Would you drink sake made by a snake? I’m not so sure I would, but apparently it is very good.

What They Say:
Ep. 11 “The Familiar Goes Into Town”

Mizuki ventures into the city alone to learn the secret to making it in human society like the super pop star Kurama. And Nanami drags Tomoe off on a date to the amusement park.

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
So, Mizuki is stuck at home and not allowed to accompany Nanami to school. Perhaps, the two shrine sidekicks suggest, it is because she does not think Mizuki is accustomed enough to human society to manage being in school without causing problems. Determined to be more useful for Nanami (and less bored sitting in the shrine), Mizuki determines to prove his ability to interact with humans by going into town to find Kurama.

Town being Tokyo.

Apparently, Tokyo gives off a horrible miasma of negativity that sickens Mizuki. Of course, being a naive country type, he gets swindled, nearly killed (though he was never in real danger) and almost gets taken into police custody twice. In the end, he does make his way to Kurama who is at the TV station where he was just giving a concert. He tags along to a wrap party for a TV drama that has just finished taping and there learns a little more of the complexities of the human world, including the unhealthy effects of human liquor (not quite a pure as the sacred sake that Mizuki has made for Nanami).

He gets sick on some alcoholic drink offered him and nearly passes out, but is rescued by a young woman from the country who is working as an assistant to a famous (and arrogant) actress who is talking to Kurama. Mizuki has this whole time wondered why anyone would want to be in Tokyo, but the young naive actress wannabe shows him the desire in her desire to make it in the big city. Mizuki decides it’s time to go home, but he leaves a gift for the friendly gofer who saved him.

The second half of the episode follows Nanami’s “date” with Tomoe at the amusement park. Initially Tomoe is not interested, but Nanami successfully blackmails him over a hair ornament which was suspiciously hiding in a box among Tomoe’s possessions. Nanami thinks that it must have belonged to Yukiji, the human woman whom Tomoe had a relationship with in the distant past. Tomoe seems eager not to explain the hair stick accessory, so he goes along. While most of the date seems a lost cause, one ride catches Tomoe’s attention.

Who knew that Tomoe would like roller coasters?

Nanami is not a fan, but she goes along since he seems interested. Of course, during the course of the “date,” Tomoe attracts a good number of female admirers and this sends Nanami into fits of jealousy. That in itself would not be a major issue, but when Nanami then brings up Yukiji, Tomoe denies any knowledge of such a woman in his past. This Nanami knows to be false, and so she runs away. (Of course, we the viewers are aware that Tomoe is not exactly lying: in the previous episode, we know that Mikage used his power to make Tomoe forget his love for Yukiji. So, Tomoe may honestly not remember). Eventually, Nanami finds herself alone on the Ferris wheel, sad that her desire to have a nice romantic date with Tomoe went all wrong. He eventually catches up to her (even though her car is in the air at this point) and the two seem to make up, and Nanami feels like she can salvage this romance.

But we now know that this is going to be tougher than it seems. If Tomoe remembers Yukiji, could the curse which was killing him be revived?

At least this episode had a bit more energy and humor to it, something that has been sorely lacking for most of the season. If there is something this show generally lacks, it is energy. It does not help that the male lead, Tomoe, is phlegmatic at best. Mizuki and Nanami have a bit more spirit to them, and that helps greatly with a show that otherwise tends towards the lethargic. If only it could have more moments that move with pace and dynamism and fewer that make one yawn.

In Summary:
Mizuki is depressed that he can’t go to school with Nanami. With the wisps advising him that it is his lack of ability to relate to humans, Mizuki goes into town to interact with humans. He gets more than he bargained for, but manages to make it out alive and free of police interest. In the second half, Nanami takes Tomoe to the amusement park hoping to create a romantic moment. Instead, she gets jealous and angry and runs away. It appears that there may be several obstacles standing in the path of love between these two.

Grade: B+

Streamed by: FUNimation

Review Equipment:
Apple iMac with 4GB RAM, Mac OS 10.6 Snow Leopard