I suspect you’ve heard this from me before, but Bones just delivers. There’s a synergy to this, that’s the thing. Because Bones (and I.G./Wit, et al) is so reliably great, they tend to work on the best projects. Big series with big budgets yes, but also ones which industry insiders are champions of. If a production committee has money and wants to make sure they make more, Bones is on the speed dial. And because Bones gets those calls, they’re in a position to pretty much pick and choose what they want to work on.

Gachiakuta is a bit of a tweener in that sense. It sells very well but isn’t a monster. But it’s a title a lot of hard-core shounen fans inside the beltway have been champions of since the very beginning. On balance I think this was one of the very best episodes of the adaptation, and there have been some superb ones. What stands out for me is not just the sakuga in the Zanka-Jabber fight – though that certainly does – but that the episode was so artful in presenting contrasting narrative styles. We were effectively Cthoni, looking through a portal at several different settings. And each one of them was playing out in a completely distinct way.

For example, the Santa boys and Bundus (that’s the name of the Ohtsuka character we met last week). This was a fascinating verbal confrontation. And indeed that’s all it was. Dear Santa doesn’t say anything – not words at least (and he hasn’t yet). But Bundus and Bro Santa have what appears to be a pretty friendly conversation. Bro confirms that he’s basically Dear’s father, and that he’s just turned ten years old. He also notes that Bundus doesn’t seen particularly hostile, and Bundus confirms this. But they’re enemies here, the situation demands that.

In the end Bro agrees to answer Bundus’ questions about Corvus, the Cleaners’ boss – selectively. He seems very concerned with Dear’s bedtime, and with the boy losing his cool. Is “growing up with wrinkles” really all there is to this? We still haven’t seen Dear’s vital instrument (or Bro’s for that matter) in action. Bundus’ questions appear very mundane, but the only one Bro can answer is that Corvus’ favorite food is “sweets”. Yet Bundus happily reciprocates by telling Bro that if the Cleaners lose, they’re to be fed to a trash beast. And not only that, that the Raiders have been “cultivating” a few of them.

Another window shows us Rudo and Zodyl. Zodyl is eerily calm but a strangely intense fellow, like a cult leader. He’s clearly well aware that Raiders like Bundus and Jabber have their own agendas, but seems unconcerned about it. His interest in Rudo stems from the fact that he seems to see a bond between them – a shared look in the eyes. And Jabber says the two of them smell the same. Zoldyl talks of the “shock to the system” he wants to deliver to the Spherites – to make them disgorge the toxic common sense they don’t know is poisoning them. And as if to prove his crazy bona fides, he delivers a shock to Rudo by devouring a cockroach. Gokiburi are so taboo in polite Japan that anime usually pixelates them; Gachiakuta not only shows them, it shows us this. It is indeed a shock.

Zodyl is definitely scarier than Jabber Wonger, despite his calm demeanor and Jabber’s obvious insanity. Jabber is relatively straightforward – he wants to hurt and be hurt and get off on both. The vibe with Zodyl is we have no idea what he’s capable of. None of that is to say Jabber isn’t a nasty piece of work, a truly demented freak with a Jinki of tremendous power. It elicits annoyed resignation from Zanka, who persistently obsesses over what he sees as his own lack of exceptionality in the face of genius after genius opposing him.

This fight, man… Just sitting back and watching Bones cook is such a pleasure. It’s a thing of beauty not just because the sakuga is breathtaking but because the choreography is truly art. Is this window we feel immersed in the sheer savagery of this fight, because the animators do such an incredible job of bringing it to life. Something talented artists and directors animate fights stylistically because they don’t have the budget and time to lavishly produce them. Sometimes fights are lavishly produced with a lack of soul, all budget and no artistry. When you get both, this is the result. And it’s something Bones has consistently been able to produce, series after series, year after year, decade after decade.