Noragami Aragoto

Episode 13

So Ebisu died. The heavenly execution succeeded, and Yato saw his new friend pass away. We return some time later, after the legal drama has settled. Ebisu has been reincarnated. His previous exemplar, Iwami, was forced out to live in exile with Bishamon. While the god we knew didn't have a chance to enjoy his renewed sense of self, he imparted Yato with the desire to see his successor grow up happy. The episode opens on Yato taking a child Ebisu – already much happier and more open than the adult man we knew – to his favorite restaurant. Although he doesn't possess any of his predecessor's memories, Ebisu immediately feels at home. While the lack of memories was expected, Yato is slightly disappointed. All the same, he accepts the need to form a new relationship with Ebisu Jr.

Meanwhile, Yato finally does what he intended to do in the beginning and dumps Nora for good. Yato's issues are far from resolved, but this is an important symbolic act of severance for him. It'll probably come back on him with a vengeance – abusers grow more violent the harder their victims try to leave – but this is still an important personal milestone. Nora is devastated. For centuries, Yato has been her purpose for living. She's a toxic figure, but they've had good times, and she's also ultimately Father's victim. She'd probably do anything to stay with Yato. But this time, the confrontation between her and Yato takes place alongside Yukine and Hiyori. That seems to make all the difference. Thanks to their presence, Yato remembers that people love and care about him. Yato has been conditioned to have a hard time feeling good about himself, so Yukine needs to be the one to tell him that he's a good person. Now more aware of Yato's issues and how they manifest, their family returns to a healthier status quo.

In the aftermath of the showdown at yomi, Bishamon, Daikokuten, and Tenjin pore over the details of the situation. It sounds like Ebisu's shinki are done guiding him toward learning how to utilize Phantoms. However, the Locution Brush – which Ebisu ventured into the underworld to retrieve – has disappeared. Since it's able to summon and control Phantoms, its absence is a dangerous mystery. Something's fishy in Takamagahara, and it's not the god of commerce, but the suspense doesn't last long. In the end, Fujisaki (aka Mr. Consent Issues, who kissed Hiyori during their trip to WcDisneyland) overlooks the trio while twirling the Brush. That's right: Mr. Consent Issues is Father! He's so dedicated to messing with Yato through Hiyori that he'll infiltrate her school as a student, which must be really annoying. Imagine having to hang out with teenagers when you're centuries old. Anyway, he framed Ebisu for his crimes in order to detract attention from himself, and now he's got an army of Phantoms at his command. The situation looks like it'll get bad in the next season. (Whenever we get it.)

After an already strong first season, Noragami returned with a ridiculously good second showing. With the characters already established, it delved into some poignant and surprisingly dark emotional territory – all while remaining an outstanding action show. Noragami is easily one of the jewels of current mainstream anime. It's appropriate for a mainstream audience while developing emotional/thematic content that will keep headier viewers happy. Its interpretations of Shinto legends are imaginative and make good fuel for character material. It's also just a ton of fun, both cute and funny (note Baby Ebisu trying to give Bishamon's lion shinki some money in this episode) even during the dourest moments. I wouldn't be surprised if we started seeing merchandise for this show in US retailers. It feels like a Hot Topic/Toonami show to me, attracting an audience similar to Tokyo Ghoul, Attack on Titan, Black Butler, etc. So far the anime has adapted around 40 of the manga's 60-ish currently existing chapters, so I don't think we'll have to wait too long for a third season.

Grade: A

Noragami Aragoto is currently streaming on Funimation.

Gabriella Ekens studies film and literature at a US university. Follow her on twitter.