While Best Student Council, Volume 3 isn’t the Yuriest volume of this series, it has some notable moments where Yuri fans, depending on their level of desperation, can project some. ^_^

The volume begins with one of the stupidest plots I’ve ever encountered in an anime, for which it has to get some credit. The school futsal team has all come down sick and they can’t play against the (of course) rival school. So, it (of course) falls to the Supreme Student Council to protect their president’s reputation. Because you wouldn’t want to, say, ask the *outdoor* soccer team to be replacements. No, of course you wouldn’t. The episode explores every possible cliche it can – ojousama laughing rival president, absurdly corrupt referee, incredibly stupid physical gags, absurd ringer for the rival team, etc. etc. The few good moments are watching Kaori continue her level of extreme competence, and the utterly absurd gag that wins the game. As a self-aware parody of “one for the gipper” type episodes, it was splendid.

The second episode is where more desperate fans may wish to linger, as we look back upon the origin of Nanaho’s and Kanade’s friendship – and the larger nature of their relationship. Personally, I don’t see it as “Yuri” but as a really excellent story of close friendship/shinyuu. But then, I’m not desperate. ^_^

This is followed by a brutal two-episode arc where they beat us over the head with the least funny situation ever – the bratty kid who runs around and destroys things because she can. This is followed by the episode where we learn who the bratty kid is and why we shouldn’t kill her; although I was never convinced, myself. I adore Seina, I do. She’s my favorite character. But regardless, Minamo needs to be punished thoroughly. Perhaps permanently.

The one amusing thing about the arc is the lame play the Council puts on to raise funds to rebuild their dorm. It was so awful I can only imagine that they asked a real child to write it. ^_^

(True story. Last Thanksgiving my nephew, who is 12, asked me if I published comic books. I said I did. He asked me about what, and I told him that they were stories of women who loved each other. He then went on to tell me what they *ought* to be about. The story he suggested was a pretty standard fantasy quest-type plot, but rather intensely dull, because he RPGS and those usually have pretty basic plots – since the main focus isn’t in the complexity of story, but complexity of the challenges/opponents. When he was finished – and of course his plot included a male hero and no women – I said, quite honestly, that comics like that was already being published by about a million people, so my books were about things that *weren’t* that. He didn’t really get it, and then we got into a slapping contest, which sort of killed that conversation. The point of the story is, you want an excruciating plot, ask a 12-year old.)

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 6
Characters – 7
Yuri – 2
Service – 2

Overall – 6

So, no, this volume is not super high on the Yuri-o-meter, and you need Yuri goggles for what little there is, AND it has an annoying little sister plot, but for all that, I’ve seen worse.