天下制覇

Didn't even feel like writing even the slightest justification for it, huh?

Impressions:

Had they spent a few more scenes on setting up Goemon going berserk from the drugging and a lot less on reciting the unending benevolence of Hatsume or the sappy speech, this could've been a really strong episode. Well, and as long as I'm wishing for things, let's kill that awful bubblegum insert song too. Please. Also, they really needed the gassing to have made an iota of sense. Seemed kind of like they were going for "removes inhibitions," then changed their mind and wanted it to be "mind control," but Goemon is off doing her own thing completely separate from everyone else who was gassed, so we end up with just "random." That badly needed to be tied into the really half-assed jealousy thing they kind of set up but kind of didn't for any of the dramatic stuff to have a hope of landing instead of just being another overlong overcorny "yay friendship!" speech.

It was a frustrating episode overall, I guess. Despite the miscues in the writing and dramatic side (and again, that stupid insert song), there was a lot that showed what this series could have been. It put the action at the forefront and did a decent enough job at that, and focused on an event for them to react and respond to, while managing the truly rarest thing in Japanese media, having both an A plot and a B plot, both taking at least baby steps forward. Hatsume's poisoning of Whose-Her-Face was a pleasant surprise, later undercut a bit by having her explicitly say she'd never do that. That was incredibly unneeded and only undermined its previous attempt to frame her as a badass. I'd much rather see a vengeful momma bear than Yet Another Jesus.