夏のあらし！春夏冬中 Episode 05 Review
Summer Storm! Open for Business Ep. 05
Natsu no Arashi! Akinai-chuu – 05

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis:

Hajime is at the Ark repairing his pair of glasses and thinking something funny happened to him when Arashi shows up. When Kanako has blurred vision while attempting to serve a customer, Arashi produces Hajime’s spare pair of glasses. However, when Kanako puts them on, she transforms into “Beautiful Maid Soldier YAMAZAKI Kanako.” She removes the glasses, leading Arashi and Hajime to tell Master and Yayoi about what they’ve seen. That leads them to repeatedly attempt to put the glasses onto Kanako, who starts transforming every time but manages to get the glasses off before the henshin sequence is complete.

Master decides that her staff will all wear costumes from various mahou shoujo series. Kanako wants no part of this and in the process, she accidentally breaks several baccarat items of Master’s. Since Murata has brought in a large box full of glasses, Master decides that her staff will now wear glasses. Kanako reluctantly decides to wear a pair after Master says Kanako’s debts will be forgiven if Kanako does so. Kanako transforms again, so she grabs Murata and travels back into the past to stop this glasses business.

In the past, Hajime is returning to the Ark with a back full of sausage links when he’s attacked by crows, one making off with his glasses. Hajime has a spare pair but that’s when Magical Maid Kanako arrives. She dispatches the last crow but breaks Hajime’s glasses. She then casts a spell on Hajime so that he’ll forget everything that just transpired. Meanwhile, the crow with Hajime’s glasses drops them in favor of some watermelon it finds on the ground. Arashi finds those glasses and picks them up before heading to the Ark, completing the circle.

Thoughts/Review:

If I were more versed in the mahou shoujo genre of anime, I might have recognized more of the costumes worn by the girls. As it was, I only recognized Tuxedo Mask, who’s costume was worn by Jun. While I’ve never watched Sailor Moon (save for clips in English from years ago), I somehow still recognized the character though I had to look up his name.

Still, the jokes with Kanako constantly transforming as Arashi and Hajime kept trying to put glasses on her were funny to me. I especially loved the joke that took place off camera when Kanako went through the henshin sequence and we heard all the commentary about it, including how Kanako was naked and how her hair strategically covered the three places. *lol* Too often, mahou shoujo titles, especially those geared at the otaku crowd, have the girls get naked during the lengthy henshin sequence.

I didn’t recognize most of the glasses being worn (I’m assuming they had special meaning), but I did recognize Geordi LaForge’s VISOR from Star Trek: The Next Generation. ^_^ I always enjoy a reference to that series in anime or manga. I was hoping for the pair of glasses that Negi wears in Negima! but that didn’t happen.

As usual, the salt jokes failed for me as did Kanako’s and Yayoi’s discussion about whatever. SHAFT attempts to shake these up a bit (no pun intended) but no matter what they do, it isn’t working with me. I do know it works for some of you. Even though I dislike the Yayoi/Kanako “what I read” jokes, I do like the harpsichord music.

Does the name “Nukadokonnu” mean anything to anyone? Just curious.

This week, Crunchyroll’s subtitles are mostly back to normal. I am glad for that though I wonder what happened last week.

So, another fairly funny episode and no hideousness by Crunchyroll.