Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid

Episode 7

It's the inevitable beach episode! Will we go to a hot springs later in the season? The answer is probably yes, but we can also be certain that Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid won't play it the way most other shows do. That's also the case with this week's self-proclaimed fanservice episode. It does certainly involve skimpy bathing suits, but that's mostly for the joke about Lucoa still being totally unable to figure out how much skin is appropriate to show in public. Tohru and Kanna simply went online to see how humans dress for the beach and then made their scales do the appropriate thing. It is a bit surprising to see Kobayashi in a bikini, since she doesn't seem like the type to be comfortable showing so much skin in public – nor like a woman who would indulge in that particular display of femininity. (After all, she wears a masculine suit to work rather than a dress or skirt.) A bikini really feels out of character, but on the other hand, it does give KyoAni the chance to show off their skills at animating multiple body types, and they did say it was all about the fanservice…

Of course, it's really not. Manga readers will recognize this as a version of some volume two chapters with Lucoa and her new “master” added in, which is mostly what ups the fanservice content. The real heart of this section is when Tohru asks Kobayashi about her family and admits that she can't introduce her dragon parents to her new love even if she wanted to, because they'd probably kill her. It's a reminder that Tohru really has abandoned everything to be with Kobayashi – her form, her family, and her dragon culture. This is mostly played for a joke, such as last week's bathing discussion or Tohru's off-hand comments about how easy it would be to kill everyone on the beach, but we also see her real pain and conflict coming through at times. She knows that she's become the black sheep of her family by choosing Kobayashi, and as Fafnir has pointed out, there's no way this relationship can last for her entire life. But when Kobayashi asks for a dragon ride, and they share a quiet moment while Kobayashi fishes from dragonback in the middle of the sea, it becomes worth it. For Tohru, the small, almost stolen pieces of time make up for what she's given up.

Fafnir, Lucoa, and Kanna, on the other hand, are having very different human experiences. While Lucoa routinely fails to grasp human standards in terms of her behavior and clothes, Fafnir is learning the hard way about being a first-time seller at Comiket. If you think about it, it's actually pretty impressive that he's just sitting there and not trying to kill everyone for not buying his “curse anthology,” but it's much more entertaining to see a poor black-and-white line drawing of Fafnir sitting in contrast to the bustling market. It also says a lot about his relationship with Makoto that he's selling his own doujinshi – yes, he's really gotten into an aspect of human culture, but it's also one that he learned from his human buddy, which feels like a pretty significant step for Mr. Gloomy. He'll probably be even more depressed when he realizes that he's missed an opportunity to dragon-out at Comiket – Tohru and Kobayashi learn that the high concentration of cosplayers makes a perfect cover for otherworldly beings, who can spend the day in their natural forms and call it a costume, which makes a lot of sense. It also plays into an aspect of dress-up culture, wherein people feel more at home in what is called a “costume” because it allows them to express aspects of themselves that society deems inappropriate for everyday exposure. I wonder if Kanna can use this as an explanation for why her “bug observation” homework includes how all of the insects taste. Like many small children, Kanna has the urge to put everything in her mouth, but as a dragon, that just means she's eating new and exciting things, from live crabs on the beach to cicadas. I kind of hope we get to see her teacher's reaction to her homework – between the bug-munching and the Kobayashi observation diary, the poor teacher's in for a major shock.

Although this week's episode didn't feel quite as coherent as previous ones and didn't have quite as many sweet or hilarious moments, Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid continues to be an awful lot of fun. A new dragon comes in next week, which may shake things up enough that we get back on track, or at least away from the jokes about Lucoa accidentally hitting on a little boy. If there's anything this series could do without, those have my vote.

Rating: B+

Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.