I started watching this series about 1-2 weeks ago and it's been getting better and better. I'm not very familiar with anime beyond Studio Ghibli's excellent work but recently I've found a mild interest in viewing some of the more acclaimed anime series. I'm not a huge anime fan or anything, I'm only watching this show because it interested me and so far it's quite excellent, this episode impressed me in particular, in fact it impressed me so much I wrote a review of it on IMDb, which is actually the review you're reading right now.
This is definitely my favorite "Toradora" episode so far, mainly because of its heavy emotional impact, particularly during the "racing" sequence which really plays with your emotions to the extent of making me laugh and cry simultaneously, which is quite the achievement if you ask me. So far, I've seen few T.V. series that are as compelling, hilarious, and heartwarming as this one is (the only show I can come up with that's better in these tonal departments would have to be "Twin Peaks", and if you know me you know how much I'm obsessed and in love with that series and it almost feels like a sin for me to compare it to anything, especially a High School romance!).