Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’d like to embark on a journey back to The Demon Girl Next Door, and see what nonsense the denizens of Banda Terrace are getting up to. Last episode saw Shamiko exploring the wonders of the internet for the first time, which ultimately resulted in the acquisition of a grand prize: Momo’s fiercely protected ChitChatterer profile. With this secret True Name in hand, Shamiko will surely uncover all of Momo’s weaknesses, and defeat her utterly come their next battle!

Or, more realistically, this will simply help the two of them grow closer through idle conversations, with the mediating barrier of the internet working its usual magic in facilitating carefree, low-stress communication. That’s sort of been a theme for this season: gradual steps towards more honest communication, as Shamiko learns to more clearly assert her desires, and Momo learns to earnestly confess her fears. It’s always charming to see these two attempt a normal conversation, so let’s not waste any more time dithering, and jump right back into The Demon Girl Next Door.

Episode 4

“Let’s go into town and search for demons today.” Momo at last remembers what this season’s ostensible plot is supposed to be

Shamiko transforms her magical wand into a stick with a fake hand at the end in order to point at herself. I’m glad she’s gaining some greater control over her powers, even if she predictably can only apply them to useless gags like this

Shamiko and Mikan share what I assume has to be an anime-original joke, as they each reflect on how long it seems to have been since the end of the previous season, even though it’s only been a couple days in-universe. A credit to how well this team understands the tone of the original material that they can weave in such natural-sounding gags playing on the unique quirks of anime production

Momo states that Shamiko will have to go on this mission alone, as Sakura’s barrier generally prevents magical girls from getting close to demons. Of course, this prompts an immediate question as to why Momo and Shamiko were still able to run into each other. Presumably it has something to do with Sakura’s prior relationship with Shamiko – perhaps Sakura weakened the barrier surrounding Shamiko specifically so she could assist with Shamiko’s childhood medical issues, and that subsequently allowed future magical girls to see Shamiko specifically as well

“Pick up some ingredients for dinner while you’re at it.” Momo continues to insist they are already married

“A New Species Discovered! The Town Cafe is a Demon Lair!”

Shamiko’s first demon-hunting strategy is… call up Anri and ask if she’s seen any demons lately. Bless your heart, Shamiko

And of course, Anri actually has just the spot

“Cafe Asura,” Asura of course referring to a variety of divine beings and demigods spanning the Eastern religions. These demons just can’t help themselves

Ogura looks more like a cryptid with her every appearance. Feels like the author keeps doubling down on how strange she’s supposed to be

The first shop employee we meet appears to be some kind of fox spirit named Lico. This is a perfect example of one of season two’s most reliable new gags: the offhand acknowledgment that everyone in this world already knows about magic and spirits and whatnot. The first season drew some effective deadpan punchlines out of concepts like Shamiko’s teacher referring to her as “Shadow Mistress Yuko” without dropping a beat, but season two has extended that gag into an implication that this world has always been full of supernatural creatures, they were just slightly off screen during most of season one

The cafe master Shirosawa is a bipedal tapir. So yes, demons are pretty par for the course around here

“They thought my athletic abilities were “top tier,” but really I’m just a tapir.” My condolences to whichever translator had to figure that one out

Shirosawa offers some interesting information, stating that this is “the only demonic domain remaining, nestled in a gap in a far east island nation.” So have demons largely been hunted to extinction across the rest of the globe?

He also begs her to take a part time job, and Shamiko is simply too polite to say no

Lico is described as a “Huli Jing,” a fox spirit who makes impossibly tantalizing food. It seems like they’ve just shifted the legend’s usual focus on sexual seduction to the seduction of a really good meal – which actually places Lico in a similar category to Shamiko, as someone whose identity is popularly characterized as that of a ruthless temptress, but who in truth mostly just wants to live their life without being villainized. A clever inversion in that; there are countless legends that frame women who attempt to gain sexual agency as demons or monsters, because these legends are reflective of and loyal to a fundamentally patriarchal society. But here, we have sort of the opposite case: because these girls are demons they are pigeonholed as sexual temptresses, even though neither of them have any interest in seduction

While Shamiko chows down on a free meal, Momo waits at home, patiently trusting that Shamiko will arrive with food. This girl!

Shamiko might not have found any useful information, but another part-time job is its own sort of reward. Shamiko is a diligent and considerate worker, and every job she masters ends up bolstering her tragically lacking self-confidence

Excellent expressions from Momo as she reflects on Shamiko’s new behavior. It’s true that Shamiko’s distracted, but I feel like Momo must also be feeling somewhat insecure about this new part of Shamiko’s life that Momo herself has no connection with

“It’s time to launch operation: Absolutely No Employment For Shamiko!” And though something clearly is up with Shamiko, Momo’s operation title nonetheless reflects the bitterness she’s feeling at having to share Shamiko with this job

Dear lord. Mikan earns an absurdly generous transformation sequence that might well be the most impressive cut of animation in this entire franchise so far. Apparently this cut was animated by Yuji Takagi, a master of smears and effects animation who’s also contributed to shows ranging from Tokyo Ghoul to One Punch Man, alongside dozens of fantastic cuts from Naruto Shippuden

“We’re going to have you ride on Mikan’s arrow and have you fly straight to the door of Cafe Asura!” The slow buildup of this scene is wonderful, as Ancestor excitedly asks about various aspects of their plan until she learns of her own preposterous role

Their plan is weirdly well thought-out for being so ridiculous. A high-speed shot from a great distance is indeed the natural counter to a delayed perimeter-breaking counterattack. Feels like this could be the mission prep for a particularly strange Call of Duty level

Oh my god. Brutal silent gag in Momo declaring that they’ve got “ten lives, and thus ten tries” to slam Lilith into the barrier, leading into the delayed image of that barrier with a half-dozen clumps of homunculus goo scattered as near-misses around it. I’m so sorry, Lilith

Momo smashing through the front door to rescue Shamiko is extremely charming. We don’t see her this serious very often!

Shirosawa counters Momo’s accusations of brainwashing with a reasonable alternate explanation: Shamiko was so stressed from the responsibilities that Momo has been putting on her that Lico’s cooking, which is designed to relieve stress, essentially made her forget them altogether

But before anyone can learn anything from this point, Lico reveals that her food actually does possess amnesiac qualities in high enough dosages

Still, in the end, Momo is also forced to admit she was putting too much pressure on Shamiko

And Done

Excellent work, team! Your first episode of investigating the town for demons, and you’ve already infiltrated a cafe that’s absolutely brimming with them! Granted, Shamiko signing up for another part time job wasn’t exactly part of the plan, but anything that helps build up her self-confidence is likely a positive development. Though Shamiko is generally the one encouraging Momo to ask for help, this episode revealed that Shamiko nonetheless feels some degree of shame regarding her apparent helplessness, and is thus prone to overexerting herself to prove her own worth. As such, it seems that Momo must return the favor that Shamiko presented her: just as Shamiko assured Momo that it’s okay to be imperfect, so must Momo assure Shamiko that she actually is valuable, and not just a dependent weighing Momo down. You two need to communicate better, damnit!

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