Sometimes I watch an anime, and I get amazed at just how well that anime portrays a certain simple act. Years ago I was quite impressed by the level of skill and animation used to depict crying in Alien 9, years before Kyoto Animation would make it a trademark of sorts with their Key adaptations.

Such a moment hit me again the other day, when I was watching Episode 8 of Taisho Yakyuu Musume. Here, we see team strategist Kawashima Noe giving one of the best blush moments I’ve seen in a long time, and it’s not like these baseball girls are any strangers to blushing; why the main character herself has eternally rosy cheeks. This one was different, however. It was this moment where Noe suddenly realized the position she was in and her face reacted accordingly. Not shown are the before and after moments, which serve to make this little scene even better.

It was, to put it mildly, so moe I could die.

In the meantime, Taisho Yakyuu Musume continues to please, as it continues its trend of combining 1920’s feminism in Japan with cute girls and catchy theme songs. If you’re worried about the show pandering too much, it really doesn’t.