It’s no secret that Uchuujin MuuMuu has been steadily growing in my esteem over the course of its run. What with Ballpark de Tsukamaete (itself coming off two strong episodes) ending next week, it was going to get a finale post anyway. So I figured I may as well bump it up a week and give both series their own slot. MuuMuu has really been engaging enough to have one for a good while so it makes sense. And fortunately both series delivered some of their best work this week.

It was clear we were getting a Miwa backstory ep soon, which on paper I was lukewarm on. But this was possibly the best episode of the entire series, even if some of that had little to do with her. There’s a bit of chicken and egg syndrome with a Kuricorder Quartet soundtrack – are they just perfectly matched to shows like this and Tsuritama, or does the music so impact the aesthetic that it shapes its identity? Either way, the inspired lunacy of this series is infectious. It’s just random (as in literally, it has little conventional narrative structure) and gleefully silly. The derpy visuals on display in stuff like the wishlist “video” had me on the floor.

Miwa has always been all about flexing, but it was more literally on display this week. Like her celebrity latte art, and her portable humidifier, and her neck cooler with the Peltier plate. I actually bought one of those last summer and they are pretty cool, no pun intended. Part of this is so she can flex on her social media platforms, especially her “Oyster” videos. That’s right in-character. But it turns out she’s also doing it to drum up business for her family’s electronics store, which is the reason she has all her gadgets in the first place. Her mom expects Miwa to take over the store but Miwa is hesitant to say the least.

Sakurako, meanwhile, has bought Miwa some cat manju as thanks for helping when she was sick, but can’t find a non-flexing moment to present them. Eventually she follows Miwa all the way to her apartment and gets invited in, though only so Miwa can humiliate her with the difference in their status. The joke’s on her though, because of course Sakurako doesn’t covet any of that and is enraptured. Especially by Nyabohon, sort of a mobile feline Alexa (I’d buy one if I could). Nyabohon is a big part of her social media empire, but MuuMuu is less than impressed – apparently there was some trouble on his planet. Especially when Nyabohon calls out the Roomba (cats hate vacuums, but I have seem some who like to ride Roombas).

In short, MuuMuu takes down Nyabohon (¥220,,000 worth) leaving Sakurako on the hook to replace it. Miwa is basically a tsundere, but kind of legit a bitch too – it’s an interesting mix. The shizzle really hits the Dyson when she finds out MuuMuu has a massive media empire of his own, as “Nekokin” (“Cat sneezing into its owners mouth“, ROFL). Decimaru (who – adorably – arrives bearing a flower for Sakurako) is justifiably dubious about an alien trying to stay undetected drawing so much attention to himself. And that will be dwarfed by Siberia’s reaction when he finds out. Nekokin is hugely successful – 2 million followers and a thriving wishlist market. When Miwa gets wind of it and discovers that her love rival and robot destructor are behind it, of course you realize, this means war…

One little comment by Miwa – “That cat has a zipper” – sets in motion a chain of events leading to the collapse of the Nekokin empire. That was her intention, and she’s better at this than MuuMuu is. An unintended consequence however is that MuuMuu’s cover is very much at risk of being blown, as an army of plugged in kids with too much time on their hands now want to get to the bottom of the Nekokin scam. I love the little spud, but I have to say he kind of had it coming. Rescuing this situation would be Siberia’s job I suppose. I referred to that assignment as a “trying endeavor” last week, but I don’t think that even begins to do it justice…