Let's Talk About... Yu Yu Hakusho

[Spark Of Spirit]

So, what did you guys suspect was first going on when these episodes aired? I don't mean the Genkai revelation, I mean the whole "strength alone will not save you" aspect that they ride hard throughout the rest of this arc until the final battle.

Personally, I was riveted throughout this whole arc always guessing what would happen next and I think these episodes are a good preview for what we'll be seeing next. The whole word game battle followed by the guessing game at the end were not something I was expecting to see from this series, especially not in this way. But this is really only the tip of the iceberg of what's coming next.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Have I mentioned how much I love "The Power of Taboo"? Because I fucking love "The Power of Taboo."

I said it before, but as a kid, I wasn't really into action shows. People beating up each other wasn't very interesting to me. But as I grew a little older, I started to get into stuff like Batman Beyond and Justice League because I enjoyed the character drama and mature tone, and later Dragon Ball because I loved the humor, adventure, and world of the series, and my love for DB also got me to appreciate fights more. But what I really always wanted to see was a show that would have intense life-or-death stakes that didn't depend on strength or just punching the other guy into submission. I wanted to see the kind of tension from an intense fight translated in a real and pure battle of wits.

Yu Yu Hakusho was the first show that delivered that to me, and it did so in this episode. Within the first 7 minutes of the episode, all of the characters save Kurama have lost their souls or are otherwise incapacitated. He has them by the balls and their lives are in his hands - literally. And it is all because of his power. He didn't do anything, really; they played his game, and they lost because they didn't properly play by his rules. So only Kurama is left, against an opponent who's about equal in intelligence to him and stated to be superior to him in language arts, and obviously violence is a no go. So everyone's fate rests on Kurama beating him at an increasingly difficult word game, and the tension, the suspense, the paranoia as the clock ticks down, letters after letters become unspeakable, and you are left wondering just how Kurama can possibly win, and the way he does so is not just clever, but it's unexpected and humorous to boot.

To speak of the presentation of all of this in the episode, man oh man, is it incredible. Episodes like this are why a modern YYH anime reboot wouldn't compare to the original. There is so much effort to make this episode both look and feel claustrophobic, ominous, and suspenseful. The incredible color palette, both dark and bright at the same time, renders a surreal wonderland-ish quality to the room, especially after Kurama grows a veritable forest of plants engulfing it. But the perspective, holy shit, the way the episode plays with perspective in the backgrounds and character angles to add tension and eerieness, to give a sense that something is not right, to keep the viewer guessing about what they are seeing on the screen and feel as on edge as the characters, is just so engrossing, and adds so much to the experience and what makes this episode fly by and feel as intense as any fight in the series would. And I can't neglect to mention the acting in this episode, especially the dubbed performances. Jakie Cabe nails Kaito's smug, over-confident yet intelligent personality and deliciously hams up his over the top moments while still maintaining a threatening, dangerous vibe from him in his quieter, darker moments. John Burgmeier plays it cool with Kurama in the episode, carrying across his calculating mind and especially nailing the scene where Kurama warns Kaito not to damage his friends' souls. Both of these performances add so much to the episode for me, and are as essential an aspect of what sells it so well as any other component I can praise about it.

This episode is just fantastic in both concept and execution. I was floored by it as a kid. Re-watching it, I still am. This is the kind of stuff I had always wanted to see, and the kind of stuff I still love and prefer to see. That's why I enjoy Hunter X Hunter so much, and why JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is my favorite battle manga of all time. The best fights in those series are so often not physical, but a matter of wits, mystery, and how one uses his skillset to get the edge over an equally skilled or dangerous opponent. Nowadays we are seeing more battle series start to lean towards wits over pure strength, like in MHA and WT, but material on this level is still so rare and few. What else can I say? I know I'm alone on this, but this is and always has been my favorite episode of the entire show, and one of my all-time favorite anime episodes ever to boot. Almost 8 years after I first saw it, and it still never fails to captivate me.

Episode 70 is another great episode, again, for the clever guessing game that takes up the episode's second half. Even though who the imposter is was sorta obvious from a viewer standpoint, it was fun to see the team banter and debate who it could be, even making jokes and dicking around at times. I definitely remember not guessing Genkai was behind it all when I first watched these eps as a kid, but I didn't think Kaito and co. were going to be the real bad guys of the arc either (the copies of the episodes I first watched didn't change the opening to the second version, and I didn't look up much about shows back then except for anything and everything Dragon Ball), so I was expecting the motives behind the kidnapping and the ending in that respect. Anyways, obviously I thought this was another damn fine set of episodes, and am very excited to get into the arc proper with the official introduction of our new big bad, his team, and his plan in next week's set.

[talonmalon333]

I'll say more about these episodes later, but I really don't like the title "Genkai's Ruse". There's no revelation if the title states what happens. So, when I saw that she was behind the ordeal, I didn't feel any surprise.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

69. The Power of Taboo

As I said earlier, this is a brilliant episode. Within mere minutes, three out of our four heroes are rendered immobile to the mercy of Kaito's whim, and the situation can only be solved through Kurama's wit and strategy.

CX already covered why this episode is so good, so I don't really have anything to add. The important takeaway point is that this episode sets up the idea of raw power being meaningless against certain opponents, meaning that Team Urameshi (yes, I'm still calling them that even though the DT is over) have to be ready for any kind of threat, and that even people far weaker than them can be dangerous.

70. Genkai's Ruse

Genkai being behind all of this was pretty much spoiled by the English version of the title, as Talon pointed out, but it doesn't make this ordeal any less impactful, in my eyes. Team Urameshi, and especially Yusuke himself, have now learned an incredibly important lesson about not taking anything for granted. Simply having power doesn't mean that they can keep their guard down, and with the current situation at hand, it's a lesson that they absolutely need to know about in order to take on these mysterious psychics. The next several episodes will really demonstrate that.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Even though it actually started two weeks ago, we're now in Chapter Black territory:



We've started with a bang, and it only goes up from here.

[talonmalon333]

Spoiler

71. The Tunnel

And thus, with the introduction of classes as a concept, a slew of nerdy power-level debates were born, with roughly 95% of them being between Talon and Cableguy, on one of TV.com's nearly dead sub-forums. This was truly a productive use of one's time and thinking capacity.

I swear, we were so close to having it all figured out. Just one more thread dedicated to power rankings, and we would have gotten it right.

And it wasn't just me and him. 40% of the posts in those threads were me, 40% were CableGuy15, 15% were deckzone3000, 4.99% were other people... and .01% was you asking how many times we are going to discussing the same things over and over.

[close]

[Avaitor]

See that? You know that means shit is about to go down.



We're learning about what's going on in Spirit World now, and things are starting to get really intense. I mean, there are invisible killer bugs on earth, for crying out loud! This is a great continuation of an increasingly building arc.

[Spark Of Spirit]

These episodes are great tension builders. Being slowly introduced to the villains' plans is one thing, but the art style, the music, and voice acting really sell the desperation as something of another level from the other crisis-es they've dealt with before. In particular, the Sensui reveal in the middle of a public park (with that ominous sky) is even creepier than the episode where Toguro revealed Yusuke and Kuwabara didn't really kill him. That moment of Sensui's took place in only a handful of mere seconds.

And he didn't even do anything.

But it looks like it was all a part of his plan as he sends one of our groups of heroes off to the hospital where one of his men is lying in wait. Ending it on a cliffhanger after that mess is just too mean.

Oh, and up next week we have my two favorite episodes in the entire run of the show. Which is only fair since CX just got his favorite last week.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

71. The Tunnel

And thus, with the introduction of classes as a concept, a slew of nerdy power-level debates were born, with roughly 95% of them being between Talon and Cableguy, on one of TV.com's nearly dead sub-forums. This was truly a productive use of one's time and thinking capacity.

Anyways, we get our first proper introduction to Sensui in this episode, and right away we can see that there's something very different about him than what we've seen before from previous villains. And while this was mostly another exposition-heavy episode, we got some great character dialogue, as well as a reinforcement of this arc's theme when Genkai scolds Yusuke for missing the point of her elaborate lesson plan by wanting to rush into things without understanding his enemies and how they operate.

"How about learning from your mistakes for a change!" is a concept that tons of other series should really apply to their protagonists.

72. The Reader

BEST HERO MEETS VILLAIN SCENE EVER! I just love that moment. They see Sensui amongst the crowd only to immediately have Murota sniped in the head as soon as he looks at them. "We'll call that my introduction, Yusuke," says Sensui, and what an introduction it is.

This episode also contains some ingeneous foreshadowing. I won't post exactly what it is until it happens, but Yusuke's comment about being scared of what he didn't sense in Sensui, as if he wasn't seeing the REAL Sensui but just a mere shell or immitation of him, and the line about digging seven graves will come back in a big way later on.

Overall, another great set of episodes, but next week, guys....let's just say that the best is yet to come.

Have I gone on enough yet about how awesome the Chapter Black arc is? Would someone care to explain to me why so many fans call this arc a disappointment following Dark Tournament, and why so many anime snobs critics just write this series off as yet another mindless, uninspired shonen? Because fuck if I'll ever understand any of that.

[talonmalon333]

The Tunnel is an episode that's mainly dedicated to exposition. But I think it works because the material is interesting. Also, it's so strong in atmosphere. The way they build up the S class demons really makes them seem so scary and dangerous. I especially like that moment where Koenma says "If just one S class demon were to cross into the living world...", and instead of him saying anything, we just see these hypothetical scenarios of S class demons wrecking havoc. Just the way these scenes are presented is perfect. Everything is a reddish color, and the demons are just these giant, overwhelming monsters. And regular people have such a minor role in this series, so it hits hard thinking about the idea of regular human populations encountering S class demons. It does such a good job of capturing the feeling of how the barrier between worlds can never be opened, because if it is, all is lost.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

This week's episodes are not only among the best in the series, but also of any anime adaptation of a manga.

73. The Doctor's Disease



It's brilliant how this builds off of the conclusion to the last episode. Sniping Murota without killing him was specifically done so that they would take him to the hospital, and thus trap them in Doctor's territory. By forcing Yusuke to confront Doctor, Sensui can test Yusuke to see if he's willing to kill another human. If not, then he has a fatal weakness that Sensui can exploit. It really gives you the impression that these villains have a grand plan and know how to out-think their opponents. It's also just great story-telling from Togashi, which is something that few other battle shonen series can match, IMO.

I absolutely love that scene where the nurse questions why Dr. Kamiya is there on his day off, and that instant of horror and realization on Kido's face, combined with that sinister grin on Doctor's face right before he paralyzes him, incapacitates the nurse, and then slits Kido's wrist to make it look like an assault followed by a suicide. Even better is the scene when Yusuke arrives and Kido uses his ability to keep Yusuke in the room, and then spells out Kamiya's name with his own shadow and blood like something out of a horror movie, before passing out himself. It's such a brilliantly directed scene, and a great episode in general.


74. Sleep, Doctor, Sleep



I've always loved the unique and fluid style of animation in this episode, combined with the brilliant use of lighting. It's unconventional, but really works to help make this particular conflict stand out even more in a good way.

This time we get a more in-depth moral struggle of whether or not Yusuke can kill another human. He has of course killed demons without a second thought, but this particular dilemma brings up a great issue within the series and Yusuke's character arc. Why is it OK to kill one type of living being but not another, even if they are a villain and putting countless innocent lives at stake? Of course Yusuke ultimately rules in favor of treating Kamiya like any other villain and doesn't hold back in order to do his job and save lives. It's the self-realization of this on his part that makes this particular fight so special in my book, and although Yusuke doesn't know it yet, this is essentially what sets him apart from Sensui as a better fit for the role of Spirit Detective. He doesn't see the world as black and white, and can make tough personal decisions even if he doesn't like them.

This episode also manages to hold up on a plot and surface level, as well. Having Yusuke's friends and Keiko poisoned by the Makai insects with only a limited amount of time to live unless Yusuke takes out Doctor adds tension to the conflict. The utilization of help from the new characters is also great. In the previous episode, Kido used his shadow ability to reveal Kamiya's identity despite being paralyzed. This time, Yana uses his copy ability to pose as a nurse to stop Yusuke from initially killing Doctor without first making sure that it's his only option available. The reveal moment is genuinely clever and it's great to see him get a shot in on the guy while he's still stuck in a shocked reaction. Murota reading Doctor's mind to warn Yusuke of his lethal trick is another great assist from a minor character. If this same scenario was written by someone like Tite Kubo or Syun Matsuena, you can bet your ass that these characters would have been long forgotten about and that Yusuke would have found a way to beat Doctor with a generic attack that magically solved the problem without killing him.

While Yusuke did get off the hook at the end by Genkai restarting Kamiya's heartbeat, the important thing is that Yusuke resolved to kill Doctor in order to save lives. It still progressed his character arc, and the rare bit of praise that he got from Genkai for it is very indicative of that. A lesser writer would miss that and just have him win while looking like a complete saint and learning nothing from his experience.

Finally, there's Doctor's speech at the end, which I've always loved. "Officer, have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror; I mean, REALLY looked at yourself? If you knew what was good for you, you'd take your gun out of its holster and do yourself a favor." That's paraphrasing part of it, but it's just so well done, IMO.

Overall, both of these episodes are absolute classics in my eyes. They are especially good example pieces of how to actually adapt a manga. Rather than just copy and paste everything panel for panel from the comic, they instead take already great material and convey it in an even more interesting way by utilizing and taking full advantage of the medium of animation, and they each use terrific directing techniques to get their specific themes across in a more pronounced way than what was already present in the source material to begin with. So few studios producing and animating modern shonen manga adaptations seem to get this, anymore.

[talonmalon333]

Finally, there's Doctor's speech at the end, which I've always loved. "Officer, have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror; I mean, REALLY looked at yourself? If you knew what was good for you, you'd take your gun out of its holster and do yourself a favor." That's paraphrasing part of it, but it's just so well done, IMO.

One of the best endings to any episode in the series. Really, these are just two of the best episodes of the series in general.

I'd also like to mention how much I love how Doctor's design seems to change through this whole battle. When he first appears to Kido and the nurse, he looks like a regular doctor. Completely unintimidating, and up until the nurse asked why he was at the hospital, he seemed normal enough that I didn't suspect him when I first saw these episodes. However, as time goes on, he just looks more psychotic and terrible. Part of that might have to do with the fact that the second episode features unique animation, but I found it to even be present in the first episode, to an extent.

[Spark Of Spirit]

These are the best episodes in the series to me. I'll get into them later.

They are especially good example pieces of how to actually adapt a manga. Rather than just copy and paste everything panel for panel from the comic, they instead take already great material and convey it in an even more interesting way by utilizing and taking full advantage of the medium of animation, and they each use terrific directing techniques to get their specific themes across in a more pronounced way than what was already present in the source material to begin with. So few studios producing and animating modern shonen manga adaptations seem to get this, anymore.

Blood Blockade Battlefront does this, too. It takes the original source material and manages to add to it without taking away any of the better parts of the source material. I'm hoping Bones can do it again with My Hero Academia.

It's such a shame Pierrot essentially lost its touch after YYH.

[Spark Of Spirit]

There are several reasons why these episodes are the best in the series, and I hope I can explain why.

The first is the set up. As Ensatsu-ken mentioned, the Doctor literally takes both Kido and the audience by surprise. The atmosphere, the tension from entering the hospital when we KNOW what these guys can do just from what they did to Murota, is palpable. Then these disease-filled bugs show up out of nowhere and everything begins falling to pieces.

Not only does he easily take down the character that easily defeated Yusuke, but he makes it so that he has to watch helpless as the scumbag gets away with it. These guys are crazy, but who knew they were this unhinged? Then when Kido finally spells it out for Yusuke, everything just hits the fan. All that set-up is vintage Togashi and the best writing he's ever done.

Then there's the Doctor himself. Watch how he starts as a perfectly rational individual with a mind like a trap and devolve as the fight goes on losing all his humanity and becoming little more than a demon himself. The animation, voice acting and directing all match is decent perfectly, culminating in his final scene in the police station where Yusuke might have broken him but he didn't destroy him.

But Pierrot deserves an incredible amount of kudos here, especially in the second episode. Not only did the added material enhance the tension and the stakes, but the animation and direction are at their peak here. This is an incredibly well directed fight with great facial expressions and movements that you don't see too often in TV anime. They pulled out all the stops here.

The dub actors, though, really hit it out of the park. The Doctor's one-liners fit his devolving fervor greatly as well as the performance sliding into madness. Justin Cook sells Yusuke's moral dilemma as well as his growing aggravation with humor and a lot of hot air.

Speaking of, Yusuke's dilemma is a tough one. Were he older and more experienced like Sensui he might have been able to come to a decision quicker, but being that the only demons he's killed were those where he got lucky and overwhelmed them and almost killed himself in the process. Here he's fighting someone he could crush like a bug, just like Toguro could, and to solve his problem all he would have to do is kill him and everything would be fine. But it's not that easy to take a life like that. Yusuke is not a murderer. But at the end he does come to the right decision and kills the Doctor in order to prevent people from dying. As Genkai said, he did the right thing.

Now, I know some would complain about Genkai saving the Doctor after all that, but here's the thing: Yusuke still killed him. He still went there. He did what he had to when it counted. Genkai reviving him was the smart idea both as she said to make sure Yusuke kept his conscience steady (he's still a teenager, they couldn't rely on his emotional stability to hold if he carried something like this) and because they would have to explain who killed him and how. This way nobody dies and they move on to finding the next psychic.

All told, that's why I like these episodes so much. Every character is used very effectively and every moment is perfectly paced and executed. Togashi never got better than this.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

It's such a shame Pierrot essentially lost its touch after YYH.

To be fair, Level E was also a really great anime adaptation of Togashi's manga that somewhat improves on the source material. It was really well-animated, too, and that came out just a few years ago. So they can still do a good anime adaptation when they actually assign it to a staff that cares.

Granted, that type of series isn't for everyone. I've personally come to appreciate it a lot more than I used to, though.