Glass Mask: Episode 10

Two sets of Midori vie for the chance to compete in a prestigious nationwide drama competition. Ondine appoints the aristocratic Ayumi as the heroine while Tsukikage-sensei chooses Maya for their production.

Ayumi’s flawless performance earns the respect and admiration from both the judges and the audiences. Her perfect Midori is a feat Maya cannot replicate. True enough, Maya’s current acting techniques are far from Ayumi’s veteran approach. However, this fledgling actress has the talent to immerse herself into a character and create her own interpretation. Although initially surprised, everyone in the theater reacts positively to Kitajima Maya’s daring attempt. Her ‘new’ Midori sets her in an equal footing with the ice princess, if not better.

The Midori-arc, although not entirely exceptional, closes in a very pleasing fashion.
Instead of following the manga frame-by-frame, the episode director competently carefully trimmed down unnecessary snippets. He also selected appropriate scenes needed for a smoother flow in the narration, in particularly, in the two versions of the play themselves. He opted not to repeat scenes in the play, except for one. He even chose Ayumi’s crying image versus Maya’s teary smile to emphasize the contrast between Maya and Ayumi’s performances. Okay, I think I’m not making sense but…

Glass Mask’s pacing is decidely pushing in a brisk manner yet somehow covers the important points. And I think we owe this to GM’s director.