Natsume Yuujin-Chou - 16
Short Synopsis: Natori returns and invites Natsume to… a hot spring?
Overall Enjoyment Value: 8/10 (Excellent)
Best episode of the second season so far! This most likely is because it involves a recurring character again: Natori, and indeed confirmed my suspicion that the best part of the second season is going to be the stories that evolve around him and the recurring characters, rather than the standalone stories which hit their height with the firefly episode (I think I mentioned this a few too many times by now…).
And was it me, or was Natori much kinder this time to Natsume? He needed a genuine favour from the guy and his book of friends, and instead of straightforwardly asking him to cooperate, he made up a story of going to a hot spring resort in order to relax a bit. This episode also showed that he isn’t perfect: if Natsume didn’t help that big youkai at the beginning of the episode, the two of them would be screwed right now.
But my favourite moments of this episode were the quiet ones, where the pacing was really slow to show the different characters together. I was especially touched by the dream Natsume had, where it appears that he’s still really troubled by his past and hated how he showed that weak side of his to Natori. Speaking of which, I wonder how Natori spent his childhood, with his ability and all. It’s going to be interesting to see how this guy grew up.