The series takes some time to dig a little deeper into Natsume's personality - present and past.
What They Say
Natsume is implored to help spirits who are currently being exorcised. He finds a kindred spirit in Tanuma, a boy who also senses spirits although not as powerful as Natsume.
The Review!
This show had won me over pretty well in its first pair of episodes, and the third is no slouch either. This episode is a little different in that the spotlight is mostly on Natsume. The emphasis isn't on youkai problems, although those do come into it, but we're shown the youkai in order to cast some light on Natsume, rather than seeing the youkai through Natsume's eyes.
We start off with a glimpse into Natsume's childhood that deepens our understanding about the way he feels toward the youkai. As a boy the youkai were something he hated. Even apart from being scary and weird in themselves, the monsters caused him a lot of pain just by being around him. Since he's the only one who can see the youkai he's ridiculed and shunned, and his own parents are ashamed of him and try to get rid of him. It makes you stop and think about what Natsume had to overcome just to take up the Yujincho and help out the youkai in the first place.
And of course, helping out youkai is exactly what Natsume continues to do. There are more youkai than ever in this episode: three with important roles and several others tagging along at a couple of points. There's also more comedy, and it's welcome as a counterbalance to the emotional baggage that the episode has to carry. The best bit is a youkai parade that escorts Natsume to school; seeing him in the middle of a line of youkai among bicycles, cars and students walking to school is just priceless - especially since he can't yell at all of them to just go away without looking like a nut.
This episode also stands out a little by spending a little more time on the human side of Natsume's life, even beyond the childhood memories. He doesn't have any close friends yet, but at least he's made some class buddies and starting to crawl out of himself. He also learns of another student who sounds like he "sees things" as well, and Natsume makes a point of trying to meet up with him. This thread ties into the main story, as the youkai who are providing the unwanted school escort are asking Natsume to get rid of a human that's apparently trying to exterminate them. What if the human plaguing the youkai is Natsume's schoolmate? And regardless of who it is, how can Natsume deal with a problem that involves another human?
Summary:
This is a strong story in several ways, and it deepens the show while entertaining in its own right. But it especially succeeds at drawing us nearer to the hero. We see his conflict a little more clearly; his past sheds new light on the magnitude of what he's decided to do, from his own point of view. Perhaps most importantly, he's coming a little further outside of himself. Before the Yujincho came along, he had a foot in both worlds but didn't belong in either. But now you get the impression that he just might be able to carve out a niche for himself in each world. And everybody, human and youkai, will be better off if he can manage it.
Features
Japanese 2.0 Language, English Subtitles
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