This show is just really, really interesting. It’s almost like it can’t not be interesting, no matter what it does. That’s primarily a function of Eguchi Natsumi’s talent as a writer, obviously. But this adaptation is doing everything right too, starting with the “open cards” before the intro (I can’t recall another series doing that, though I guess a few probably have). While neither the manga or anime get any attention in English, the former does sell quite well over here. Normally I’d be resigned to Dekin no Mogura being a one and done commercial for the manga, but I feel like there could be a stealth split cour here, or at least a relatively timely sequel.
As teased last week we get a total change of venue for this arc. That is, a trip to the unnamed island Yae-chan comes from (the fact that you can get a ferry from Tokyo suggests the Izu chain somewhere). Ostensibly this is for Magi-kun to do research for his matsuri project, and Yaeko has added the layer of her great-grandfather being someone Mogura-san saved during the war. But he can’t afford the fare and refuses to take money from a student (not named Magi-kun), so he invites Toushirou along on the grounds that it aligns with his research. Since he doesn’t want to travel with a female student he invites his wife and son (and bakeneko). And since Yae doesn’t want the islanders to tongue-wag about her arriving with a bunch of dudes, she asks Shio-chan along.
So, it winds up being a big party going to the island’s big party. Eguchi-sensei gets her esoterica quotient in with a name-drop of Ogawa Mimei, the “Japanese Hans Christian Andersen”, and when Momoyuki notes that people who live by the sea rarely drown in it, Kuriaki says it’s “like people born in Tokyo never going to Shibuya”. It’s pretty munch clear from the way Maggie freaks out as the ferry pulls into the harbor that the whole merfolk thing is more than just a myth.
Once on land, Yae-chan immediately sets about messing with the mainlanders’ heads, given that warnings about stuff like never eating natto in front of the island headwoman. Her house is big and sits on a large plot, though she swears none of it is worth much. She has an adorable younger sister and brother than make Kuriaki jealous. And of course that great-grandfather, 97 years old. Yaeko warned that he was really slowing down but he seems pretty lively right now. He doesn’t recognize Mogura-san however, which isn’t too surprising after 80 years. He pegs him as Satou-san from the city hall, and he’s sticking with that.
In a way this reminded of the visit to Mana’s hometown in Gegege no Kitarou 2018, which was of course Mizuki Shigeru’s hometown – a seaside village with lots of legends about the terrors of the deep. And Mizuki, like Great-Grandpa, was shaped by his experience in the Pacific War. There’s some fun the night before the main festival, where the old man shows off his skills with a rifle (even back then he was a great shot, Momoyuki says), and Momoyuki gets his own back with his dexterity wiwth bow and arrow (which may play a role later, given how the festival is concluded).
As expected, this festival is not just a bunch of scary stories. There really is something out there by Merfolk Rock, and it’s pretty hideous. Great-Grandpa can see it – because he, of course, was touched by Momoyuki back in the war. There’s a clear dividing line in the party between those who can and those who can’t, and Magi-kun is especially unsettled by the sight. The old man tells Yae-chan that the Merfolk is sad, but there’s nothing they can do about it and a line must be drawn between the world of the living and the dead. The same comment he made to Mogura-san back in the war, interestingly…
There’s one more little wrinkle here. Yaeko runs into an old friend from school, Mori-kun. But when he sees her, he freaks out and runs. That may be because his appearance has changed so radically in just a couple of years (which itself may be an important part of the story). But Kyouko has seen something with Mori-kun – she asks Yae later if he’s “all right”. Clearly she’s reticent to say what she saw – she always is, for fear her indistinct visions will derail the lives of those she’s seen – but judging by her demeanor this sounds pretty serious.
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