After Evil Eye awakens, he has his eyes set on his first human victim.. MOMO!
Video Review
What Stands Out About This Episode?
Tis a SHONEN!
Season 2 follows a similar storytelling formula as season 1. Build the backstory first, give a romantic payoff and then go full-blown shonen! The previous episode between Jiji and Evil Eye is one massive payoff in the making, but that only works if Evil Eye doesn’t do the thing that is stated in his name.. Even though Jiji is somewhere in there with Evil Eye, he was about to give Momo quite the vicious beating until our shonen deuteragonist becomes “all grow’d up!”
This was one of those highly anticipated episodes for manga fans because this battle between Evil Eye and Turbo Okarun featured some of the best artwork. And so the anime lived up to the hype! It was quite the treat, if people saw it in theaters as well.
As I mentioned before about the “storytelling formula,” this episode is the big payoff from the last one from building Jiji up in a newfound light. Okarun saved Momo when she needed him most and he has acted with the utmost confidence we have ever experienced from him up until this point. This builds upon his realization from Taro and Hana’s relationship that he will fight for Momo until the very end, overcoming his jealousy and all.
This becomes “THE” coming of age moment for Ken. It is one where it perfectly exemplifies what a good partnership should be from a romance perspective and one for co-starring as shonen MCs. Okarun not only tells Momo what to do, he will find a way to protect & save Jiji for Momo and himself. There is a romantic buildup moment like this in every arc prior that shows that they are one step closer to the “big confession.”
Turbo Okarun vs Evil Eye
Evil Eye is supposed to be one of the strongest yokais around, right? Also, given the fact that Jiji is supposed to be one of the most talented spiritual users that he would be labeled a “prodigy,” it would seem like the odds were stacked against Okarun. That right there is a perfect recipe for a shonen. Okarun got his “backed into a corner” moment. He got his aura-farming, “full-blown resolve” moment. Lastly, he got to cap it off with some classic badass lines just before comedic relief catches up to him and the NTR..
The NTR Choice
I swear I’m going to end up being the “NTR GUY” because I talk about it so much. In reality, every romance has such a thing and it can feel that way when you are cheering for a character that has romantic rivals. One of the most subtle changes in the anime’s delivery from the manga is a flashback scene between Momo and Jiji. We just witnessed THE STAR CHARACTER have the most badass fight he may ever have, only for Momo to “glaze” over another guy soon after. That is the pesky “NTR” I’m always referring to that Yukinobu Tatsu loves to pick at those romantic insecurities that we all have on some level.
In the anime, it actually doesn’t show Momo blushing or showing as much interest in Jiji as the manga. The anime’s approach was to take it more as a “matter of fact,” as it was an important scene to relay a fact about earthworms not being able to breathe underground when there is water and that the sun also burns them. Due to the Aira & Okarun and Momo & Jiji dynamics in this story, it’s hard not to pick up on these romantic storytelling cues that are meant to get a rise out of the audience in one way or another.
NTR in the Preview..
If you guys think that maybe I’m taking this “NTR” gag a bit too far, I would say this is 100% Yukinobu Tatsu’s intention. You don’t read a ton of romance books to prepare yourself to write a story, if you don’t understand how relationship dynamics affect one’s feelings. This is purposeful. It is SO PURPOSEFUL that the ending credits preview picks that exact flashback scene about the earthworm, which Okarun and Momo to banter over. Okarun tells Momo about the same thing a young Jiji told Momo and so Momo complains that Jiji already told her about this. This “NTR” and the teasing of the big confession between Momo and Okarun is Dan Da Dan’s romance in a nutshell.
Miscellaneous
This episode covers manga chapters 42–44, half of chapter 45
OTAKU SINH 