Shin Sekai Yori (From the New World) - Episode 11

Shun may be no more, but despite Saki's experiences in last week's episode is seems as if everything has returned to normal as this latest instalment begins - school carries on, and the only tension around is who is going to be paired up for who for the various duties required of the establishment's pupils; a ritual designed more around establishing who likes who within the school hierarchy.

With a boy named Ryou taking more than a passing interesting in Saki, he finds himself meeting a rather distant girl - to the confusion of everyone else, Saki has things on her mind, and it's nothing to do with love.  Although Shun has been forgotten by all and sundry, Saki included, she can't shake the uneasy feeling that something within her memories doesn't add up, and Ryou's claims that he went on that fateful summer camping trip with her and that nothing untoward happened only serves to increase this unease.

As time goes on, so Saki's conviction that something is amiss increases, and after cornering and question Ryou she no longer has any doubts that something, or rather someone, is missing from her memories.  Calling together her friends to compare notes, it becomes clear that she isn't imagining things, as the conspicuous holes in everyone's memories reveal that someone is missing from their group of friends, in turn causing hazy memories of another missing individual to surface.  This also ties into Saki's continued belief that she has a sister, discovering evidence to back up this claim.  Not everyone thinks that digging into these beliefs is a good idea however, and they might just be right, as the interest of the town's Ethics Committee seems to have been roused....

After that weird yet fascinating episode last time around, this week's Shin Sekai Yori does a pretty good job of nailing and progressing the concept of brainwashing/memory removal within the show - the early sense of unease was palpable, and watching Saki and later her friends slowly realise just how far the wool has been pulled over their eyes (and their reactions to it) was equally interesting and well realised.  It feels as if Saki's own story is really going to begin in earnest at this juncture, so I'm duly intrigued to see where things are headed - then again, I feel like I've said "this is where the series really starts" before while watching this series, so hopefully this isn't a false start.