With Mikado being threatened by an understandably none too happy Seiji, it's up to Celty to regain her composure and stand in his way - Before we know it, Celty's head/Mika appears on the scene to protect Seiji from Celty's wrath, and thus the whole truth about a particular sequence of events in spilled in full. Talk about a twist in the tale...
Indeed, this whole episode is a series of twists and turns that, in their own very human way, all come to nought in the short-term as everyone goes back to their normal lives, whether it's Celty and Shinra despite what the former learns about the latter, or Mikado despite his wonderful show of strength in numbers last time around. After taking a bit of a back seat last time, Izaya seems to be back to his best when it comes to controlling the "game" going on around him, and indeed we also get more revelations about his own role in the growth of the Dollars as he also seems to be taking rather a keen interest in Celty's head.
You know a series is something special when it manages to make you think you know everything, before turning it all around in a way that doesn't feel at all contrived and yet still leaves you grinning at the fact that it's just made you feel stupid. Durarara!! manages to pull this trick off effortlessly here, before continuing on its merry way as though nothing had happened just like its characters after the insanity of the night before. As much as I enjoyed the broad range of stories earlier in the series, this show is really benefiting from its tighter focus on the major issues at hand right now, which it continues to develop and present in a hugely compelling fashion. So many series start to feel as though they're dragging a little by this half-way stage, yet like a well-paced marathon runner Durarara!! still feels as fresh as a daisy even at this juncture.
You know a series is something special when it manages to make you think you know everything, before turning it all around in a way that doesn't feel at all contrived and yet still leaves you grinning at the fact that it's just made you feel stupid.
ReplyDeleteThat is, I think, the real strength of this show. It has great characters, it has some very funny moments, it has occasional sequences of intense action, but Durarara's real strength is the convolutions in the plot. I wonder what people mean when they say things, I wonder how and why and when, and before I know it, I am obsessing over this gem of a show -- aching for another episode to be released.
I'm saving this until all 24 episodes are out, and I can barely wait. Marathoning is my most prefered way of indulging into good anime.
ReplyDeleteThese people are all so messed up! I'm sad I only got to see Mikado's drop kick in the "photo" version. I would rofl'd all over the room if I had... aw...
ReplyDeleteI believe that there was already a "war" of some sort, one of the casualties was that mysterious girl Kida-kun visits in an earlier episode, back when all the gangs were fighting each other. We still don't know who she is but she looks to me like a relative of Izaya's. Maybe she has some sort of connection with his desire for an afterlife...
No spoilers here, I'm just guessing. I'll probably be wrong. Like I was before about Mikado not being in the Dollars. Boy, do I feel dumb.
@Janina: "These people are all so messed up!"
ReplyDeleteI totally agree! I didn't expect Mika to be as messed up as she obviously is.