Well, it seems like people are going to start dropping left and right if this episode is any indication of the future episodes of this arc. Irie goes down and a cop gets shot in cold blood. Things are really starting to shape up here. I’m curious as to whether they’ll explain Irie’s death or not as I’m interested in knowing how he died. He didn’t die from clawing at his neck with his fingernails like Tomitake did and the cop said that there didn’t seem to be any signs of struggling and such, so how did they get him? Then again, I guess it’s possible that the poison just makes you commit suicide and the means are just whatever’s at hand. Rika did end up stabbing herself in “目明し編” after all.

It’s a mystery as to how exactly are Satoko and Rika going to get out of the mess they’re currently in. I doubt that Rika will “transform” into her other self (or whatever the story behind that other person is) although I guess it would be kind of cool to see her kick some ass. After all, why didn’t she just go do that from the get go if she could? One possibility is that the folks outside their house aren’t actually the bad guys. For all we know, it could’ve just been Keiichi that had set off the alarm.

Looking ahead, I really can’t predict the number of episodes that we’re going to get for this arc. I don’t think that the arc’s going to end any time soon, but at the same time, they really can’t waste too much time because then you’re not giving the last two arcs enough screen time. I’m going to guess that it’ll last seven episodes even if seven’s an odd number. I think there’s still quite a bit of information that could be revealed that goes beyond two more episodes. I don’t think anything major’s really going to happen in the next episode but I anticipate that something will start drumming in the sixth episode with a ridiculous cliffhanger and then it’ll get wrapped up in the seventh.

This episode really did little to advance the storyline so I have to say that I was a little bit disappointed. I was hoping that more information would be revealed or some blood would be shed. However, I suppose that since the Watanagashi festival hasn’t even started that it’s only natural for there to still be a bit of some peace of quiet in Hinamizawa. Here’s to hoping that this pacing business is going to all work out at the end of the day when this arc concludes.

Looking at the plot, one has to wonder as to just what exactly is Satoko going to do about the fact that Rika’s going to die in a couple of days. Will Rika’s death be prevented? Will we find out who killed her this arc? I find that to be pretty unlikely since this is a completely original arc so I don’t think they’re going to pull anything that’s really out of the ordinary that’s going to steal the thunder from the last two arcs. One should also consider that the (seemingly) “happy ending” that was presented at the end of “罪滅し編” doesn’t really work out anymore. The viewers all know that there’s some kind of a time loop thing going so unless Keiichi and company figures out the cause, which they definitely won’t in this arc, presenting anything remotely “happy” isn’t really going to fool anyone.

But, when it comes down to it, as long as they keep things interesting for this arc, I don’t really have any qualms as to what exactly happens to the characters, be they dead or alive. And from the look of things, we’re probably not going to get a “useless” arc like “暇潰し編” or something like “祟殺し編”, which really made little sense and would’ve been a pretty crappy arc if not for the murdering scene. So anyway, as long as we steer clear of something around the lines of the two aforementioned karcs, I’m cool with whatever.

This episode was a little reminiscent of the first episode of the first season despite the fact that I can’t really remember how that episode went. The main reason I’m saying this is that this episode is really quite laid back minus the disturbing bit with the needle in the beginning. No “real” weapon appeared on screen unlike the machete from last season’s episode one. ;)

I really liked this episode because of the great laughs that it offered. The part where everyone was mouthing things off about Keiichi was particularly hilarious. It was also nice being able to listen to Rena’s voice as it always comes out as being so moe…unlike Rika. Having to listen to Tamura’s lines definitely made life a little difficult for me. Her serious voice in the beginning and the last bit near the end when Rika was questioning Satoko really reminded me of her role in Nanoha. I wish she could mix things up a little at times, but eh, what can you do?

With no leads as to where the arc will turn, I’m very excited about finding out what’s to come in future episodes. Due to the needle’s appearance in the beginning of the first episode, I’m guessing that this arc will primarily be focused on Satoko (and naturally Rika). Can’t say that I’m a fan of that little blond girl, but if she dies as a result of the needle, this arc can’t be half bad. Okay, yeah, I hate Satoko, alright? There, I admitted it. I mean, “祟殺し編” was a really weird arc with Keiichi falling to his death to begin with…and then there’s that nii-nii crap she pulled which really didn’t help her case at all, really.

I was a little bit caught off guard by this episode since I was expecting it to start off with “皆殺し編”…but that didn’t happen. From what I’ve gathered, this episode somewhat acts as a recap episode in addition to revealing further information that may not have been obvious from the first season. Note that the first actual arc isn’t going to be “皆殺し編” either because they’re apparently going to be adding a new original arc, “厄醒し編”, before moving on to the last two arcs.

So, this episode essentially builds on top of the information that was revealed to the first season’s viewers during the phone conversation that Rena and Keiichi had about what Takano had written in her scrapbooks. It’s kind of surprising how I didn’t make the connections about some of the revelations, but really, they all do fit together. I wouldn’t say that there were any plot holes or anything of that matter. I really don’t recall Rena mentioning anything about biological weapons when she took the students hostage, so it was a bit of a surprise to me when they mentioned that it was all (”probably”) a hoax.

For the clueless people like me, this was a rather good episode as it revealed more information that helps put us further back into context of the plot at hand. For those that already got the plot, spoiled themselves, or even played the game, I guess this wasn’t that great (like all “recap” episodes). If nothing else, I guess you at least got a chance to see the great opening and ending animation sequences and hear the new songs. Both songs are very good in my opinion and I’m really looking forward to listening to their full versions. The next episode is going to truly kick off the second season season with the first chapter of the “厄醒し編”. With a projected length of twenty-four episodes, I just hope they don’t screw up the pacing.

And so it begins…or not…because the second season aired its first episode in Japan at 0327 on the 6th yesterday, actually. Anyway, this would have been my most anticipated anime series for 2007 if they hadn’t announced a second season for 『灼眼のシャナ』. I’m probably going to try and pick up a raw later since the excitement is really killing me here.