It’s rushed, it’s full of coincidences, I know that. But damn, this episode was surprisingly good here. I really want to praise the creators here, that even though they had to cut god knows how much from the manga in order to make this fit into just one episode, they still managed to make it work. This show is indeed visibly flawed, but it also avoids the single biggest pitfall for any rushed anime: the fact that the plot doesn’t come together.
This episode just kept building up its tension, right from the start, and within these 20 minutes, they really did lot here: they gave the doctor a good backstory, it fleshed the rest of the cast, especially Gotou tried to squeeze a bit of personality as much as he could without getting in the way of the story or the rest of the characters, we know a bit more about the new intern (who despite his whining is surprisingly useful), and most importantly: we now know who Yakumo’s father is. That certainly added a neat twist to this series.
The atmosphere was particularly wonderful in this episode. That’s where it really helps to be a Bee-Train series, because that soundtrack definitely kept me to the edge of my seat, and it worked great with the storytelling and the pacing of the series. This balance is probably the thing that makes this show works so well: the characters and story are very well balanced in each episode, and the creators make sure to give all of them equal time to show themselves off. Its definitely not the most solid series, but to me it does feel like everything comes together like it should.
Rating: ** (Excellent)
Nothing unexpected, but yes it came together nicely since the direction in this episode wasn’t bumpy for once… which is kind of difficult to achieve, I admit that in the case of novel adaptions. Still the series I like following the most this season after Star Driver (and Shiki, but that one already started last season).
Awesome, loved this episode!!
If only it wouldn’t feel so damn rushed! 🙁
All in all I liked this episode, no question. But I also see the potential what the story of those two episodes COULD have been if it were only told in three episodes.
Honestly, it feels like I’m watching an extremely well done summary instead of the whole story…