Succubus + Bikini = Death by Nosebleed
What They Say:
“Demi-chans Want to Swim”
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
There’s been a lot of plot building up lately, but we’re finally up to the climactic finale! Okay… this show doesn’t actually have any plot, any buildup, or any climax (at least not in this season, should there ever be more), but it is true that we’re at the finale, for what that’s worth. That’s a bittersweet time for most series, as they tend to be the most exciting episodes but also mean there won’t be any more of the show to watch each week. Since this lacks the former but not the latter, it could be seen as a more negative example than the average, but it makes the episode so much from the beginning that it’s hard to see it that way. It starts with a normal conversation between Takahashi and Hikari about vampires, with Takahashi’s part being mostly scientific based on his curiosity about such matters and Hikari turning it into a silly little party somehow. It’s business as usual, and while Hikari is a great deal of fun, her hyperactive personality can get a little annoying at times. The scientific explanations of mythical beings are always some of my favorite moments of the series, and with vampires already so closely linked to bats, this is an easier one to make work than most, although also quite a bit less creative for the same reason.
The bulk of the episode, though, is the least climactic kind of episode for a finale: the pool episode. It’s literally just our cute monster girls playing around in the school pool for the latter fifteen minutes or so of the final episode. And that’s fine. More than focusing on their swimsuits or ball tossing, we spend much of the time on the sidelines as Takahashi speaks with some of the others not currently in the water (or only partially so). Sakie is the one character who seems to realize this is the finale and uses the opportunity to clear up any unwanted developments by asking Takahashi directly what his thoughts would be if – hypothetically, of course – any of his students had feelings for him. Obviously his answer wasn’t going to be anything different, but it’s nice to have that clearly laid out before this adaptation wraps up. Of course, Sakie’s real purpose is for that to lead into the discussion of a relationship between her and Takahashi, but his obliviousness is not exclusive to the young girls, and in this case gets admittedly frustrating, as Sakie could certainly attest to. We get something of a repeat of her episode a few weeks ago in which she tries to actually use her aphrodisiac effect to her advantage, including roughly the same results, but that gag works well enough to be repeated and still be worth the investment.
As Machi’s head rests beside the pool that she’s playing in, we also get a brief chat with her about that very situation, as strange as it is. The comparison to playing a video game makes total sense, and her status as the most interesting character both in terms of her species and how much thought she puts into it, is made apparent once more as the two of them go through the aspects of dullahan legend and how they could all make sense for “real” dullahans. Takahashi has done this with most of the demis, but few seem as creative and thoughtful. The series naturally concludes with Hikari in a sweet moment that feels poetic, if not conclusive in any way.
In Summary:
A pool episode is an appropriate enough final offering for a series somewhere in between the “cute girls doing cute things” genre, a harem of sorts, and simple slice of life bordering on iyashikei, with its own unique take on the more recent monster girl genre. While Yuki misses out on any focus this time, the rest of the cast get good moments that wrap up a fun series for now.
Grade: B-
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment:
Roku 3, Sceptre X425BV-FHD 42″ Class LCD HDTV.
