Rating: A-
This episode features the debut of a supporting character who, in retrospect, has been conspicuously absent from this eccentric mix: Motoyasu Kitamura, the Spear Hero from The Rising of the Shield Hero setting. And more so than most other characters in this setting, his behavior here requires some explanation.
Based on both behavioral and visual cues (including the feathers he’s wearing and the design of his spear’s head), Motoyasu comes from sometime after the halfway point of Shield Hero‘s third season. He’s been drawn to Filo since that franchise’s first season, but he became enraptured with her to the point of wanting to marry her due to her essentially (and mostly unwittingly) rescuing him from some psychological trauma early in s3. That same trauma (which involved being ruthlessly betrayed by another female character) also led to him calling Raphtalia a “raccoon-pig” and showing a delusional level of disdain towards other women besides Filo, while also referring to Naofumi as “father” since he sees Naofumi as a potential father-in-law. (And yes, that means that he’s a complete idiot.) All of those factors are in play here throughout this episode. Given that he’s been running around the countryside with only birdlike filolials for companions for the latter half of s3 and most of s4, him being relegated to class 3 with Yunyun seems like an appropriate fit.
The most inspired joke involving him, though, is how he does acknowledge Albedo as an “angel” because, like Filo, she has wings and an ahoge (i.e. cowlick). In Filo’s case that’s actually a special mark which denotes her as the heir apparent to the queen of her race, and as leader of the Floor Guardians of Nazarick and wife-wannabe for Ains, Albedo is essentially a queen-in-waiting, too, so the writers really thought through this joke. (The irony of a succubus being happy to be referred to as angel isn’t lost on Ains, at least.) Tanya gets dragged into this because she also has an ahoge and does technically have “wings” as well (her Silver Wings Assault Badge, which does have a wing motif). Motoyasu’s first escape from the pen by blowing a hole in its roof is also another deep series reference, since it duplicates a scene during s3 where he blows a hole in the roof of a building.
That’s not the limit of the deep references in this episode, either. Re:Zero‘s butler William looks pensive when Hamsuke describes Motoyasu as Naofumi’s son, which is a partial reference to scenes in s4 of his series involving his trouble relationship with his own son. At the end of last episode, Rem mentioned feeling sleepy, which could be a reference to how she’s been comatose for nearly all of her series’ second season and all of its third. (She’s also shown sleeping in one of the stills in the closer.) In this episode she reinforces that reference by mentioning how her “head’s been cloudy for a long time” but then goes on to mention that “it’s about to clear up.” Is this, perhaps, a foreshadowing of Re:Zero‘s upcoming s4? That would tend to reinforce Ains’ theory from back in episode 1. The state Julius is in at the end of Re:Zero s3 may also be connected to why he’s popping his head out of the curtained-off bed in the nurse’s office.
A few other interesting observations as well:
- In hte class 1 scene, they look like they’re having music class. Is this meant to be the class 1 version of the music performance by class 2 in the opener?
- Cid is actually present in the Class 1 scene, sitting at the piano, but you have to look closely because the piano mostly obscures him. That’s a reference both to how he’s trying to be inconspicuous and him canonically playing the piano in his source series.
- Speaking of the opener, Motoyasu now has a brief appearance in it, too. (He wasn’t in Yunyun’s OP shot in previous episodes.)
- In the hall scene with Ains, Tanya, and Albedo, there are multiple postings on the wall behind them. One features the KONOSUBA merchant (who has previously popped up in earlier seasons) advertising for part-time help, while another is a newspaper article about the Zombie Pasta incident, and a third is a calligraphy poster which seems to translate as “impact force.” Not sure about the significance of that one.
- Darkness is a known freak, and Shalltear has a screw or two loose herself, but they may have found a new compatriot in The Eminence in Shadow‘s Epsilon, who is the Seven Shadows member arguably most intent on specifically seducing Cid/Shadow.
Overall, this episode is the deepest one yet this season in terms of how far it goes with its assorted callbacks and references, but it also doesn’t disappoint on the fun hijinks with its newcomer. That’s exactly the way this series works best.
USA Anime 