Finally, the main storyline is back! After 22 episodes, we’re currently at 13 chapters in the manga, it seems. With 37 chapters currently released, the second season will have no problems fitting those all in, provided of course that the manga will end in about a year or something.
I liked how this Mana arc, despite being another one of the fillers, neatly tied in and introduced the upcoming arc, by fleshing out who Gauche is, without offering any information about what the heck happened to him. That might prove to be very valuable to the future, and the creators chose this arc very well. Thunderland also got a lot of extra depth in this episode, and he’s no longer the stereotypical scientist that he first was. It’s pretty much exactly what a filler should be: either an excellent standalone-story, or a story that contributes to the overall story.
Now, as for the main storyline: this episode hinted at a lot of interesting stuff. Human experimentation has been done often in anime, but it gets an interesting dimension when it suddenly gets linked to Gauche’s mysterious disappearance. It would hint at how he got into an accident when he went to meet that person who was unable to become a spirit. What does that mean anyway, becoming a spirit?
Rating: * (Good)
