Subculture Anime Blog

I like cute pink bunnies too.

Summary:

The boys become excited when Ko suggests she will cook one day. Tenko isn’t so sure about this, however, and the boys are quickly worried after hearing the noises in the kitchen later. Ko has of course ruined a pot inside the kitchen when the boys check on her, but even more worrisome, Noboru suspects that there is something living in one of the cabinets. After the boys’ father returns home to eat as well, Noboru simply suggests that Ko does not have to force herself from now on. Ko continues to make mistakes in the kitchen later, suggesting that she only tried to imitate Noboru. Toru suggests that Noboru is good at things because he has always done them, making Ko wonder if this is because he learned from Miyako. However, this makes Ko realize that Toru is troubled about something she has said. In the meantime, Noboru worries about the expenses brought up because of Ko’s mistakes. After the boys’ father gets out of the bath, Noboru and Toru take their turn. Mr. Takagami then asks for Ko to leave the room for a bit so that he can have a talk with Tenko.

Mr. Takagami expresses that he always wanted to meet Tenko, further stating that Miyako worried about her until the end. Tenko is happy about this, but then wonders about Miyako’s leaving for school. She guesses that because she did this, she must have met Mr. Takagami at school. This makes Mr. Takagami remember the day he and Miyako first met. Mr. Takagami was handing out flyers in a pink bunny outfit, and Miyako had quickly run to him in belief that the bunny was extremely cute. Mr. Takagami collapsed after Miyako’s giant hug, but this meeting eventually led to their marriage. Tenko finally reveals that Miyako only had 30 years to live after leaving the Mizuchi, wondering how Mr. Takagami feels after learning this for the first time. Mr. Takagami is more concerned about Tenko, however, surprised that she has no grudges against the clan that sealed her away for many years. Tenko reveals that Miyako had visited her before she left, asking what she believed a human could do in 30 years. Tenko believed that one could do nothing, but Miyako had cheerfully suggested that she could do anything. When Mr. Takagami thanks Tenko for telling him this afterwards, she only leaves with a bit of embarrassment and a single glance at Miyako’s photo. While the boys are in the bath, Ko observes the picture of Miyako in the house.

Ko greets Toru in the morning, but he leaves shortly after denying the need for her to assist him. Inside the house, Tenko expresses her want to eat gourmet food once in awhile. Noboru gives financial reasons why this isn’t possible, but Tenko leaves the house in human form in hopes of changing this. Meanwhile, Toru begins to collect beans that have been lined up on the ground. Above in a tree, a woman believes her plan to capture Toru will succeed with Tenko currently missing. When Noboru goes out to assist Ko with the clothes, Ko takes the chance to ask if she has done anything wrong to upset Toru. Learning of the situation, Noboru tells Ko that Toru has no memories of his mother. Miyako had died shortly after Toru was born, but Toru still understood how important his mother was to him. Ko believes she is a failure of a guardian because of her actions, but Noboru assures her that none of them think this of her. Ko wishes to meet Toru, so Noboru takes care of the rest of the laundry in order to allow her to do so.

After reaching a certain distance, Toru is amazed to see a large bean sprout. The woman from earlier appears to greet and ask for his name, but this time, Toru is smart enough to run away. Elsewhere, Ko and Tenko sense the woman’s presence. The woman catches Toru with vines that she controls, but Ko suddenly appears to send attacks towards her. Introducing herself as the Mizuchi guardian, Ko attempts to save Toru despite her disadvantage. When the woman begins talking about Miyako, Ko instantly becomes serious. After several attacks from the woman’s vines, Ko releases a massive water attack against her. Despite the effectiveness, however, the woman uses her hostage Toru to her advantage. Ko is unable to move when the woman sends an attack towards her, but Tenko appears just in time to free Toru. With this, Ko releases a ridiculously powerful attack against the woman. With the woman’s true form revealed as a bean, Toru and the girls walk home with a large amount of beans. Toru thanks Ko on the way home, and she promises to protect him from now on. Later, Noboru prepares the beans for dinner. However, Ko makes the mistake of trying to help once again.

Preview: More Miyako and Tenko in a summer outfit.

Impression:

Holy crap!!! This episode was really awesome. Not that the past three were bad at all, but this one really had some umph. I’m loving Ko and Tenko even more after this, as the last few scenes had me wide eyed. Even more interesting, it was revealed that Miyako is played by a cheerful Horie Yui in this episode. Looking through the cast list shortly after learning this, and it looks like even more voice talents including names like Itou Shizuka will be showing up in the future. Talk about a strong cast. Besides the awesome battle and Ko and Tenko’s usual awesomeness, this episode also revealed a bit of Miyako’s background. This is a show that I believe will make us feel really attached to the characters, and with 24 episodes to run on, I’m sure there will be plenty of time to do it.

On a bit of a cultural note, I took note of things like the incense burning during Mr. Takagami and Tenko’s talk. I used to do that too, but I guess I got to detached from such traditions after awhile. I also understand that its typical to share baths at a young age, but Noboru and Toru jumping in together kind of bothered me. Isn’t Noboru a bit old to do this with his brother? Whatever. I also got a lot of Jack and the Beanstalk vibes from this week’s villain and the way she lured Toru in. Next week looks like it will shed some light on the Miyako foreshadowing we got a few episodes ago. It looks like a lot of fun, and now I’m honestly really looking forward to new episodes of Wagaya no Oinarisama.