Rating: A-
What self-respecting anime series with a bevy of sexy ladies in its cast – especially one with a reputation for pointed use of fan service – wouldn’t have one or more of a beach, water park, or hot springs episode? With Cid gone for a season (in fear of the girls’ displeasure with his recent antics), the girls get to play. . . er, puzzle out Shadow’s true intent in “allowing” school pals Skel and Po to use passes for Mitsugoshi’s exclusive hot springs debut to ask Mitsugoshi girls out on a group date. No, really. That’s what they’re actually doing. Yeah.
The series’ signature irony certainly applies here: the whole thing harkens back to a fickle comment Shadow made years earlier about finding the Dragon’s Tears, which led to the discovery of the hot spring, and that it turns out that the legend about the Dragon’s Tears was actually real. Let’s also not forget the signature irony that the Seven Shadows take a situation predicated on a stupid lie (but this time by Skel and Po!) and blow it up to a comically dramatic level. However, the defining task and mystery both take a back seat to the episode’s real focus: the girls at play.
And play they do. (Whether they admit they’re doing that or not.) That allows all of the Numbers and their chief subordinates chances to show off their personality quirks as well as their bodies, and that’s where the real fun lies. The much-underused Eta in particular is a joy here, but so is Delta’s unrestrained stupidity and playfulness, Beta’s raging insecurities, and the little slips starting to creep into Alpha’s normally-serious, collected disposition. Little treats can also be found in the look at some of the subordinate Shadow Garden members, such as the way they meaningfully file out of the meeting room when the Seven Shadows are going to have their contest to see who goes on the group date or Nu’s expressions as she reacts to Skel and Po at the beginning. Also watch for a couple of cameos by a certain vampire princess and her maid.
One of the highlights, though, is the Seven Shadows using the costumes shown in the screen shot, which are the same ones they used in the first season opener. The latter use felt like it was making a point, a contrast between the super hero-ish nature of Shadow Garden and their actual “in the shadows” activities, but this use – under the guise of “we don’t want to expose our true identities” – is a cleverly ironic spoof of something that was itself a spoof. Let’s not forget the grainy movie strip flashback or the puppet theater show illustrating the story of the Dragon and the Princess, either.
Sid/Shadow is the story driver, but this episode shows that both the girls and the series in general can get along without him when needed.
USA Anime 