Natsume’s Book of Friends Season 7: Episodes 1 and 2 Reviews

Welcome to Anime Rants! I’m covering a lot of seasonal shows, so I didn’t have any room in my schedule for Natsume’s Book of Friends in the last few weeks. This post should get me caught up with two episode reviews from the new seventh season.

I’ve been following this anime for a long time, and it certainly has its charms. As long as you have time to spare, watching this series is enjoyable and relaxing. However, if you’re in a hurry, you should either watch it at 1.25x speed or just try your luck with another anime. The slow pacing and lack of serial plot means Natsume’s Book of Friends isn’t for everyone. For those who do like it, whether you watch it this season or not, I hope you enjoy my episode reviews.

Article Contents

Episode 1 Notes

Episode Rating: 7/10

The first episode was a very standard “start of the season” installment that reintroduced Natsume and how he helps yokai (spirits and magical creatures) by giving them back their names. The names come from a book of pages written by Natsume’s grandmother (Reiko), who could also see yokai. (Only a few humans have this ability.) Natsume is a sweet and thoughtful teenage boy who was was adopted by his foster mother, Ms. Touko.

It can be troublesome dealing with yokai all the time, so Natsume has a bodyguard: Madara, a powerful creature that takes the form of a fat cat when not in battle. Natsume calls him “Nyanko-sensei.” This episode reminded us of all these basics. It also reintroduced us to Natsume’s good friend Tanuma. He’s a friendly boy who knows Natsume can see yokai and tries to support him.

The yokai of this episode was a cute little yorishiro – a type of spirit that possesses an inanimate object and can use them to move around. When possessing a vessel, these spirits can be seen by any human. The yorishiro was inhabiting a fragile bird ornament in a Buddhist temple. Some young boys threw a ball into the window and broke the bird, meaning its soul now had no vessel.

The free spirit wandered around until it found Natsume’s house, where it possessed a clay figure of Nyanko-sensei. Natsume built it as a joke when he was practicing making a vase. The little spirit was very cute as it lived in Natsume’s house for a few days. Natsume named it Mini-sensei. Eventually, Mini-sensei left the house to find his old temple. With help from Natsume and Nyanko-sensei, the yorishiro was well on its way.

There were a few other plot points that I skipped over because this isn’t a detailed review, but that’s the gist of the episode. I did get a bit bored halfway through. That’s probably because I was anxious about IRL issues. Overall, this episode was enjoyable and had many cute moments.

Episode 2 Notes

Episode Rating: 9/10

Compared to the cute but generic pilot episode, the second installment was a vast improvement. Then again, episodes of Natsume Yujinchou are very subjective. An episode that’s special to someone might seem extremely boring to someone else. That’s true of every series, but especially in the anthology type show like Mushi-shi or Natsume’s Book of Friends. So, take it with a grain of salt when I say that this episode was amazing.

This week’s youkai were a group of five “Box Protectors,” ayakashi spirits who guard a miniature house in a box. They do so because Princess Shida – a beautiful Shinto Goddess – occasionally comes to stay in the house. For many centuries, the Box Protectors used a combination of their own magic and the handy skills of a human to upkeep the miniature house and garden. But now, in the modern era, all the great craftsmen are gone. With their large, clumsy hands, the ayakashi are unable to restore and maintain the contents of the box.

Despite their large size and uncanny faces, the box protectors are not aggressive or forceful spirits. They are actually like a bunch of cute elderly people. Their appearances are weirdly endearing, and their love for their Princess Shida is adorable. I really liked the Box Protectors and I was glad Natsume helped them out even though it cost him several nights of restful sleep. He restored the miniature house as best as he could, cleaning and repainting the small pieces.

I loved the cute old spirits and Natsume’s willingness to help them. But there were two other things that truly made this episode special to me. Firstly, there was the focus on gardening as a theme. Secondly, there was the scene near the end of the episode where Natsume got to enter the house and see Princess Shida in person. With regards to the first point, I love gardening and have such fond, nostalgic memories of keeping plants. I appreciated the peaceful feelings I felt while watching Natsume build the new flowerbed for Touka to plant in.

As for the second item, the scene with Princess Shida was stunning. It’s not every day that Natsume gets to meet a Goddess. Shida herself was beautiful, but I was far more entranced by the beauty of the flowers she brought to life. She used her powers to activate the seeds that Natsume donated, and the garden beside the miniature house came alive with flowers. This scene was so beautiful that I cried.

The Box Protectors dance with joy as flower petals rain down. Natsume sits peacefully and enjoys the view of the garden and his precious memories of looking at a similar garden with his biological father as a child. All the flower art was gorgeous! Sometimes, I think my mind is still geared toward depression after my long years of suicidal ideation. But apparently, I can still enjoy art and beauty so much that it makes me cry in happiness. The reminder is nice from time to time.