It was a horror series all along.
What They Say:
“Yu Ishigami Wants to Live / Chika Fujiwara Wants to Test You / Kaguya Wants to Be Noticed”
Yu Ishigami is the fourth member of the student council. Despite being a first-year, he was scouted out by Shirogane for his talent with numbers and appointed the council’s treasurer. Owing to Yu’s introverted personality, he normally doesn’t stand out much, but the council would fall apart without him. But one day, Yu goes to Shirogane and confesses his desire to quit the group. In fact, his mind is made up, even though Shirogane desperately tries to persuade him to stay. Apparently, the situation is beyond Yu’s control, but with a tear in his eye, he explains to the president that he thinks he’s being targeted for murder…
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The end of this episode marks the halfway point of the series, so it would be a good time to set up some sort of change for the second half. Since this series does follow a fairly limited formula, it’s not surprising to see it start on that an episode early, and shake up the status quo by finally introducing the fourth member of the student council that we’ve seen in the OP and ED but not in the series proper outside of cameos. From the moment Ishigami kicks off this episode, he transforms the already diverse atmosphere that the series has maintained into something completely unrecognizable. From Ishigami’s perspective, this story isn’t a comedy, a romance, or a drama; it’s a full-on slasher thriller, and he’s the targeted victim. Of course, this disturbingly understandable paranoia is played for laughs, and is effective in that pursuit in a different way than the show’s usual comedy, but that doesn’t stop the anime team from going all out with the horror aesthetic. This has always been an adaptation with extremely high production values, and both the direction and all aspects of the visuals from key animation to cinematography are handled with passionate precision to convey a sense of Ishigami’s terror even while keeping the humor just as strong.
Even after his dedicated spotlight (which he has more than earned after being left out for five episodes), Ishigami’s distinct personality and running gags become a standard part of the process in subsequent installments. This would mix things up even if Ishigami had more in common with the rest of the cast, but his dark sensibility and tendency to end up in a state of sheer despair contrast so strongly with the general lightheartedness and cute developments from basically every other character that the series is suddenly much more varied by his presence. It has always been a good show, but the possibility of it becoming too repetitive was a definite concern before this injection of originality.
While moments involving Ishigami may indeed be the highlight of every one of this episode’s offerings, there’s plenty to like with the established cast and their usual banter. After all, he is still very much the quiet character in the background for most of the material, especially since he regularly ends up leaving with desires to die. The use of a silly psychological test that claims your answers to simple questions indicate a direct correlation to your romantic interests and even plans for children makes sense for a series so focused on characters trying to outwit each other into confessing their feelings. Ironically, Chika is the initiator, despite the fact that Kaguya and Shirogane are the ones constantly trying to get each other to spill their deepest desires. The element that really carries this is that Kaguya has in fact studied up on what each question corresponds to and uses that to her advantage to avoid saying anything revealing and prompting Shirogane to drop his guard. The greatest bit of comedy around her role in this episode comes from flashbacks to her preparations, which hilariously imply a degree of insane obsession that makes her even more terrifying than Ishigami thought she was, complete with Hayasaka taking full advantage of the situation to entertain herself.
Speaking of which, Hayasaka continues to play with Kaguya in the final part, which begins with an interesting look at her as a normal schoolgirl rather than Kaguya’s loyal retainer. The two sides of her are at such odds with each other that it’s not even clear which is the act – perhaps both – but the juxtaposition is certainly as amusing as her deadpan comedy is on its own, and as her ultimate goal here is basically just to dress Kaguya up a bit, she comes across as a bit more endearing than her usual scheming self. This isn’t the most hilarious tale of the episode, but as is often the case, it ends the episode on a note that’s more adorable and hopeful for the eventual romance of Kaguya and Shirogane than it is purely comedic. And as has been the trend throughout the episode, Ishigami still makes sure there’s a good supply of painful humor, with help from the comically relentless Chika.
In Summary:
Kaguya-sama gets slightly higher marks this episode thanks to the long-awaited introduction of Ishigami shaking up the norm in a number of ways, and offering a darker sense of humor with surprise horror elements that are executed masterfully by the staff of the adaptation. There’s a general sense of greater variety here, with a solid cast of five characters (Hayasaka included) ensuring that we’re always treated to a good mix of comedy, cute moments, and occasionally sincere drama, even without straying too far from the established formula or relying on a great deal of continuity.
Grade: B+
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment:
LG Electronics OLED65C7P 65-Inch 4K Ultra HD Smart OLED TV, Amazon Fire TV Stick
