Toaru Kagaku no Railgun T Episode 16

Dream Ranker (天賦夢路) is the 16th episode of Toaru Kagaku no Railgun T. Originally planned to air on May 29th 2020, the episode's broadcast was delayed for over two months due to the. It was broadcast on July 24th, 2020. The episode was directed by Horiguchi Kazuki (who also storyboarded the episode) and Sokuza Makoto, and the screenplay written by Inotsume Shinichi.

Mikoto received a certain card from fellow Gekoer Hokaze. This card, called "Indian Poker", claims to enable someone to experience another person's dreams and is currently a secret fad within Academy City. Saten's immediate interest in the topic informs Mikoto of how the card is used, and the latter decides to try it out, only for the experience to leave her with a difficult feeling...

The next day, Shokuhou sits down with Hokaze, who invited her to join her for some tea when they encounter a transaction involving a Dream Ranker supplying S-Rank dreams. Meanwhile, Kuroko and Uiharu set out on an investigation to verify the claims of a suspicious mobile app to pinpoint the locations of accidents that have yet to take place.

Major Events

 * Misaka Mikoto had a first encounter with an Indian Poker card through Hokaze Junko.
 * Mikoto and Shokuhou Misaki dealt with a high-ranking dealer of erotic Indian Poker cards, a boy named BLAU, when they discovered his fantasies involving them.
 * Shirai Kuroko and Uiharu Kazari investigated a suspicious treasure hunt app that indicates the locations of accidents yet to happen. After thwarting one of such indicated accidents, Kuroko confronted the creator of the app, an elementary school boy named Miyama Shaei, who requested for someone to foil his accurate predictions.

Characters
By order of appearance:
 * Misaka Mikoto
 * Hokaze Junko
 * Shokuhou Misaki
 * Tokiwadai Dorm Supervisor
 * Saten Ruiko
 * Shirai Kuroko
 * Uiharu Kazari
 * Aogami Pierce
 * Hikoichi

New Characters

 * Saraku
 * Miyama Shaei

Abilities

 * Mental Out - Shokuhou Misaki, Level 5
 * Electromaster (Railgun-variant) - Misaka Mikoto, Level 5
 * Teleport - Shirai Kuroko, Level 4
 * Precognition (referenced only)
 * Thoughtography (referenced only)

Locations

 * Academy City
 * School District 7
 * Tokiwadai Middle School
 * Tokiwadai Dormitory
 * School Garden
 * Judgment 177 Branch Office
 * School District 17 (referenced only)
 * School District 16 (referenced only)

Trivia

 * The unnamed P.E. teacher is voiced by Fujita Nao.
 * The unnamed female students are voiced by Hoshitani Mio, Kawano Mari, and Aizawa Saya.
 * The unnamed delinquents are voiced by Suzuki Ryouta and Yamaguchi Reigo.
 * As of this episode, all the members of MEMBER have physically appeared in Toaru Kagaku no Railgun T.
 * The censored parts of BLAU's dialogue in the manga are written by Railgun manga editor Ogino Kentarou, but was removed as the editor thought that they are no longer needed. The rewritten censored parts used in this episode are written by Inotsume Shinichi, the writer of this episode.

Referbacks

 * Just like the, the scene of Mikoto telling the Shokuhou Misaki's Clique members to move from  is used as flashback when Misaki recalls via her Mental Out and tells the line Mikoto said to them back then, much to the latter's chagrin.
 * Junko mentions the pair contract promo for the Handy Antenna service that includes a free Gekota strap upon registration. This is a reference to Mikoto and Touma later pairing up for in order for Mikoto to attain the Gekota, as shown in Toaru Majutsu no Index Light Novel Volume 12, which was adapted in .
 * Hikoichi, last seen in , appears again in this episode, this time meeting with BLAU for his Indian Poker cards.
 * The unnamed delinquent seen in this episode was first seen in  chasing Kamijou Touma.

Cultural References

 * The fantasy sequence of Saten and the gang in her exposition regarding sharing dreams is likely a reference to classic Japanese RPGs. In this fantasy sequence, Kuroko is seen only in a bikini, a likely reference to "bikini armor", a trope that is present in fantasy stories where female warriors wear revealing clothes that do not protect them at all.
 * Indian poker, or, is a poker game where the players see the cards of the other players except their own. Each player is dealt one card which is displayed to the other players, traditionally stuck to the forehead like an Indian feather, followed by betting as to whether they have the highest card based on the other player's cards and their bets.
 * BLAU, Aogami's codename is a reference to blau, which is the German and Catalan word for the color blue.
 * The brand of the vending machine in this episode is Yontory, which is clearly a parody of, a Japanese brewing and distilling company.

Differences in Adaptation

 * Hokaze Junko introduces herself to Mikoto in the adaptation, including her name, which she does not do in the manga since her name was still unknown at the time.
 * No children are seen when Saten introduces Mikoto to Indian Poker. This means that her discussion about the artificial psychokinesis toy is cut. Due to this, she mentioned ranks in Dream Ranker much earlier in the adaptation than in the manga.
 * Saten's discussion with Mikoto after the latter's first experience on Indian Poker differs between the source material and adaptation. In the source, she talks more about the benefits of Indian Poker, while in the adaptation, she briefly talks about the treasure app she got on her phone.

Animation Trivia

 * Mikoto's dream sequence is animated with higher hues and lighter outlines to differentiate it from the normal animation.
 * The first few minutes of the ending were replaced by scenes where girl students try to grow cherry blossoms on the tree before the ED proper starts. This results in the full ED debuting in the next episode.

Unanswered Questions

 * Why did Shaei create an app that would predict incidents to happen in Academy City? Does he really have precognitive abilities?
 * At the end of the episode, what are those girls doing with that tree? And what was that about the girl learning something from her dream?