Hello,
Let's go talk about the seventh episode of the winter season 2011/2012 anime series Nisemonogatari that finally completes Karen's arc with a rather anticlimactic ending in which Kaiki simply leaves the city without any kind of struggle against our heroes.
I was expecting Kaiki to be a real supernatural expert like Oshino, but judging from his words he is just a con-man with no powers whatsoever that doesn't even think supernatural stuff exist at all.
Well, I'm not sure if his words were truth to be honest, because this whole series is focused around "lies" and "liars". It may well be a lie to conceal his real status...
The episode continue right from the sixth showing us Koyomi facing a weakened, but still powerful Karen in an incredible battle in order to decide who has the right to go and fight off Kaiki once and for all.
The whole battle was done in typical Shaft animation fashion with everything simply "over-the-top" in a completely unrealistic way with even stone structures falling apart against Karen's attacks.
I'm not sure how to interpret this battle, because I seriously doubt Karen is able to break through stone and steel with that ease...:P
This is what I was referring in the title talking about our first enemy. Kaiki is proving to be a rather charming guy with a nice voice and a "proper" personality, but there is no way to understand if he's truthful or just a big liar.
I was expecting something more evil and less "sane", and I was positively surprised when watching a composed Kaiki declaring his defeat to the pair Koyomi/Hitagi without putting any kind of fight.
I was also amused by the fact that Hitagi may well have fallen in love with him when she was young before encountering our protagonist.
Next episode will finally start off Tsukihi's arc named "Tsukihi Phoenix"! This should be the last arc covered inside Nisemonogatari and will last till the end of the series
We should also get the introduction of an completely-new character in this new arc judging from the information available. She is named Yozuru Kagenui, but I was not able to find any pictures of her around the net...
That is, unless Shaft decide to give us some kind of present and adapt some other arc as well. I heard there are plenty of "second arc" for many of the main girls from the Bakemonogatari series! :P
Concluding, Nisemonogatari is still clearly the best series of this winter season 2011/2012 and I'm extremely looking forward to what Shaft is preparing for us in the arc dedicated to Tsukihi from next week!
I'll continue to blog about this series regularly.
See you soon,
feal87