The field trip announced at the end of the episode turns out to be a skiing/snowboarding excursion. This is actually a much less random turn of events than it might appear to be, since three of the core component series have significant events which take place in the snow. All of them are, to some degree, referenced here, and all may require at least some explanation/refresher even for those who have seen all three series involved.
The most prominent effect comes from KONOSUBA,specifically episode 7 of its first season. The setting here looks a lot like the setting from that episode, but more importantly, Kazuma’s team’s encounter with the snow sprites was a key element of that episode. In the original, the efforts of Kazuma’s team to capture/kill the sprites (Aqua did capture a few with the intent of using them to chill drinks, hence her comment to that effect here) invoked the wrath of a spirit called the Winter Shogun, who did, indeed, behead Kazuma. (He got better, of course.) Even Darkness couldn’t stand against him, and Aqua immediately resorted to dogeza to appease him, hence their behavior here. (This is actually a more complicated joke, too, since Winter Shogun is a term used in Japan to refer to a personification of winter, in particular cold air masses moving in from Siberia, hence the reason things clouded up when he appeared.) That the Winter Shogun recognized Cocytus (who has a similar physical stature and coloring) as a replacement Winter Shogun is rather amusing but also fitting. Megumin and Kazuma’s caps here are also similar in design to what they wore in that episode.
The Saga of Tanya the Evil connection comes from Tanya’s hellish training for the 302nd Aerial Battalion during episode 5 of that series, which took place in a snowy mountain setting. Tanya had intended that training to weed out and drive off the troops, but it ironically proved to unite them into a tight-knit group, hence the reason why they react the way they do when it’s first announced here. Digging foxholes was part of that training, hence the emphasis on shovels here.
The Re:Zero reference, meanwhile, is both the most obscure and the easiest to miss, since it’s reflected mainly by a passing comment Subaru makes to Beatrice about “the last snow festival.” This is a clear reference to the impromptu snow festival organized by Subaru in the OVA special Memory Snow, where Subaru enticed the reluctant Beatrice to come out and participate in a snow sculpture contest. (The creation primarily by Aura and Mare here could be seen as an oblique reference to that, too, since Subaru was the subject of a couple of such sculptures.) Ram’s reaction to the cold is also a reference to how poorly she initially handled the cold snap in Memory Snow.
Among other random references, Aqua’s skill with the snowboard could be tangentially attributable to her being a water goddess, and Darkness enjoying being rolled around in the giant snowball should go without saying at this point. The way 302nd member Grantz is treated could be a reference to how put-upon he is in that series, too. (Although that tends to come up more in the novels than in the anime.) Most of the snowsuits worn by various characters also at least generally align with the character’s normal color schemes, too. And Otto’s ability to communicate with almost anything allowing him to converse with the Winter Shogun was a neat touch, too.
In general, this is a fun and well-designed episode, with the only minor negative being that none of class 1 is included, nor is there any reference to what was going on in last episode’s epilogue. This franchise typically doesn’t drag things out, so we should at least partly be back to that next episode.
One thing that this franchise is not known for is being plot-intensive; while it does have writing continuity from episode to episode, it rarely has much of anything for an ongoing plot outside of the movie – and even then the plot is pretty thin. That’s why it’s a bit surprising to see one actually develop in the late stages of this episode. The rarely-used epilogue is setting up circumstances that will ensure plenty of chaos coming very soon. And of course, we wouldn’t have it any other way.
In retrospect, I probably should have seen this coming. The Seven Shadows formed around Shadow in large part because he convinced them with his BS that an evil organization called the Cult of Diablos was afoot in their world and either directly or indirectly responsible for both their own personal suffering and circumstances and all manner of manipulation and evil in general. The running joke/irony in their series is that the cult is actually real and doing everything Cid/Shadow claimed it was, and the girls are all much more aware of that than Shadow is, so they don’t treat his BS as gospel just out of blind devotion. They have also all suffered personal harm and loss of their previous lives from the cult’s machinations, so they’re plenty devoted to the cause even without taking loyalty to Shadow into account. Hence it’s completely in character for them (especially Alpha) to take any references to dark powers or devils very seriously. And in this setting you’ve got Ains, the “ruler of darkness,” and Tanya, who is regularly referred to as a devil behind her back by both the teacher Rerugen and her enemies in her setting. (“The Devil of the Rhine” is her semi-official nickname.) And Alpha was getting along so cordially with Tanya earlier in the episode, too. . .
That whole epilogue scene is even more loaded than that, though. What Shadow says to the Seven Shadows is his standard vaguely-worded theatrical BS, which the girls interpret however they like (and seeds have literally been planted of late, so there’s plenty for them to work with here). One significant detail here is that purple-haired Eta – the group’s resident scientific genius, who almost never speaks in her source series – actually gets a whole line of dialog. Another is that Delta carries off Gamma when the Seven Shadows depart from the tree; this is an oblique reference to how utterly clumsy Gamma is. (She’s the business brains and face of the group, and one of the most powerful members magically, but so physically inept that she often trips going down stairs.) Delta, meanwhile, is her polar opposite: the most physically capable of the bunch but also every bit the simpleton she’s shown to be here.
While that’s easily the episode’s most important scene, it’s hardly the only thing going on this episode. Tanya’s always been a “leave no stone unturned” type, so her spearheading the effort to learn about the mysterious Shadow is completely in character. Alpha wasn’t lying or even stretching the truth when she told Tanya that Cid Kagenou isn’t their comrade, either; the Seven Shadows revere Shadow and so regard him as being above their level, an object of devotion rather than a compatriot. In this episode’s edition of “characters from different series being in sync,” Alpha and Raphtalia show what they have in common: wanting to be more useful to the lead male character in the series (whom they love) and lamenting that they can’t stand as equals with them. It’s also a reminder that, of the six series now featured here, Tanya is the only female lead in the bunch and the only one with mostly male subordinates. (Except for the walking stomach that is Serebryakov, of course; that joke continues here, too.) And yes, CZ2128 Delta is enamored with cute things in her source series, too, so her adoring Filo is completely in character.
Compared to all of that, the business about the morning glories needing to be transplanted is just an excuse for a bunch of characters from different series to interacti, as is the picnic meeting. (And of course the plants got out of hand given the personnel involved. Totally saw that one coming!) My favorite moment from these scenes was Weiss calling out Ram as hypocritical for complaining about Aqua acting arrogantly, and Ram not exactly denying it.
Overall, this episode is far being one of franchise’s funniest or craziest episodes, but it still has plenty enough going on to be sufficiently entertaining.
As I mentioned in my Fall 2025 Mid-Season Report, I deeply regret not doing episode reviews for Touring After the Apocalypse. Rather than do those fully, I’ve decided to take an alternate approach and explore all the little visual details which provide clues in each episode about how the apocalypse happened. This installment focuses on episode 7: “Tsukuba.”
The first shot comes near the episode’s beginning, which appears to show National Route 16 as it crosses the Ohori River near Kashiwa. That’s by far the most abandoned cars we’ve seen yet, which raises the question of what happened to suddenly that the cars would all be stopped like that but not catastrophically damaged.:
The next curious shot, from around the 4 minute mark, shows a jeliner crashed (and still partly submerged) in the river, though it looks to be largely intact. That’s particularly odd:
Just a few seconds later, at the 4:!8 mark, we have some trashed robots. The remains of a humanoid one can be seen partly under the car at the left, while on the right are what look like the remains of doglike robots. (More of those can be seen in another shot a few seconds later as Yoko and Airi pass through the area.)
At 7:28 we have a big hole in the ground that’s filled in with water mostly covering ruined buildings. A severed pipe in one shot suggests some kind of catastrophic calamity, but it happened enough ahead of the overall calamity that it was able to be fenced off. So what is it vaguely familiar to Yoko?
The next oddity comes at the 8:13 mark. That sure looks like a defunct tank on the left side of the screenshot partly under the greenery.
At the 8:39 mark is this Robot Zone sign flanked by remnants of a humanoid robot. The text informs the reader that they’re entering an experimental area where robots are active and cautions the reader not to approach the robots. The damage around here suggests that either someone didn’t listen or the robots went amuck for other reasons:
Just a few seconds later, at the 8:57 mark, we see what appears to be the arm and legs of a Gundam-sized bipedal robot sticking out of a pond. (A nighttime view of this comes at 18:40.) Apparently they had gotten pretty far along in robot development:
The nature of the facility, and why it was set up to be accessible only by a phone booth elevator, feels more like a nod to spy movies, but the most important detail in this sequence of scenes is Yoko’s health scan. There’s been speculation that Yoko isn’t human, but in this shot of the monitor at the 13:50 mark, those numbers sure look pretty standard for a healthy teenager. (The top number is probably heart rate, then below it oxygen saturation and blood pressure, then below that probably CO2 output and respiration rate.) Not sure about the part below the graph with the “L” (presumably Left) and “R” (presumably right) bars.
And what’s up with all these weirdly-colored guinea pigs at the 14:09 mark? I feel like we’ve seen them before:
At the 15:52 mark we have an oddly specific formation of light in the sky, with faint suggestions that they may be connected. Something like this was visible in an earlier episode, too:
Starting at the 20:20 mark we have the moving light in the sky. Yoko assumes it’s a satellite, and she could be right. That it appears just as Yoko is wondering about where “Big Sis” is seems much too suspicious on timing to be a coincidence:
Right after that, Airi explains that a space colony and lunar base were built before the catastrophe happened and work had at least begun on an orbital elevator:
Did those have something to do with the catastrophe? There was a scar visible on the moon a couple of episodes back, so the possibility that the scar was where the lunar base was, and some kind of apocalyptic event happened there, can’t be ruled out.
What does this all add up to? That’s still unclear, and teasing us with details that suggest something but don’t fully add up is par the course. That the research facility remains intact and functional (but still apparently abandoned) when nothing else does is a head-scratcher, though, and that it reminds both Yoko and Airi of their shelter probably isn’t a trivial detail.
Episode 7 was maybe the most loaded episode since the first one with little visual clues, so I felt it warranted special attention. Going forward, I’ll do a full report like this for each episode if there’s a lot to look at and every 2-3 episode when the pickings are thinner.
With most of the season’s series now having aired at least their sixth episode, it’s time to take a look at what series have and haven’t been working so far this season.
For the past eight seasons, I’ve followed enough titles to warrant splitting this activity into two or more parts. This season, though, is arguably the weakest to come along in some time, so I decided this was the ideal time to scale back a bit. Some series I would normally have pushed to keep up with in most other seasons (Spy x Family, My Best Friend’s Little Sister Has It In For Me, Chitose in the Ramune Bottle, among others) I simply didn’t bother to with this one. As a result, I’m only current on 17 series this season – my lowest count in at least a couple of years – and so will be doing this activity in a single installment this time. There are a handful of others that I may eventually get caught up on; I will address them in the seasonal wrap-up piece if that happens.
Of the series I am caught up on, all but one (Isekai Quartet 3, which I am episode-reviewing separately) are covered here. Despite few stand-outs, this season has offered a number of mild to significant surprises on both qualitative storytelling and plot twist fronts, as you’ll see below.
A Wild Last Boss Has Appeared!
Rating So Far: B-
This is one of the mild surprises so far this season. It looked at first like it was just going to be a pretty standard story about a gamer inhabiting his OP character at a point a couple of hundred years down the timeline of his game, a la In the Land of Leadale. However, despite taking a fairly standard “round up the original minions” approach, it’s gone in some more interesting directions than just pure power-gaming. In particular, the series has taken a sharp look at how deeply the actions of Lufas and the Seven Heroes have affected this setting long-term, including the disposition of her former minions. It’s also brought up the notion that a character still existing from the original game persists but doesn’t seem to be a player anymore, and the most recent episode has thrown out the intriguing notion that Lufas may have also existed independently of her player. So if the player’s soul inhabits the current Lufas, where is the original’s soul? Was the player controlling her like a puppet when playing the game? In other words, this series is actually trying to explore its base concept more, which is why its grade and priority status is on the rise.
Backstabbed in a Backwater Dungeon
Rating so Far: C
For all of the faults and repugnance of Redo of Healer, it at least didn’t shy from the irony that its protagonist, by getting so wrapped up in his revenge scheme, wasn’t really any better than the people he was inflicting vengeance upon. However, this series wants to sidestep that irony by having Light still be a fundamentally good guy while also having him thirst for vengeance, and that creates a tonal dissonance in his character which leaves him unsatisfying in either aspect. The series also makes its villains cartoonishly evil so there’s no moral ambiguity about Light punishing them, and oh yes, let’s not forget how it skips over Light becoming stronger and assembling his power so he can advance straight from him being a nobody to an ultimate bad-ass (and thus we have little to no idea on who his key servants are). The series actually doesn’t look bad, and Light’s interactions with the junior adventurers in recent episodes have been more appreciable, so I can’t entirely say that this one is a waste of time. However, it’s not a series I can recommend at this point.
Dad is a Hero, Mom is a Spirit, I’m a Reincarnator
Rating So Far: B
This one has been a more significant surprise. Its title primes the series to be just another OP protagonist romp, but that isn’t at all the way it has played out. Instead, we are getting a remarkably political story where titular protagonist Ellen’s father, Rovel, is a virtual co-protagonist trying to navigate a relationship with the Royal Family of his former home kingdom in such a way that his daughter is not unduly exposed to them. And, as the most recent episode shows, there’s good reason for that, since the Royal Family bears a curse related to their ancestor’s past misdeeds towards spirits – a curse that they’re not even aware that they suffer from since the misdeeds have been lost to history. In other words, the current king may be manipulative and scheming but he’s not actually evil. There are some other interesting world-building aspects in play here, too, such as how the purity or falsehood of marriage vows carries real weight in this setting or how a festival persists without anyone remembering the reason it exists. And while the series regularly has its goofy, cute moments, it’s also capable of a startling level of intensity, as episode 6 in particular showcases. For a series not advertised as being plot-dense, it is becoming remarkably meaty.
Dusk Beyond the End of the World
Rating So Far: C+
I had high hopes for this one after episode 0, but it has struggled to deliver so far, with its artistic quality also taking a nosedive in recent episodes. (This screenshot is a prime example.) It does harbor some interesting ideas, such has how this whole “LC” business seems artificially-designed to subsume the inherent limitations of marriage, how OWEL seems curiously devoted to information control, and how and why Akira ended up in the future like this, and at least the series finally gets around to partially explaining the big events which led to the current state of affairs. Amoru is also a neat character design and Yokurata seems like a worthy addition to the core group. However, it also suffers from some over-the-top villains and beating certain points to death, and a permissive attitude towards incest may not set well with some viewers. Still holding out hope that this one will amount to something more, but it no longer has the shining promise that it did early on.
Let This Grieving Soul Retire s2
Rating So Far: B
I’m tempted just to say “more of the same” here and leave it at that, because that’s a good way to sum up this season so far. It’s definitely not a bad thing, either. The series maintains its sense of quirky fun as Krai and his party unwittingly put Arnold and his party through hell as they attempt to follow him on a trip to some hot springs. There’s also Cave People, bandits with a stupid organizational name, and a dragon or two involved and Krai once again somehow muddles through it all with everyone misinterpreting his actions. As a bonus, the remaining members of Grieving Souls who haven’t appeared yet in the current timeline – giant Ansem, witch Lucia, and swordsman Luke – finally make their entrance, too. This series may never be a priority view for me, but it never fails to entertain.
May I Ask For One Final Thing?
Rating: A-
This one IS a priority view, though; in fact, it’s far and away my favorite of the season, to the point that I’ve probably watched each episode at least three times now. Scarlet makes for an outstanding heroine, one who’s adorable in a completely different way than others, and is easily a contender for Character of the Year honors; there’s something quite satisfying, even cathartic, about the way she administers savage beatdowns while otherwise maintaining a perfectly elegant demeanor. She also has great supporting help in the wonderfully perverse Prince Julius, who finds her endlessly entertaining but, unlike his younger brother, is no fool. There’s even an ongoing plot involving Terrenezza and a surprise revelation about this being a stealth isekai series, too! (Only in this case the protagonist isn’t the one from another world.) Complementing this are good character and background designs, occasionally-sharp animation, and arguably the season’s best OP and one of its best EDs. There’s a lot to like here even if you aren’t normally into inherently violent fare, so it gets my highest recommendation at the midway point.
Let’s also not forget that the series has a truly outstanding simuldub. In particular, Morgan Lauré is giving one of the year’s best dub performances as Scarlet and Reagan Murdock is a delight as Julius.
Hero Without A Class: Who Even Needs Skills?
Rating: D
Nearly every season there’s at least one series where I ask myself each week why I’m bothering to continue watching it, and this season it’s this one. The problem actually isn’t the concept, as exploring how a person operating adjacent to an RPG-style System rather than as part of it can still duplicate many of the same effects is a fascinating notion ripe with all sorts of possibilities for exploration. However, this series is barely interested in doing any of that. It’s instead playing out as a completely bog-standard OP Protagonist story, one which is further saddled with one of the dullest protagonists (personality-wise) to come along in quite some time. It then further shoots itself in the foot by ditching the sexy female companions for a gaggle of kids that are essentially becoming groupies as they marvel at all of the ridiculous things Arel can do. There was some potential here, but the series is wasting it.
My Status as an Assassin Obviously Exceeds the Hero’s
Rating So Far: C+
On the downside, the premise, plot, and general construction of the series feels like a mishmash of elements ripped off from Arifureta and Failure Frame, neither of which is a dazzling example of RPG-inspired fantasy storytelling themselves. And on those fronts it’s doing absolutely nothing special. What it does have in its favor is distinctly better-than-average visuals and animation, with its triumph being the design of the sexy female elf companion/potential love interest for our protagonist. It also has an unusually strong musical score. That makes the series watchable, but I still wouldn’t expect much from it.
Pass the Monster Meat, Milady!
Rating So Far: B
Delicious in Dungeon incontrovertibly proved that a fantasy foodie series about killing monsters and them cooking them is a workable concept. While this series takes a rather different angle on it, the concept still works nearly as well. Melphiera and Aristide make for a delightful central couple as eccentric nobles who don’t fit well with (and are derided by) others but are a perfect match for each other. I’m particularly impressed by how firm the foundations of their relationship are (both bring skills which strongly complement the other) and how practical their engagement will be – and for that matter, that the series doesn’t piddle around for a long time and gets them engaged by the end of episode 4. Both are lookers in their own way, but this relationship won’t be just about looks. I am curious to see what direction the series is going to go now that the central relationship has been established, but there have been hints that Melphiera’s research could eventually prove life-saving for Aristide, too. This is a neat series that’s always fun to watch.
Ranma ½ s2
Rating So Far: B
This one could also mostly be described as “more of the same.” The exact specifics may change from episode to episode but it’s still the same spirited shenanigans, whether it’s Shampoo’s grandmother showing up to give Ranma fits (and become a staple character), Mousse stepping into the picture, or the (dreaded by some) debut of Happosai, the series’ resident horny old man, who’s still thoroughly obnoxious despite being tone down some from the earlier adaptation. Let’s also not forget about stupidity like the Martial Arts Delivery Competition, which only this series could make seem sensible. Mileage will vary on Happosai, but otherwise this season offers plenty enough fun to warrant keeping up with it.
Shabake
Rating So Far: B+
This supernaturally-tinged period piece is never a priority view for me, yet I still keep coming back to it every week because of how impressively it delivers on its little details. It’s one of the better-looking and better-animated series of the season despite its more understated color scheme, and it certainly has some of the season’s best character design work, but the real joy of watching it is in marveling at all of the little things, whether it’s building or clothing design, how medicine is packaged, or even how the artistry on a dividing screen changes to reflect the current demeanor of the spirit within. It also spins a compelling mystery involving a craftsman’s murder and smoothly integrates in its supernatural aspects without being flashy about it. Give this one a chance and it may surprise you.
Tales of Wedding Rings 2
Rating So Far: C+
With Sato’s harem now fully assembled (including tag-along Morion, Hime’s younger sister), this season’s episodes have focused mostly on team and relationship-building and delving more into the history of the Abyss King and his opposite number, the Ring King. This has included dredging up some details which make the whole thing sound a bit more fishy than the standard “oppose the Demon Lord scenario.” Some of the ladies – especially Hime and Granary – also get substantial focus on personal development. The series hasn’t forgotten that fan service is one of its key components, with the OP and most of the episodes finding some excuse for nudity, though it still shies from outright sex despite strong implications that everyone would be stronger for it. Hardly a spectacular series, but it continues to deliver on what it promises.
The Banished Court Magician Aims to be the Strongest
Rating So Far: C+
I want to dismiss this one as just another bottomfeeder in the “banished from the hero’s party” vein, and indeed, it does feature a banished character who’s far more competent than the prince who banished him gives him credit for. Most of what’s aired so far even plays out as utterly standard RPG-influenced adventuring, too. However, the series does have occasional strong points that elevate it a little. Once is the strategy which goes into defeating a floor boss in episode 4; the other is Alec’s confrontation with Regulus, the prince who arrogantly dismissed him for being a commoner, in episode 5. Regulus’ struggle to overcome his prejudice and acknowledge that he may have made a mistake with Alec is some unusually fine writing for a series like this. If the second half of the series can produce more results like that then it may rise above the level of being disposable, forgettable fare.
The Dark History of the Reincarnated Villainess
Rating So Far: B-
I still like the premise here about a woman being reincarnated into (or perhaps trapped in?) a world of her own devising, where she suffers all the consequences of what her adolescent flights of fancy wrought. The most recent episode has also offered some fresh possibilities as the story starts to stray into territory that protagonist Konoha doesn’t remember so well and into having Konoha suffer more direct consequences of writing Iana as a widely-known villainess. On the downside, the series is overdoing her obsession with potential death flags. Tearmoon Empire showed an example of how a series can do that without going too overkill (and even then it was still a little obnoxious at times), so I’d like to see that aspect toned down a bit. And despite certain sharp character designs, the overall artistic and technical effort isn’t strong. Still, the series does have one of the season’s Best OPs in the rap-infused “Black Flame” and has consistently proven to be a mostly-fun diversion.
This Monster Wants to Eat Me
Rating So Far: B
Boy, this is not a series you want to watch when you’re in a funk, as this is one of the most morose narratives to come along in quite some time. Hinako is sympathetic as a girl suffering from extreme survivor’s guilt; she wants to die to rejoin the family she tragically lost (how that happened is finally revealed, as are hints about the physical as well as emotional scars that linger), but can’t bring herself to commit suicide because she feels a voice has told her to live on. (But whose?) Her drifting has caught her in a tug-of-war of wills between two girls: one who’s a mermaid who says she wants to eventually eat her (but is going to protect her from other supernatural creatures until Hinako is ripe enough) and another who purely wants to befriend her and is trying to avoid wanting to eat her – and, in one of the least surprising revelations of the season, she’s not human, either. In addition to what I’m told is a fairly accurate depiction of depression, the series is laced with all kinds of yuri vibes, coming from a similar angle to the eroticism inherent in many vampire stories. How literal vs. figurative mermaid Shiori’s intentions are is debatable, but she and friend Miko look like they’re going to make excellent foils in the kinda-sorta love triangle with Hinako. Not a series for everyone, but worth a look.
Touring After the Apocalypse
Rating So Far: A-
This was always going to be an anticipated show, but the big surprise is how prominent its mystery aspect is. In fact, my biggest regret of the season is that I didn’t go ahead and review this one weekly to thoroughly explore that, as every episode so far has brought up plenty to comment about and speculate on. It also satisfying manages to be cute, melancholy, and even occasionally harrowing all in turn (and sometimes at the same time). I’m not going to say more about it right now because I am almost certainly going to do a full series review at the end, but if you do decide to check it out, be forewarned that it’s not casual viewing (there are sometimes significant details in the background, for instance) and the ED shouldn’t be skipped, since it updates every episode.
That’s it for now. Aside from the regular episode reviews, watch for a second installment of isekai/audiobook recommendations shortly before Thanksgiving.
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.
In some senses this episode is a disappointment, since the crew from The Eminence in Shadow doesn’t appear at all. That, however, is more than made up for by the utter disaster that a Home Economics class on cooking turns into, and I have to give particular credit to the series for the novel way it creates such a disaster.
If a class activity is going to go utterly awry, there’s no better person to lead it among the school’s staff than the little-used Wiz, a KONOSUBA recurring character who had a couple of appearances in s2 as the school’s nurse. This is also an ironic choice since she’s actually every bit as undead as Ains is (she’s a lich), but irony is the lifeblood of this series so it’s all good. In her source world she also has a reputation for being largely incompetent as a magic shopkeeper (Vanir, the masked fellow, tries hard to rein her in as Wiz’s assistant), partly because she tends to overdo things and partly because she has a tendency to accidentally foist cursed items on customers. Both foibles are clearly in play here.
Naturally we get the normal mixes of eccentric personalities at each cooking station, but unlike many similar episode in other series, this one is less about the process of cooking and more about the results. Hence the real action doesn’t happen until everyone sits down to eat. The pasta being so fresh that it’s literally alive was a pretty funny joke to begin with, as was the way various characters don’t let any sentiment about it being alive get in their way of cooking it. The true coup de grace, though, is the follow-up joke that the once-living pasta is now zombie pasta, and that it animates to form hostile zombie pasta monsters which must be fought (or in Aqua’s case, fled from). In a setting where undead are part of the class, this actually seems quite fitting.
Laced throughout this are a few jokes which require more extensive knowledge of the source material. Tanya complaining early on about “drowning in pasta” once again is a reference to the Saga of Tanya the Evil OVA episode Operation Desert Pasta released in 2021, the franchise’s only light-hearted endeavor, which had the 203rd Aerial Battalion stuck in desert warfare and having their raids for food supplies mistaken for grand tactical plans as they went around gathering ingredients to make pasta – a lot of pasta. Lt. Serebryakov is also notorious for an appetite that isn’t hindered by any circumstance, so her being tempted to eat the collapsed zombie pasta at the end is completely in character. Aqua fleeing from undead is a specific reference to one incident from KONOSUBA s2 where she’s chased by a horde of undead in a dungeon (although I think this was a recurring joke, IIRC).
The other knock on this episode is that it seemed much more reliant on voiced-over still images than normal, although this was partly balanced out by a few cases of background animation. On the balance, though, it didn’t lack for fun quotient.
If there was any doubt after last episode that Shadow and his underlings would perfectly blend in with the established oddball crew, this episode should allay those concerns, at least in the case of Cid/Shadow. (The Seven Shadows don’t appear at all, nor does anyone else from Class 1.) And like last episode, Kazuma seems to be the one most in tune with what Shadow is actually doing.
That’s the big irony which forms the backbone of this episode. In his original isekai, Cid/Shadow acted with no more thought than what would seem cool and fitting for his very chunibyo aesthetic and self-narration, but his actions were always interpreted by others as being much more multilayered and mysterious. The grand joke here is that the exact same thing is happening in class 2. The most rational and brainy members of the whole class (Tanya and Demiurge) are convinced that there’s depth to Shadow and pooh-pooh Kazuma when Kazuma tries to insist otherwise, but Kazuma understands better than probably anyone what chunibyo looks like; sadly for all involved, people are so used to his ideas not being helpful that they can’t recognize that they should listen to him this time. (Especially after he spotted an individual last episode that no one else noticed!) Ainz also genuinely picks up on this (he showed in the movie that he clearly understands chunibyo behavior, and his immediate reaction to Shadow addressing him could be interpreted as disbelief that Shadow is obviously posing); he just doesn’t openly admit it because he – unlike Kazuma – has an image to maintain. Also not too surprising the Subaru also seems to be picking up on that, though it’s a bit odder that he doesn’t more openly back up Kazuma, since he does some posing himself.
The other irony here is that at least a few people people in this setting are recognizing Shadow’s behavior for what it is, when no one in his own setting does. Would not be surprised if this spins into a whole series of jokes going forward.
Compared to this, what’s advertised as the episode’s main focus – teaming students up to grow morning glories – is almost an afterthought. It does at least allow for the inter-series character interactions on which this series thrives, like Aura and Garfiel’s entirely differing philosophies bouncing off each other or Aura getting teamed up with possibly the worst possible group of the lot when it comes to growing things. Ram’s exchange with Tanya here about how to shirk doing anything is also amusing, and it’s interesting that Ram is the first one to pick up on Shadow’s presence this time. Also keep an eye on what Puck is doing in the background, as he seems to be hanging out with different individuals or groups at different times. (This trend actually started much earlier in the franchise, but since he doesn’t pop up every episode, we have to take what we can get on his appearances.)
In all, this makes for a solid but unspectacular episode.
One of the distinguishing characteristics of the 2022 Chainsaw Man series is that protagonist Denji is never portrayed as having a normal human experience. He never went to school and never had friends or any of the the other things most kids take for granted. At heart he’s a creature of instinct, much closer to the demons he fights than to regular humanity, which just amplifies the raging hormones resulting from him being a teenage boy. That Denji is like this is a central theme in this movie, which is a direct sequel to the TV series. Of course, he could also just have his brain currently residing in his pants.
One consequence of this during the series is that Makima was able to quite firmly win him over just by being nice to him and providing three meals a day. Here she even goes out on a date with him, which mostly involves the two of them going to a succession of movies over the course of a day. (Why exactly Makima would do this is a bit unclear, but the viewpoint is always Denji’s, and he probably wouldn’t care if she had an ulterior motive.) He is so completely taken with her that he believes that no other woman could tempt him. But that’s exactly what happens when he meets Reze, a girl his own age who shelters with him during a rainstorm. She seems to like him and even flirt with him, and hanging out with her is definitely fun, leaving Denji confused about who he actually wants to try to be with. But this is a setting where demons are real and Chainsaw’s heart is a highly-sought-after prize among them, and they will definitely intrude on Denji’s budding new relationship.
On the storytelling front, Denji’s date with Makima sets up a later excellent contrast between Denji’s two potential love interests. Makima is a calm, mature woman with very controlled emotions, whereas Reze is very expressive and has a youthful energy and enthusiasm. (And unlike Power, who’s also closer to Denji’s age, she’s not crazy or bloodthirsty.) Denji’s internal struggle over which approach he’s more attracted to provides a surprisingly compelling emotional core for the story; the experience being torn between two entirely different kinds of attraction is a very common one and arguably the most human Denji is at this point. The downside to this emphasis is that it comes at the expense of most of the rest of the supporting cast. Aki and Angel get some attention as a team-up, with Aki having a hard time dealing with Angel’s laziness and death wish, but any development there is practically an afterthought. Power, meanwhile, is entirely absent except at the beginning and near the end, and the movie does hurt a little for that.
But this is, first and foremost, an action-centered franchise, and once the Bomb Demon shows up and starts wreaking havoc, the action elements take over fully and start delivering hard. The prolonged action sequences which make up most of the movie’s second half are eye-popping spectacles which rank among studio MAPPA’s finest and most ambitious animation efforts to date. They are full of grand, continuously-flowing choreography peppered with vibrant explosions and the kind of dynamic, camera-shifting movement titles like DAN DA DAN are known for. The scale of these scenes shouldn’t be overlooked, either; these were clearly planned specifically with a big screen in mind, and that is the ideal way to watch this movie. It will, I think, not have quite the impact on even a fairly large TV screen or monitor.
At around 100 minutes, this would have take nearly five full episodes to play out in series form, but given the flow of events (and especially the grand Chainsaw/Bomb battle, which has to be experienced continuously to fully appreciate), releasing it in movie form was the right call. I saw the movie subtitled so I can’t comment on the English dub, and a 3D version is also avaiable.
If you’re a franchise fan, seeing this one in the theater is a must.
From left: Eminence’s Eta and Delta, Overlord’s Lupusregina Beta and CZ2128 Delta
Rating: B
If episode 1 was the tease of the arrival of the Eminence in Shadow crew then episode 2 is that series’ formal introduction to the Isekai Quartet sphere. Specifically, Cid and the Seven Shadows all join class 1, which prior to this point had consisted of the Shield Hero trio and the secondary characters from Overlord and Re:Zero. This sets up a situation primed for naming chaos, since the secondary Overlord characters in question are the Pleiades (i.e., the combat maid squad of Nazarick), and six of them have the first six Greek letters in their names (Yuri Alpha, Lupusregina Beta, Narberal Gamma, CZ2128 Delta, Solution Epsilon, and Entoma Vasilissa Zeta), while all seven of the Seven Shadows are named only by the first seven Greek letters when not using aliases. Of course, the writers do not miss the golden opportunity to exploit this by drawing comparisons/contrasts between like-named characters.
And as with other pairings of series in the franchise, some of the fun is seeing which characters align with each other. In this case, the two Alphas, as team leaders, are both the most responsible and sensible members of their respective teams. Beyond them, Eminence‘s Delta definitely aligns with Overlord‘s Beta as the aggressive idiots of their respective groups (although this characteristic seems more pronounced here for Lupsregina than in her home anime series), while Eta and Overlord‘s Delta also seem to be on the same wavelength. The two Epsilons having a brief conversation was to be expected, since the Overlord version is a slime, while the Eminence version has the most masterful control over her slime suit; that both of them literally have busts made mostly or entirely of slime is a joke which has to come up at some point. (For those not familiar with The Eminence in Shadow, their body suits are made of magical slime, and the slightly-built, very self-conscious Epsilon has put considerable effort into mastering realistic bounce for the slime enhancement to her assets.) Eminence‘s Beta and Gamma only get a line each, but there are other characters in other series that each of them would better bounce off of, so their turns will presumably come later. The commonality on both sides is that members of each groups got their names from people they venerate, so getting around the overlapping name issue won’t be easy. Honestly, I kinda feel sorry for Naofumi.
And of course the writing isn’t going to pass up an opportunity to work in Cid Kagenou/Shadow’s quirks. He’s worked diligently to be Background Character A in his source series, so playing that aspect up to the point that he’s virtually invisible when in the classroom or walking by other characters could make for a great running joke. (Curious that Kazuma did notice him, though.) Him finding Ainz being referred to as the “ruler of darkness” being cool would be completely in-character for him, and even reading Don Quixote in class kinda fits with his delusional state, too.
And what would an Eminence introduction be without Shadow getting to combine his signature “I am atomic” spell with one of Megumin’s Explosion spells? The intersection of the two creating fireworks seems about right. I also chuckled at how everyone knew the end of the school day had come from the skies darkening as Megumin preps and fires her daily spell.
Also deserving of comment here is the animation effort. While the art style may seem simplified, there is a fair amount of background animation in this episode. Particular attention seems to be paid to Eminence‘s Zeta twitching her animal ears (for those not familiar with Eminence, the Seven Shadows are all either elves or Beastkin), to the point that this could become a running joke.
When will Cid find a music room with a piano? Will the Tuna King restaurant from the Eminence setting make an appearance? These are jokes I’m expecting to see. But while this may not have been one of the franchise’s funniest episodes, it’s still a pretty solid introduction for the new team.
To be clear, season 3 of this crossover wonder is a direct sequel to the movie ~Another World~ rather than season 2. While you don’t necessarily have to have seen the movie first to be able to follow along here, it is strongly recommended, as references to what happens in the movie are broadly made in this first episode.
Rather than begin with the addition of the franchise’s well-advertised newcomers, the first episode instead opens with cameos from an entirely different series: Lista (Ristarte) and Seiya from Cautious Hero: The Hero is Overpowered but Overly Cautious. Some kind of appearance was expected, as that series’ original novelist, Light Tuchihi, has been credited for “original work collaboration” on this new season. Their actions are fitting for the dynamics of their franchise but I’m still a bit surprised to see it represented here, as I was not under the impression that their franchise was anywhere near on the same popularity level as the other five (soon to be six) involved. The manner of their relatively brief appearances indicates that they won’t be recurring, though.
The bulk of the main part of the episode consists of various interactions from assorted cast members, with the writing once again doing a commendable job of getting just about everyone involved to some degree. Somehow a random round of sumo matches to determine who’s stronger than whom breaks out, with the feature match winding up being Re:Zero‘s Garfiel vs. Overlord‘s Albedo. (And poor Weiss; in his setting, he is possibly Tanya’s strongest subordinate, but he’s nowhere near on the level of some of the literal monsters in other groups.) There’s also a brief, inexplicable scene of William, the butler from Re:Zero, having tea with Overlord’s Hamsuke and Death Knight.
But for all the normal antics, there is a curiously serious part to this episode, in the form of Ains’ conversation with Roswaal about how they might not be originals and are being influenced by what their originals do, but that could also go both ways. It’s an intriguing bit of meta, and I am now very curious to see if that becomes a recurring theme this season. Roswaal’s statements near the end, after Ains leaves his office, about how powerful individuals from the various component settings aren’t going to have their way with this world, is also quite interesting, as it suggests that there may be a purpose to all of this beyond just a silly excuse for a cross-over. But it’s also possible I’m reading too much into this.
At least the newcomer finally appears at the end of the episode, though his Seven Shadows do not yet seem to be in two. His whole “chunibyo is actually real” shtick should fit in quite well with the others, so I’m very curious to see what kind of chaos their addition can generate. Looks like we’ll see next week.
USA Anime 