Hello and welcome to Anime Rants. On the books for today are episodes reviews from the tenth week of spring 2024. In other words, these episodes aired from June 3rd to June 9th. Although I’ve had trouble keeping up perfectly, I’m highly impressed with the spring season and its hearty handful of enjoyable anime series.
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Train to the End of the World
Episode 10: A True Symbol of Rebellion and Decadence
Episode Rating: 8/10
The girls encounter Shizuru’s dad, who was turned into a cutesy stuffed animal by the people at the next train stop. Shizuru’s dad was friendly and it was good to see him. At the next train stop, Shizuru and company meet three artists who can alter reality using the power of magical beret hats. Thanks mostly to Akira, the girls manage to turn the tables and take the hats They listen to the artists giving information about the evil queen Yoka. Before long, the girls are on their way again: straight to Ikebukuro.
This was one of the best episodes in the series, at least for me, since I enjoyed the wild art style changes and the commentary on manga and art as a whole. Akira said something that describes one of the main themes of this show: “Artistic expression is limitless.” On a separate note, the stuff about the expansion of Ikebukuro was interesting from a world-building perspective.
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Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf
Episode 10: Wisdom of a Wolf and Smooth Talk of a Merchant
Episode Rating: 8/10
After scrounging up a meager sum of coins from begging, Lawrence returned to the inn to apologize to Holo. She was furious at him, but not because he swatted her hand away and snapped at her. Her terrible temper came from the fact that she was blaming herself for Lawrence’s struggles. She said he was too good-natured and should get angrier with her. It took some time, but Lawrence managed to calm Holo down and make her happy again. She then proposed an idea: smuggling gold to get the money needed.
The rest of the episode showed Holo and Lawrence getting support for their plan. They convinced Mr. Remerio to help them. They also hired Nora, since the plan involves transporting the gold under the bellies of her sheep. Lawrence felt guilty for “tricking” Nora into such a dangerous mission. However, I think Nora would still be willing even if she fully comprehended the plan. While she fears the Church and its power, she’s clearly fed up with them, and wants to be free. I admire Nora’s ambitious nature.
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Bartender: Glass of God
Episode 10: A Thorn in the Heart
Episode Rating: 7/10
During his time as a highly successful bartender overseas, Ryuu was unfortunate enough to lose a guest to suicide. He felt extremely guilty even though, logically, it was not his fault at all. Miwa worried about Ryuu intensely after hearing this. She had a serious talk with him about guilt and loss. Though Ryuu acted strong, his inner monologue a bit later revealed that he still feels guilty sometimes. However, he feels grateful and honored to have someone like Miwa looking out for him.
That was the core of the episode for me, but there was also another story worked into it. The businessman from an earlier episode – the one who quit smoking – has another chance to go out with the redhead doctor lady. He can either stay in town and try to date her, or take a promotion from his business that will send him to live in the US for several years. With help from Kitakata, who made him a boilermaker cocktail, the businessman decided. He will go after the doctor. It was a sappy but satsifying story.
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That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Season 3
Episode 10: God and Demon Lord
Episode Rating: 8/10
The events of this episode were chaotic and filled with action. Things ended well. Diablo killed the three members of the Seven Days Clergy that were trying to murder witnesses. One of Hinata’s followers in Lubelius killed another one of the Seven Days Clergy. The final three members were executed by Luminous (Demon Lord Valentine), who also healed Hinata with holy magic. The episode ends with Luminous bullying Veldora for revealing her status as a Demon Lord. Everyone begins celebrating their victory.
There is now peace between Tempest and Lubelius. Moreover, Youm is set become King of Falmuth, putting the country under Rimuru’s indirect control. That’s great and all, but for me, the most interesting part of this episode was the backstory of Hinata. Her past was intense, but it was easy for me to root for her. She’s always been so stern and driven. fighting abusers without mercy. If she had died, I probably would have lost interest in this anime. So, it’s great that she’s fully healed now.
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Yatagarasu: The Raven Does Not Choose Its Master
Episode 10: Assassinating the Prince
Episode Rating: 9/10
This was an unexpectedly exciting episode. Though I enjoyed the recent character development for the ladies, I was also getting a bit bored from the lack of action. This episode made up for it with sword-fights, an assassination attempt, and a few other action sequences. Atsufusa tried to assassinate the Prince. Yukiya managed to escape and run to get help. Surprisingly, the people who helped were Natsuka and Rokon.
I was genuinely impressed with the way the episode held my attention and subverted my expectations. I’m glad that Natsuka and Rokon are not our enemies – at least at this point in the story. At the end, Yukiya found out that the Prince had always known about his noble heritage as the grandson of the Lord of the North. This news was crushing to Yukiya because he believed he was chosen for his own merits. Now, it seems like the Prince only cared about his pedigree. The episode ends on that saddening note.
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Tadaima, Okaeri
Episode 9: Tomato Kid
Episode Rating: 8/10
This episode introduced Michiru, a boy about Hikari’s age, and his single father, Mochizuki. He’s a little awkward, but Mochizuki is friendly and easily opens up to Masaki, who reminds him of his late wife. Michiru and his father are both omegas. Masaki agrees to babysit Michiru for one day, while Mochizuki finds a regular daycare. Although Michiru got upset and cried, it was ultimately a good experience for him. He bonded with Masaki and Hikari. As usual, Tadaima Okaeri provided plenty of cuteness and emotional heart.
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Mysterious Disappearances
Episode 9: Dreams, Dance, and a Tsukumogami
Episode Rating: 7/10
Oto’s good friend Nodoka dreams of becoming an idol. She got a lot of encouragement and happiness from watching a mermaid VTuber called Yorumun. But before long, Yorumun mysteriously retired, leaving Nodoka depressed and hopeless. Over the next few days, she was charmed by a creepy spirit from her tablet that claimed to be Yorumun. It “encouraged” her to stay up for four nights in a row. Nodoka then passed out and was sent to the hospital.
There were many other victims – all fans of Yorumun – who passed out at the same time in the same way. Sumireko and Ren decided to study the case, which is clearly a Curiosity. Ren suspects that the culprit is a Tsukumogami born from discarded digital data. I happen to know what a Tsukumogami is from other anime, but I think this show should have provided a basic explanation. A Tsukumogami is a spirit that arises from a treasured or well-used object. But according to Ren, in the modern day, a Tsukumogami can also arise from something more conceptual – such as a VTuber character.
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Black Butler: Public School Arc
Episode 9: His Butler, Having a Laugh
Episode Rating: 7/10
The visuals and music were creative and enjoyable, but this episode did not feel smooth or well-crafted. It was harder than usual to understand where the plot was going. Despite some strange and awkward narrative choices, however, I’m still intrigued by the story. Undertaker has been impersonating the Headmaster and (I think?) using it as a way to promote Aurora, the organization that tries to bring the dead back to life. Derrick Arden was turned into a zombie by Aurora after being murdered by the four prefects. But why did the prefects conspire to kill Derrick?
According to what we learned in the last part of the episode, Derrick was involved in an ongoing and horrific bullying case. There seems to be a “club” of bullies who beat and torture unfortunate younger students on Thursday nights. Once discovering this, I assume the prefects overreacted and killed the one in charge – probably Derrick himself. But that still doesn’t feel like the complete story to me. It’s not super believable, either. I hope we learn more in the next episode.
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Kaiju No. 8
Episode 9: Raid on Tachikawa Base
Episode Rating: 9/10
The red humanoid Kaiju, whom everyone is already calling Kaiju No. 10, led a catastrophic attack on the JSDF base. He led and organized a small army of Wyvern-type Kaiju that would normally never work together. Each enemy was Honju class with at least 6.0 fortitude. Despite the difficulty, the Third Division is successfully driving back the enemies. Kikoru is helping out immensely, using her brand-new custom weapon that resembles a gigantic axe.
Meanwhile, Vice-Captain Hoshina is up going one-on-one against Kaiju No. 10. It’s a thrilling and challenging fight. Hoshina managed to cut the enemy apart but failed to completely destroy its core. As a result, the red Kaiju became a rapidly growing, mutating lump of flesh. Soon it had become a giant Kaiju with a shocking fortitude of 9.0. To be continued!!
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Whisper Me A Love Song
Episode 9 was delayed and is set to be released on June 22nd
~Thanks for reading~
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Previous Posts in This Series
Anime Rants 
Tadaima Okaeri – Love how the Mochizukis are incorporated into the story. Hikari finally has a friend his age and not an adult or a dog for once.
Whisper Me A Love Song – That’s my reaction too when I saw the delay announcement.
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Hey, thanks for your several comments recently. It really helps to know someone is reading and processing what I write. Sorry it took me a while to respond. ❤
I am still bummed out about there being no episode of Whisper Me a Love Song this weekend. I hope it doesn't turn out like Zom 100 where it's indefinitely postponed. But at least they gave us a date, so hopefully, just one more week of waiting.
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