Michelle Topham 
Ganbare Douki-chan — Episode 4, “My Coworker Who Came Back To Pick Up What He Left Behind”
Ganbare Douki-chan Season 1, Episode 4 opens up where we last left Douki-chan. Drunk at a restaurant and being watched over by Douki-kun, who has gone to eat dinner with her rival-for-his-affections Kouhai-chan.
And is it just me, or does his little laugh when he sees her seem to only prove he likes her far more than she thinks he does?
Soon he is carrying Douki-chan home, as she sits passed out on his back. Yes, he is her knight in shining armor.
But it is then we also get a flashback to 15 minutes earlier when, as Douki-kun and Kouhai-chan are at the train station about to get on a train, he suddenly tells her he has forgotten something at the restaurant and must go back.
It is obvious too, as he rushes away with her shouting “Good work today”, he has few if any feelings for Kouhai-chan as he doesn’t even bother to look back.
Kouhai-chan, of course, isn’t giving up just yet as she declares “Fine, but I’ll definitely make you mine” because, I guess, she hasn’t quite realized yet you cannot make someone fall in love with you.
Not when they seem to already be in love with somebody else.
We then flash forward to an empty train, where Douki-chan sits leaning against Douki-kun as the train heads to her station, only to be woken up and in extreme embarrassment when he tells her it’s her stop.
But, of course, you mustn’t miss that drop of sweat rolling down his face as she holds his arm and mumbles in her sleep.
Because, yeah, he likes her.
In other words, when will Douki-chan stop being so self-conscious and get a clue? And when will Douki-kun be more aggressive?
Of course, like the first three episodes of Ganbare Douki-chan, this one ends on a bit of a cliffhanger too, but this time with Douki-chan resurrecting what could have been her worst Valentine’s Day yet.
Watch Ganbare Douki-chan Episode 4 to find out how.
I love love love Ganbare Douki-chan
And again, like with the first three episodes of this utterly lovely anime short, I cannot express just how much I love Ganbare Douki-chan.
A love that is in the characters, all who are beautifully written and who are able to convey all of their idiosyncrasies and foibles in episodes that are just a few minutes long. In episodes that tell an entire story, with a somewhat beginning and end, in just seconds. In an art style that really is gorgeous.
And in a main character you desperately want to succeed.
You can watch Ganbare Douki-chan Episode 4 on Crunchyroll, and read recaps for Episode 1, Episode 2 and Episode 3 here on Baozi Buns.
And, by the way, isn’t that ending theme just killer?
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