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Shōnen Maid
Episode 10

by Amy McNulty,

How would you rate episode 10 of
Shōnen Maid ?
Community score: 4.1

Deftly fluctuating between pure comedy and comedy-drama, Shōnen Maid is at the top of its game this week. Even with the threat of Granny Takatori looming, the show manages to serve up a generous helping of laughs, peppered with just the right amount of cuteness and light drama to balance things out. If its remaining two episodes are able to continue in this vein, Shōnen Maid is set to finish strong.

Despite being billed as a single story, the latest installment spins two separate yarns, the first of which only accounts for about a quarter of the episode. Following another bungled attempt at cat ownership, Madoka is understandably crestfallen when Keiichiro confiscates his latest batch of stray kitties. Fortunately, some expertly placed stuffed felines are able to sate his thirst for cats—for the time being, anyway. Even though it segues into the second story, this segment doesn't serve much of a purpose apart from providing a backdrop for a slough of cute jokes. When you get right down to it, this is about as wacky as Shōnen Maid has ever been. With the schmaltz all but gone, even Chihiro's grandmother (whose first name is apparently Kazusa) is able to crack a few jokes and get her first taste of super-deformity. This story also shows us just how much the guarded, dignified Kazusa resembles her flighty son, when the refined senior acts like a tsundere by denying that she fed a stray cat in the hopes of receiving its affection. It isn't much, but giving her some humorous quirks makes her seem more like an actual character and less like a plot device. Had this segment encompassed the entire first act, the progression from one story to the other probably would have seemed more natural.

In the second story, Chihiro and Madoka visit Chiyo's grave in honor of Higan, Japan's Equinox Memorial Week. While the boys are tidying up the gravesite, we learn that Chihiro's father is also among the dearly departed, having passed away shortly after his son's birth. We aren't given much info on Dad, aside from the fact that he was a lonely soul who longed to have a family. Even the photos that bear his likeness are comically obscured. At this point, it remains to be seen whether there was anything truly objectionable about the man, or if his only crime was not being handpicked by his betrothed's parents. After a surprisingly pleasant day of tombstone-cleaning, Chihiro and Madoka encounter Kazusa, who confirms that she's exactly who everyone thought she was, leaving Chihiro baffled and contemplative.

With so much of the plot involving Chihiro's deceased parents, it's natural to think this week's Shōnen Maid would be a downer, but the proceedings are mostly bittersweet—and at times, outright irreverent. The first story is superfluous, but the same can be said for some of the show's funniest segments. Kazusa's “big reveal” doesn't come as a shock to anyone but Chihiro, but it's good to see the overarching plot come to a head. Even if it mostly serves as a lead-in to the grand finale, this is still one of Shōnen Maid's better episodes.

Rating: A

Shōnen Maid is currently streaming on Funimation.

Amy is a YA fantasy author who has loved anime for over two decades.


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