Wait, so is her name Eren or Ellen?

Katana Maidens: Toji no Miko
Studio: Studio Gokumi
Genre: Action, Supernatural

Seriously. I know they basically pronounce them the same way, but the subs have been flipping back and forth for me. Which is it? Well, whatever. Not really a big deal, as long as best girl gets more to do. And boy does she. In fact, this episode features her heavily as she initiates her plan to investigate the Elite Four’s operation and whatnot. But things get dicey when Yomi, the member that Kaoru took on in the previous episode, returns for round two.

My weakness for the sub-genre aside, I’m actually starting to get really into this. It’s a slow burn of a show, but unlike several other shows I’m talking about, this season, that slow build is actually going somewhere. It isn’t just stretching things out or indulging in meaningless time sinks. It actually has a goal in mind and while it may not be blazing towards it, the progression is clearly there. I’m not particularly saying it’s great. But it’s doing a good job of what it’s setting out to accomplish.

“See? Ya just gotta have a little faith.” And patience… “That too!”

As usual, Eren (I’m just going to keep calling her that because I like that one more) is a highly entertaining character. Bubbly and whimsical, but also no one’s fool and certainly not a pushover. Getting to see her in action again was also fun, as she has the most entertaining fighting style among the characters we’ve seen thus far. Her interactions with the two lead members of the Four upon her “capture” were also great. They helped give us a little more information on the character, making her less of an enigma. Though I am looking forward to seeing more of her actual motivation and the like. That said, she’s a supporting character, so I’m not expecting much. Still, she’s one of the featured ones in the OP so I hope we get something. At least to the same extent we’re getting out of Sayaka or Kaoru.

I’m also liking these guards. It’d be easy to simply make them unflappable embodiments of power and skill. More obstacles than people. But the episode does a fair job of representing them as human, in a way. Especially in the case of the lead two. Though Yomi’s actions could be argued as being a bit machine-like. It’s a clear representation of loyalty in the extreme. But Yomi doesn’t really have much of a personality beyond that, to begin with. So her own actions don’t do a lot towards humanizing her. Though given what, exactly, she does, dehumanizing her may very well have been the point.

Oh. Well, she’s gone.

Interestingly, Kanami and Hiyori were more or less relegated to background detail in this episode. They were involved, but the focus was clearly not on either of them. Though there was a brief bit towards the end that served as a trial of Kanami’s resolve. I wholly expect that, when the series approaches its end, Kanami’s going to have to make a very difficult choice. But we’ll save that for then.

As I said, I enjoyed this episode. The action was solid, Eren is a highly engaging and entertaining character, the villains don’t come across as stock (though Yomi is arguably the weakest of them), I even liked the very brief scene between Mai and Sayaka. Their sparking a friendship seems like a fairly natural thing and it’s nice to see Sayaka developing beyond just being, for lack of a better term, a tool. The episode was perfectly enjoyable Junk Food. Nothing mindblowing, but good fun. And I can now say, without reservation, that I’m glad I picked this up. But if you’d prefer something with perhaps a few more layers, I’d say to check out my reviews of Maerchen Maedchen. It’s a bit slower but seems to be building to a more nuanced story.

“Or just watch our show, instead. I have a feeling you won’t regret it.”

Or, if you want to give Toji no Miko a try, it’s Simulcast on Crunchyroll, Fridays at 10:00am EST.  That’s all for me, here, folks. As always, thanks for reading. Keep up the awesome.

Take care,
C. Voyage