Yup, the third and final main character gets introduced this episode: Marco. He’s a pretty interesting and funny guy. His voice-acting also works really well. His mother (Leona) also seems to be a good friend of Pietoro, and he could be the son of Shirokishi as well, though that’s not sure yet. Still, I like the way that he’s got no sense of direction at all. ^^
Anyway, a lot of interesting things happened. The most important one was Pinon, who still struggles with the fact that everyone sees him as Pietoro’s son, and always expects things of him. Marco really helps him see this, as Pinon is in his eyes just a weak little wimp. After all, at their first meeting, Pinon hides behind Luna. While this is extremely cute, it does show that Pinon lacks any form of confidence. He even gets to the point at whishing he never made friends with Luna, as making friends is just the same as fighting with each other. This really shows that Pinon is horribly shy and locked up. I like these sorts of main characters. They’re so much better than the impulsive little brats.
Punpun and Kotoro also were quite interesting. While they didn’t contribute to the main story at all, I just couldn’t help but love the situations they get thrown in. While they aren’t as awesome as their father, these situations did make them very enjoyable. The mushroom also was awesome. Even though their inventions lack a visual trademark, it still was hilarious to see a huge mushroom in the middle of a forest like that. I also liked the running gag of the dried fish which was included. Marco was on an errand to bring his mother some dried fish. He loses them, and they drop in the river, near Punpun and Kotaro. While Kotaro’s fishing, he gets extremely surprised when he catches a bunch of dried fish, of all things. Later, it seems that the creators haven’t forgotten this fish, as Kotaro actually attempts to roast the fish. The fish eventually end up as the lunch for a hungry griffin. (^^) It was interesting to see Kotaro running around with these dried fish on a stick.
Overall, this was a very nice episode. I’m beginning to like this anime more and more. I’ve still got two issues: Pinon’s voice-actor and the three little kids that keep bugging Pinon. Though the latter do make Pinon depressed, so I guess they’re okay. I’m also wondering what happened to Ulala. We haven’t seen a clue from her ever since the first episode. In any case, I’m liking Pietoro and Luna. The two of them look really cute together. ^^
Memorable Moment: Seeing Punpun and Kotoro emerge from the giant mushroom.
