Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf!

Episode 8

With a title like “Welcome to Japan, Ms. Arkdragon,” you pretty much have to go into this latest episode of Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf! assuming that it will be, at the very minimum, pretty good. I mean, how do you mess up such an easy slam-dunk of a concept? The show has already established the formula for its “Real World” episodes: Kazuhiro takes his gal pal(s) around the country and treats them to the innumerable varieties of delicious local cuisines and fun activities. With Wridra the Arkdragon being someone of magical origin, we also have a great opportunity for Marie to bond with someone who has a better understanding of her fish-out-of-the-water-from-her-normal-plane-of-existence worldview.

Good news, everyone: The show doesn't screw it up. As you might have guessed from that summary up top, an argument can be made that this episode is maybe a little too safe and simple, but at this point in Ms. Elf's run, we can hardly blame it for delivering exactly the product it advertises. In the Fantasy World, we get some mildly thrilling action-adventure escapades; in the Real World, we get tasty snacks and bathhouses. Only, this time, Kazuhiro has to entertain and feed two magical mistresses.

Obviously, Wridra isn't played as an addition to some kind of harem. A lot of this episode is dedicated to emphasizing that, so far as Ms. Elf the anime is concerned, Ms. Elf the lady is the only woman for our hero. The Lady Arkdragon instead takes on more of a big-sister role to Marie, which is great, because it gives Marie another person to be herself around during these Real World adventures, and also because Wridra is pretty damned funny. She will gladly and proudly shower her cute mortal “children” with praise and affection, even as she snatches their bentos and rice balls for the claiming.

She's also none too shabby when it comes to romantic advice, which I suppose tracks if you consider that she's already married with kids. How well her tips and tricks can translate to the mating rituals of mere mortals is another question entirely. Maybe she's taken that bipedal form for a spin around the block once or twice herself. Good for you, Mama Dragon. Good for you.

In any case, the best part of this episode is the girl talk session that Marie and Wridra get into at the baths. I like that the show isn't trying to pretend that there's any “Will They/Won't They?” going on with our protagonists, and that Marie is maybe the only person in two realities who doesn't recognize that she and Kazuhiro are soulmates who are functionally married, at this point. I also like that the reason for Marie's insecurity makes a lot of sense; I even noted, myself, that Kazuhiro's doting could get a little condescending at times, and it seems like Marie had the same idea, feeling more like Kazuhiro's adopted ward than a woman with needs. Elven needs.

Naturally, Wridra solves the whole problem by telling Marie to just kiss the guy, even if it's a peck on the cheek, and that will help quell any lingering doubts. This is a small detail, but one that I am very happy to see in a rom-com like this. I know that not every single relationship is going to be rooted in physical attraction and sexuality, but darn it, sometimes anime spends way too much time on all of the pining and overthinking that comes with romance without ever establishing a physical connection between its characters. Nevermind that physical chemistry is a vital element to a lot of relationships here in our meatspace world; I just think that it makes for good television when the leads of your romance story can, like, kiss and stuff (And not just once at the very end of the series, either). Let's give Lady Arkdragon a round of applause, everybody. Thanks to her intervention, our adorkable protagonists actually stand a decent chance of hooking up before the end of the decade.

Rating:

James is a writer with many thoughts and feelings about anime and other pop-culture, which can also be found on Twitter, his blog, and his podcast.