Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I am happy to report that we’re diving back into The Demon Girl Next Door, and continuing the squad’s investigation of Sakura Chiyoda. Their attempts to trace Sakura’s final known activities have reaped both strange rewards and further mysteries, with the biggest victory so far coming in the form of Momo’s newly acquired Combat Fork. An apparent relic of her father’s, its appearance at Mikan’s old family factory seems to draw a line between Mikan, Sakura, and the fate of Shamiko’s dad. But what could it all mean?
Well, I’m sure these mysteries will unveil themselves in time. As you might have guessed, I’m more intrigued by how these developments will impact the story on a personal and thematic level, rather than that of pure plot. The fact that Shamiko only heard a voice guiding her to the fork after thinking back on a time when Momo seemed happy feels significant; after Momo spent so much of the first season looking after Shamiko, developments like Momo’s move to Banda Terrace seem to be leveling out their relationship, and giving Shamiko more opportunities to take care of Momo instead.
All of this serves as a direct challenge to one of Momo’s greatest weaknesses: her inability to admit weakness, or to accept the help of others. As such, Shamiko’s acquisition of the Combat Fork feels like a validation of both her personal progress in becoming someone who can support Momo, and also an illustration of how Momo is becoming more willing to be supported, and not take all the weight on herself. I expect we’ll be seeing more negotiation of their evolving dynamic in the wake of this victory, and I’m eager to get to it. Let’s return to The Demon Girl Next Door!
Episode 3
We open on a clear demonstration of how comfortable Momo has become in Shamiko’s apartment: not only did she invite herself over without informing Shamiko, but she’s also embraced their custom of using the Daddy Box as a general all-purpose table
It seems like, much in the vein of her strategy to simply act like they’re already dating until Shamiko eventually realizes it, she’s now moved on to a strategy of acting like they’re married until Shamiko accepts it as well
Shamiko has no idea what the internet or wifi are. C’mon Shamiko, I know you can’t afford a smartphone, but you should at least know what the internet is!
“The Dark Witch Returns! With Steam From Hell!” Welp, I guess we’re getting an Ogura episode
“Can you tell me the secret to becoming a super hacker, Momo?” Now that it’s Momo invading Shamiko’s house, it seems Shamiko is relishing the chance to fuss over her captive audience. She is a very convincing zero-information computer enthusiast
Shamiko’s home outfit reflects her general fashion sense: drab colors, conservative hem lines, and somewhat oversized clothes that are comfy and easy to move around in. She dresses like someone who craves comfort but doesn’t want to be noticed, which basically matches her personality exactly. I appreciate this show’s keen use of fashion as an expression of characterization, particularly since this repeated emphasis on her actual preferences serves to underline how the “Crisis Management Form” is yet another way of denying her agency, and attempting to assign her a role and personality she is not comfortable with
Shamiko continues to learn about the marvels of the internet, as Mikan introduces her to this world’s version of Twitter, ChitChatter
As she scrolls through the feed, we briefly see a comment remarking on “a young girl by the river hauling a massive tire behind her.” Damnit, Momo
“A side of Momo I’ve never seen is just lying around on the internet?” This… might be a bad idea, Shamiko. You can never unlearn what you learn about your friends on the internet
Oh my god, Momo has prepared a whole presentation on avoiding spam links and money transfer schemes. To be fair, Shamiko would undoubtedly tumble headfirst through every possible hazard of online behavior
“If you’re not careful, the internet will kill you.” A perennial life lesson
Shamiko is so eager to check out Momo’s twitter account that she actually kicks the real Momo out of her house
“I know Momo is more capable than I am, but I don’t need her to show me everything!” “But Momo seemed a little lonely…” Some natural emerging friction here. Momo initially treated Shamiko as a completely helpless dependent, which was fine because Shamiko was a helpless dependent. But as Shamiko gains skills of her own, she’s also gaining a desire to be genuinely acknowledged by Momo, at least as an independent, if not an equal. But since Momo is most accustomed to expressing her friendship through fussing over Shamiko, the pair are now suffering from mismatched desires, even though both of them ultimately just want to remain close to the other
I appreciate the hesitant animation of Shamiko’s awkward hunt-and-peck keyboard posture
“I expected maybe 50 people at most on this internet thing.” My god Shamiko
Ahaha, her twitter profile picture is just the end of her tail. Perfect
Back at her apartment, Momo is lying around studiously inspecting a muscle building magazine
Shamiko at last gathers the courage to ask Momo about her twitter handle directly, though she unfortunately swerves at the finish line, saying that her goal is “to keep tabs on you at all times (nefariously)”
They built a tiny bed for ancestor’s vessel. Beautiful
And Momo’s account turns out to be even better than I imagined. It’s all peach-themed, of course, but I love the little things, like her interests being listed as “bodybuilding/cardio/weight lifting/cats/udon”
Momo ultimately returns the exact same line, saying she’s just keeping tabs on Shamiko. It’s shameless how they flirt
I appreciate that the eyecatches have now been updated to reflect Momo defending the hot pot from Mikan’s lemony additions
Momo and Shamiko ask Lilith if she knows anything about Sakura, which instead turns into an extended monologue revealing just how sad and lonely Lilith’s life has been for the past some-thousand years
And thus Shamiko comes up with the idea to let Lilith control her body for the whole next day, as a sort of soul vacation
Seems like we’ll also be using this B part to hammer out one of the show’s most tenuous current relationships: the antagonistic dynamic between Momo and Lilith
“The way she wrote this message was pretty patronizing to me!” That’s because Momo doesn’t respect you, Lilith
Lilith decks Shamiko out in the most intimidating gothic lolita ensemble she can muster, but still must stand on a trash can in order to reach a suitably imposing height
A nice detail that Momo is now wearing that same “Cat Jamboree” shirt that Mikan previously dismissed as the height of tackiness
“Do you understand the significance of this weather?” “Is it all the worst aspects of your personality manifesting on the physical plane?” Man, Lilith really brings out the fire in Momo, huh
They run into Ogura, who seems to recognize Shamiko’s current situation instantly
Excellent gag of Lilith paying off a loan from Momo by exercising, thereby increasing Shamiko’s body strength
A blackout reveals Lilith’s unexpected fear of the dark
Oh wow. Apparently, she lacked the ability to light up the vessel’s interior when she was first contained within it, meaning she presumably spent ages languishing in total darkness. Yeah, that’d definitely provoke some residual trauma!
And having witnessed this moment of genuine vulnerability from Lilith, Momo eases up on her own defenses in turn, and agrees to join Lilith in the spa bath. We’re making progress!
That still doesn’t prevent Momo from recording this confession for blackmail purposes, of course
And Done
Jeez, life sure has been rough for demonkind! Each new reveal by Lilith served as a testament to the horrific injustice of this whole system, but I’m glad her confessions at least helped her and Momo get a little closer. Their personalities obviously aren’t compatible at all, but they’ve both been wronged by the same system, which is at least a starting point for mutual respect. Meanwhile, Momo and Shamiko appear to be reaching that lovely point of cohabitation when your housemate’s quirks switch from endearing to annoying. More honest communication would obviously be the best for the both of them, but in lieu of that, their fumbling efforts to assert their desires without actually stating them are at least keeping things stable. Good luck, you hopeless magical/demon girls!
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