Subculture Anime Blog

At the hotsprings…A loli appears!

Summary:

While in town, Noboru and Toru leave it up to Tenko to do a drawing. She excitedly does so with promises of a food reward, but the boys are even more excited when she actually wins the grand prize of a hot springs trip. While the Takagami family is on the train later, Noboru notices how normal Tenko and Ko are compared to when they first rode on one. Tenko still gets excited about food, however, and Ko has trouble simply walking to the bathroom. When the family reaches the springs, they are surprised that Tatsuhiko and Oobaba are there as well. Not wishing to be with Oobaba, Tenko joins the boys in their room as a male. While alone with her, Oobaba asks Ko about the well being of the Takagami family and Tenko’s actions. Though Ko trusts Tenko, Oobaba reminds her that she is actually a powerful deity. Ko meets the boys while they are about to enter the bath, and because another individual enters to see this, Noboru forces everyone to leave.

Toru meets a young girl after his exit, who quickly asks if he would play with her. The girl states that she is alone, and further reveals that the springs are her home. Toru agrees to play with the girl later, but after introducing himself to her, she seems to put on a threatening aura. Noboru later suggests that he is going to the onsengai, which Tenko wishes to see after hearing about food. When Toru says he cannot go because of his promise to play with a girl, Noboru and the others are shocked. Though slightly worried about Toru, Ko agrees to follow Noboru as well. While the group is outside, they meet back up with Oobaba and Tatsuhiko. Toru finally finds the room the girl asked to meet at, but he is quickly pulled in after reaching the door. Locked inside the room, Toru realizes that the girl’s intentions may be threatening.

Oobaba notices how much Tenko has gotten used to human lifestyle while she plays a game, and seeing that she cannot win the prize she is aiming for, wins it for her. Ko realizes that since everyone is outside, nobody must be with Toru. She quickly runs to check on him, and along with everyone else, realizes that an ayakashi has appeared. Ko accompanies Noboru when the group splits up to find Toru, as they encounter several large possessed toys pass by. Tenko meanwhile enters the men’s changing room to find the band that she had given to Toru. Following a scream to the kitchen, she meets the young girl. When Tenko puts on a threatening face while generating a sword, the girl is only brought to tears.

Ko finds the room Toru is trapped in, using her powers to blow the doors open. As the rest of the group catches up, they find that Toru is passed out on the ground. When Tenko arrives with the girl, she commands her to bring Toru back to normal. Oobaba wonders why Ko had left Toru’s side as he awakens, but Toru defends her by revealing that he was the one who suggested that she join the others. Tenko reveals that the young girl is a Zashiki Warashi, who had trained his energy. The girl apologizes, claiming that she just wanted to play. By taking Toru’s energy, she believed the items around her would keep her company. Toru is not angry as usual, only suggesting that everyone play together. Tenko takes the chance to give Toru his missing charm back, making him realize how useless it would be if he wasn’t wearing it. Noticing Oobaba leave the room, Noboru catches up to her to assure her how well Tenko is protecting them. The Zashiki Warashi begins to play badminton with the group afterwards, only worrying Noboru when Tenko and Ko step up to challenge her.

Preview: Tenko goes to school?

Impression:

I can never get over the “drawing wins hot springs trip” theme, since it’s so cliched and impossible. Really, it’s easy to notice that most anime use similar stereotypes and elements if you just take note of them. The hot springs trip, for one, is one of my favorites to poke fun at. That said, this episode was full of win and awesomeness as usual. It was really funny to see Ko and Tenko’s silliness on the train despite how much they had improved, and even more so seeing Tenko go into his male form to bathe with Noboru and Toru. (Wouldn’t that be really awkward? I guess Noboru’s the only one who thinks so.) But besides the laughs and fanservice, there was a bit of development with Oobaba’s reappearance. It was funny to hear her mention how much Tenko had gotten used to human life, but also great to see her realize that Tenko had no ill intentions towards the boys. This show actually helps me learn a bit more about Japanese culture too, since the Zashiki Warashi was represented in a way which most people actually do. (I can’t say I liked the loli more than xxxHolic’s version though.) Next week’s episode looks even more awesome, as it seems like Shizuka Itou’s character Miyabe Momiji will finally be revealing her major role.