Love-sick shapeshifting fox Kitsune returns, with another plan to woo Shinobu.

This time the diminutive critter views a film (at the fox cinema) in which a fox turns a human woman into a fox for a night when she eats a magic nut. So Kitsune sets out to feed Shinobu the very same nut. However he’s forgotten where she lives. So he turns into Sakura to get Onsen-Mark to tell him the way to her house. Onsen-Mark is very drunk and very love-sick himself and actually thinks the tiny, fox-eared Sakura he sees before him is Sakura. He soon passes out though, and fter burying the unconscious Onsen-Mark under a pile of leaves, the dogs appear that were attacking him when Sakura saved him, and chase Kitsune. This time though, it is Kotatsu Neko makes the save, but Kitsune accidentally leaves his magic nuts behind.

TROUBLE.

As you may have guessed, if you’ve been following these episode write ups, these nuts are going end up eaten by everyone… Cunningly “disguised” as Shinobu, Kitsune gets Lum and Ataru to take him to Shinobu’s house claiming “I’ve forgotten where I live”. Shinobu is pleased to see Kitsune, but discovers he’s lost he nuts. It also becomes clear at this point that Kitsune can only talk to humans when disguised as one, as he turns into Lum and Ataru to tell them the fox as lost his nuts.

To Ataru’s surprise, even after learning that the nuts will turn her into a fox, Shinobu agrees to help look for them. However their search is in vain, until they run across Kotatsu Neko and Cherry making a stew… Everyone tucks in and soon, Shinobu, Lum, Ataru, Cherry and Kotatsu Neko have all turned into foxes and start floating away. Then as the smell of the stew spreads across Tomobiki everyone starts to grow fox ears & tails and start to frolic under the full moon.

Then we see Kitsune waking up in front of the cinema screen. Was it all a dream???

Another fantastic script from Michiru Shimada, who had also written Kitsune’s last appearance. Yuichi Endo also brings the same strong visuals, and what seems like the first time in ages the dream-like quality associated with the peak of the Oshii years.

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Screenplay: Michiru Shimada
Storyboard: Naoyuki Yoshinaga
Director: Naoyuki Yoshinaga
Animation Director: Yuichi Endo

Once again Ryoko is portrayed as a having an interest in the supernatural. Not sure if this is a permanent shift in how she’s presented or if she returns to a straight mischievous portrayal later. This time round she makes a voodoo doll of her brother, and not trusting herself with it she decides to give it to someone she can trust to look after it (after using it to throw Mendou around a bit first).

That person is Ataru Moroboshi.

The twist that Takahashi throws in is that Ryoko doesn’t tell Ataru what it is, merely that he’s to look after it. As it’s Ryoko who’s asked him to do something, he actually does it, tying it round his neck and wearing it under his shirt. This leads to Mendou suffering all the ignominies that Ataru befalls the next day, such as being hit by Shinobu and electrocuted by Lum. Oh and being kissed by Ataru when Ataru kisses the doll thinking it’s a good luck charm.

Realising the situation and what Ataru would do if he learnt that he had a voodoo doll of him, Mendou dedicates himself to acting as Ataru’s protector the rest of the school day. Here the animation really comes into its own, escalating the tasks Mendou has to do to crazy levels not seen in the manga. And inserting all sorts scenes of the pair gazing longingly into one another’s eyes. It’s not until he’s been trampled by elephants that Mendou snaps and demands the doll.

Which of course leads to Ataru, who up to this point had been admiring Mendou for his heroism in saving him, nailing the doll to a tree!

Another solid episode, and Toshiki Inoue continues to show their skill at expanding a manga chapter to TV episode length. There’s also some flashy animation filling those gaps too. An sci-fi film parody that Mendou is watching on TV early in the episode and a baseball game both have some fun stuff in them.

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Screenplay: Toshiki Inoue
Storyboard: Kazuo Yamazaki
Director: Naoyuki Yoshinaga
Animation Director: Yuichi Endo

Let us talk of the love between Pear and Chestnut.

Class 2-4 are once again on a field trip, this time to a pick your own pears farm. The characters actually comment on the disproportionate number of field trips they seem to take the school. They also all sing the theme song on the bus. WHICH IS EXCELLENT. Cast singalongs are always awesome and if they are not quite in tune, all the better. Makes it seem more natural that way.

So anyway, at this farm are Kuriko and Chojuro. Chojuro is a pear who is love with Kuriko, a chestnut of a tree the other side of the gulch there respective trees are adjacent to. Kuriko is knocked off her tree when Ten flies into her during a fight with Ataru. Chojuro is distraught, but then Lum picks him, and throws him at Ataru’s head when she sees Ataru flirting.

This leads to Chojuro being embedded in Ataru’s head and he is able to control Ataru’s body. Meanwhile Kuriko has done the same with Ten’s body, and the pair try and embrace, much to Ten and Ataru’s annoyance. Lum of course mistakes this show of affection for Ataru and Ten finally getting along, until Kuriko is knocked off Ten’s head. Lum then considered putting Kuriko on her own head so she can kiss Ataru, however Ataru has other plans and snatches it away, intent on putting Kuriko on other girls.

First it ends up on Sakura, however she can overcome Kuriko’s control. Then it ends up on Megane’s head. Then Ryuu’s. Then Kotatsu Neko’s head, he however doesn’t seem effect and throws Kuriko away, causing her to land on Mendou’s head. Of course. With Ataru and Mendou refusing to embrace, Chojuro and Kuriko ask if there is no couple in love amongst the field trip.

To which Sakura utters perhaps the truest statement of the series and replies to the lovelorn fruit that no-one present is capable of a true relationship. Then Lum points out that the Chojuro and Kimiko could just snuggle together without needed to be on two different people’s heads.

And so we end with the class back at school and Ataru with both Chojuro and Kimiko living on his head…

Like the Kitsune episode, this maybe as near perfect as the UY TV
show gets. And once again Yuichi Endo is the animation director. So
hooray for Yuichi Endo.

Not only is Yuichi Endo neat, scriptwriter Shigeru Yanagawa is too. This is fantastically written episode from top to bottom. So far 2 for 2 on funny, funny scripts from Yanagawa. All round great episode.

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Screenplay: Shigeru Yanagawa
Storyboard: Naoyuki Yoshinaga
Director: Naoyuki Yoshinaga
Animation Director: Yuichi Endo

Yuji Moriyama is great. He really hits his stride here, to the extent I wanted to go and watch more of his work right away.

In this episode, Sakura has given her purification wand to Cherry to purify, leaving her with a lot more unwanted attention than usual. For not only does she have her usual problem of the boys of class 2-4 fawning over her, she’s being followed by wandering spirits who have a similar stalkerish interest in her.

Seeing a chance to get a date with Sakura, Ataru fetches the wand from Cherry, but gets into a ruckus with Ten and Torajima. This leads to the setting up of the B-plot, where Torajima ties Ten to a haunted flask. Lum and Ten hear a voice inside wanting out, so they drop it on the school, crashing into Mr Fujinami and Onsen-Mark’s afternoon drinking session. Unfortunately inside the flask is a drunken ghost, sealed for 200 years and looking to make mischief.

Meanwhile, back in the A-plot, Ataru tries to bribe Sakura into having a date with him in return for the wand, but she declares she’d rather continue to be haunted than do that. He sides with the spirits, until Cherry appears and shouts some sense into the situation. He’s more concerned about the drunken ghost, who was quite the handful it seems and so they seek it out. The ghost is quite small, until Mr Fujinama gives it a bottle of sake, and then it gets out of contol.

So Sakura has to exorcise it, taking the spirits following her, Ataru, Onsen-Mark and Mr Fujinama with them. Lum is distressed to see her “Darling” disappear, but Sakura reassures her he’s safe.

Cut to the Moroboshi household where we see the spirits (and humans) have have all been sent to, much to Mrs Moroboshi’s annoyance.

Great stuff, the only quibble I have with episode is how under cooked the B plot is early on. While that would be fine usually, it essentially forms the climax. Had the threat of the drunken ghost been established earlier, it would have felt a little more even.

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Tokio Tsuchiya joins the screenwriting team, they’d go onto to work on series composition on Maison Ikkoku, as well as working on live action adaptations of Sukeban Deka and Oishinbo.

Screenplay: Tokio Tsuchiya
Storyboard: Naoyuki Yoshinaga
Director: Naoyuki Yoshinaga
Animation Director: Yuji Moriyama