MAO

I don't know, him wanting to take Nanoka's body is at least very selfish and he doesn't seem to care about other lives either in order to achieve his goals. Even if he doesn't do it due to malevolence, I don't think his actions can be interpreted as not harmful. And let's not forget, Byoki doesn't want to hurt Nanoka. At least not now because he wants to take her body. So why would grandpa, who has only gotten a bit more lifetime trigger the charms? Byoki isn't inside grandpa after all.

I'm shocked at how few people are watching this. I heard murmurs that it was maybe just an 'inuyasha redress' or 'rumiko cashing in on her style but nothing special', but this is a legitimately interesting series with a VERY impressive budget. The ED song is one of my favorites in a while. Now that the series is coming into its own, I can definitively say this is one of the joys of the season and is quite good. It's Rumiko Takahashi in ways that others just can't compete and it reminds me of why she is such a special author. It's just that vibe, but as someone who recently rewatched Inuyasha (and finally saw Yashahime), has been enjoying the Ranma remake, and is currently rewatching Maison Ikoku, I can say this adaptation benefits from mature and level headed storytelling. For a modern audience, it avoids some of the more rote or expositional dialogue of early Inuyasha or the dated/uncomfortable humor of Urusei Yatsura and is distilled to Takahashi's unique strengths in telling a supernatural jidaigeki of sorts. The series is dripping in Japanese mythology, culture, and history in a way that feels respectful and distinctly Japanese (as opposed to series that cash in on the western hype around orientalism). We have a good mystery with a time travel plot that at first felt confusing but is now very interesting, fully formed and grounded in real historical events. With the backstories revealed our two lead characters are now compelling and for the first time I am both curious and concerned about their futures. All of this with some good old fashioned youkai slaying that takes me back to the days before Demon Slayer/JJK where I enjoyed my Inuyasha, Yu Yu Hakusho, and Ghost Sweeper Mikami. For whatever reason I heard through the grapevine that this was simply 'mid' and a lesser work from a great author past her prime (especially after how people received Yashahime, which is over hated. No she didn't write the whole series but she did design the characters and the overall narrative and is hated for it). So far, this is peak Takahashi from her darker eras (e.g. compare Inuyasha manga, which is way more horror oriented than the anime, to Ranma) re-packaged for a more mature and modern audience. This is becoming a real gem and I can't remember the last time I saw something like this since, well, maybe Final Act? It just FEELS so Takahashi. Why this isn't getting more attention I don't know. This is obviously the start of a long series and I'm not making any claims of it being 'best of the season', not remotely, but now that the setup is complete I see the vision, I'm invested, and I really can't remember the last time I felt this way watching a series since, well, 90s/00s. It's just a different type of storytelling we don't get anymore. And its gonna be a damn shame if its somehow over looked. I hope the manga readers can tell me that the story is actually good and Rumiko goes somewhere with all this, but right now I'm very surprised with how interesting and distinct it feels in today's anime landscape. Its reminding me why I'm such a Takahashi fan all over again and I hope for those that didn't grow up with Inuyasha or Ranma can perhaps experience what makes her works so special with this as a starting point. EDIT: This isn't even in r/anime top 20 but Daemons is top 3? Daemons and Mao are the shows I most look forward to every week. It's funny, cause I was super hype for Re:Zero and Witch Hat Atelier (of which I'm a manga reader) and neither of these two were on my radar, but the storytelling from these authors whose biggest works were the foundation of my anime fandom as a kid (FMA, Inuyasha/ranma) has made these two shows (Mao/Daemons) my anime of the seasons. I await new episodes with the EXACT same feeling I had watching saturday morning cartoons as a kid. Like we just don't get this stuff anymore. Having both this season is such a treat, but why is there such a gap in viewership and discussion between the two among the western audience? Looking at the production quality I'm sure Mao is successful in Japan, so why is Daemons popping off but this being overlooked? We're effectively getting FMA and Inuyasha redressed for a new crowd in the same season and people aren't going nuts about it? Am I the only one this happy about having these two in the same season?

I think I like this as much as neo-Urusei Yarsura (and much more than neo-Ranma, which I dropped). Totally different vibe, of course. Despite being very old (74 next month), not a fan of much "classic" (series) anime. This may have a bit of a retro feel, but nothing off-putting. Doesn't this have a more laid-back feel (despite the action moments) overall than Daemons? That might explain the difference in reception.

As the mystery deepens, so too does Mao and Nanoka's relationship. This is a series of firsts for Nanoka! First time seeing the Great Kanto Earthquake up close! First time seeing her child self get kidnapped by Byoki! First time seeing a naked guy! Thank goodness Mao's ayakashi pals saved her from having to carry Mao in all his nakedness. Is Nanoka Byoki's next attempt at making a vessel for himself? What lengths has he gone to in order to ensure that happens? Either way, it's another thing that connects Nanoka and Mao. Look at Mao trying to talk Nanoka into stay by listing all her good qualities...though just when she thinks she's getting a profession of love, it's actually Mao trying to pitch her a job. Way to kill the romance, buddy. Seriously, how much more school can Nanoka miss before she's in real trouble? She missed the start of the second semester. I don't know what it says about the state of Shiraha's relationship with Nanoka that she shows him more interest when she thinks he's a shikigami...but the real shikigami is Uozumi! Uozumi has been there since Mao was found and her grandfather made an inexplicable recovery to take care of her...likely from Byoki's influence to ensure his vessel is monitored and maintained. Uozumi, for her part, has been trying to supress Nanoka's power to protect her. See, the smoothie agenda wasn't evil! Grandpa Kiba may have had his life preserved by a demonic cat, he may basically shut down whenever Nanoka isn't around, but his life and devotion to her as her grandfather is 100% genuine. I'm glad Tenko and her cafe are doing well...and she still has cases to bring to Mao! Like the case of the flaming heads in the capital! Which gives Mao flashbacks to his past. Hey, it's a traveling show! Featuring a fairly attractive Snake Woman AND a flaming skulls act...or at least it did before the performer of said flaming skulls act needed to track them down because of Byoki. Enter an eyepatched fire boy voiced by Hiro Shimono!

No wonder Uozomi always looked fishy to me. Props to Rumiko-sensei for creating a character that looks like a fish without making it look too much like a fish. On that fishy note, I think Grandpa is probably a red herring. Byouki most likely didn't extend his life directly, but it was Nanoka's poisoned blood magic that's doing it. Two reasons: 1. Byouki would have revived the parents who were right there with Nanoka if the purpose was for someone to take care of her; 2. Grandpa is awake only when Nanoka is around, even at the hospital. So my question from previous episode remains. Where is Byouki?

Nanoka, the situation is dire enough that you can ignore that a naked man needs your help. I think the burning buildings should've been clear enough. So, the earthquake shock itself somehow traveled through time and caused the sinkhole accident? That must've been one hell of an earthquake. Reminds me of the 2011 earthquake which literally changed the Earth's axis or something. I guess stuff like this happens every 100 or so years. Funny how it's always near the beginning of a century. Nanoka definitely has a crush on Mao. It's obvious at this point. But does she know it? Also, poor girl got underling-zoned lmao. Yeah, when he said he sent a shikigami to the future, I knew it'd either be Uozumi or Nanoka's grandpa. Turned out to be Uozumi, who looks suspiciously like Otoya. And she made the "smoothies" to suppress her powers, as I thought too. So, Mao can't go through the gate. No back to the future this time. That sucks. But in the ED, you can see Hyakka and the plant guy in modern clothes. So maybe they can? That'd be weird. I guess they have gray hair too cause they're over 900 years old like Mao. So, grandpa's lifespan got extended by Byoki. Makes sense. It's actually a relief that he's Nanoka's actual grandpa and not evil. That would've been tragic. But he's still a pawn. So it's still sad. I wonder if defeating Byoki means Nanoka's grandpa would die. New characters will finally be introduced in the next episode. And probably more backstory too. What did Byoki mean they were set up? Probably some crazy conspiracy is going on, like with Naraku and Kikyo. And I'd be surprised if none of the new characters aren't potential romantic rivals. Though I kinda wish things were more like Witch Watch.

Gramps is rendered practically comatose whenever Nanoka time travels, but moreso as a side effect rather than purposely siphoning off of her. Uzouomi confirmed shikigami. She's full of time shenanigans because she technically help raise Nanoka plus the suppression smoothies while being fully aware that older Nanoka had to catch up to the incident before they can talk about things now Is it him? Is flying head tamer traveling circus guy Mao's slacker senpai(?) guy THE GUY? Is he the one who framed them?