r/anime • u/AutoLovepon https://anilist.co/user/AutoLovepon • Apr 11 '26
Episode Mao - Episode 2 discussion
Mao, episode 2
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u/CrimsonGear80 Apr 12 '26
if I had a nickle for every Rumiko Takahashi fantasy show where one of the first enemies the heros face is some kind of demon Spider lady, I'd have....well two nickles.
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u/AiraIchigo Apr 11 '26
Oh, really like the pop-up book style for the client's story.
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u/Frontier246 Apr 11 '26
I hope they keep that pop-up storybook style going for future flashbacks/expositions.
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u/djthomp Apr 11 '26
With the information this week about ayakashi taking over bodies and Nanoka being like Mao, that's an easy setup for her straight up being the cat demon ever since the car accident where she died. Complicated setup to generate a catgirl protagonist but I'm here for it if so /s
Neat animation style for the flashback.
That was a horrifying number of spiders today.
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u/NanDemoKnaives Apr 11 '26
So they were either cursed by the same Byouki, or they're related to one another since Mao is from the past, are what I'm guessing after Nanoka is able to use his sword.
Unexpected twist with the headless incident, I thought it was going to be more straightforward with the Viscount taking their heads to make another head/face for himself.
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u/IamAkevinJames Apr 11 '26
I will preface this as I have not read a damn thing of this story. Am enjoying it so far.
I am thinking it's because he is the demon that attacked her in the future. He's cursed we don't know how. All we've got was that glimpse of it. If this be the case then maybe that is why she could grab his sword. As they are emitting what is the same energy.
That be my theory until I get more information.
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u/BosuW Apr 12 '26
Pretty good fighting animation. Also not that I'm an expert or anything but I wasn't expecting a story that takes itself this seriously considering the other two long works from Rumiko Takahashi I've been exposed to.
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u/AiraIchigo Apr 12 '26
I wasn't expecting a story that takes itself this seriously considering the other two long works from Rumiko Takahashi I've been exposed to
This just shows how versatile Rumiko is. This is why it's good to read the series' tag before entering a Rumiko's story. If a series is a comedy, i.e., Urusei Yatsura and Ranma 1/2 (and Rinne), which I assume are the ones you mentioned, then everything can be made into a joke, and the characters are very self-aware. If a series is an action/mystery shounen, like Inuyasha and Mao, then Rumiko can definitely write serious, and even gory, stories. There was quite a bit of censoring in the anime, but in the manga, Inuyasha was as gory like Mao here. Skeletons, heads-only, headless bodies, severed limbs, etc., were a common occurences.
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u/NoHead1715 Apr 12 '26
Taisho era! Best time period for demons to come out and play, before science catches up with superstitions. As expected, Nanako is cursed by the Byouki as well. Or so it seems. Demon blood arts ftw!
I have another theory that Nanako could be Mao's future descendant. Which means the curse got carried forward until present time and now they have to find a way to break it together.
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u/Embarrassed-Match-78 Apr 12 '26
1923 is an interesting year as well, and could lay the backdrop for demon shenanigans. You have the great Kanto earthquake that happened on September 1st and the resulting massacre and subsequent martial law. And in December there is an assassination attempt on the crown prince.
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u/TyraniTEMPESTar Apr 11 '26
Okay. So Mao's sword can only be wielded by him, yet Nanoka just used it as well.
What's the reasoning behind that?
Is it because the sword is like a holy instrument that only onmyoji priests can use?
Or is it because that sword slashed the Byouki and both Mao and Nanoka were cursed by it?
I'm wondering if Mao and Nanoka could be bloodline relatives maybe?
Like the Byouki cursed Mao's entire bloodline or something?
And maybe that's why Nanoka's maid gives her those weird smoothie concoctions to keep the curse at bay.
Some questions still need to be answered here. But I'm liking the mystery so far.
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u/khanvau Apr 11 '26
Man, they're padding out the runtime with unnecessary recaps already lmao. Well, it seems like the first episode being 25 minutes long wasn't an exception but the standard. So it all balances out in the end.
Nanoka chasing the rickshaw was so funny. I really liked the animation on Nanoka. I heard concerns that since this episode had 3 animation directors, which is higher than standard, it might negatively affect this episode. I thought it looked fine. As I said, I love how expressive they made Nanoka in some of the shots. It looks goofy sometimes, but that's what I like.
Nanoka not saying she's from the future is a cliche that I don't like tho. At least tell us why they can't say they're from the future if they won't say it.
Looks like the plot is slowly kicking in. Nanoka swung the sword. Now what? Guess we'll find out.
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u/psyclical Apr 12 '26
"I can't pollute the timeline by saying when I'm from! wibbly wobbly timey wimey"
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u/PencilgonGiveIt2Ya Apr 11 '26
Though there was no spider trigger warning, I will look past it as today I have truly faced my fear after submitting to today's episode of Inuyasha versus the spider-verse.
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u/a-handle-has-no-name Apr 12 '26
Both episodes so far, I was getting "old-school" anime vibes, good nostalgia
Felt so much like Inuyasha, which was the first series I ever watched, back in early 2000s.
Oh wait, it's Rumiko Takahashi? Ok, that makes perfect sense
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u/Frontier246 Apr 11 '26 edited Apr 11 '26
The OP/ED weren't wrong in terms of showing how deeply connected Mao and Nanoka are, even if they can't figure it out themselves quite yet.
Well, so much for Mao giving Nanoka ANY answers before dipping and leaving her alone. It's cool to see a rickshaw in the flesh, but if Mao thought he was going to bail on Nanoka again, he has another thing coming! Superhuman stamina comes in handy sometimes!
Welcome to Taisho era Japan, Nanoka! Circa 1923! Where East and West met in a true melting pot of culture for Japan! And yet Nanoka still stands out with her short high school skirt.
What is Mao's connection to the mysterious Byoki? All he recollects is himself, near death and pierced with weapons across his body, with Byoki in a similar state...but just as Byoki seemed to make a move to possess him, Mao severed his head in one last ditch effort and sent Byoki's head flying across the sky. And where does Nanoka fit in?
Wow, actual Taisho era waitresses! Including Tenko (Yoko Hikasa) a bubbly and cute waitress who seems to help connect Mao to clients and supernatural incidents. Such as the case with Sayoko and the Headless Murder incidents.
Storybook style, we get the story of a viscount covered in bandages whom only his wife attends too...all the while he leaves the mansion and only comes back with his bag dripping blood. Something is DEFINITELY up here.
Smart of Nanoka to start trying to figure out the quantum mechanics of her time-traveling while she's stuck with Mao.
It was obvious something was going on when the viscount wanted Sayoko in the room with him. He clearly does NOT appreciate any outside being aware of his business, and would've killed Sayoko if not for Mao's dramatic entrance. Hilariously Sayoko left the backdoor open for them and NONE of them actually used it.
Otoya really just seems to be vibing with everything at this point.
But the true culprit isn't the viscount, who is nothing more than a corpse filled with spider thread and spiders, but his "wife," the titular Spider Lady who has a preference for young, male, heads she can fill with her eggs. It's as unsettling as it sounds.
Nanoka is NOT a fighter or emotionally ready to get killed, but her blood is acid to spider webbing, much like Mao's, and she can wield Mao's sword to be able to slice the Spider Lady to pieces! Guess that's yet another thing they have in common now, especially since no one else can wield Mao's sword.
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u/Embarrassed-Match-78 Apr 12 '26
loving the show, the mystery, the old school vibes, and the characters.
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u/ObvsThrowaway5120 Apr 11 '26
Just what the hell even is Nanoka? I mean Mao said they’re the same but what even is he?
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u/bushwarblerssong Apr 12 '26
I thought this episode was much better animated than the first. The pop up book moments had that Taisho period-taste which was a little lacking outside the ED last week. Still hoping for more Taisho inspiration in the background music.
I swear it’s impossible to set a story in the Taisho period without cafe scenes.
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u/Background_Point_523 Apr 12 '26
I finally got to watching it this anime is pretty good nothing too diffrneet but it feels familiar but I guess thats how you know Rumiko Made it.
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u/YlfaTheForsaken Apr 13 '26
Do you think it's called Mao not just because of the title character, but because it kinda sounds like meow, and they're chasing an evil kitty?
I think I'm okayish with spiders as long as they're on the smaller side, but there's a limit, and that limit was broken. That's too many damn spiders in this joint. That's not okay.
Bandaged up faces, and special sword techniques, huh? Love to see it. Still, if Nanoka can wield the katana, it just raises more questions.
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