Golden Kamuy – 48 – Jacking the Ripper

Not five minutes pass after forging an alliance, Botaro the Pirate happens upon Sugimoto’s backpack and the evidence they’ve been looking for him. He distracts Sugimoto on the deck so his partner can pull a gun on him from behind, but Asirpa jams the revolver with a perfectly shot arrow. When the ship captain steers into some branches, Sugimoto and Botaro are tossed overboard.

Botaro is a high endurance diver who is as at home underwater as Michael Phelps, while Sugimoto…is not, so I knew this was going to be a tough fight. Hilariously, Shiraishi dives under to be an oxygen-giving guardian angel, only to be scorned by Sugimoto when he’s a little overzealous about giving mouth-to-mouth. Sugimoto is bailed out by a school of sturgeons, of all things, and when Botaro’s long hair is caught in the paddle wheel, Sugimoto saves him, and the truce continues.

Since the ship can’t dock due to wheel damage, the group takes a smaller boat, and on the way Asirpa not only sharpens a spear but kills herself a giant sturgeon. Thus we get the first “Hinna, hinna” culinary scene in a good long while, with Botaro the new variable in the equation. Every time he inquires as to the precise relationship of Sugimoto and Asirpa, they are both evasive, and Asirpa’s ears turn red. Meanwhile, we see Sofia is in Otaru. What could she be planning?

We then dash over to Sapporo, where Usami and Kikuta are investigating the serial killings. Usami does so with his rather unique special power: he’s a sperm detective, fapping in order to get into the killer’s state of mind.

His dick turns out to be correct that the killer will return that very night, and he and the killer end up in a fapping duel, Matrixing away from one anothers’ loads while Kikuta, the audience surrogate, continually asks what the hell is going on.

Kikuta manages to hop on the killer’s getaway horse and puts his pistol to his head, but the killer once again fires away, and a disgusted Kikuta is thrown from the horse…but not before getting a good look at his face.

The next day we see that Hijikata’s group is spread throughout the public areas of Sapporo disguised as merchants and beggars. Among them is Private Ariko, with whom Kikuta has a chat about allegiances. Ariko laments that neither Tsurumi nor Nagakura trust him, which I guess makes him an unfit double agent.

The newspaper publisher Ishikawa determines from the occupation of the victims and the timing of the murders that the killer is a Jack the Ripper wannabe, or possible fanboy. Jack is only credited with five murders before disappearing and the final murder came 40 days after the previous one.

Of course, this Jack copycat isn’t the only thing they have to contend with: there’s also Ueji Keiji, the creepy guy with the face tattoos capturing children. Sugimoto, Asirpa, and Shiraishi are arriving at Sapporo when it is quite the happening tinderbox. I’m sure we’ll be in for some serious (or possibly hilariously gross) fireworks in the season 4 finale.

Skip and Loafer – 12 (Fin) – A Glorious Part of Our Youths

When Ririka starts to unload on Sousuke’s mom, Mitsumi feels like a mouse who finds herself to close to some kind of wild cat. Clearly Ririka is harboring some hardcore resentment towards Sousuke’s mom as barb in about her making her son act for her again.

When they meet up with Sousuke, Ririka makes sure all the NPCs around her know that Sousuke used to be a professional child actor, making him uncomfortable and causing his mom to make a polite but quick getaway. When Ririka turns on Sousuke himself, Mitsumi instinctively gets between them…and tries to make herself as big as possible!

This makes Sousuke smile and laugh in a way Ririka has told him he doesn’t deserve to, because Mitsumi is unwittingly emulating the practice of the lesser anteater, as he read in the biology club’s publication with Keiri. Ririka heads off to get a seat at Sousuke’s play.

As he awaits his final scene, Sousuke is lost in thought, pondering if it’s okay to act if it’s for himself, not just to make his mom happy but for his own happiness. He also realizes he didn’t speak to Kanechika-senpai after his play on purpose, because he was envious.

Sousuke forgets his last few lines, but it doesn’t matter, as his nonverbal acting is enough to evoke a positive crowd response. After the play Sousuke comes right down to it and asks Ririka if she’ll let him have a high school life, even if he can’t make up for what happened.

Ririka hears “Forgive me, I want to be happy”, which is the gist. She fires her hat at him, ignoring the fact she’s a celebrity out in public, and tells him to do what he pleases. When he thanks her, she flips him off. On the taxi ride home, Ririka is sobbing, but at least understands that what happened wasn’t all Sousuke’s fault back then.

Ririka is upset that because of what happened, regardless of blame, he’s always looked like he’d rather be anywhere then with her, and that it’s “easier” to be with girls who “know nothing.” I for one was glad for this scene that finally showed Ririka drop her armor.

Another one crying bitter tears is Takamine as the festival ends. She’d dreamt of being student council president, but Kazakami beat her in a free, fair election. Kazakami apologizes for crushing Takamine’s dream, but won’t apologize for wanting to do something with his high school life after his soccer injury.

Kazakami tells Takamine (who didn’t ask) about how strict his family is and how high their expectations are for him. No doubt they were disappointed when he hurt his knee, but he’s still expected to get into Tokyo U like everyone else in the family. In a sweet gesture of consolation, he gives Takamine the beautiful bouquet he was given earlier.

As the festival comes to a close, Mitsumi meets with her friends for a hot minute for a cold drink and the promise of a study sleepover soon. It’s so heartwarming to see how close and comfortable these four ladies have become in such a short time.

The rest of the class is headed to a restaurant to fill their bellies after all their hard work, but Mitsumi has to stay behind for a staff meeting. Sousuke breaks off from the group to come back to Mitsumi and ask if he can help with anything; he’s happy to do so.

Mitsumi says no, it’s fine, it’s just a meeting, and he should go off and have fun. As she skips down the hall, Sousuke calls out her name one more time, and for a moment, I thought he was going to confess! I imagine Mitsumi might’ve felt something like that too. It doesn’t happen, which is fine.

The episode, and indeed the season, ends with everyone in a good place. Hopefully there’s a second season, because I could always use more Mitsumi, Sousuke, Mika, Yuzuki, and Makoto in my life.

Insomniacs After School – 11 – Invincible Peas in a Pod

An episode full of bliss begins with the worst morning of Ganta’s life, when he wakes up to find his mother has suddenly gone without a word. That feeling of abandonment must have been hard to shake for years, but the hole his mother left in his heart has gradually become filled by Isaki.

This is a little masterpiece of an episode, which never cuts away from anyone other than Ganta and Isaki, highlighting just how well they coexist together; how happy and at peace they are together; how well matched they are. When Ganta’s natural inclination to worry or eschew kicks in, Isaki is there to give him a little nudge. When he stumbles, she’s there to catch him.

I made note of two finally being able to play house after Isaki’s sister skedaddled, but I wasn’t prepared for just how beautifully Ganta and Isaki settle into a little slice of life together, whether it’s going on their little daily adventures, nightly photography sessions, or things like laundry, shopping, and cooking. It’s all presented so sweetly—so idyllically.

In the rare moments they’re alone, Ganta and Isaki are both thinking of one another, and the situation they’re in, and how far they can or should take it. Isaki is proactive in setting a “mutual boundary line” past which neither of them can cross in the night, but when the two start exchanging funny texts and hearing each other laughing through the walls, Isaki cracks the sliding door, thus bridging their artificial gap.

Having survived a night without giving in too recklessly to their steadily simmering feelings, Ganta and Isaki get right back to it the next day, having a blast photographing all of the gorgeous spots they visit. That night they break out the watermelon and spend some time in silent bliss. Ganta wishes it could stay this way forever; Isaki concurs.

Having heard Isaki’s secret about her tenuous medical past, which he knows from her sister she doesn’t just tell anyone, Ganta decides the time is right to open up about his primary source of insomnia: a crushing fear of a tomorrow that is far worse than the day before. This is the fear instilled in him since his mother left.

In bringing up such a delicate and painful topic, Ganta breaks down into tears, but in the midst of drying them, Isaki leans in close and kisses him. She then draws back and notes that her first kiss “tasted salty”, due to Ganta’s tears. Ganta is so shocked—and happy—he doesn’t know quite what to do, so he runs outside and falls into the sea.

Of course, Isaki is there to pull him out, and in ensuring he’s not hurt, the two make eye contact for the first time since their kiss…and start laughing at the fact that the eye contact feels different. The kiss was a physical affirmation of the feelings the two clearly have and have had for each other since shortly after meeting. But it also opens a door that can’t be easily closed.

Isaki says they should “leave things how they are” until they reach the finish line of their trip. This isn’t a retraction of the feelings expressed in the kiss, merely a practical suggestion. And Ganta intends to honor it. But once they do reach that finish line—the Mawaki Site—he fully intends to confess to her. To that, all I can say is Attaboy!

Rarely has a couple spending time alone together for an extended time felt so real and so immersive, and their understated yet momentous first kiss will go down in my anime watching history as one of the very best. Hopefully Ganta can seal the deal by making his feelings for Isaki plain, and Isaki can accept and return them. The times they’ve enjoyed don’t need to be a fleeting dream; they can be their reality.

Vinland Saga S2 – 24 (Fin) – Prodigal Son

This week is nothing more or less than Thorfinn’s return to his home village in Iceland, an occurance for which multiple miracles had to take place. When he sees the frozen shores, Thorfinn is scared: What if no one recognizes or remembers him? He left when he was six, after all.

Sure enough, the first people to meet him at the shore don’t know who he is, and he doesn’t know their names. When he encounters his big sis Ylva, she’s already hot from arguing with a Norwegian merchant, and kicks Thorfinn in the face, as she assumes this is some kind of scam.

His less than warm reception has Thorfinn feeling down, but however those on this island feel about him, the fact of the matter is he is Thorfinn, Son of Thors, and he is home. Bug Eyes reminds him just how frikkin’ lucky he is that he was able to return to his family, and his family is still alive.

Buoyed by Bug Eyes’ words, Thorfinn meets with his mother Helga. Unlike Ylva, she can immediately tell that this is her son, because she remembers a young Thors, and Thorfinn looks just like him. In the family home, he reunites with Ari and meets his nephews and nieces.

When Ylva comes home, Helga assures him that this is indeed her little brother. So rather than punch him for being an impostor after inheritance, she punches him for having fucked off somewhere for so long without a word, only to return with a ponytail and beard.

Because there’s no Netflix in the 11th Century, Thorfinn regales his family with the tale of his life from when he left the island to when he left Ketil’s farm. It’s a story of hatred and strife, death and destruction, despair and regret, sadness and rebirth.

At the end of it everyone is speechless but no one is unmoved. Then Thorfinn tells his family what he must do to atone for the sins that weigh so heavy upon him: create a peaceful land in Vinland. His mother gives him her blessing, while even Ylva comes around and bonds with her brother over what a strong, kind weirdo their dad was.

That night, Einar joins Thorfinn on a promontory overlooking the roiling sea below and the undulating aurorae above…until it gets too cold and he heads back to Helga’s, where he’s welcomed as a son. Once alone, Thorfinn is confronted by his younger self, who asks him where people go when they leave the island.

Thors also appears, saying Thorfinn knows the answer, and all of a sudden the two of them are in the middle of a vast pasture, on Vinland, land of plenty and peace. Leif promises to help him get that nation started, while Ylva and Helga lament that they must part ways with their brother and son, respectively, so soon, while understanding why.

The morning of his and Einar’s departure, Thorfinn ditches the ponytail and beard, and ends up looking a lot more regal. As the prospective founder of his warless nation, he will be its leader, after all; at least at first. Like last season, this feels like the end of another beginning.

Now that he is free of the bonds of both war and slavery, Best Boy Thorfinn can set to work making his and his father’s dream a reality. Here’s hoping there’s a third season of Vinland Saga to cover that.

But for now, this final episode proved that after achieving a great victory—one that required neither a single swing of a dagger nor a single thrown punch—the greatest reward is simply to be able to return to a warm home, where the people who loved you still live and thrive. But that warmth and comfort is fleeting, for Thorfinn has much yet to do.