Sousei no Onmyouji – 28

Ya know, when the first Basara Kamui first showed up – a super-powerful, sentient Kegare with something of a distinct moral code, I was a bit excited. But like the Arrancar in Bleach, there have now been so many different Basara with such short lifespans, they’ve become less fascinating and more, well, boring. This week’s Basara Kinasa doesn’t help matters, even if he’s got impeccable manners and a gun from Puella.

The predictable Roku and Benio pattern of encountering a foe, throwing everything they’ve got at it to absolutely no avail, and getting bailed out by a third party, is similarly wearing thin; not a good sign considering there’s so much more show left.

Kinasa is merely filler to stop our heroes in our tracks, but they don’t really learn anything or gain any new strength: they’re merely saved, once again, by Sae’s mysterious powers, after Sae disobeys them for the hundredth time. I’m also baffled that Kinako never conjures child locks while in RV Mode.

What makes Roku and Benio look even weaker is when Unomiya Tenma, the most powerful of the 12 Guardians, arrives, just ’cause, and dispatches both Kinasa and the Dragon Spot with one swing of his sword and one word (“Close!”).

We’ve been led to believe that with resonance this duo can really make things happen, but it’s almost as if they’ve regressed. Granted, perhaps the Basara are getting more powerful, but the same pattern has played out each time, and I don’t really care about the Basara, so it’s hard to gauge how tough an enemy is. They seem to either defeat it instantly, or are totally overpowered and in need of outside help.

In any case, this last dragon spot drop until Kyoto, and Tenma will be their escort. Sae seems eager to go, so Benio and Rokuro follow.  Mayura’s episode was a nice change of pace, but a return to the same-old-same-old just didn’t do it for me. I want to see more movement in the plot and less disposable Basara.

Sousei no Onmyouji – 27

This week Rokuro and Benio merely bookend an a rare episode that focuses on Mayura. When Twelve Guardians member Ikaruga Shimon shows up in Narusaki, she can’t resist the opportunity to become stronger with his instruction. Of course, not before she accidentally barges in on him in the nude; a welcome inversion of the cliche.

Shimon also happens to have been trained by Seigen (and his praise is one of the only things that brings a smile to his face), so Mayura quickly finds the same style she’s seen her father employ, both on her and on Rokuro. He’s not immediately impressed with Mayura, but can’t deny she learns fast.

When the Dragon Spot appears in town and one of Mayura’s friends is caught in the miasma, Mayura blasts right through Shimon’s logical reasons she shouln’t go in there. To hell with that; protecting people, especially those she cares about, from harm is the reason she’s an exorcist.

She does what she needs to to to ensure her friend’s safety, leading a near-basara away, then Shimon takes care of the rest, using his Vermillion Wing ability to scoop her to safety with a “princess hold”, then acing the baddie.

Mayura convinces Shimon that she’s definitely exorcist material, even if she doesn’t dream of being The Strongest or creating a world with no kegare. She’s more about realistic, achievable goals, like keeping people safe, even if her pristine skin gets scuffed.

I’ve never minded Mayura, and here she even gets a whiff of a romance with someone not utterly oblivious to her. Plus, she’s already seen him naked, so that’s out of the way! I can’t imagine will see a lot more of the two anytime soon, or if anything more will come of their new friendship, but this broke up the monotony of the Twins’ road trip nicely.

P.S. I dug the new OP, with an almost Monogatari-style aesthetic and a thumping theme by the band Back-On. The new ED was pretty, if a bit dull.