Arakawa Under the Bridge 10 – Electric Boogaloo

I wish… not to become one of those beads that sparkle 7 different colors but break when squeezed. But rather to become a black lump of dirt that gets stronger as it gets squeezed. It’s shaped like an oval. But that’s the shape of one’s own fingers. Not to one day become a beautiful jewel, but to become the most beautiful lump of dirt…

-Opening lines

So that’s why I felt so underwhelmed by last week’s episode: because, as this week’s episode proved, Arakawa Under the Bridge is capable of so much more. OK, actually, this episode wasn’t all that different from last week’s in format, with the 1st half being full-on absurd comedy and the 2nd half dealing with the plot in a greater sense, but everything was just executed so much better.

Whereas last week’s angry Stella routine got pretty stale quickly in the 1st half, the Chief’s antics during the “fire drill” in this episode stayed funny throughout. In the back of my head, I knew the punchlines before they came, but the show still kept giving me that shred of hope that the Chief might be more than he appears to be. The whole time everyone was moving the water, I was wondering how the Chief would mess it all up, but I genuinely thought that he might do something cool at the end when the fire spread. If nothing else, he certainly has charisma, to keep everyone else under the bridge fooled.

Always funny to see a grown man hanging onto someone like that. Even if you saw it coming.

Like with Maria last week, there was also mention of a possible back story for the Chief. I’m wondering how on Earth Sister managed to become indebted to the Chief (maybe Sister’s not a good swimmer and he was saved from the water?). But, just like I felt last week, I’m afraid this may become just one of those running gags that are never actually revealed. But I’m not too concerned, I guess, because I never really liked the Chief all that much as a character. That’s probably why I was so impressed by how funny I found him this episode.

And in the 2nd half, yes! Finally more development in the plot! Literally, developing a building on the plot of land under the bridge… never mind.

Not quite up to Gendo's level, but he's up there as one of the worst fathers in anime

Anyway, we’re getting the forward movement in the story that I’ve been wanting. And for those who aren’t familiar, the reason for the title of this post is that the story is also about local community members trying to stop the “evil” developer who wants to bulldoze their community center. When I think about it, this serves as the perfect main conflict for this show. It’s cliche, but it can be a heartwarming story about the community coming together to fight a selfish outside force, which would fall right in line with the direction of this show. I didn’t need the Chief to spit it out loud like he did, but through the course of the show, Riku has become a part of the group instead of remaining as one of those selfish outsiders. And that blush of his was pretty cute – didn’t expect to see his face like that in front of anyone but Nino.

To be sure, I found the comedy in the 2nd half to be a bit weak. It started strong, as Sister and the Chief remained as good a comedy duo as before. I loved Sister’s reaction to Riku’s warning – and the implication that if it isn’t nukes, Sister isn’t afraid of it. But the whole bit with the government official didn’t do it for me; I never enjoyed Maria’s sadism gag all that much in the first place.

"No! I want to stay here. I don't want to be chased out or have to wander anymore!"

The episode managed to finish strong, though, with Nino’s triumphant return. Not that she had been gone, but considering that she’s the heroine of this show, she had played very small roles in the last couple episodes. Last week, we saw her determined face declaring Star a star, and this week, we saw her determined face declaring that she won’t run away from her home. This obviously opens up a couple threads in the story going forward.

First, of course, is how Riku’s romance with her will develop. Nino’s position forces Riku to face his father. When he succeeds, it will be a great victory for the community under the bridge in general, but Riku will get the benefit of impressing Nino – and probably making her fall for him even more. Second is the issue of the past that Nino is running away from. Does her taking a stand like this – literally saying that she “doesn’t want to be chased out or have to wander anymore” – indicate a shift in her thinking? Does it tell us that she’s ready to face – and in the process reveal to us and Riku – her past?

Maybe I’m hoping for too much. But by having me wonder these things, I feel like Nino stole the entire episode with just those 5 seconds at the end. The show is coming up to the finish, and with the way they ended this episode, Shaft seems to realize that it’s time to make shit happen. That’s why I feel so positive about this episode and am looking forward to seeing what’s to come in the final 3 episodes.

You know it's bad if it gets P-Ko this angry