Hmm. Rewatching Dive to the Future, Iām even more concerned for Makotoās involvement in The Final Strokeā¦ Iām sure someone has probably pointed all of this out before, but here are my thoughts.
First, looking at Mikhail and Rinās conversation in Episode 12.
And then it cuts to Makoto, with his name being called immediately after Mikhail finishes his story.
Prior to this, we also have a scene with Makoto telling Nagisa and Rei a story about how Haru is very naturally gifted at swimming. Reinforcing Haru as a prodigy, just like Ryuuji was.
There are a few other potential candidates for this parallel other than Makoto, so Iāll knock them off before I continue:
Rin - There are a myriad of reasons why I doubt Rin would be the one to be injured, most importantly, shots from the upcoming race between Haru and Rin have been featured in the trailers. While you could certainly consider them best friends and rivals, the fact that Mikhail was not the one to be injured, and a third person is very deliberately featured disqualifies him.
Ikuya - Ikuyaās relationship with Haru could potentially fitĀ ābest friendā if looked at from Ikuyaās perspective (ignoring Hiyori). If he were to nearly drown during a race, Haru would be forced to choose between winning and rescuing him. However, his arc has clearly been tied up, and it wouldnāt make much sense for him to struggle with his swimming again when things have been resolved. He is much more of a rival than a best friend to Haru at this point.
Sosuke - As Rinās best friend, rather than Haruās. Heās still recovering from surgery, and it could make some sense if he were the one to have anĀ āaccidentā that Rin had to make a choice over (and we have several shots of Rin looking pained in the trailer). However, the parallel between Ryuuji and Haru seems far too strong and intentional (itās blatantly pointed out) to have Rin be the one forced to give up swimming to go see Sosuke (he also seems fine in the trailers and is featured far more prominently than Makoto).
So why Makoto? Why do I believe this parallel will actually be featured in The Final Stroke based on the trailers?
Haru being told he has to discard any attachments he has in order to win.
Haru talking about doing things alone.
The first point is extremely close to what happened to Ryuuji.Ā āAfter all he gave up to be in that race, he didnāt win.āĀ What is Haru being told to cast aside? Rin and Ikuya are competitive rivals. They challenge him, he challenges them, and they are all driven to work harder to win. Theyāre past any hard feelings that may come along with losing to each other; thereās not much to give up.
Haru is being told to give up his support. Anything that may be considered a distraction. For Ryuuji, it was his best friend getting in an accident. If something were to happen to Makoto ā who is not only Haruās best friend, but also striving to become a trainer and support competitive swimmers; something heās been doing for Haru since their childhood āĀ of course Haru would be distracted. This is why it makes the most sense with the added context of the trailerās lines. Something big must have happened that is forcing him to make a choice between it and swimming.
MakotoĀ looks as if heās standing in front of a shrine (itās not the same one weāve seen in Iwatobi, which makes me think heās in Tokyo instead). The camera is pulling out, so itās unlikely that something is rushing toward him at that moment. The look on his face + the camera movement makes me think that someone has startled him; usually in moments where heās scared (by ghosts), itās more comedic, so I believe it must be a person heās not expecting to see at that moment.
It looks like he hears someone/something, then he turns around, as he already looks surprised before he turns around in the second shot. Therefore, the reaction probably comes first.
The promotional image posted on the official twitter account is almost certainly from the same scene as well (or at least the same night), and I would guess itās from before the shots of Makoto in both trailers. His outfit is the same (same t-shirt, backpack, coat, and green shirt cuff) but the lighting is different, as is the background (stone, rather than concrete).
He also doesnāt have his phone in his hand when he turns around.
The fact that this scene is in both trailers AND the promo image makes me think that there isnāt much footage of Makoto that isnāt spoiling something. The only other scene weāve seen him in so far is this shot.
I highly doubt heāll die, but I wouldnāt be surprised if something happens to him that really sets Haru back. The fact that we see the entire gang in a snowy Iwatobi EXCEPT Makoto is suspicious.
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