Selector Infected WIXOSS - Episode 2

Ruko might not have any wishes that would drive her on to become an Eternal Girl, but she still seems pretty taken with the game of WIXOSS, spending an entire night staying up to play it with her grandmother.

Meanwhile, Yuzuki may have decided against battling Ruko but she's still very much on the hunt of other Selectors to put herself against, and serendipity leads to her learning of just one Selector - an upcoming model named Akira who goes to a nearby school.  Ditching classes to track her down in search of a battle, Yuzuki finds herself beaten to it by a young girl named Hitoe - a lucky break for Yuzuki, as it turns out, as herself and Ruko watch Akira absolutely decimate her opponent before leaving her in tears.

Much as they might want to avoid battling Akira herself, the winner of that battle isn't one to take no for an answer, and won't let Yuzuki leave until she has her e-mail address.  It's clear that Yuzuki needs to get stronger if she's to have any hope at defeating players like Akira at WIXOSS, and with that in mind she's reluctantly cajoled into visiting a card store by Kazuki to upgrade her deck.  The reason for her dicomfort in this shop eventually becomes clear, tying as it does into Yuzuki's one wish, but perhaps the more important questions at this point revolve around Ruko, who not only seems to be displaying a natural aptitude for WIXOSS knowledge but is also showing small signs of being a potentially heartless combatant in battle.

Having hooked me in with a pretty decent first episode, this week's Selector Infected WIXOSS felt a little more like the kind of attempts to sell a card game to viewers that I was worried about, albeit one tinged by some pretty low-key drama surrounding Hitoe's upset at losing a game and Yuzuki's incestuous desires.  As a result, next week's episode may be a make-or-break one for the series - it looks like a point where a lot could be revealed about the future direction of the series, and I for one hope that direction is more intense emotional drama and less edgy commercial.