Nabari no Ou - Episode 19

It's been a while since I last took in an episode of Nabari no Ou, but episode nineteen certainly never looked to dump me in at the deep end, instead crawling along at the same old snail's pace that has plagued this series from the very start.


Sure, there are some interesting moments here, such as some glimpses into Yoite's past when he was first taken into Kairoushuu (did his cap grow with him or something? It fits his head both as a child and an adult) and of course Gau's recovery at the hands of Yoite's Kira. Aside from this, much of the episode is once again dedicated to Yoite's physical detereration, which is hardly news to anyone who has been following this series, so why so much time is spent on it once again is beyond me. There is perhaps a hint that some other characters beyond Miharu want to find a way to save him now, but that's hardly the kind of thing that takes fifteen minutes to put across to the viewer.

Thankfully, things start moving at last towards the tail end of the episode, as Yoite and Miharu forcibly take some of Kairoushuu's research into how to use the Shinrabanshou, and we see the brief introdution of Kairoushuu's special intelligence unit, who look suitably oddball and kick-ass (which are probably the two major requirements of the job description, just below "must be a ninja"). With any luck this means that as of episode twenty we can start to get to the real meat of this series, after so many false dawns and non-descript episodes that have caused only to frustrate me consider how much promise I felt the show had in its early episodes.