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Natsume Yūjin-Chō Roku (TV 6).




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Redbeard 101
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Joined: 14 Aug 2006
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PostPosted: Tue Apr 18, 2017 2:06 pm Reply with quote


Natsume Yūjin-Chō Roku (TV 6)

Genres: supernatural
Themes: spirits

Plot Summary: Natsume's just an ordinary kid, except he can see spirits, just like his grandma Reiko could. Reiko, though, used to bully the spirits, and bound them to her will in the "Book of Friends." Now that Natsume has inherited this book, a never-ending stream of spirits is coming after him. With the help of a spirit "cat" (who really just wants Natsume to die so he can have the book), Natsume spends his days dissolving the contracts that bind the spirits and trying not to get killed.
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Season 6 of Natsume's Book of Friends.
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Harleyquin



Joined: 29 May 2014
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PostPosted: Tue Apr 18, 2017 10:39 pm Reply with quote
#2

Unlike the previous season before it, this one gets straight into bringing out recurring cast members with Natsume more willing to rely on them for help when inadvertent requests come his way.

Ishi-Arai Namaaki's flower drawing is the big highlight for this episode, but it's nonetheless sad to see his disciple unable to replicate his achievements due to the well-meaning but ignorant actions of an exorcist.

Next week sees a recurring cast member I don't remember from season 5. It seems Tanuma is also involved so I'm wondering what's sort of request Natsume has been put up to.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Tue Apr 25, 2017 11:28 pm Reply with quote
#3

Shibata was never the most agreeable of Natsume Takashi's friends and acquaintances, but he does provide the trigger for this week's adventure with the dolls. It's been a while since Natsume was the target of a malevolent spirit (in this case pair) so Nyanko-Sensei earns his keep as well (bit much asking for a whole melon and the entirety of Touko's next fried shrimp dinner but I suppose this is outside of his contractual obligations since Natsume got himself into trouble).

If Shibata didn't figure out that the cat was something more than it seemed after seeing Tanuma show the cat the talisman and Madara eliminate the doll spirit, he definitely knows after the cat starting talking carelessly right at the end. Still doesn't seem to have made the connection though.

Natori and the exorcist community get their turn in the spotlight next week. If I didn't mishear, it seems Matoba's secretary Nanase might be heavily involved. Trailer also shows Natori's familiars who didn't get much screentime in the last season so always something to look forward to.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Wed May 03, 2017 1:22 am Reply with quote
#4

This week is a two-parter. Natori together with his three familiars in the spotlight.

Natsume really is one of those individuals where things happen around him because of his natural abilities. It gets him into trouble but also gives him valuable lessons should he survive his experiences.

Interesting to see one former exorcist forced to retire from his chosen profession. They were talked about in the previous season but I think this is the first time Natsume Takashi is in direct contact with one. It looks like he appears next week, but from what I can tell his familiars have broken free of his control and are pursuing different objectives from each other.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Tue May 09, 2017 11:33 pm Reply with quote
#5

Interesting twist to the conclusion for the 2-parter. Unless one is familiar with the source material, it wouldn't have crossed the mind that the daughter was inadvertently responsible for what was going on in the house. Takuma Yousuke's return made it possible for Natsume to resolve the problem in his usual peaceful and conciliatory manner, but Ginro's comment from last week holds the possibility of shattering the friendship between Natsume and Natori.

The comedy relief pair of Natsume's classmates get the spotlight next week, looks like a story about how they met with Natsume and made friends with him shortly after his move to Kyuushu.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Tue May 16, 2017 10:32 pm Reply with quote
#6

As far back as season 1, Natsume ended up with Nishimura and Kitamoto as his youkai-oblivious mates. Now we see how both of them ended up being friends with Natsume Takashi in two short segments.

I think this is the first time viewers have seen the pair of them in their private lives outside of school, Nishimura with his elder brother and Kitamoto with the ill father and younger sister. The vignettes also resolve things differently with Nishimura being helped out after Madara comes into Natsume's life while chance aids Kitamoto in saving them from a scrap.

Nishimura and Kitamoto are important to Natsume as they partially symbolise what a normal, everyday life means to him; but they'll never be as close to him as Tanuma and Taki nor will they ever will be unless they learn what Natsume is capable of seeing and still appreciate him for what he is despite the knowledge.

About time Natsume Reiko took the spotlight in this season. OP is more or less about her and the grandson so she really needs more character development in this season.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Wed May 24, 2017 1:20 am Reply with quote
#7

One of Natsume Reiko's encounters related to the grandson by the youkai who was helped by her. Typical behaviour by Reiko, but it also illustrates just how different the two of them have become since Takashi inherited the Book of Friends and freed Madara from his prison.

Reiko being typically enigmatic, it's hard to tell if she envies Kibune for having a place to return to or she preferred the nomadic lifestyle she ended up living. What's certain is she keeps her distance and rejects the possibility of connections with others, regardless of humans or youkai. The final scene is typical of the series and is a nice touch to end the episode on.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Wed May 31, 2017 12:03 pm Reply with quote
#8

One of the cliched doomed romances one sees in other fictional works, although it's narrated with the typical style this series is famous for. I wonder if the pair are just a one-off guest appearance in their own arc or if they'll make subsequent appearances in the future. Only time (and plenty of paying fans for the adaptations) will tell.

It's not mentioned explicitly in this episode, but it seems Sonokawa Kaoru is less adept at seeing youkai than Natsume Takashi is. People talk behind her back in school but she appears to lack the Natsume family trait of being orphaned and passed around distant relations for much of the childhood. Despite the two of them sharing the same ability, it remains to be seen if they'll continue to interact since their mutual acquaintance doesn't always hang around human habitation.

Next week looks like an interesting arc with another Nyanko clone featured in the trailer.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Wed Jun 07, 2017 1:07 am Reply with quote
#9

Halfway through this episode, I wondered if I was seeing something similar to #3 with something malevolent going after the unsuspecting students. As it turns out, the truth is somewhat more prosaic with the episode resolving the problem at hand in a satisfactory manner.

The one thing that was left unexplained was the "flood" phenomenon that only Natsume could see and which was slowly creeping forward each time he looked at the hallway. It seems it stopped being a problem once the hairpin was located, but it's probably better explained if one reads the source material since this episode is deliberately vague on its significance.

Nyanko-Sensei wild piglet version = Taki's biggest thrill from the mountain retreat. It looks like he didn't find the spring he was after, so he's being unusually cooperative to kill time and boredom.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Wed Jun 14, 2017 12:20 am Reply with quote
#10

The series has been building up to this moment since Natsume Takashi helped Natori out the last time they met. Next week's conclusion to both this story arc and this season's adaptation will give a denouement on the big secret Takashi has been holding out on Natori on since the start of their relationship.

It's been ages since the series paired up Hiiragi and Natsume together, so there's a bit of comedy when the pair of them agree on a course of action. Likewise Natori's perpetual flowery aura makes Natsume alone feel like his hairs are standing on end even though everyone else in the vicinity is completely enchanted by Natori's presence.

Hakozaki Beniko is an interesting case. The granddaughter of a powerful exorcist who did not inherit the ability to see spirits has a very different take on her kin compared to Takuma Tsukiko. Even comparing Beniko to Takashi's friend Taki is an interesting contrast since they're both granddaughters yet one embraced the legacy of her grandfather while the other chose to reject it for fear of youkai reprisal.

This series never gets old and will probably return for future adaptations. As before, the main storyline and Reiko's past is revealed at a glacial pace but that's not why viewers come back to this series again and again.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Tue Jun 20, 2017 8:25 pm Reply with quote
#11

For Natori and the others it is probably a shame that the study burned out, but Natsume was fortunate enough to get something for his trouble in finding one of the entrances. Scraps of paper they might be, but Natori walks away with those and knowledge of the great secret Natsume Takashi has been hiding all this time. It's clear if he was in Natsume's position he would have burned the book to stop it from being misused, but it's not his and it seems he respects Natsume's decision to hold on to it and to free spirits bound to it when asked.

Another frustrating but tantalising hint regarding Natsume's bloodline. Hakozaki was a fun-loving spirit researcher who yearned for family yet compensated himself adequately by having daily fun with spirits, someone with Natsume Takashi's powers could only have been born through the union of two similarly talented individuals and somehow both of these individuals made a connection sometime in the past. The big question is whether it's Natsume Reiko's father, husband or son who's hinted at. Unlikely it's the son since Natsume Takashi was orphaned early, so probably Reiko's father or husband.

Season 6 comes and goes, will season 7 need another 12-18 month wait before its airing?
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Alan45
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 21, 2017 7:52 am Reply with quote
@Harleyquin

If Natsume burned the Book of Friends it would have destroyed all of the yokai still listed in its pages. If you go back to season one and the small god that faded away, the simple attempt to separate forcibly two pages caused him pain.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Wed Jun 21, 2017 7:56 am Reply with quote
Alan45 wrote:
@Harleyquin

If Natsume burned the Book of Friends it would have destroyed all of the yokai still listed in its pages. If you go back to season one and the small god that faded away, the simple attempt to separate forcibly two pages caused him pain.


I know that, but Natori isn't fully aware of the consequences of destroying the book. Regardless he still said something as dangerous as that should have been burnt, but made sure the comment wasn't within earshot.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Sun Oct 08, 2017 11:55 pm Reply with quote
OVA #1

What appears to be another unfortunate incident of meddling Natsume gets himself into at first glance turns out to be another classic story of this series about the promises made between humans and youkai and how difficult/impossible it is for such promises to be fulfilled.

I suppose long-time fans would have seen the twist coming midway through the episode, but it doesn't lessen the emotional impact when the denouement hits. As always, the series always finds a way to resolve everything in the end in a satisfactory manner. Natsume is fated to be the bridge between two worlds which normally never intersect and gets to experience things at a scale few individuals in his world could comprehend or match.
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Harleyquin



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PostPosted: Fri Feb 02, 2018 8:04 am Reply with quote
OVA #2

This is probably the second and final OVA episode for this season. The formula may be tried and tested, but it never fails to entertain fans of all shades.

At first glance it looks like Tamami is going to be one of Natsume Takashi's friends who are comfortable with him despite not knowing his secret. However the twist towards the end shows how much meaning is attached to the "Alice in Wonderland" motif that crops up at the start.

The Forest of Shadows both of them ended up in looks like one of the rare examples in this franchise of an environment which is potentially dangerous to unwary humans. Viewers are not told the identity of the enormous one-eyed Youkai, but through luck or deliberate choice it decided not to do anything untoward to Tamami. Perhaps the Protector had something to do with it thanks to the ring.

One remark to take away, "There are some laws which CANNOT be bent or broken in this world."
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