You know, it’s been a really good year for Studio Deen (though I suppose you’d have to exclude the tragic collapse of the Rurouni Kenshin franchise, depriving them of a potential lucrative revival).  I think the days of derisive comments about Deen’s production values were already largely over, but they work they’ve done on Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu and now Hoozuki no Reitestu should be the final nails in that coffin.  Not only are these terrific and faithful adaptations (which Deen has generally – though not always – been reliable for) but they’re fantastic-looking series as well.  If there’s been a dropoff from Hoozuki’s days under Wit, it’s so slight as to be effectively non-existent.

This was without a question one of the best episodes of the season for Hoozuki no Reitetsu, comprised of two equally winning and hilarious chapters.  Even by Hoozuki standards these were visually stunning, and each featured some truly legendary seiyuu joining the cast.  First off we had another guest shot by Koban, which is virtually a guaranteed win.  His kitsune buddy Gon has tipped him off that the third king of Hell, Sotei, might be an interesting angle to pursue, and Koban enlists Hoozuki’s help in setting up an interview.  I quite like the way Hoozuki and Koban have almost become pals at this point – Hoozuki even admits he respects Koban’s stubborn will to succeed.

Sotei is based on Songdi Wang, and in this context he bears a striking resemblance to Santa Claus – which is not helped by the fact that his plain yogurt chief-of-staff Misohagi-san wears a pair of deer’s antlers in order to stand out more.  Chiefly tasked with sins of the flesh (the oldest sins there are, after all) this mild-mannered king and his attaché don’t get much pub – and that’s not helped by the fact that the glamor players in this Hell are the cat and snake who judge the deceased.  That’s especially true of the cat, Kan – a flashy “ikeneko” who tools around on a Segway and is played by the utterly unmistakable Wakamoto Norio.   He bites the sinners on their business after he judges them, but their troubles are just getting started.

Next up is an equally entertaining trip to the Cold Hells, which starts off with the revelation (courtesy of an innocent question from Shiro) that Nasubi and Karauri are not in fact kids, but imps (“We do not employ children”, Hoozuki notes haughtily, showing that even Hell has tougher labor rules than Ivanka Trump’s clothing sweatshops).  Again Hoozuki no Reitetsu exploits the hugely successful formula of Hoozuki-sama taking the “kids” on a field trip – in this case joined by the mascots (Shiro’s eagerness is – as usual – adorable).

Notable here is that we finally meet the character whose prominence in the OP suggests his importance in the manga.  That would be the ironically-named Haruichi, a bozu-like snow demon – and he too is played by a legendary and unmistakable seiyuu in Yamaguchi Kappei.  Haruichi bathes in cold springs, dines on popsicles for breakfast, and as Karauri guesses is much tougher than he looks.  This is proved out when Hoozuki signs his “team” up for the annual Cold Hells snowball fight – and as you can imagine the term means something quite different in a place like this.  This is classic Hoozuki no Reitetsu silliness at it’s best – a wonderland of strange folkloric creatures and clever gags.  The OP definitely gets this part right – Jigoku wa tanoshii na (and no, natsutte ja nai).