Ryuuji's spiral over bentos is so perfectly him that you forget this is just filler. The episode gets what made Toradora work: watching these people care about stupid small things because they care about each other. Taiga's salty onigiri landing as the actual emotional beat proves the show still understands that love lives in the details, not the declarations.

Yuusaku shows up at school with an extravagant bento to share with the class, and the sight leaves Ryuuji doubting his own lunch-making skills. Determined to outdo those lunches, he throws himself into the contest with growing obsession, going so far as to haul a rice cooker to school. Then Taiga hands him some overly salty onigiri, and the gesture changes how he sees the whole rivalry. A short romantic comedy episode with a slice-of-life feel, originally left unaired and later included in the Blu-ray box set.