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Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga
Episodes 1-3

by James Beckett,

How would you rate episode 1 of
Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga ?
Community score: 4.2

How would you rate episode 2 of
Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga ?
Community score: 4.3

How would you rate episode 3 of
Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga ?
Community score: 4.3

Boy, is it good to have Blue Exorcist back.

The first episode of Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga (my thoughts on which you can read about in our preview guide) was a solid return to the world that mangaka Kazue Katō created, but the following two episodes have really reaffirmed just how much I missed this story and characters. This new season still isn't at all friendly to newcomers, so if you haven't watched the first 16 episodes of the original Blue Exorcist series from 2011, please go and do that before anything else. We'll be waiting right here for you when you're finished.

Having caught up with the anime myself, I was fascinated by just how differently this arc plays out compared to its anime-only counterpart. In Blue Exorcist's first anime, things moved pretty quickly after Rin's demonic origins were revealed; his friends were skeptical to be sure, but they wasted little time before jumping into action to help Rin repair his damaged koma blade and restore his good name. The koma blade is already fine here though, and Rin's companions are more than just a little skeptical. Viewers who are on the lookout for high-octane shonen action might be a bit disappointed to learn that almost the entirety of Kyoto Saga's first few episodes are devoted to slowing things down and dealing with the aftermath of Rin's exposure. In addition to setting the stage for dealings with the Eyes of the Impure King, this first act of the new season is primarily focused on restoring and developing Rin's relationships with his fellow Exorcists.

Personally, I loved the slower pace. It helps in large part because so many of these new characters and bits of worldbuilding go into fleshing out the Exorcists who haven't gotten much to do before now. Getting to meet the monks of the Kyoto Temple is in general a positive development for the series. Ryuji's family and their allies offer a more naturalistic and grounded counterpart to the more outlandish setting of True Cross Academy. Their funny and comfortable rapport with Ryuji, Konekomaru, and Renzo all make the world of Blue Exorcist feel more alive, which is always a good thing, in my opinion. While there wasn't much in the way of pure escapist thrill-seeking over these past couple weeks, getting to see the Kyoto Temple in action has made for an engaging and worthwhile story nonetheless.

Renzo, Ryuji, and Konekomaru are the real heart and soul of the arc so far, with much of Rin's struggle being framed by their personal ambivalence toward his intimate relationship with their temple's failing. Konekomaru was straight up orphaned by the calamity of the Blue Night, and Renzo and Ryuji lost much of their families' reputations and honor. While it was admittedly disheartening to have Rin and his classmates go through their falling-out stage again, the manga adaptation does the situation much more justice. Renzo was the first to give up on his animosity and embrace Rin again, but only after a lot of prodding (and a bit of drunken badgering) from Rin, and Konekomaru is only just now starting to come around. Ryuji is being the most stubborn, because of course he is, it's Ryuji, but what makes it all work is that everyone is sympathetic, and all of their perspectives are being explored. There's no artificial hatred or enmity here, just a bunch of confused kids who are trying to figure out how to embrace a former friend who's become linked to their greatest pains. It isn't the most heart-pumping storytelling, but it is extremely effective character writing.

And by all accounts, the excitement will be arriving soon. The story is laying some interesting and fertile groundwork for events to come. The lore of the Impure King is at once intriguing and threatening, and seeing how divided the Exorcists are on how to tackle the problem reveals some truly high stakes in comparison to previous story arcs. It even seems like someone at the temple is betraying the True Cross Order, and Ryuji suspects that his ostensibly amicable old man has something to do with it. This is the kind of drama I live for, and the fact that it follows a group of likable and compelling characters working together to kick some demon ass is only icing on the cake.

It's good to have you back, Blue Exorcist

Rating: A-

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.


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