Almost a little too far on the edge
What They Say:
One day a weird tentacle creature destroys 70% of the moon and threatens to do the same to Earth in a year. However in exchange for being allowed to teach a group of misfit students called the E-Class, he’ll allow them to try and assassinate him. With the chance to earn 10 billion yen and prove their worth to the world, the kids are willing to give it a shot, but this thing might just end up being the best teacher they’ve ever had.
The Review:
Content (warning as portions of this review may contain spoilers):
After spending a lot of time on the school discrimination stuff the last couple of weeks, this week is a bit of a return back to the norm (well whatever can be considered the norm for a show as weird as this one). This time though we get things in a different setting and one that can let the show be a bit wackier. The show plays a bit of a balancing game between that and serious stuff this week with the serious stuff being a bit much, but the overall package is a solid one.
So the episode this week features the class going on a school trip to Kyoto and sure enough the assassination plot factors into it as the government sees it as a good opportunity to use snipers to take him out (which to be honest is kinda weird since it’s been established he’s much faster than a bullet but eh). The whole school trip thing is kind of a tired anime trope at this point so the assassination angle puts enough of a neat spin on it to keep things interesting, and there’s even a fun little history lesson when the students go over some of the various major assassinations that have occurred there. Aside from a couple of minor bits about the how the discrimination thing even factors into field trips, the first part is non-stop gags and it’s all pretty standard fun for the show.
From there though things get a bit…uncomfortable. A group of delinquents from a lower end school, jealous of the Class E kids for coming from a high-end school, decide to kidnap some of the girls. Nothing particularly sexual comes of it since they just want to ruin their reputations, but given the kind of plot that normally is it’s more than bit creepy, and the super hammy evilness on the part of the delinquent leader doesn’t help things. However it’s somewhat salvaged by the show have enough sense to be a bit meta about how cliche of a trope it is by giving Nagisa and co a literal guide on how to rescue them, courtesy of Korosensei. There’s also a little character material with new student of the week Kanzaki, who decided to act out in order to rebel against her over-demanding parents and ended up in Class E as a result, making for something of a parallel between her and the delinquents who want to drag her and the others down to their level.
Thankfully from there the fun factor ramps up to 11 with the rescue attempt. Karma and Korosensei both get to show off and it’s really cool to see a bit of what Korosensei is capable off when not held back by the rule of not being able to harm his students. It’s a little odd he condones and supports them in beating on the delinquents but it makes for a great gag. Of course as always there’s a bit of a heartwarming side to it to as Korosensei points out to the delinquents that the Class E kids have to face their own struggles constantly and it makes Kanzaki feel more positive about her situation. It’s a nice little wrap up to an otherwise heavy handed scenario, and almost makes the whole thing worth it…now onto the rest of the trip.
In Summary:
This week’s episode starts a new mini arc and one that’s off to a little bit of an uneven start. The show got to be even wackier than usual this time around but the scenario with the delinquents felt like a bit much, even if the ending mostly made up for it. Hopefully next week’s episode sticks more to the fun side of things.
Grade: B
Streamed By: Funimation, Hulu
