other for help finding something. The scene is mostly a setup for a joke about Sae’s absentmindedness, so Sae doesn’t actually try to help at all aside from one somewhat-useless suggestion about how Yuno can search, and because Yuno didn’t seek out Sae except on Miyako’s suggestion she doesn’t get yurilevels for coming to Sae’s room. Both end with 0.


Scene 18: 14:07 - 14:40
C: Yu, Hi
Yuno asks Hiro for help in finding her sketchbook. Unlike Sae, Hiro lets Yuno into her room and gives her advice Yuno can use, showing a desire to help Yuno. Hiro’s advice reminds her about her danish, prompting her to thank Yuno and offer her half. Overall, Hiro is being much more friendly and open to Yuno than Sae was, and she gets a 2 for her efforts, while Yuno gets a 1 on account of her graciousness for Hiro’s help.


Scene 19: 14:40 - 16:55
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
Miyako and Sae join Yuno and Hiro. Upon entering, Miyako apologizes for not being able to find Yuno’s sketchbook, suggesting she was looking for it in her room the entire time between Scene 16 and now and getting moderate readings for her commitment to helping Yuno. Yuno offers Miyako part of her half of the danish, which Miyako blithely eats out of Yuno’s hand similarly to how she did in Hidamari Sketch 03 and getting similar readings for it, though Yuno doesn’t since she is shown to be more shocked than she was in that episode. Hiro also splits part of her half of the danish with Sae, which she agrees to comparatively quietly. Later, Yuno reiterates her affection for the huipii Yoshinoya lent her, getting only a slight increase since she already received significant readings for it. As she goes back to school to keep looking, Sae wishes her good luck and Yuno accepts, giving them each a modest increase for friendliness. They and Hiro get 1 each, while Miyako gets 3.


Scene 20: 16:57 - 18:45
C: Yu, Yo
Yuno looks for her sketchbook at school and runs into Yoshinoya. She seems pleased at being able to see Yuno in street clothes and offers to dance with her, showing an affection for Yuno as a person in addition to a student that is still likely friendly. To help Yuno find the sketchbook, she suggests various places to look in her room before realizing her suggestions are all places pornography could be hidden and suspiciously denying that she was trying to find out if Yuno had any, likely conveying that she indeed was interested in finding out and getting high readings for her curiosity about Yuno’s sexual drive**. Yuno’s denial that she possesses anything of the sort prevents her from getting side yurilevels from Yoshinoya’s impropriety, so she ends with 0 while Yoshinoya gets 4.


Scene 21: 18:49 - 19:27
C: Yu
Yuno finds her sketchbook. No yuri to speak of.


Scene 22: 19:27 - 20:03
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
Yuno explains to the others why she lost her sketchbook. Hiro asks her what she drew, and Yuno responds that she drew the other Hidamaris, but her drawing is very crude and unflattering, enough so to provoke Hiro to try to reassure Yuno. The thought counts somewhat, but Yuno’s clear lack of effort keeps her at 1, while Hiro also gets 1 and the others stay at 0.


Scene 23: 20:03 - 20:08
C: Yu, Mi, Hi
Hiro says good night to Yuno and Miyako. Nothing in their speech conveys anything more than politeness, so 0s all around.


Scene 24: 20:10 - 20:24
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno and Miyako say good night. Each asks what the other is going to do, which, like in Scene 8, shows an interest in each other’s affairs, but does not imply a desire to do more things together since it’s so late, so they don’t get as high readings as Hiro did for the same action in the previous scene. Their wishes of good night convey a stronger warmth toward each other than normal, bordering perilously close on being adorable, bringing them each to 2 overall.


Scene 25: 20:26 - 21:24
C: Yu
Yuno selectively interprets quotes from the day. Her attempt to make everyone’s advice fit the day’s situation includes what the principal said, which shows that Yuno is not trying to retroactively make the women that attempted to help useful but everyone regardless of gender and negates the yurilevels she may have received for this. While in her bed, she draws herself as a clown floating on the sea in an umbrella; unlike in Scene 1, there is no rain, showing the previous depression is not present, and Yuno is dressed as a clown, symbolizing light-heartedness*, so the picture is overall happier than the dream was. Going with the previous interpretation of the dream, and considering she just left a situation of comfort with her friends, it’s possible Yuno is closer to the solution to her sadness (i.e., closer to acceptance of her yuri nature). Overall, she gets a 2.


Scene 26: 21:36 - 21:44
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno and Miyako head to school. Miyako tries to reassure Yuno about an article of clothing she is missing, again showing her desire for Yuno’s happiness, but since it’s brief and not elaborated on it only gets her a 1. Since Yuno’s response isn’t shown, she stays at 0.


Scene 27: 21:46 - 22:07
C: Yu, Mi, Yo
Yoshinoya returns a piece of clothing Yuno left with her the previous day. Like in Scene 6, their intent is not gay but is portrayed as being very much so, with Yoshinoya and Yuno exchanging coy smiles at the end of the scene and the other students confusedly whispering due to not having context. Additionally, Yoshinoya is shown to have been holding Yuno’s collar fastener close to her breast, furthering the lewd atmosphere and giving Yoshinoya a 4 overall. Yuno gets 2, and Miyako gets 0 for her minimal participation in the scene.

Final Yurilevel Readings: (both Aokis and Umes are out of 4)
Episode: 1.5589A
Characters:

1. Natsume: 4.000U
2. Yoshinoya: 3.413U
3. Nakayama: 2.000U
4. Mami: 1.869U
5. Miyako: 1.582U
6. Sae: 1.419U
7. Hiro: 1.390U
8. Yuno: 0.986U

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The three Hidamari Sketch x365 OVAs compare in about the same way the Hidamari Sketch OVAs did: Season One produced two OVAs at 1.3 and 1.5 Aokis, while x365 has produced three at 1.3, 1.4, and 1.5. The seasons themselves are quite different, however, with x365 being generally more consistent in terms of readings.
Character readings for this episode produced some bizarre anomalies: Yoshinoya blew away her previous best of 1.333 Umes with a reading over 3.0, and in general the minor characters far exceeded the Hidamari residents, likely because the episode focused very heavily on problems and solutions instead of character interaction and so the Hidamaris didn’t get as many chances as usual to convey yuri toward each other. Yuno had an especially high scene time this episode compared to the other characters, and as such ended below 1.0. Miyako’s 3 in Scene 19 gave her the top position over the other Hidamaris this episode, though she still trailed 0.3 Umes behind the next character, Mami, while Natsume earned the top spot overall with her fourth 4.0 reading (in only seven episodes, no less, though this is primarily because she only ever appears in one scene per episode).

Further analysis will continue with Hidamari Sketch xHoshimittsu 01.

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*: Dream interpretations are again supplied by www.dreammoods.com.
**: Note: the phrase “Yuno’s sexual drive” is physically painful to write.

Hidamari Sketch x365 OVA 02

Hidamari Sketch x365 OVA 02 includes the four Hidamari residents, Yoshinoya, the Landlady, Natsume, and a member of the Yamabuki Broadcasting Club, Todo, and introduces Nori and Nazuna in brief non-speaking roles. The first half of the episode focuses on Yuno relearning to ride a bike, and the second half focuses on the Hidamaris relaxing inside in the afternoon.

Scene 1: 00:12 - 00:30
C: Yu
Yuno is awoken by sounds outside. There’s very rarely yuri in these introductory scenes, and this trend continues in this episode.


Scene 2: 00:31 - 01:02
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno and Miyako observe prospective pupils entering Yamabuki to take the entrance exams. Sae and Hiro did much the same in Hidamari Sketch x365 01, but while they used the exams to reflect on their experiences together, Yuno and Miyako merely wish the best for the mixed-gender group of students. Both end at 0.


Scene 3: 01:04 - 02:20
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
The Hidamaris recount their experiences taking the entrance exams. It’s not the same as usual reminiscing because none of them took their exams together (we know Yuno and Miyako didn’t, and Hiro and Sae’s dialogue suggest they were separate as well), but they are sharing their recollections of a shared experience that prompted similar reactions, so they all get minor levels for empathy. Miyako and Hiro talk about how Chika did well on her exams a few days ago, which embarrasses Sae, possibly since she’s interpreting their comments as being reflections on her, giving her yurilevels for reading compliments to her into their discussion. Yuno then gets a message from a friend named Kiyomi, who looks to be the same girl that was repeatedly staring at Yuno in Hidamari Sketch x365 01 while they were taking their entrance exams. As such, their friendship (which has been largely off-screen, since I can’t remember her ever appearing elsewhere except possibly as a background character) could be based on an interest Kiyomi has in her based on her appearance and mannerisms, and that Yuno consented to such a friendship gives her strong readings. Kiyomi has acquired a bicycle for Yuno, showing that their relationship is a strong one, and Miyako excitedly grabs Yuno’s hand and pulls her toward the door to go collect it, a display of lewd physical intimacy. Yuno ends with 4, Miyako with 3, Hiro with 2, and Sae with 1.


Scene 4: 03:55 - 05:30
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
The Hidamaris examine their new bicycle and Yuno reveals she cannot remember how to ride a bike. Kiyomi is stated to have given her old bicycle to Yuno upon receiving a new one, which again is strange since, even though they’ve never been seen together, they are good enough friends that Kiyomi is willing to give of herself to Yuno over any other friends she might have. Otherwise, there is little yuri in this scene; while the characters all seem to naturally break into pairs, one of Yuno and Miyako and the other of Hiro and Sae, this is so common in the series and would require too much extrapolations of their motivations that it’s undeserving of yurilevels here. Since Yuno already got her main yurilevels from her friendship with Kiyomi, she gets a 1, while the others stay at 0.


Scene 5: 05:33 - 06:30
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
The Hidamaris take the bike to the nearby riverbank. Hiro teases Sae about her alleged love life by asking if she ever rode a bike together with someone. Sae hastily responds that she has, and speaks about having a boy’s arms wrapped around her as she pedaled, which is almost certainly a lie as the standard convention is for the boy to pedal and the girl to have her arms wrapped around him (the bumper image closing this sequence suggests that Sae’s only experience riding a bike with another person is having her sister hold on to her while she pedals), displaying a lack of familiarity with heterosexual relationships which gives her a significant increase for the scene. In response, Hiro stifles a laugh, Yuno stares ahead in confusion, and Miyako seems to accept Sae’s story as it is, suggesting she finds nothing objectionable with the reversed gender roles, increasing her yurilevels for the display of openmindedness. Sae ends with 3, Miyako and Hiro with 1, and Yuno with 0.


Scene 6: 06:34 - 10:16
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
The Hidamaris go to the riverbank. Yuno and Miyako rest next to each other in the grass, with Yuno seeming very relaxed and comfortable, but Miyako quickly leaves to play with young boys, negating anything she received from lying with Yuno. While Sae and Hiro are also present, they only show up briefly and seem to be sitting more than lying, so only Yuno gets yurilevels for this. In a bumper image, however, they are shown to be lying and furthermore sleeping together out in the open, raising everyone’s readings. When the Hidamaris finally get around to teaching Yuno how to ride a bike, Hiro takes the lead, and, in another occurance of the Hidamari family unit motif, she and Yuno act very much like an encouraging mother and her daughter: Hiro gives lots of advice and motivational messages and helps Yuno balance the bike before she starts off, with Yuno reciprocating each time and at one point musing on how sad it is to grow up, suggesting a childlike mental state brought on by her and Hiro’s actions together. One piece of advice that Hiro gives is proven incorrect by Sae, who is aware that Hiro is left-handed, showing a detailed knowledge of Hiro. When Yuno corrects herself, Hiro hangs her head in shame, prompting Sae to place her hand on Hiro’s head to comfort her. Sae gets 2, Miyako gets 1, and Yuno and Hiro each get 3.


Scene 7: 10:24 - 12:47
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
The Hidamaris eat lunch. There are further familial interactions in this scene: Sae tells Miyako not to spit her soup broth, conveying a parental authority, while Yuno asks Hiro to help making noodles like a child excitedly asks to help her mother. Both give the involved parties moderate readings, so everyone will end above 0. Yuno gets significant yurilevels for her warmth toward the other Hidamaris in opening her bicycle for general use by the others and in thanking them for accompanying her to the riverside on a day off from school; she gets a large boost while the others get smaller ones as side readings for going with her in the first place. Finally, Hiro praises Sae on her reflexes for learning to ride a bike at a young age, but Sae’s reluctance to accept her compliments prevents her from getting yurilevels on par with Hiro’s. Yuno and Hiro end with 3, Sae with 2, and Miyako with 1.


Scene 8: 12:47 - 14:35
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi, Todo
Todo asks the Hidamaris for an interview. While this initially seems very yuri (after all, why single the otherwise mundane Hidamari tenants out for an interview unless there is some underlying interest?), Todo gives her reason as being that she wants to help new students since she’s about to graduate, asking the Hidamaris for help since they have a reputation for being weird even for art students. As such, her interest in them is not yuri as much as it is gawking, so Todo receives no initial yurilevels for conducting the interview. Miyako remembers that she is the same person who ran the announcements at the Yamabuki athletic day, suggesting she has paid close attention either to Todo or her fellow female students in general, and either way getting an increase in her yurilevels. When Todo says that the Hidamaris are seen as strange, Sae singles out as explanation her former neighbor Misato, which Todo mentions having heard of; since they are both describing her in unflattering terms, neither one receives readings. Miyako then initiates a moment of reminiscing about the silica gel packets in her floorboards, which the other Hidamaris join in on, giving all of them slight increases. Todo is left in wonder at their death-defying experiences, but whether or not this is yuri admiration is unclear. She gets a 1 for the possibility, while Miyako gets 2 and the other Hidamaris end with 1.


Scene 9: 14:40 - 15:20
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
Todo leaves and the Hidamaris and Miyako asks Hiro for snacks. Nothing here is specifically yuri, but Yuno and Miyako give off a friendly air that gives them each a 1.


Scene 10: 15:21 - 16:31
C: Sa, Nt
Sae starts toward Berry Mart but stops to help Natsume. While they initially start arguing as usual, the scene shifts when Natsume says she has to return a napkin to one of the exam students. Sae offers Natsume a ride to the station on her bike so she can find the student, which makes Natsume freeze up in bashfulness. After a more commanding repeat of her offer, Natsume uncomfortably gets on the bike, but still needs to be told to hold on to Sae. As they ride off, Sae looks onward, focused on going to the station, while Natsume’s world dissolves around her into bubbles, pastels, ribbons, and cheerful piano music. Though it’s not externally visible, aside from a slightly larger than usual blush, the other symbols in the scene convey that Natsume is very happy about getting to have such close contact with Sae, and she gets a 4. Sae, for her friendly offer of aid, gets a 1.
Also worth noting is that this scene briefly shows Nori and Nazuna walking away from the school, their first appearances in Hidamari Sketch. While they don’t contribute to the scene and aren’t tracked here, it’s interesting to note that Nori is wearing a suit and tie while Nazuna is wearing a pink scarf, suggesting that when they appear they may form a masculine-feminine dynamic like Sae and Hiro have. I look forward to their introductions.


Scene 11: 16:33 - 17:40
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
Sae returns with snacks. Hiro asks about why Sae took so long and what Sae was doing with Natsume, a show of interest in Sae’s affairs that leaves her with a 2 for the scene. Sae gets minor side yurilevels for going along, and combined with her bringing snacks she gets a 1. Yuno and Miyako stay at 0.


Scene 12: 17:42 - 18:31
C: Yu, Mi, Yo
Yuno and Miyako go outside and see Yoshinoya. Upon noticing her, they call to her and run to the other side of the street, giving them stronger readings for wanting to see her outside of school. Yoshinoya does not seem particularly pleased to see them, staying at a consistent mood throughout, so she does not get reciprocal readings. Yuno and Miyako each end with 2, Yoshinoya with 0.


Scene 13: 18:31 -18:54
C: Yo
Yoshinoya and the principal talk in the hall. She doesn’t convey any yuri here and ends with 0.


Scene 14: 18:57 - 19:27
C: Yu, Mi
Yuno and Miyako sit alone in the dark in Yuno’s bedroom. Yuno refers to them collectively getting new juniors soon, referring to it as something her and Miyako will go through together and thus conveying a bond that can withstand change and possible adversity, and says she wants to treat them like Sae and Hiro treated her and Miyako, which is a positive appraisal and thus gets her levels for complimenting them. Her apprehension that she’ll fail to live up to Sae and Hiro’s standard is only partly assuaged by Miyako’s assurance that she’ll be a good sempai, so while Miyako gets moderate yurilevels for trying to cheer her up Yuno gets rather limited side yurilevels from it. Both end with 3.


Scene 15: 19:27 - 20:05
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi, La
The Landlady visits Hidamari Apartments. She is moving Hiro’s exercise items out of Room 203, which are shown to include an exercise DVD closely resembling the ecchi OVA “Training with Hinako,” giving Hiro very high readings for buying and consuming such lewd media. The Hidamaris seem troubled by the thought of the Landlady carrying everything on her moped by herself, and agree to carry some of it on the bike. They each get 1 for their concern, with Hiro getting 3 (since she could have actually used the DVD for exercising), while the Landlady gets a 0 for staying focused on her own issues and showing minimal care for the Hidamaris.


Scene 16: 20:08 - 20:59
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi, La
The Hidamaris help the Landlady move items. The Landlady assumes the bike is Sae’s, but this is most likely because Sae is pushing the bike and not because the Landlady considers bicycling a masculine activity and thus associates it with Sae. She then heavily implies to the to the Hidamaris that she would like to have a bike, although they aren’t shown to give it to her and Yuno uses it later, so nobody gets the same sort of levels they received in the previous scene for refusing to give the Landlady that particular bit of help. Sae and the Landlady end with 1 each for the ambiguity, while the others get 0s.


Scene 17: 21:05 - 21:26
C: Yu
Yuno thinks about what she can do with the bike. She considers going to the bathhouse but does not think about going with the others, so she doesn’t get yurilevels for it. Overall, she stays at 0.


Scene 18: 21:39 - 22:07
C: Yu, Mi, Sa, Hi
Yuno joins with Miyako, Sae, and Hiro after parking her bike. Sae asks Miyako why Yuno isn’t with her, showing that Yuno and Miyako not walking to school together is an anomaly that needs to be explained, and Miyako explains, showing that Sae is correct. They each get 2, Hiro and Yuno stay at 0.

Final Yurilevel Readings: (both Aokis and Umes are out of 4):
Episode: 1.4650A
Characters:

1. Natsume: 4.000U
2. Hiro: 1.794U
3. Yuno: 1.739U
4. Sae: 1.381U
5. Miyako: 1.147U
6. Todo: 1.000U
7. Landlady: 0.573U
8. Yoshinoya: 0.000U

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This episode had a series of long scenes in the first half that significantly raised the overall readings, with the first seven scenes composing nearly two-thirds of the overall yurilevel count for the episode. Yuno and Hiro in particular had high readings in these scenes, and ended with very strong showings in the character rankings, beaten only by Natsume’s third 4.0 Ume reading (impressive, but expected). Miyako had the lowest readings of the Hidamaris for getting low readings in these scenes, while Sae fared comparatively poorly for the same reason.
Because of the rapidly approaching end of Hidamari Sketch x365 and the imminent beginning of xHoshimittsu, future Hidamaris Nori and Nazuna were teased in this episode, and their introductions next season is sure to make for new and interesting dynamics. My current hypothesis is that they will be about as gay as the other Hidamaris, which, due to the calculation of scene readings (sum of character readings divided by number of characters), could end up not raising yurilevels even though an increase has always been presumed. On the other hand, everyone could get significantly gayer, and since xHoshimittsu hasn’t actually begun to be analyzed it’s still too early to say if they will; my memory suggests they might, but I can’t remember particular instances where anyone is notably yuri (which is actually very good for the investigation, since it’s equivalent to watching everything the first time and thus reduces the chance of confirmation bias in the analysis).

Further analysis will continue with Hidamari Sketch x365 OVA 03.

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Corrections:
2/17/2013: Removed notice that subtitles were by Nutbladder, since this was the intended subtitling for the Season 2 OVAs.
2/26/2013: A tabulation error originally gave Hiro a reading of 1.827 Umes when she should have received 1.794 Umes. This has been corrected.