天下制覇

Yes, we get it. Washizu and Yoichi are the one true pairing.

Impressions:

Sadly, there were not nearly enough Washizu delusions to keep this interesting, nor did Yoichi do anything particularly strange throughout the entire episode. Couple that with some really obvious jokes from the Ryoga Hibiki knockoff and about three instances of bait and switch for Washizu between Ibuki and Yoichi and this one just felt far more formulaic and lame than even this show has any business being. That pushup nonsense also dragged on for a little over four minutes. Nothing says "thrilling show" like two guys doing pushups for a fifth of it.

I was happy with them at least throwing Ayame a bone at the end of the episode by letting her pair off with the temporarily disfunctioning Yoichi to feed him, and I’m hoping she gets some more quality time with him next week on whatever island they seem to be dumped on given how little Ibuki there was in th e preview. Of course, a lot could be read into that closing scene with Ibuki feeding Washizu, Ayame feeding Yoichi, some kid macking on Kagome, and Chihaya hitting on little boys, but I digress. For the most part, however, this episode really did very little to keep me engaged and was always at least 30 seconds too late with the punchlines to keep things moving forward.

Also, is it just me, or did they really overfeminize Washizu’s lackey in the eyecatch this week?

Brief Summary:

Washizu thinks about how to return Ibuki’s hankerchief and after getting hit in the crossfire, decides to give it back with a letter to meet later. He puts it in the wrong locker and gets Yoichi instead, who… along with Ibuki there turning his brain to mush, manages to rope him into joining the Ikaruga dojo.

Meanwhile, a new assassin is hired. The rest of the episode has shots of him travelling through the wilderness to find Yoichi, ending with him not even being on the right continent.

At the dojo, Washizu and lackey are disrespected by their seniors, the little brats. Ibuki also has the unfortunate news that Yoichi will be handling his training. Yoichi’s a bit harsh on them, leading to Ibuki yelling at him for being a moron, and hurting Washizu’s feelings by calling him weak. Ayame comes home late to see Ibuki make up with Yoichi and goes to her room to sulk.

Washizu and Yoichi, their pride scarred, end up in a pushup competition that drags on and on through Ayame’s entire nap. They finally reach their goal (1,000 IIRC, don’t quote me on that) and both collapse, their arms turned to jelly. Washizu’s lackey humps him in general pride. Chihaya and Kagome had been preparing food for everybody and they all celebrate, with Ayame joining in for some tender bonding with Yoichi.

Preview:

Did we leave Ayame and Chihaya’s fashion sense back in the city?