11 Eyes Episode 2

My Thoughts:

First off, I got to say I like the opening sequence. I'm not sure why, it's just a mixture of the visuals and the music, but I like it.  At the same time, the ending credits just don't do that much for me.  I think the ending is a bit more melancholy than the opening and I'm just not into the emo at the moment.

But, I've got to admire at least one choice in character design here, blonde/light brown hair, blue eyes, and glasses—so reminiscent of my beloved. Which brings to mind something interesting, I tend to enjoy a series more if there's a character who reminds me of my wife. Think Noe from True Tears or Ayame from Asu no Yoichi.

With that digression out of the way, I enjoyed the episode, though I wished the exposition that the group managed to spout out had provided a bit more answers.  That said, I do understand the need for building suspense. I just wish they could build it a bit more…quickly?

What gets me is the way that the girls around here seem to… gravitate around the male lead.  Yuka I can understand, she's obviously set up from the very beginning as a romantic interest, but then how the Shrine girl and the Exchange student girl react to him… well, it's odd to say the least.   If that's just a hang-over from the source material, I think they could have integrated the story a bit better.

Episode Synopsis:

The episode begins with our two heroes running from the turd-monsters, and then once again surrounded as the sky breaks.

After the opening, we find out that that shattering thing was just a fake oiut, and they're still in the red-night, and still surrounded by the turds.  Then a sword comes flying in, and Shrine-girl is there for the rescue. Small talk ensues, and the turd-call wails out, and then we see some girl stuck in a giant crystal.  Then some running and exposition about powers, and we find out that Shrine girl's name is Misuzu.

Then the trio get into another fight with the turd monsters, and Pigpen-girl is shown beating folks up with the chains.  And the Trio are running again, and Kakeru wants to go "save her" even though none of them know who "her" is. Then Kakeru's eye starts hurting  making him collapse. When he stands up, they see this chick with swords fro hands and bunches of red eyes who tells them that they can't go any further.

Scissor hands girl fights Misuzu, and is whooping up on the shrine girl, until shrine girl pulls out her magic.

The trio makes it to the giant crystal girl who begs them to save her because she's been captured.   Misuzu—wisely if you ask me—wonders why on earth they should be doing so, but Kakeru is all like "Misuzu has the right idea," but Yuka speaks up and says that they should save her. 

About this time, the other talking demons (for lack of a better term) show up, and we find out that shrine girl's magic doesn't work around the crystal.

And then the main bad guy tells us all that Kakeru is all important as he signals Kakeru for death via Scissor Hands

Then we see the school nurse and some grey-haired kid comes in and drops onto a bed, and they flirt with one another.

Then we switch back tot he Trio and find that they've been deposited back into the real world, in the middle of a shopping mall.

So of course they go and get a burger, as that's what teens do whenever they're in a mall.

While they're eating, they chat about special powers and things and others from their school also get dragged into the Red Night.  

Then Misuzu asks Kakeru to take off his eye patch, and when she sees his yellow eye, she gets a special feeling in her special place.  And I wish I was making that up. As Kakeru put his eye away, Misuzu asks Yuka if she "felt that too." Again, I wish I was making that up.

So Yuka and Misuzu are walking home, and they have a moment, and Yuka hugs him, and he gets that special feeling.  Though this one is more of the murderous intent of the bad guy. 

Then the comic relief shows up and tackles Kakeru.  Once he's back on his feet, Kakeru looks up and things he sees Pigpen—or his sister, but it turned out to be Shiori (the exchange student from the previous episode). Then Yuka notices that Shiori and Kakeru are giving each other their… well it's not "angry eyes."

And we get another scene change, with Kakeru going into where he works to tell his boss that he won't be in that night, and he finds a girl in a maid/waitress outfit who is apparently a new hire.  Kakeru notices that she has a cut on her hand. Maid girl quickly shoves her hand behind her back, and introduces herself as Hirohara Yukiko—and quite forwardly instructs these two whom she had just met to call her by her first name, and kind of forces them to allow her to use their first names.

Maid girl then makes and serves them coffee, and as she does so, we see her wound bubble away to flawless skin.

And another scene change, and it's Kakeru dropping Yuka off at her house, and she tells Kakeru that pigpen/sister they had seen at the park before the red night was an hallucination. then they hug and he tells her again that he's going to protect her.

And look, another scene change! This time it's blue flames, and a first person perspective as someone is walking to a chair. Then hands are touching and there's heavy breathing, and Kakeru wakes up.

Then Kakeru is in the school library and finds a book titled "The Maiden of Crystal Palace." Then Yuka shows up and they talk about researching it, and one hopes they're talking about the Red night. Well Kakeru pulls down the book, and sees pigpen/his big sister on the other side of the stacks.

he rushes around, and finds a note that states that he was the one who woke up the demons, and he collapses in pain from his golden eye.

And then there's the ending credits.

Finally, we see Yuka trying to comfort the still in pain Kakeru, and then gets all freaky. Kakeru notices that, and turns to look outside and there is the black/red moon, even though they're not in the red-night world.