Note: My apologies for this being a bit late. Family plans interfered with getting this written in a more timley fashion.
Rating: A-
Jinshi has been contemplating for a while now about revealing the two big secrets he’s been keeping from Maomao: how he’s related to the Emperor (and possibly even which truth to tell on that: the one he’s posing as or the likely actual truth) and that he hasn’t been emasculated. A hunting trip he’s been invited on seems like the ideal opportunity to finally bring one or both matters up. Given that this involves Maomao and given the greater intrigues of the palace, things are not, of course, going to be that simple.
While hunting trips for nobles are hardly an unusual occurrence in pretty much any stratified society, given who’s arranging this one (Loulan’s father), it reeks of a set-up from the beginning. That’s not why (or at least not the main reason why) Jinshi insists on getting Maomao back from Gyoukuyou for the trip, though; he really does seem intent on finally telling her when the time is right, which is necessary because she’s being so willfully oblivious to all the hints she’s seen around him, and he may even realize that. (Sure, he could be wearing a mask all the time so at not to distract others with his beauty – one character in The Story of Saiukoku/ColorCloud Palace did do that for real, after all – but Maomao would normally be way too sharp to accept an explanation like that without questioning it further.) The problem is that the hoops he’s jumping through to obfuscate his identity almost prove to be his undoing.
The exact specifics who who is (literally!) gunning for Jinshi are not clear at this point, but the strong implication is that the men in the forest are connected to Shishou. At the very least, they’d have to be connected to someone wealthy and important to have access to the latest firearm designs, and it seems unlikely that such a sizable and well-equipped party could infiltrate so deep into another lord’s domain without detection. Whatever the case, this is the first time that Maomao has directly and specifically been endangered; even if she’s just collateral damage in taking out Jinshi, the gunmen were undoubtedly shooting at her, too. Perhaps that’s why Maomao doesn’t give him too much grief for the jump off the waterfall. What transpires in the hidden cave is a scenario that would normally be extraordinarily sexually tense in just about any other series, and indeed, it’s clear that Jinshi is finding Maomao alluring to some degree, but the delicate balance that the adaptation strikes between the scene being laden with potential and yet clear that it’s going to be wholly unrealized is a testament to the adaptation’s careful handling of the scene.
But there’s no getting around the scene that follows, when Maomao falls while Jinshi tries to hoist her out of that hole. (And while this may seem to be the scene where the all-important frog plays its role, just wait. That’s next episode.) And there’s no getting around this particular shot:
Pretty sure that’s what you think it is, and yep, Jinshi’s definitely got some explaining to do now. (Honestly, I’m impressed that the animation team had the guts to be that obvious about it.) Given where her leg is and where she was raised, even Moamao can’t ignore that. The beginning of next episode should be juicy indeed!
Among other little tidbits, Basen’s explanation to Maomao in the carriage provides the first real sense of what this nation’s geography actually looks like. (And is this the first time that the nation’s name – Li – has been mentioned?) And kudos to Gyoukuyou for being in her finest teasing form when Jinshi was requesting Maomao back. Also, neat to see Lihaku pop up again; I have a suspicion we’re going to be seeing a lot more of him next episode.
For all that’s transpired so far this season, this is looking to be where the real fun lies.
USA Anime 