 Kannaduki no Miko continues to weave a tangled web of relationships, and you just know it's all going to result in a messy end...
3 - Secret Love Shell
With the school dorms having been destroyed in the Orochi's first
attack, Himeko's been left with nowhere to stay - and so Chikane has
taken her in. Life in the mansion with its army of maids is quite a bit
different - and one of the maids, Otoha, doesn't seem to be overly
impressed with the relationship between Himeko and Chikane. There's
also a lot of resentment at the school over how someone as low on the
social scale as Chikane is suddenly best of friends with the school's
two most popular students. Later, the Orochi's own catgirl pays a
visit, leaving a trail of destruction in her wake, while Chikane &
Himeko learn some more about their role as priestesses...
4 - Direction of Affection
After another Orochi attack, the priestesses have created a barrier to
protect the village. Speaking of protection, Chikane's still annoyed
with herself for her failure to protect Himeko properly during the last
attack - somthing she gets time to think over when Himeko goes out on a
date with Souma. Meanwhile, Himeko has to think over what Souma &
Chikane mean to her - but her date is interrupted when Tsubasa, the
First Neck, comes looking for Souma...
5 - Overcoming the Darkness of Night
Souma's first encounter with Tsubasa - his brother - doesn't go too
well, but just when he has Souma beaten, Tsubasa relents, giving Souma
until the next day to decide to join to Orochi. For all his previous
posturing about protecting Himeko, it seems Souma's facing a difficult
decision. Wanting to see Himeko before making up his mind, he goes to
Chikane's mansion - but Chikane, in a fit of over-protectiveness or
jealousy, refuses to let him see her, and so he's forced to go and face
Tsubasa alone. Once their battle begins, though, there's a reaction in
Himeko, and she begs Chikane to take her to the battle site...
Kannaduki's 'anime-by-numbers' technique continues to produce
a surprisingly good show - this is by far my favourite current show,
and from what I hear about plot twists and such in upcoming episodes,
it should continue to keep my attention.
Back to these three episodes, though. The 'romantic rivalry' between
Chikane and Souma (with the clueless-as-usual Himeko in the middle)
comes a bit more to the fore, although so far Chikane seems to be
taking it rather well. Chikane's maid, Otoha, may turn out to be
another link in a growing chain of spurned affections, although we'll
have to wait and see on that point.
The main 'twist' here comes with the arrival of Tsubasa and his
actions towards his brother, both past and present - a fairly good job
done here of giving the characters some good backgrounds &
motivations, which is something that's often skipped over in action
shows.
The show is still pretty much working to a formula, but there are
signs that the producers may try something 'different' along the way. I
hope they will, but even as it is, Kannaduki is still worthwhile watching. |
