The second arc in the Nura series has been a bit slow to get off the
ground, especially as they included a poorly done recap in the middle of
everything. With the prominence of Inugami and his group in the last
episode and their outright declaration this episode, he's setting a very
public (within the yokai world) stage with his intent to take over the
Nura clan and make it his own. The damage done and the psychological
effect is mostly surface level at this point since it just reinforces
Rikuo's position to stand firm against them but also gives him the
opportunity to set things right on his terms. With most of those who
serve under him feeling like they failed him in this instance, they're
even more eager to make sure such incidents don't happen again.
A
lot of this episode has a meandering kind of feeling after that initial
encounter as the yokai at the clan work on repairing the house while
Rikuo figures out what his options are. A lot of that time is spent with
him doing stuff with his friends though since he wants to have his
human life as well. This keeps him tied up with the yokai research club
that got kicked off at the beginning of the series so there's that mild
awkwardness there as usual, but it's pretty mild overall. Rikuo's time
with his friends is rather decent overall since it's a place that has
him acting very different from his somewhat more commanding presence
he's been adopting as the Third Heir. Not hugely, since he hasn't really
taken to that role in a big way, but he's smiling more and laughing
more with his friends which is a welcome thing to see since it gives him
a place to relax a little.
When it comes to Inugami's group,
they do get some further showcasing in this but it's mostly just them
sitting around talking big and prodding each other a bit. The group
hasn't exactly won me over because they've not been detailed much, but
these small scenes go a long way in selling them as a threat. The
animation for it seems to be stronger for them as well, with some really
nice designs and overall quality of the animation, such as the numerous
teeth in one or the classic designs with the kimono for another. The
yokai in the series in general have been pretty weak in my mind,
especially those that we've seen in the Nura clan as they're either
crazy out there or just plain goofy. Not that I expected threatening or
wanted that, but something that wasn't simply comical would have been
better.
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