Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto – 24

Short Synopsis: A Hijikata-episode. Last episode, we saw him finally realizing that Soutetsu’s up to no good. This gets continued in this episode, while Enomoto masters the power of the Lord’s Head even more. Good: The past few episodes have been building up quite nicely for the climax of the series… Bad: …now let’s hope that the next two episodes won’t mess up. Overall Enjoyment Value: 8/10 And there goes Hijikata. Ever since episode 18, Akizuki has been kept away from the main events of this episode, and he’s been in the shadows, walking around a bit while the side-characters finish their stories. This episode, it was Hijikata’s turn. Next episde will be a great one, as it’ll continue Akizuki’s fight versus Kanna. I’m looking forward to the final episodes a lot. I finally realize that Bakumatsu is a good series overall, but masterful in its climaxes. So far, we’ve got ourselves quite a formidable foe in Enomoto. In this episode it becomes clear that he actually brainwashes people. Judging by the fact that Kakunojou and Kanna have been affected, while Soutetsu and Hijikata have not, then it must mean that he can only do this with weak-hearted people. Hijikata, meanwhile, meets his end in the episode. With the end so near, I’m actually wondering whether the troupe is going to play a major role in the final episode. It would be awesome if they were, but somehow I’m feeling that they will just be spectators. Still, a formidable foe Enomoto may be, the fact does remain that Akizuki is an excellent swordsman. He already showed that he’s capable of cutting the lord’s head more than anyone else has, and he probably also has some kind of trick up his sleeve to take care of Kakunojou. Soutetsu also is a good swordsman, but his skills will probably never match those of Akizuki’s, which means that the next episode is going to be very exciting. Speaking of Soutetsu, I’m still wondering why he needs Akizuki. Do his and Kakunojou’s sword have to meet under special circumstances or something? And silly me. For episodes and episodes, I kept wondering what this strange “Hasha no Kubi” was. Some kind of kingdom, or something with a fog? In the end, it appears that it’s been the Lord’s Head all along. Things make much more sense now.]]>