Ookami Kakushi - Episode 3

It's time for a bit of a day trip in episode three of Ookami Kakushi, with Issei taking his sister, Hiro and his sister and Kana to enjoy some natural beauty and a barbecue off the beaten track.

All of this goes pretty much as you'd expect (including some swimsuits and fan service - yes, even this series manages to at squeeze at least something of a swimsuit episode out of its storyline), although some of Issei's behaviour seems a little odd at times.


While much fun was had on this day trip, poor old Hiro's plunge into some icy waters while still fully clothed doesn't do him much good in the long term, leaving him with a cold by the time he returns to school. Thus, at Isuzu's insistence he visits the local hospital, where he's checked up, given a prescription and has his blood taken. A blood test for a simple common cold? Something isn't right here either, and even Hiro is a little surprised at this particular insistence. Considering the doctor in question is related to Nemeru, he's probably right to be suspicious...

Things get even more bizarre as Hiro goes to leave the hospital, with Issei waiting outside to give him a lift in his car before attempting to molest him once they're in a suitably quiet spot - Only the smashing of his Hassaku air freshener puts an end to the ordeal, but is Issei a little boy crazy or is there something more sinister at work?

After a pretty dull opening couple of episodes, at least we're finally beginning to move towards something a little more interesting here - While Issei's behaviour seems to be simply his sexuality kicking into overdrive on the surface there's almost certainly more to it than that, while the goings-on at the hospital are equally disconcerting. Besides all of this, just what do these Hassaku fruit and their harvest have to do with anything, and what about the odd rivalry between the old and new parts of the town? There are still lots of unanswered questions, and while Ookami Kakushi is still hardly proving itself to be particularly stellar at present it's those questions that are certainly keeping me watching with interest. It isn't building up the suspense and mystery quite as well as I'm sure it would probably have liked, but for now it's doing a passable job. I do wish Hiro would stop gawking at surprising events like a wide-mouthed frog though.