Interviews with Monster Girls

Episode 10

All of the major characters may be present in this episode, but it's definitely the Machi show this week. After learning that Hikari has kissed Tetsuo on the cheek, Machi tries to do the same by passing it off as a joke. Unfortunately, she nearly drops her head in the process and gets a stern lecture from Tetsuo. They eventually patch things up with some encouragement from Hikari, and Tetsuo takes Machi to visit someone who may be able to explain how her detached head works. Souma, a friend from Tetsuo's college days, offers his thoughts on Machi's dullahan nature using physics instead of biology.

In the lead-up to the head drop incident, we get a couple fun moments as Machi takes advantage of having a separate head and body. She sends her body around the house to do chores while her head watches TV, and later lifts her head high into the air to peek over Tetsuo's shoulder. It's strange to think that the image of Machi's head above her shoulders looks unnatural now that we've gotten used to seeing her hold it at chest height. The incident itself provides a reminder of the hazards she faces just by doing ordinary things, and the eventual reconciliation is reasonably compelling on an emotional level. Even if it only does so briefly, it's nice to see that Interviews with Monster Girls is still willing to venture into more dramatic territory. The question now is whether anything will come of the vice principal glaring suspiciously at Tetsuo. Could our hero's job be in jeopardy?

Honestly, I think Souma's physics lecture is wordy enough that not everyone will enjoy it. I found it interesting, but I'm also the kind of person who willingly took advanced physics in high school and will happily watch an hour-long science documentary. Your mileage may vary. Even if some of the ideas that Souma presents are just noise to your ears, it's still intriguing to see the series branch out into another area of science to think about how a dullahan's body might actually work. Instead of just calling it all magic and asking the audience to look the other way, the show is actually trying to put some plausible logic behind the demi girls' unique physical traits.

If nothing else, the trip to Tetsuo's old college gives Machi a chance to think about all of this for herself, and she comes to an interesting conclusion. All of the demi characters have shown at least a little interest in understanding their own natures, but Machi is the first to consider making a career out of it. Instead of looking to others for answers, she's finding the motivation to do the research herself. It's a nice little “coming of age” moment that allows Machi to display more initiative than we've seen from her in the past.

Overall, this episode is a little more thoughtful and has more emotional substance than some of its predecessors. It feels like Interviews with Monster Girls is getting out of its genre autopilot mode and getting back into more ambitious storylines. That's a good sign as far as I'm concerned, since this series is good enough to do more than it's done over the past few weeks. If it takes a lecture on wormholes and high-level physics to get there, then that's alright by me.

Rating: B+

Interviews with Monster Girls is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.