OP: “Haikei, Jigoku yori (拝啓、地獄より)” by Jigoku no Sata All Stars

Ah, the eternal dilemma of the split cour: do we call this “Episode 1”, or just pick up the numbers from where we left off?  Since Hoozuki no Reitetsu has decided to append a subtitle to this cour (“Sono Ni”), I think it’s better to start over from one.  That’s about the only dilemma I can point to with Hoozuki no Reitetsu – everything else is pure win.  There’s hasn’t been another anime comedy I find myself looking forward to more in a long time – this series and I just seem to be on the same wavelength.

We can worry later about whether this is likely to be the final season for Hoozuki – sales-wise it experienced the expected sequel drop, and the overlong layoff took its toll (as it usually does).  But there’s plenty of time to have that conversation, and the show remains very successful on the merchandising and doujin front, so there’s always hope.  For now I’m just happy it’s back, and that we didn’t have to wait an illogically long time for a sequel this go-around.

I never have any real doubts about what I’m going to get from Hoozuki no Reitetsu quality-wise – while it has its variations like any episodic comedy, the baseline is almost impossibly high.  The premiere managed to highlight most of the stronger members of the supporting cast (though they’s pretty much all strong) and, as usual. served up some tremendous visuals.  We started off with new hire recruitment time – which means a lengthy parade of interviewees trying to impress their way into a torturing job somewhere in hell, followed by on-the-job training.  I’m not inferring anything about my previous life, but it really felt like I’d lived this chapter out myself.

The interview panel is classic, to begin with – Hoozuki-sama, the Stripping Hag, Mustard, and a giant cat named “Kasha” whose former job was to eat corpses (seriously – it’s like deja vu).  Naturally Hoozuki likes to stress-test his potential hires, but he also makes incredibly rash hiring decisions (sadism, in the end, seems unsurprisingly the most relevant qualification).  It’s also interesting that Karauri has now become sempai enough to coordinate the interview and training process – well, technically Karauri and Nasubi, but all the little eggplant does is stand by Karauri’s side and look bemused most of the time.  I was also struck by Hoozuki-sama’s comment about the potential in hiring complete idiots – which is in itself an idiotic-sounding statement that almost seems to be brilliant.  It’s a kind of Buddhist Koan, I think…

Next up is a little discussion of fraud – with “Hi Mom, it’s me” calls apparently being a major problem in Japan (who knew).  So much so that perps have their own Hell reserved for them – “The Hell of Lost Hopes” (though it was originally for those pretending to be Buddhist monks to swindle donations).  As Karauri points out, with the web it’s easier than ever for this sort of thing to happen – which means there’s plenty of business (and a need for all those new hires whose training Karauri is in charge of).

Finally, Shiro sees a poster for a local “eat it in 20 minutes and it’s free” resto – and when the Zashiki Warashi twins find out the “regular” course is all anko, they’re in.  For Shiro it’s all about the meat in the “Special” course, and for Hoozuki (who Shiro has dragged along hoping he’ll pick up the tab if he can’t finish) it’s the mystery Hell ingredient in the “Premium” course (jellied beef, as it turns out).  This is Hoozuki no Reitetsu in the mode of relying on kawaii and sight gags – two of the seemingly endless arrows in its comedic quiver.

One final note worth pointing out – Hoozuki no Reitetsu has absolutely hit six-for-six on OPs and EDs (and even more if you count the one-offs).  These new ones are once again great, especially the OP (and those have tended to be the best of the best).

ED: “Jigoku de Hot Cake (地獄でホットケーキ)” by Sumire Uesaka