Fridge Horror
- In Episode 5, we are introduced to Yukari's (ahem) driving behavior in a move called Take Our Word for It. Around the end of the episode, summer vacation has ended and the girls are looking through the photo's from their summer vacation at Chiyo's summer home. As Tomo hands the photographs to Sakaki, the girls mention that they notice something behind her on the photograph what resembles a person's head. A few sound effects of a speeding car and ambulances during reaction shots should clue you in. Apparently, Osaka even knew the guy!
- If Osaka had gone through with what she was going to do with the knife, she would have stabbed her own hand or wrist.
- Whenever Osaka reminisces about her previous life in Osaka, she always brings up what people thought of her there, saying they called her slow and spacey. The implication is that Ayumu was bullied by her classmates.
Fridge Logic
- In an early episode/chapter, we learn that Yukari has some major dirt on Nyamo {"Love letter, love letter..."). Not long after, Osaka, Tomo, and Yomi see Yukari and Nyamo having an argument as they head down the street. Yukari is overheard mentioning that she once caught Nyamo taking "Commemorative photos" outside of Senior Takeda's house. So we can infer from that that Nyamo had a crush on, and wrote a love letter to Senior Takeda. Now, remember, when Nyamo and Yukari attended the school, it was an All Girl school, so Senior Takeda was another girl. The Les Yay between Yukari and Nyamo is oft-commented on, but it may well be that the dirt Yukari has on Nyamo isn't that Nyamo wrote a love letter to her, but perhaps to Senior Takeda, who may or, given Nyamo's single status, may not have reciprocated those feelings.
Fridge Brilliance
- Osaka's idea about breaking chopsticks neatly as a prediction of luck seems to be another act of her Cloudcuckoolandery, nothing but superstition, but it actually has realistic merit. For comparison, other girls of Azumanga also believe in some degree of superstition, such as by praying for their exams at the Shinto shrines in episode 23. It's a simple and common act of wishing for good fortune. Osaka's personal ritual is fundamentally different, though, and has genuine human psychology backing it: It's a basic fact that success in any task, particularly those of personal significance, influence confidence in future successes. In other words, success breeds future success, due primarily to the rise in self-esteem. Unlike the shrines, which are based on an external locus of control (i.e., they're asking a higher power for help), Osaka's ritual is based on her own skills, and founded on her own belief that she can overcome personal obstacles. Typically, Osaka suffers from clumsiness and an inability to focus, among other personal faults of which she's aware. But through the act of breaking chopsticks neatly, she demonstrates to herself—or from Osaka's perspective, possibly even to a higher power—that she is not always as incapable as she is often made out to be. The luck for which she asks is based on an internal locus of control, her own abilities. That's what makes the ritual inherently valuable. While to others it may seem insignificant, to Osaka it is genuinely meaningful, and is an observable, empirical demonstration that she is capable of overcoming her own personal challenges in her life.
- As pointed out by a YouTube comment, the seemingly Gratuitous English phrases Chiyo's dad spouts in Osaka's dream make sense if you read into them more closely. He's practicing his English because Chiyo is going to America; he wishes he was a bird so that he could fly overseas to see her. "I wish I were a bird" is also a line from a famous commercial for a Japanese ESL school, suggesting that it might be Osaka's English lessons seeping into her dreams.
- Word of God says the reason cats and other small animals tend to run away from Sakaki or bite her is because her height and her stern expression seem threatening to them. However, Chiyo's dog, Mr. Tadakichi, doesn't mind her at all. Not too surprising, considering he's a Great Pyrenees, one of the largest dog breeds in the world, so her height wouldn't be quite as intimidating from his perspective.
