Enjoying what’s going on in the series? Let’s go back quite a few years to explore something else. What They Say:
During the era when the Toyotomi clan ruled Japan, there lived a young woman known as Princess Yo, who could heal any wound or disease with her magical powers.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The fourth episode of the series takes a curious turn as it goes back in time by a fair bit to show the old days when the Toyotomi clan were the ones in power over Japan. There’s a great deal of intrigue and the like that’s evident there as we see conniving and planning going on, but the real focus is on two people in particular. One is a beautiful young woman named Princess Yo who has a very special skill in being able to heal people. That’s obviously a threat to some degree, but the one that’s more of an issue is Nura himself as he and his band easily roam the lands causing trouble and doing what they’ve done for ages. When Nura gets wind of Yo, he ends up heading off to see her and in on level to just play with her.
Nura’s taking her to the streets of the real world of people is cute as she has the expected reactions, either being intrigued, slightly nervous or just bewildered by what goes on. Of course, it all goes over the top as Nura makes various pledges to Yo, as he has his plan to use her for his own goals. The two have a very whirlwind meeting in this episode, though he gets to show that not all yokai are like you’d expect as there’s obviously been centuries worth of stories, fear and more about what yokai are and do. Nura’s goals aren’t made truly clear here, as to what he really wants from her, but what he does tell her is that he wants her for her, not for her powers or anything else. And for a young woman that’s basically been trapped because of her powers and her ability to heal people, having someone like that enter her life is a game changer.
In Summary:
With this episode going back a bit to explain some of Rikuo’s lineage, there’s potential for fun and I can certainly see how there’s entertainment for some fans with it, especially as Nura is such a prowler in a way here. He’s blunt, outgoing, seductive and more all wrapped up in a powerful package. This season continues to be rather uneven in many ways and this episode left me decidedly uninterested in things, especially after we had a decent episode the last time around dealing with events in the present. The more this episode went along, the more bored I became by it. Nura is fun at times and seeing him in this charming fashion, rather than the more paternal one we see with him in the present in regards to Rikuo, does have its moments. But mostly, it’s another divergence that kills the flow of the show, even if it does eventually have some impact down the line.
Grade: C
Simulcast By: Viz Anime
Review Equipment:
Sony KDS-R70XBR2 70″ LCoS 1080P HDTV, Dell 10.1 Netbook via HDMI set to 1080p, Onkyo TX-SR605 Receiver and Panasonic SB-TP20S Multi-Channel Speaker System With 100-Watt Subwoofer.
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