Wakaranai

 

Although this series continues to get the job done in its role as an ecchi/harem/comedy anime, with ample amounts of fanservice, and consistently impressive production values, I personally feel like it’s lost a bit of steam since the first episodes. Since the first couple of eps, this series has lost a bit of its comedic edge. I originally compared it to Seto no Hanayome with its well-timed punchlines and great visual humour, but that comparison has now expired because it no longer really makes me laugh. I think episode 2 has to be the pinnacle of the show so far in terms of entertainment value, with the ero-value of Mitsuki in handcuffed nopan mode and the general craziness. Maybe it’s because this series has been gradually leaning more and more toward a dramatic tone. Mitsuki’s childhood-friend love story is coming more and more to the forefront and the real plot behind the pet angels is beginning to surface. The result is a more serious feel for the series, even if it still features plenty of sexy eye-candy and ecchi gags. While I am somewhat interested in the origins and purpose behind these angels, I’m not sure the series should start taking itself too seriously. The odd bit of drama is good to flesh out the characters and make them more likeable, but this series works best when it embraces its ridiculous and perverse premise.

So I think this episode could have been a lot more entertaining that it was. I mean, even if it was a beach episode, most of the fanservice was just crammed into the ED! The beach episode is a staple tradition of anime, and usually just a thin excuse to get a bunch of girls in bikinis for a concentrated dose of fanservice. It’s kind of ironic then that the beach of episode of this series, marketed as an ecchi series, actually had less focus on fanservice than most of the previous episodes! There was still a good amount of eye-catching swimsuit shots I guess.

But the strangest thing was the way that this episode was used as the introduction point for Nymph. I’ve been eagerly awaiting Nymph’s appearance since the very beginning (largely because I find her to be the most attractive of all the character designs, but either way two pet angels are better than one, right?), but just slipping her in like this without any explanation kind of stole her thunder. Even though she’s now a part of the cast, she hasn’t really made an impact yet, or changed the dynamic between any of the characters. I guess they were just trying to be different, but it didn’t feel right. I almost thought that I’d missed an episode! So I can’t really say I like yet because so far she’s just hung around pointlessly and been rude to Tomoki. I really hope the next episode gives her a bit more of an opportunity to capture my heart. I really want to like her!

Overall it was a pretty good episode. The series remains one of the most attractive of the whole season. Mitsuki’s romantic feelings were delved into with a little more sincerity, Icarus and her master are gaining a bit of chemistry (do I detect the hint of an approaching love triangle or harem?), and the mystery behind these strange angels is starting to be explored. But personally, I like the show when it’s wild and unhinged.

● I love how Icarus’s response to Tomoki getting attacked is invariably to start glowing, make wind blow around the place, and tear up some rocks and shit. It always strikes me as a strange way to react. Is she charging up some devastating attack or something? In that case it’s pretty ineffectual if it takes that long. Surely she has the strength to just beat the crap out of 3 guys rather than concocting some kind of spirit bomb attack.

● So Nymph is a newer model of pet angel devices, huh? That’s what I assume if Icarus’s model is alpha. The biggest difference between the two models appears to be the fact that Nymph is a lot more self-conscious and has the ability to make decisions on her own. When Mitsuki was in danger, Nymph flew in to save the day while Icarus just stood around looking concerned.

✘ I have to call Tomoki an idiot again because he should have just told Icarus to go save Mitsuki rather than trying to swim out himself. The writers are making a habit of ignoring Iacrus’s abilities to serve their own stories.