This episode is the first one to showcase two of my favorite things in the season: The fantastic dynamic between the main 3, and everyone's favorite character, Yagiuda. It establishes how the three of them tackle Santa related issues as a team and they bounce off each other very well, with Amaya's groundedness, Fuyumura's... creative thinking, and Sanda's wish to just be a normal kid. Yagiuda on the other hand is the first real insight at what adulthood looks like in the Tenshi era for someone that doesn't have access to deaging operations like Ooshibu. He hangs onto his credibility as "the secret weapon" to try and still have a dignified life, and he does so effectively, I must admit. It's also worth mentioning that Itagaki still creates very compelling internal issues for Sanda with the reveal of each new Santa related power, pushing him further away from his ambition to just be a regular teenager. Now that Fuyumura, the girl he likes, is asking for his help, he continues to set his desire aside for the sake of seeing the girl he likes smile once more. Like in my Beastars review, it bears reiterating: Saru Science is the right animation studio to adapt Itagaki Paru's work, with how faitful the style is and how flashy the effects are. 10/10, no notes.