Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga

Episode 4

Blue Exorcist wastes little time this week, diving right into answering the question that has plagued the Myoda monks for weeks now: Who betrayed the temple and helped steal away the Left Eye of the Impure King? While Tatsuma Suguro, Ryuji's father, was the prime suspect, the real culprit turns out to be MAMUSHI, one of Uwabami's serpentine daughters. Not only did the mischievous Tamer help Saburota Todo steal the Left Eye, she's aiming to help capture the Right eye as well.

This reveal works well enough, though it falls into the trap of attempting to hastily develop a character after using them as a surprise reveal. Seeing how Todo tricked her into believing that The True Cross Academy and Tatsuma Suguro are the enemies of the Myoda works well enough, but this twist would have worked much better if we'd gotten to know MAMUSHI before she betrayed everyone. As it stands, her backstory info dump and the ensuing battle to claim the Impure King's Right Eye are simply okay ways to keep the plot moving.

While the overarching plot of this new arc is moving along at a fairly reserved pace, we are getting more of those much-needed scenes between Rin and his estranged companions, with Suguro getting the spotlight this week. Much has been made about Ryuji's tenuous relationship with his father, and I'm glad that it was not only brought to a head this week, but the conflict also deftly tied into Rin's own lingering trauma over the death of Father Fujimoto. The fact that Ryuji and Rin happened to shout the same spiteful barb at their fathers is just a bit on the nose, but “bluntly effective” is practically Blue Exorcist's M.O. at this point. What matters is that Rin's emotional reaction to Ryuji's and Tatsuma's falling-out was effective, at least if you've been following the show from the beginning. I always felt like Rin's grief was a bit rushed in the opening episodes of the original Blue Exorcist, which makes the decision to revisit just how much pain Rin is still in over his father's death all the more impactful.

I do want to take a moment to note just how impressed I am with Studio A-1's handling of the source material in this new adaptation. There's a consistency of style and tone here, a level of polish that wasn't quite as prominent in the first series that I especially appreciate. The direction and animation has been quite well done, managing to give these opening episodes a sense of both warm playfulness and conspiratorial urgency that helps these expositional first chapters feel fresh and engaging, even when the actual action has been fairly minimal so far.

An uptick in action would probably be a good thing at this point too. While I'm all for the character beats and bonding moments between Rin and his friends, I can understand how some might feel that this opening salvo of episodes has been too much of a slow burn. Now that Rin's demonic identity has been exposed (again), things look like they're on track to pick up a bit. Hopefully, Yukio can reenter the fold in the coming weeks and help his older brother out with the whole “Nobody Likes the Son of Satan” problem he has going on. We might also finally get more insight into Todo and his master plan. His nondescript visual design and relative lack of screen time so far haven't made the biggest impression on me, but I suspect that will change as soon as the power of the Impure King is unleashed upon our fractured and fatigued heroes.

Rating: B+

Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

James is an English teacher who has loved anime his entire life, and he spends way too much time on Twitter and his blog.