Assassination Classroom season 2

Episode 7

Well, I suppose no one can reasonably accuse Assassination Classroom of taking a rushed approach to the potential romance between Irina and Karasuma. After bringing up the topic in the first episode of the season, the show has waited a full six weeks to actually do anything with this particular subplot. I'm all for moving things along at your own pace, but even a glacier would think that's a little slow.

Irina's feelings for Karasuma come back into the spotlight after she complains to some of the Class E students that Karasuma didn't get her anything for her birthday. The kids decide to intervene in the stagnant relationship by buying a bouquet of flowers for Karasuma to give to Irina. The plan works fine until Irina realizes that the students were the ones who talked Karasuma into it. She gets the wrong idea about the kids' intentions and storms off. After a few days, the flower salesman that sold Class E the bouquet walks into the classroom, introduces himself as an assassin named the Reaper, and announces that he has taken Irina hostage. The class stages a rescue mission, but their plan falls apart when Irina betrays them and starts working with the Reaper. Koro Sensei and Karasuma realize that something's going on and begin searching for the students, but they may very well be walking into a trap.

The chemistry between Irina and Karasuma wasn't especially strong in the first season, but we do get a brief glimpse at something resembling affection when Karasuma hands over the flowers. It's a “blink and you'll miss it” kind of scene, but it does create the impression that the two of them could get along as more than just coworkers. I like how Assassination Classroom presents Karasuma as having a better idea of what's going on than the kids think he does. The guy's not totally devoid of emotion, he's just convinced himself that it's better to avoid getting emotionally involved with Irina. It's a more interesting dynamic than the usual “clueless anime guy” routine, and it suggests that Karasuma has at least given the matter some thought.

The Reaper is the latest villain to arise out of the “professional assassin challenges Class E” formula, and he shows some potential in this episode. His calm demeanor and easygoing approach to his work are unnerving in all the right ways, giving off the impression that he's a dangerous enemy without requiring an extravagant introduction. Assassination Classroom uses the classic trick of having a previously unstoppable attack, in this case Nagisa's stealthy approach, fail against the new baddie in order to drive home the notion that he's the toughest opponent the main characters have faced thus far. He's not quite as intimidating as the series seems to want him to be, but I'm at least curious to see if the kids can find a way to beat him without Koro Sensei's help.

I'm going to take a wild guess here and say that Irina hasn't permanently crossed over to the dark side, despite her apparent betrayal at the end of this episode. The burning question here is whether or not there's any truth to her temporary alliance with the Reaper. There's just enough uncertainty here to sustain a little dramatic tension, although my guess is that we're on course for a sudden revelation of how she's been on Class E's side the whole time. No matter how the show chooses to develop this story, I hope the rest of this plot arc is presented with slightly better lighting. While most of this episode is perfectly watchable, the scene in which Irina betrays Class E is so dark that it's almost impossible to follow where anyone is or what they're doing. There are artful ways to present a dark scene and obscure an important action with shadows, but completely turning off the lights isn't one of them.

Minor shortcomings aside, this is a good start to what I hope will be an entertaining showdown. We've got romantic drama, shifting loyalties, and a decent antagonist all lined up just in time for the cavalry to come charging in. Assassination Classroom has been getting better at these more serious plotlines, and it's managed to gather all the necessary ingredients for a compelling conclusion.

Rating: B+

Assassination Classroom is currently streaming on Funimation.

Paul Jensen is a freelance writer and editor. You can follow more of his anime-related ramblings on Twitter.