Persona 4: The Animation - Episode 24

Having effectively hit the reset button on its major piece of Nanako-related drama next week, we're all set to focus simply on tracking down the killer as we reach Persona 4's penultimate instalment - first, though, it's time for Yu and Yousuke to have a completely pointless punch-up, while Teddie returns to the scene after vanishing last time out.

With these points of note out of the way, it seems that several members of the group have started to piece together worrying discrepancies relating to a certain individual close to the case.  Once confronted, said individual seems as generally harmless as ever, but as the pressing questions continue so we see that person becoming more and more skittish, eventually reaching the point where they can take no more and do a runner via the nearest television set.  The spoilers start with earnest after the following image, so if you haven't watched this episode yet and want to keep the surprise just that, look away now.

Giving chase to the culrpit, the gang find themselves in a strangely desolated, ruined approximation of Yasoinaba's shopping district - an area which seems to be presided over entirely by Adachi, or at least by his Shadow who they eventually track down thanks to Teddie, with his real-world alter ego nowhere to be seen.  Not that this stops said Shadow from confessing to Adachi's crimes, explaining how and why (well, if "because I felt like it" counts as a good reason why) he committed those initial crimes, and even how he egged Namatame along into committing his own misdeeds in the name of "saving" others.  That's our culprit fingered then - but can Narukami and company actually do anything to stop him, and perhaps more importantly the "fusion" between reality and the fog-laden netherworld that seems about to take place?

After setting off my "cop-out plot twist" alarm was set off at full pelt by last week's Persona 4, can I also confess to being a bit disappointed by this week's big reveal?  I mean, Adachi?  Really?  Really?!?!  I'm all for a shock revelation in a murder mystery story, and I wasn't expecting it to be anyone obvious (there wasn't even anyone obvious to suspect any more by this point), but they could have at least made for a more believable crazed serial killer, or at least thrown in more than one measly clue during the course of the series to tease people in the right direction.  Again, I realise that this is just the adaptation running its course, so it isn't the fault of the anime per se (and I have no bones with this episode for doing the best it can with that source material, it's another pretty decent effort), but simply picking the least likely individual to be the killer... well, it kind of sucks and feels decidedly lazy - even Nanako would have made for a more compelling final reveal.  Never mind a new ending for Mass Effect 3, is it too late to demand one for Persona 4?