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「黄昏の書」 (Tasogare no Sho)
“Book of Twilight”
I hope no one gave up on Dantalian no Shoka, because if you’ve stuck around through a somewhat uneven run you were rewarded with by the series’ best episode – a glorious burst of GAINAX ingenuity and a treat for the eyes.
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「こころにも」 (Kokoro ni mo)
“The Heart Too”
Sometimes it really feels like CLAMP is mocking us, like when the dog says “some pretty big things happened today”.
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「いっただっきまーす」 (Ittadakkimaasu)
“Let’s Eat!”
Boy did the dynamics of this week’s episode feel like they were running from one end of the spectrum to the other. At times, I was a little disappointed when the writers didn’t flesh out what should have and could have been a very emotional scene.
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「氷の世界」 (Koori no Sekai)
“World of Ice”
I had the feeling that the pink-haired “beauty” in the opening sequence may not be a woman, largely in part to how a trench coat masks one’s figure, but I would’ve been perfectly happy if I were wrong in this case.
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「奈落にあるもの」 (Naraku ni Aru Mono)
“What Lies in the Abyss”
For such an earnest and seemingly old-fashioned anime as this often seems to be, No. 6 has quite the talent for slapping the audience in the face occasionally. Seeing a baby being nursed by a dog is certainly a first for me, anime or otherwise – and that’s just for starters.
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「美姫、繚乱」 (Biki, Ryouran)
“The Beautiful Maiden Arrives”
As sadistic as it sounds, Mahiru turned out to be all kinds of batshit insane yet I actually liked her more because of it. Hanazawa Kana in a psychotic role is uncharted seiyuu territory that’s definitely worth exploring further.
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「修学旅行というが、私たちは一体何を学び修めたのだろう」 (Shuugaku Ryokou to Iu ga, Watashi-tachi wa Ittai Nani wo Manabiosameta no Darou)
“It’s a School Trip, but Exactly What are We Supposed to Have Learned?”
Yuruyuri has always been a mildly amusing series, but this is the first time an episode had me laughing helplessly, stopping to catch my breath, and then laughing helplessly again. I mean come on, Chitose’s bleeding through her eyes! How is that not funny?
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「境界面上のシュタインズゲート」 (Kyōkaimenjō no Shutainzu Gēto)
“Open the Steins Gate”
I’m going to go against character and make this post a brief one, which is fitting I think in that this penultimate episode was one that pretty much speaks for itself. And I’ll start with a confession – I finally caved and re-watched the first episode before I watched episode 23.
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「割れた鏡」 (Wareta Kagami)
“Broken Mirror”
Over the course of three seasons Natsume Yuujinchou has consistently delivered superb examples of what is generally referred to dismissively as “filler”. Except that the filler for this series – such as the previous two episodes – is very often among the best the show has to offer.
