OK, that was a distinctly better second episode for Mao. The first was fine, not terrible or anything, but a bit flat. This one had more snap and energy, and the premise started to gather some momentum. It’s no use pretending this series isn’t very derivative of Rumiko’s other battle fantasy works, most especially Inuyasha. But mangaka like her and Adachi Mitsuru are legends for a reason. They manage to keep generating hits (smaller maybe, but still hits) while not not remotely reinventing their own wheel.

Nothing like a good headless body mystery to liven things up. Mao was chasing this down thinking it would lead to his own byouki. That turns out to be a dead-end but he does learn some relevant things about Nanoka. It’s still not totally clear how time works in Mao’s mythology but the pair – and Otoya – find themselves in 1923. And this time everyone appears real and solid to Nanoka. That date will immediately be familiar to anyone with even a passing knowledge of Japanese history, so I think we can assume its usage is not coincidental.

Mao apparently makes a living – in 1923 at least – working as a “doctor”. Through one of his patients he’s introduced to the maid of a viscount whose master is clearly not right in the head (though perhaps not to the extent that eventually turns out to be). He and Otoya “head” off to an investigate, and Nanoka again displays that ayakashi or no, she’s clearly not a normal human. A visit to the viscount’s mansion immediately confirms that something is amiss, and once Mao intervenes directly the viscount doesn’t even bother to hide the truth. Or so it seems, until he lures Mao out of the house.

A spider eating the heads of males is pretty on-point, biologically. It’s the wife that’s the real youkai, even if she’s not the one Mao is looking for. The following fight is pretty well-animated – Sunrise seems to have a decent budget at least – and quite revealing. Nanoka’s blood dissolves the spider youkai’s thread – much as Mao’s does, interestingly. Even more to the point, when his sword is out of reach it’s Nanoka who grabs it and uses it to cut the spider’s threads – and the spider. Mao immediately informs her that it’s a cursed blade, and that he’s the only one that can wield it. That was the theory, anyway…

“You’re like me” is the obvious MacGuffin of the episode. But the full meaning of that phrase isn’t clear yet. We still don’t know exactly what Mao himself is yet, for starters. An onmyouji, but a human one? A youkai (or dare I say it, a hanyou)? He’s clearly cursed, and “alike” may mean nothing more than that – both he and Nanoka being cursed.  But I suspect he was implying something more than that, and we’ll find out eventually. With the manga already at 28 volumes there’s no reason to think Rumiko is going to be in a rush to hand out answers.