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ED2 Sequence:
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ED2: “Aru ga Mama” 「あるがまま」 by Anam & Maki (アナム＆マキ)
Watch the 2nd ED!: Mirror 1, Mirror 2, Show Streaming ▼
「遠来の客」 (Enrai no Kyaku)
“Distant Visitor”
Episode at a Glance:
After feigning panic about the Daya, Kotarou comments on how the remaining Banten scroll is the most troublesome and how they’ll snatch everything from Hattori once he’s gathered them all. Meanwhile, Kumohira, Kouichi, and Raimei discuss how Miharu won’t return to Banten. At the same time, Kouichi explains how he’s an immortal being created by a previous Shinrabanshou host, much like Shijima, whose true form is Shiratama. He adds that he’s been in search of the current host so that he can be released from his endless existence, much like he tried ten years ago. Only knowing himself as Aizawa Kouichi now, he says he’s waiting for the revival of the Shinrabanshou and has also considered delivering the Banten Engetsurin to Miharu. After reiterating how Kumohira is firm in his resolve of preventing the Shinrabanshou from being used, Kouichi tries to demonstrate his immortality by letting himself fall off a cliff, but is caught by Kumohira and Raimei.
At the Kairoushuu’s surface world headquarters, Miharu hands over the Daya to Hattori, causing everyone else to set their sights on the Engetsurin. However, Miharu is more concerned about the research being done for Yoite’s sake, which Hattori claims will be taken care of as part of mankind’s evolution. While not taken in by his words, Miharu later finds out from Raikou that Hattori was the one that saved Yoite from long ago. Miharu then checks up on Yoite, where Kazuho teases him about how the Shinrabanshou powers might even save a Kira user, and questions what Yoite is wishing for after learning the forbidden technique. At another clinic around the same time, Raikou is checking up on Gau. Yoite then wakes up, so Miharu tells him how Kumohira probably won’t hand over the Engetsurin and how he may not be able to make him disappear even if they do get it. Unbeknownst to both of them, Hattori has given an order to Yukimi to retrieve the last scroll before Miharu can control his powers.
Elsewhere, Kouichi and Raimei managed to drag Kumohira onboard a ferry, where he apologize to Kouichi for getting him killed. As atonement, Kouichi inquires about what happened ten years ago, implying that Kumohira knew about the Shinrabanshou’s revival in Miharu long before anyone else, and was affected by its powers in a way he can’t talk about. Hearing this, Kumohira questions what Kouichi’s after and why he’s trying to dissolve his resolution. Kouichi simply reiterates his desire to use the Shinrabanshou to die though, but adds that he also wants the Shinrabanshou to be sealed away so that a monster like him is never created again. Realizing that this is contradictory, Kouichi tells Kumohira that what he does from here on is dependent on him. Meanwhile, the two of them are unaware that Raimei is trying to/has contacted Miharu.
On the Shinkansen, Miharu and Yoite decide to see if they can get ahold of the Banten scroll through Hana even though she’s a surface world person. During this time, Yukimi is informed that Miharu and Yoite are gone by his sister, who also wonders if he’ll be okay getting the Engetsurin on his own. As for Kumohira and the others, they’ve disembarked from their ferry and Raimei has gone home first. At Kumohira’s house, Hana overhears some noises outside thinking it’s Thobari, but welcome in Miharu and Yoite instead. She then offers them food, thinking they’re waiting for Kumohira’s return, which causes Yoite to wonder what Miharu has in mind. Being as direct as possible, Miharu asks Hana if she’s heard of the Engetsurin, but she claims she hasn’t. Yoite doubts her claim though since she lives with Kumohira, but Hana explains that they have an implicit rule in their house not to talk about those things. Yoite then questions why she met with them then, but she says it’s simply because guests are important to her, and it’s sad if no one comes by to visit.
While Hana is cutting into a dessert, Yoite is reminded of a traumatic past with his step mother and runs outside. Smelling his scarf, Miharu is reminded of his own mother in a more pleasant memory. The doorbell then rings, so Hana gets the door, only to find that it’s Yukimi and not Thobari.
Next Episode:
「決壊の時」 (Kekkai no Toki)
“Moment of Breakdown”
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Impressions:
New ending theme this week, by a female duo known as Anam & Maki. Can’t say I’ve heard heard any of their songs before, but I really like the strings and acoustics to this song. Compared to ELISA’s HIKARI (which I really liked), this is a lot more mellow and laid back. My only concern right now is the ending sequence itself, especially the part on the green field, which is undoubtedly going to have the yaoi sensitive viewers heading for the hills. Personally though, until I see anything remotely sexual in nature between Miharu and Yoite, it’s male yuujou (友情, friendship) in my books.
Regarding the episode itself, we’re back into the thick of things with Kotarou and Hattori now, and despite the Fuuma leader’s initial outburst at Juuji regarding the Daya, it’s clear now that letting all the kinjutsusho fall into the Kairoushuu’s hands first is part of his plan. This was hinted at several times in the past already though, so I guess we all saw it coming. Kouichi revealing that he’s an immortal created by a previous Shinrabanshou was in accordance to what I expected, but I hadn’t skimmed that far ahead in the manga to know that he’s helping Miharu awaken his powers so that he can die. (Now is it just me, or is the trend amongst immortals these days the desire to die?) As some readers may know, I purposely refrain from making manga/anime comparisons; however, there was a particular scene I made reference to last time regarding Kurookano Shijima’s true identity, so I guess it’s only appropriate to discuss it here. For those unfamiliar with the manga completely, her true identity was hinted at in this episode, but not explicitly spelt out for us. In the manga, there was a followup scene after Shijima left Alya Academy where she reverted back to Shiratama, Miharu’s cat, and discussed things with Kouichi, including how they were both created by the Shinrabanshou. In short though, the anime adaptation didn’t change anything, but chose to make the revelation far more brief.
As for the location of Banten’s Engetsurin kinjutsusho, I was a bit surprised (and somehow not surprised at the same time) that Kumohira had been carrying it with him all along. Given how the Engetsurin is the last forbidden scroll/book that the Kairoushuu is missing, I’m starting to wonder what Hattori has planned for Miharu. Sure he has discussed causing an evolution amongst mankind in the past, but I’ll credit the Kairoushuu leader with as much roundabout meaning to his words as Kotarou. Hattori has also told Yukimi to gather the last scroll before Miharu can control his powers too, so I only foresee his plans as something he knows Miharu won’t want to be a part of willingly.
Finally, I’m glad to see Hana again as I’ve wondered how much of a role she’d play in the series, but at the same time, I’m starting to suspect she’ll become a “surface world” victim of the Nabari world struggles. Having a good-hearted bystander inadvertently killed is always a good way of getting some drastic character development (looking at Kumohira here), so while I can see it happening, I hope it doesn’t simply because I don’t want to see Hana killed off. As for Yoite, it seems like he has a troubled past with his step mother wanting him to die, which may explain why he wants Miharu to erase his existence (i.e. he’s led a horrible life). There’s still a lot we don’t know about Yoite’s past though, but I have a feeling that this will be the start of his back story.
Next time, Raimei without her pigtails and looking a lot better without them, plus more of Yoite’s troubled past.
Cast:
– Rokujou Miharu (六条 壬晴) / Kugimiya Rie (釘宮 理恵)
– Yoite (宵風) / Saiga Mitsuki (斎賀 みつき)
– Kumohira Thobari Durandal (雲平・帷・デュランダル) / Namikawa Daisuke (浪川 大輔)
– Aizawa Kouichi (相澤 虹一) / Hino Satoshi (日野 聡)
– Shimizu Raimei (清水 雷鳴) / Fujimura Ayumi (藤村 歩)
– Yukimi Kazuhiko (雪見 和彦) / Tsuda Kenjirou (津田 健次郎)
– Hattori Toujuurou (服部 柊十郎) / Nakata Jouji (中田 譲治)
– Ichiki (一季) / Amano Yuri (天野 由梨)
– Shimizu Raikou (清水 雷光) / Suwabe Junichi (諏訪部 順一)
– Amatatsu Kazuho (天立 和穂) / Kano Yui (鹿野 優以)
– Fuuma Kotarou (風魔 小太郎) / Okiayu Ryoutarou (置鮎 龍太郎)
– Minami Juuji (南 十字) / Koyama Kimiko (こやま きみこ)
– Seki Hanabusa (関 英) / Mitsuishi Kotono (三石 琴乃)
– Katou Sourou (加藤 候) / Kakihara Tetsuya (柿原 徹也)
– Rokujou Asahi (六条 旭日) / Okamoto Maya (岡本 麻弥)
– Yoite’s step mother (宵風の義母) / Kouda Naoko (幸田 直子)
– Baby (幼児) / Shitara Mami (設楽 麻美)
– Mother (母親) / Seto Saori (世戸 さおり)
Umm what does yuujou mean??
Anyways, I always thought that Miharu and Yoite’s relationship was more of a brotherly one since they both want to return to a life of being indifference.
Poor Kouichi Yoite. And I agree that Hana may be killed. Maybe Yoite and Miharu will get closer to her and when she dies, one of them may go berserk again. That, or Kumohira might actually grow a pair.
See kids, immortality isn’t that great. ;D You’ll eventually get bored after all.
What is the deal with that cat? They’ve been showing it too much to be just backdrop eye candy. I hope it makes a decent plot device.
cat is the girl from the academy, that gave them the scroll.
@Final
Yeah right!
If you’re not creative/imaginative that is ;p
The new ending does kind of making it a dream-come-true for Yaoi fangirls. However, I still choose to believe that it is more of a serious brotherly/platonic relationship. (Don’t mean that I would hate a yaoi doujin or fanfic of this couple thought, but I will try not to pair this two in the canon unless the show actually implies that they have interest in each other romantically, which I doubt is the case here)
Last episode is the story as far as I have gone through in the manga, so anything starting from this episode is completely new to me. While immortal-seeking-death plot is becoming quie a cliche, I still like Kouichi a lot.
great~ i tot there isnt ed2~
lol~
@Cherubium:
“Yuujou” means “Friendship”. I’ve added the translation to the write-up above.
I think Miharu and Yoite just have a strong male bond, which is reminiscent of F4 in Hana Yori Dango and not sexual in any way. However, I understand that some people love to let their imaginations “run wild”, especially when characters are depicted in a way where that can easily happen.
=O omg raimei with her hair down next ep!! ahaha i want her hat
Oo,I would like to see this new ending.
While nothing may actually happen between them,us fangirls can DEFINITELY dream..
YoitexMiharu~ x3
All these references to the manga have me tempted but I’ll try to stay away from it.
@Kalulu:
In case you overlooked it, I uploaded copies of the new ending that you can download. The links are in the post above. Enjoy~
I just hope Miharu and Yoite turn out to be brothers (my prediction since the series started), I can’t start watching yaoi now can I 🙂
Looks nice. Looking forward to read the summary.
i really liked the ending song… that is the very first time when i see yoite really smiled like that…
i like the new ending song…..kawaiiiiiiiiiii
I really doubt Miharu is desperately trying to hold back his “brotherly feelings” for Yoite, LOL!
Nobody calls Torchwood a “Gay Comedy” when Captain Jack tongue kisses another man every other episode, why is everyone calling this “Yaoi”.
Cute psp you got there 🙂
Yoite smiling like that <3333
Yay, great more episode of Nabari no Ou 😀
so is this a shounen-ai manga now? or was it always a shounen-ai manga? because the level of sensitivity/emotion between miharu and yoite is reachin critical levels right on the brink of crossing that line.
maybe im thinking too much, but its awfully weird.
I like the new ending. The song is nice and the sequence is overflowing with cute.
As for the YxM debate, I agree with divine. I really feel that Miharu thinks of Yoite as an older brother or friend. I’m not against BL but in this case, it doesn’t seem like a sexual kind of relationship (which is why it’s annoying when people scream “omg itz yaoi eww!” because nobody is having sex here).
I don’t think so, except if those fans don’t know about the manga aha~: Show Spoiler ▼
Show Spoiler ▼
Speaking of which, I’m surprised at how many females fans Nabari no Ou seems to have despite being relatively shounen in nature. I guess hinting at a possible BL relationship really draws the ladies in. :X
God let us have this. All the other action-oriented shows this season have fanservice galore for the guys. I can’t even sit through half the stuff this summer.
Does Hana have the scoll?
To be absolutely honest on the shounen-ai/not shounen-ai thing, I think the author intends to go as far as possible and give ALL the hints without really, really going there. While a truckload hints have been given for Raikou x Gau and Miharu x Yoite, the author has thus far carefully avoided any implications of I-want-in-your-pants kind of feelings, or even I-want-to-steal-your-lips kind of feelings. XD
I, personally, love Miharu and Yoite as really good friends who pretty much are each other’s lives in one way or another, but don’t support them in a shounen-ai/yaoi way.
For instance, the Miharu hiding his feelings line was translated differently in the manga scanlations, and came out saying something like, “can I be forgiven if I think with my heart, just this once?” or some-such thing, so I don’t know which is accurate, the manga or the anime. If, in the more overtly shounen-ai case, the anime is correct, it’s definitely another large hint toward Miharu x Yoite, but it could also be seen as Miharu knowing that Yoite desires aloneness and death and not wanting to burden him with unnecessary feelings.
The author is definitely skirting the line, though, and I am not naive enough to believe that the author is writing this just as a relationship between friends. She probably knows full well how she’s playing it, and leaving the interpretation up to viewers.
Though the chapter 47 revelation makes things for one side considerably more likely…
This is the best way to use Shinrabashou….
Well love between men is not possible unless Miharu would use his powers to become a real girl instead and change Yoite’s wish. Live happily ever after with Miharu turning to a real girl.
DEAR GOD. Now the fanfics will REALLY go everywhere with this one.
Funny how I thought that all the guys would be falling for each other, with the way Nabari is directed and all: Gau x Raikou, Yukimi x Yoite, Miharu x Thobari, Miharu x Yoite… the possibilities are ENDLESS.
Alaena- Good points. I would have thought two males holding hands was the universal sign for “gay”, but it isn’t uncommon in japan according to this article-
http://musingsofanundercovergaijin.blogspot.com/2007/11/holding-hands.html
Interesting read Geena, thanks for the link.
Your welcome;I was seriously looking for proof that it wasn’t usual in Japan, but alas;(
I do think the author knows what she is doing, and I don’t complain. I mean, Miharu’s relationship with Yoite, especially in the manga, has a lot of elements typical relationships between malexfemale have, the blushing is really fun to see. But like with Get Backers, I think it’s accurate to say she is on the borderline but won’t cross it, unless she does something about certain event of the manga. Yet I don’t think the gender matters anyway, and seriously, Miharu can’t be paired with nobody else if you start making your way in “who he had more moments/situations/heart-to-heart conversations/blushing(manga)/etc”.
But luckily this isn’t like Macross Frontier where everyone want either SherylAlto’s fans head or viceversa. X3
Miharu and Yotie are lonely people, they represent many people in this world
I wouldn’t predict what the Mangaka will do with this one; as she has already proven herself willing to cross boundaries. This is more a work of art and deep social commentary than an action manga.
@ Geena: Thanks for linking that article! That’s really interesting!
@sherry
Geeze, thanks for the spolier… [/spoiler] -_-
1st was 4chan, which I gave up immediately on (and tried to pretend it wasn’t true), now here…
Great episode. It’s the kind of episode that really makes me want to see whats next.
I really wish people wouldn’t speculate about any MiharuxYoite BL… They obviously have a deep bond, but to even mention the word sexual around them is creepy.
I see their relationship as deep friendship, with a bit of romance (I mean, no matter what holding hands and looking to the clouds together is romantic, even if between friends) and lots of devotion. They identify with each other and feel close because of that. But they certainly aren’t “brotherly” or platonic either. Brotherly is too competitive/aggressive a term for them, they don’t seem to see each other as brother figures at all. MiharuxThobari is obviously more brotherly than anything concerning Yoite would be.
And platonic is just ridiculous, there’s no way anyone in a platonic relationship is holding hands/sleeping on each other.
Saying BL is going too far too. There’s a big difference between romantic feelings and sexual ones. If they ever progress past this point, romantic is definitely the direction they’ll go in.
Show Spoiler ▼