Sound! Euphonium – Season 3 Episode 4 Recap & Review

Etude With You

Episode 4 of Sound! Euphonium Season 3 starts with Motomu visiting a family member’s grave. Then, at the Kitauji High School, we spot Kousaka, Kumiko, and others practicing for the upcoming SunFes competition. Kanade and Kumiko discuss Kumiko’s time with Sari. She notices Kumiko has changed a lot since she became president.

Then, the two overhear Motomu yelling at one of the band personnel. He’s not happy this woman referred to him by his last name. Motomu apologizes to his bandmate and departs. Kumiko, Midori, Hazuki, and Kousaka discuss Motomu’s behavior at the train station. Midori says Motomu’s been acting this way for the past week. Kousaka brings up a person named Gen’ichirou Tsukinaga. 

Midori says Motomu remained home last week because of family complications and wonders if that’s what’s triggering his sour mood. Kousaka shares intel on Gen’ichirou with the girls regarding his connections to Ryusei High School and Motomu. Also, he was responsible for helping this high school reach nationals. Additionally, Motomu was guaranteed a band spot for this high school but surprisingly transferred to Kitauji instead.

Midori questions if this is bothering Motomu. On the train, Hazuki brings up the notion of Motomu and Gen’ichirou being bitter toward one another. Additionally, Kumiko learns that Ryusei High School is performing after them at SunFes. Midori tells Kumiko not to worry about Motomu ruining their performance. 

Nevertheless, Kumiko and the others plan to keep their eyes on Motomu. Eventually, the SunFes Festival arrives. There, Kanade and Kumiko stumble upon Sasaki, one of Kumiko’s middle school friends. Sasaki is currently motivating her bandmates to perform exceptionally at SunFes. Kanade and Kumiko discuss Sasaki, her band’s catchphrase, and Kumiko’s history with music. 

Then, the two spot Gen’ichirou greeting Taki. Kumiko notices Motomu in the distance and he’s not looking great. Meanwhile, Mayu stumbles upon Suzume, Yayoi, and the others. She notices Yayoi’s skirt got ripped so Mayu sews it up for Yayoi with her knitting equipment. Next, everyone gathers around Taki.

Taki praises everyone for their hard work, especially Kousaka. Kumiko shares a few words, too. Then, we cut away to Sari encouraging Kaho to give it her best shot. Next, Sari and Kaho notice Motomu arguing with someone from Ryusei High School. Motomu tells him to beat it, but the boy says Gen’ichirou’s worried about him. 

Motomu causes a scene and this convinces the Ryusei High School band member to leave. Midori confronts Motomu and Motomu apologizes. After SunFes, Kousaka wanders toward Takekawa and praises her for her effort. Kousaka tells Takekawa to keep up the good work and hopes she’ll land a competition spot. Then, Kumiko meets with Kousaka, informing her that her drum major performance mirrored Asuka’s.

Kumiko spots the Ryusei High School band member who spoke with Motomu earlier. She and Midori confront the band member. The band member informs them that Gen’ichirou is Motomu’s grandfather and that he’s an easy-going fellow. Moreover, he says Gen’ichrou’s worried about Motomu. Midori and Kumiko realize that Motomu’s the sour one in their relationship.

The band member argues that Motomu’s big sister’s passing could be the reason why Motomu’s acting this way. The band member says Motomu’s sister passed away three years ago. Also, he says Gen’ichirou transferred to Ryusei High School to be close to him. Kumiko and Midori ponder these new revelations. Midori tells Kumiko Motomu wanted to study under her after he joined the club last year. 

Midori opens up to Kumiko, sharing details about her friendship with Motomu. She promises to confront Motomu about everything that’s going on. Next, Kanade and Kumiko visit the bass section classroom and notice Midori and Motomu aren’t present. Kanade and Kumiko argue about Motomu, with the former finding his behavior and actions childish.

Kumiko tells Kanade to cool it and promises to hear her out later. Kanade continues acting up so Mayu teases her about her concerns for Motomu. 

Kanade calms down and says they should all focus on band practice. Later, Kumiko visits Taki. Taki suggests adding another contrabass player to the team. Then, Taki opens up to Kumiko, telling her that Gen’ichirou wants Motomu to transfer to Ryusei High School. Yet, Gen’ichirou’s not against the idea of honoring Motomu’s wishes. 

Taki’s unsure how things will go. Later, Kumiko and Midori regroup and go for a stroll. Midori tells Kumiko how things went between her and Motomu. Although Midori told Motomu to open up to her about his feelings, Motomu refused. Instead, he told Midori that he won’t cause her any trouble. Midori feels Motomu doesn’t trust her.

Simultaneously, Kumiko is unsure if she should tell Midori what Taki told her. Kumiko and Midori part ways and Kumiko bumps into Motomu seconds later. Motomu is surprised Higuchi (the Ryusei High School band member) informed her about Gen’ichirou and Motomu’s sister. Additionally, Motomu tells Kumiko how things went between Midori and himself.

Kumiko tells Motomu she knows a lot about him through undisclosed sources and Motomu’s not surprised. Motomu reveals he doesn’t despise his grandfather but they used to be close. However, Motomu knows his sister suffers from emotional issues because of her ties to Gen’ichirou. Gen’ichirou wanted Motomu’s sister to join the competition because he knew she had potential.

Unfortunately, this made things more tense for Motomu’s sister, causing her to fall ill and lose her drive for music. Motomu says this is why he doesn’t want anything to do with Gen’ichirou if it involves music. Also, Motomu says that Midori reminds him of his late sister. Motomu hopes Midori will never change and hopes Kumiko can help Midori maintain her likable qualities. 

Before they part ways, Kumiko insists Motomu speak with Gen’ichirou and Higuchi. She explains how it could benefit Motomu and his bandmates. Then, Motomu departs. Kumiko receives a text from Mamiko (her sister) and catches up with her. After that, we see Kumiko cleaning her instrument at school. Motomu approaches Kumiko, telling her he discussed things with Gen’ichirou and Higuchi.

Motomu visits Midori and asks her if they can play a specific song together. After the two play their song together, the episode ends with a shot of an Agata Festival flyer.  

The Episode Review

Sound! Euphonium Season 3 continues giving Kumiko more problems to solve. Despite resolving things with Sari, this episode has her resolving the family drama between Motomu and his grandfather. Once again, Kumiko displays excellent leadership in this episode, giving Motomu helpful and encouraging advice to help him rid himself of the concerns that plague his mental state. 

On that note, fans will adore having a chapter dedicated to Motomu’s character. Although Kyoto Animation Studios should’ve alluded to this Motomu dilemma in the canonized films, it’s nice seeing Motomu finally receive substantial depth and character development. Additionally, the music-centric scenario involving him and Midori was stunning from an emotional and visual perspective. 

Regarding the music, it was baffling that we didn’t get to see Kitauji’s SunFes performance. Considering how hard Kousaka pushed her bandmates in prior episodes, you’d think Kyoto Animation Studios would’ve given fans a three-minute-long spectacle of that. That aside, it was compelling seeing Kousaka praise Takekawa for her efforts, especially after the tense events that transpired in episode 3 between them. 

Overall, this was a brilliant episode of Sound! Euphonium Season 3. While the Motomu drama feels forced and resolves faster than some may like, it’s great seeing a side character like him obtain meaningful screen time.