[ Episode 5: Desire ]

Ah, so Raimei has a grudge against her older brother. What’s up with these siblings who somehow always end up killing their parents which eventually pisses off their (usually) younger sibling? Anyway, I’d really like to hear this guy’s reasoning for what he did. I hope it isn’t some BS about him wanting to test the limits of his power or something similar. A certain other ninja claimed that very same thing one time ago and it ended up being something completely different *cough*. I didn’t expect to see that lousy ninja (Yamase or something?) again and really thought that he was going to die in this episode but he lives yet one more day. He better die sooner or later because he’s just friggin’ annoying.

Thobari has some interesting views on all the events going on currently despite his knowledge of the world of Nabari. I have to agree with Kotaru about kindness being present on the battlefield though. Given the type of atmosphere and world Nabari no Ou takes place in, behaving in such a way would pretty much lead to one’s death which almost happened when Thobari tried to go up against Yoite. He’d better rethink his plan if he’s planning on protecting Miharu and the others in the future. As for Yoite, I didn’t expect for him to show up in Miharu’s room at all. That came as a definite surprise. Why is he there? It can’t be to kill Miharu since the preview suggests otherwise. I’m guessing he has something to talk to him about…but what would that be?

[ Episode 4: Assignment ]

Things are going to get even more intense after this episode. The race is on between the Fuuma clan and Kairoushuu to see who will be the first to remove Shinra Banshou from Miharu. Of course, in regard to the Fuuma, Kotaru is going to research a safe way to remove it from him. As for the opposition, I don’t think they can care less what happens to Miharu as long as they get Shinra Banshou. For either of them to find a way to do it, they must collect the secret art books of the other hidden villages. I think this pretty much ensures that Miharu will encounter Yoite again in the future. I’m still wondering though, when is Miharu going to show off some skills? Does he know any ninjutsu and such at all? He makes it seem like he doesn’t know anything but could be just be bluffing because he doesn’t want to do anything? Whatever the case, I really want to see him in some action soon even if it’s just punching someone in the face in an entire episode.

[ Episode 3: Raid ]

This is one of those episodes where Miharu can’t rely on his feminine side to save him. So no blushing!

Yup, that hat guy (his name is Yoite) really is a foe. If the OP/ED is any indication I’m guessing he’ll be one of the main antagonists throughout the series. His power is pretty damn sick though. He’s a “Kira” user and that makes things hugely difficult for our heroes in this episode. I could care less about the other guy who was with Yoike. Him using a gun is so much fail in my opinion. Anyway, as for Yoike I don’t see him joining up with Miharu and the others any time soon if that’s what is in store. Though at this point it’s difficult to tell how loyalties will play out in Nabari no Ou especially when you consider how closely nit ninja clans can be. I’m guessing Kairoushuu to be the same way despite their apparently no-good intentions.

At this point I’m wondering if Miharu is going to start fighting soon. Him just being Shinra Banshou obviously isn’t going to be enough if they’re going to have encounters like what they had in this episode throughout the series. I’m guessing he isn’t ready to fight yet but I really wanted to see him throw out some moves to help in fighting off Kairoushuu, especially against that Yoite guy. At least we got to see Kotaru at the very end of the episode laying the smackdown on Yoite though. He appears to be a pretty funny guy and I suspect that he’s the kind who probably likes to be around women. Hopefully everyone turns out to be alright in the next episode though I don’t see them recovering from their injuries in just one episode (or at least in one day anyway).

[ Episode 2: Raimei ]

Raimei is soooooooo cute.

Hmm. One of the things this episode has revealed is that Thobari knew Miharu ever since he was a child. They don’t appear to be actual brothers though even though Miharu called him “oni-chan” in the flashback. It’s interesting though that I didn’t pick up on that guy carrying Miharu in the first episode was Thobari. Then again he was pretty young and his character wasn’t introduced yet (and I couldn’t be bothered to look back since I was in a daze at how good the first episode was). This episode mainly introduces the highly exciting and energetic Raimei who I instantly fell for. She’s pretty cute and a fighter to boot. I’m glad she didn’t turn out to be a tsundere and I’m looking forward to seeing her in actual combat, especially since she expressed that she only uses her sword and not ninjutsu. I’m guessing that means she knows no ninjutsu (by choice) or can’t learn any.

The end of the episode was pretty surprising since there wasn’t any indication of any kind of antagonist being on the move throughout the entire episode. So seeing the Fuuma ninjas just fall out of no where took me off guard even after Raimu realized the village was not hidden for some unknown reason. From the preview it seems like we’ll be meeting one of the characters seen in the OP and at the end of the previous episode (the guy in the big hat). Is he friend or foe, I wonder? At the moment he seems to be the latter. Perhaps he’s just one of the few that want the secret art?

Series Information
ANN Encyclopedia | AniDB | AnimeNfo
OP: “Crawl” by VELTPUNCH
ED: “Hikari” by ELISA
Production: J.C. Staff

[ Episode 1: The Awakened One ]

Awesome ninja series with beautiful animation, great character designs, and a dash of hilarious BL? I’m so in!

It took me longer than I wanted to finally watch the first episode but I finally got to it. I really enjoyed Nabari no Ou more than I thought I would. I guess it was because I haven’t really seen a good anime that was centered around shinobi and the arts in a long time. You know, a show where ninjas are actually ninjas and not superpowered monsters in the guise of a ninja. Yeah…. Nabari no Ou brings a much more mature feel to the genre that I find very refreshing. The characters introduced so far are all likable, especially Miharu. I love his sarcasm and the way he manages to slip away from people. Interestingly enough, Kugimiya Rie is doing his voice which I find quite surprisingly really since it’s not easy to identify her as such. I guess that goes to show that she pretty damn good range.

The animation for Nabari no Ou is absolutely stunning. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised since it is done by J.C. Staff but the art and the colors are so beautiful, all of which flawlessly pulled me into the world. The character designs are excellent and I especially love the expressions that are able to be conveyed such as Miharu’s BL-ish reactions to Kumohira. I’m by no means a fan of BL stuff (the serious kind) but I couldn’t help but laugh at those. The music was really enjoyable and blended well with all the scenes from start to finish. On the OP/ED side of things, I like them both. Though I’d like to particularly point out that I really love the OP which is done by VELTPUNCH. Gotta love those indie bands. ELISA does a great job on the ED as well and I’ll probably find myself listening to it during more quiet times.

Needless to say that I’m going to be covering this at this point. I’m really loving the action scenes and Miharu’s power doesn’t seem as hax as I initially thought it was before the series started. Next episode will introduce the blonde-pigtailed cutie that will be joining Miharu and co. on their journey to climbing to the top of the world of Nabari. J.C. Staff is looking to impress me beyond comprehension again so I’m definitely looking forward to more and there are few characters that I’m rather interested in seeing as the series progresses (which includes the blonde-pigtailed cutie ).