Toaru Kagaku no Railgun T Episode 02

Daihaseisai (大覇星祭) is the 2nd episode of Toaru Kagaku no Railgun T. It will be broadcast on January 17th 2020.

With the opening ceremony concluding safely(?), the Daihaseisai finally begins. Once again, Saten hears about a certain urban legend—Shadow Metal—and receives a scolding from Kuroko. Meanwhile, in the pair competition where Mikoto was supposed to participate, because of her partner Kuroko's arrangement with Kongou, the Fuujin-Raijin combo instead makes their appearance.

In the Three-Legged Race, the very first event, despite being targeted by the other schools, they show off their slight edge in using their abilities and made a good show. Amidst the sporting events unfolding between espers that are enjoyed by audiences inside and outside of Academy City, on the other side, there are people who are planning for something...

Synopsis
At a certain hospital, Konori Mii delivered a special request from Kuroko: a special wheelchair that Kuroko thinks is better suited for Judgment duties than the ones provided by the hospital. Mii voices her concern for her colleague for wanting to go back to duty at once. Kuroko, however, is determined to return to work so that Uiharu would not exert too much for her sake. Meanwhile, the Management Committee is relieved about completing their Level 5 scouting mission, but can't help but have a bad feeling about the opening ceremony about to unfold.

The Daihaseisai starts the opening ceremony with the Athlete's Pledge, with Shokuhou Misaki and Sogiita Gunha on the spotlight. The pledge starts as normal until Gunha begins to improvise on the pledge with his own flavor of guts, ending it with an Amazing Punch that sends the surrounding attendees flying.

The events start immediately after the opening ceremony. Elsewhere, Ruiko and Uiharu talk about an urban legend called "Shadow Metal", a mysterious (and potentially rare and expensive) substance created when hundreds of espers clash. Ruiko is promptly scolded by Kuroko for spreading rumors and getting into trouble, but she manages to distract the Teleporter by showing footage of Mikoto and Kongou as they prepare for the Three-Legged Race event.

As Misaki loses her advantage in the 100-meter Dash event due to her sling bag taken by Judgment, the Three-Legged Race starts with the participants of Airin Girls' High School wrapping the other competitors, Mikoto and Kongou included, with bandages, giving them a headstart. The girls eventually get caught in the "hamster trap" set by the participants of Ninoudefuzoku Middle School, while the representatives of Habatobi High School simply swatted them hamsters aside.

Habatobi High School remains on the lead on the home stretch to the finish line, with Ninoudefuzoku Middle School and Tokiwadai Middle School on the pursuit. The competitors of Ninoudefuzoku slipped from the friction trap left behind by Habatobi, while Mikoto maintained their pace using magnetism. The Habatobi pair then exposed their trump card, with Amime manipulating friction on their feet and Todoroki igniting the water particles in the air to launch themselves into the finish line. However, the fire caught a piece of bandage stuck on Amime's shoulder, causing panic to the pair. Due to the quick thinking of Mikoto and Kongou, the Habatobi pair who was launched off-course landed safely. The defeated Habatobi pair later realize that iron sand was mixed with the asphalt from the start of the race, which was prepared by Mikoto in case they would take the lead.

Tokiwadai Middle School wins the Three-Legged Race, although Kuroko is jealous because she is unable to join her as Mikoto's partner. Meanwhile, Ruiko stumbled upon a seemingly familiar girl struggling with her phone. After receiving help from Ruiko, the girl contacted a certain Professor about her successful infiltration of Academy City who promptly gave her a mission as an operative of MEMBER.

Mikoto meets Uiharu and Ruiko after the Three-Legged Race, who celebrate her victory. Although pleased by her performance, she considers a change of clothes, but realizes that she would be unable to catch up to the next event if she does. Suddenly, Mikoto's mother Misuzu appears, much to the amazement of the two. Misuzu, who bears a striking resemblance to Mikoto "except for certain areas", quickly becomes curious about "him" that Mikoto is mumbling about, and Ruiko and Uiharu filled Misuzu in on the details, much to Mikoto's shock.

At the main stadium, after watching the Tug-of-war Event takes place, Kinuho and Maaya talk about their competitive spirit, and they wonder if they still need to learn about fighting with others. Then, they witness a group of students who want to "overthrow Tokiwadai Middle School" as they are approached by Kongou Mitsuko and her posse. After showing amazement towards Kongou's graceful handling of the situation, a Tokiwadai student approached Kinuho and Maaya, revealing that they cannot find Mikoto for the next event. Here, they saw someone who closely resembles Mikoto (who has been seen sulking about not being able to join the events) and they take her to the venue of the next event. Moments later, Mikoto stumbles upon her lookalike and is surprised to discover her playing for Tokiwadai.

The Balloon Hunter is about to begin, with Tokiwadai Middle School facing another school which another operative of MEMBER, Baba Yoshio, currently belongs to. As Baba prepares for a plan to "render her powerless", he stands against Tokiwadai, with Mikoto's clone unaware of what is about to unfold.

Major Events

 * The Daihaseisai finishes its opening ceremony with the Athlete's Pledge led by Shokuhou Misaki and Sogiita Gunha. The Athlete's Pledge went into slight disarray as Gunha began improvising his lines.
 * The sporting events began after the opening ceremony. Among those are the 100-meter Dash, Tug-of-war, Three-Legged Race, and Scavenger Hunt. Nagatenjouki Academy remained undefeated in the events they participated, while Tokiwadai Middle School won the Three-Legged Race.
 * Operatives from MEMBER mobilize themselves during the bustle of Daihaseisai.

Characters
By order of appearance:
 * Konori Mii
 * Shirai Kuroko
 * Watanabe
 * Tsukuyomi Komoe
 * Shokuhou Misaki
 * Sogiita Gunha
 * Misaka Mikoto
 * Kongou Mitsuko
 * Misaka 10032
 * Misaka 10032's cat
 * Misaka Misuzu
 * Awatsuki Maaya
 * Wannai Kinuho
 * Keitz Nokleben

New Characters

 * Aoki
 * Todoroki
 * Amime
 * Kumokawa Seria
 * Pirate Radio DJ
 * Kotarou
 * Kobayashi Satori
 * Kirifu Megumi
 * Xochitl (Masked)
 * Professor (Voice-only)
 * Baba Yoshio
 * Kouzaku Mitori

Abilities

 * Clairvoyance - Konori Mii, Level 3
 * Electromaster (Railgun-variant) - Misaka Mikoto, Level 5
 * Aero Hand - Kongou Mitsuko, Level 4

New Abilities

 * Explosion Creation - Sogiita Gunha, Level 5
 * Ability summoning earth pillars - Aoki
 * Ability manipulating anything touches (Telekinesis-type)- Unnamed Airin Girls' High School student
 * Ability breaking down anything to raw material - Unnamed Airin Girl's High School student
 * Telepath whose ability is limited to only hamsters - Two unnamed Ninoudefuzoku Middle School students
 * Ability involving manipulation of coefficient of friction - Amime
 * Ability involving manipulation of water particles - Todoroki

Locations

 * Academy City
 * School District 7
 * Heaven Canceller's Hospital

Referbacks

 * By the time Mikoto met her mother in the Daihaseisai, Mikoto already finished participating in the Scavenger Hunt event, where she was featured dragging a "spiky-haired boy".
 * Awatsuki Maaya and Wannai Kinuho's conversation about not having fought before reveals that their participation in the Silent Party is not recognized by canon.

Cultural References

 * Xochitl's phone resembles the one used by Kuroko, with a compact design and pull-out film-like screen.

Differences in Adaptation

 * With Fukiyose Seiri's on indefinite hiatus, Konori Mii instead takes over her scenes in the episode.