- I expected to see my favorite girl, but not this week.
- …but hey, we have another 5 episodes to go, and as the ‘anomaly’ concerns Shinobu’s past, before she met Koyomi, she’ll certainly be back to tell us everything, in one episode of course. Naturally.
- But to be honest, I wasn’t entirely sure what to think this week. Maybe because it was an opening arc episode was the reason why it felt a little empty on actual substance, or it’s the fact that I’ve become so attuned to these “short-on-location-but-rich-in-substance” Monogatari episodes. Koyomi calls Suruga to meet in the old cram school one night. Of course Suruga being Suruga, she thinks her beloved upperclassman will be taking her virginity, but even at the end we’re never shown why he wants her there, aside from delivering a request from someone to meet them. I’m pretty sure that this person won’t be Shinobu; there’s no reason why she’d want to meet Suruga…so there’s only one other person that springs to mind: Izuko, Suruga’s aunt. I know she appears in Shinobu Mail, so yeah…putting 2 and 2 together ‘n’ all.
- So instead of seeing Shinobu or Izuko, we’re given our ‘anomaly’ straight away. A gigantic ‘samurai’ on the hunt for a legendary sword he owned but Shinobu currently has possession of. Aside from his sword, though, his other key strength/weapon is draining the energy of things he touches. And so after taking a good portion of Suruga’s strength when she attacks him, and taking Koyomi’s voice when he reaches to strangle him, he disappears when the cram school lights up in flames.
One Punch Girl.
- But why flames? Where did the flames come from? Did the ‘samurai’ set the building on fire? Actually no. And the reason behind this lies in yet another Monogatari arc; this time it’s Tsubasa Tiger/Nekomonogatari (White). In that, not only is Tsubasa still cursed by a mischievous cat, but now a giant tiger begins to haunt her, making every building she sleeps in burst into flames. In one night, she is forced to sleep at the cram school when she discovers her own home has burnt down. Now as the events of Tsubasa Tiger and Shinobu Mail take place at the same time, we notice the bed made out of school desks and newspapers Tsubasa made (Suruga finds it, mischievously thinking Koyomi made it to take her virginity). So effectively, it is Tsubasa’s ‘new’ anomaly that sets the building on fire, thereby trapping Koyomi and Suruga in the cram school. Now with their strength combined, they could easily escape through a window or something, but with their energy drained, what are they meant to do? Of course, Suruga being Suruga, she only has one thing on her mind when it comes to final actions in life.
- …only for Yotsugi to randomly appear to get them out. I have no idea what kind of role Yotsugi would play in Owarimonogatari: taking them to Izuko, perhaps? I actually want to know, since she’s actually kind of cute in a odd and quirky way.
- As for the remainder of the arc, well I did enjoying Sodachi Riddle/Lost a lot, with it adding a new character (who then went on to disappear again), and also with the ‘anomaly’ being Koyomi’s own past with Sodachi, which he himself deemed as a terrible thing that shouldn’t have happened. While we are all happy that Sodachi has accepted why she harboured so much hatred, and that she can move on to a happier life in another town, I’m still in two minds. I’ve said in previous posts how the focus has recently shifted on Koyomi himself, as opposed to other girls in his increasing harem. We’ll be seeing plenty more of him in next years’ prequel movies. With the mass success of Monogatari in the West, I have no doubt that they will reach Western screens soon. From what I do know (aside from Izuko making yet another rare appearance) is that the ‘samurai’ is supposed to be another pure epitome of darkness and evil that Shinobu just keeps running away from. Her own 500 year-long history is just not long enough for an entire arc, let alone one episode. I know who she was in the past already, but I won’t spoil anything for those who don’t know, or just want to wait for the movies. But one thing that she and Koyomi do share greatly is a past that they desperately want to get away from. Shinobu’s a tsun, and he has already promised that they will die together.
- At least SHAFT have kept their tradition of changing opening themes in arcs. And wow, this one is quite possibly my favorite since Hitagi End. Short, minimal, but beautiful.
