Let's Talk About... Yu Yu Hakusho

[Spark Of Spirit]

Other matches from this round:


Hiei Vs. Makintaro


Kurama Vs. Uraurashima


Kuwabara Vs. Shishiwakamaru


Kuwabara Vs. Anji


This was a great set of matches, and what a great finale for the round! Genkai and Hiei make up for their absence in the previous match by cleaning house here. Team Uremeshi didn't even need Yusuke. Up next, the finals. But before then, we have a bit of reflection and a few more moments left before Team Uremeshi steps foot in the ring for the last time.

On the other hand, we're over 50 episodes into the series and there are still no signs of the show slacking yet. Next week hopes to be even better!

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Man, I've just been so busy lately. Here are my very brief thoughts on these episodes:

49. Genkai's Strength

This was a pretty standard episode, but I really liked seeing Genkai manage to dominate the match with skill alone. Since she didn't have a lot of Spirit Energy to spare, using the energy from Shishi's own attack against him was ingenious.


50. Suzuka's Challenge

I wasn't a fan of seeing Kuwabara being humiliated twice in a row. This was certainly Genkai's best match so far, though. She makes an utter fool out of Ura Urashima's team captain, and secures the victory for Team Urameshi. It's brilliant of Togashi to put Genkai at the forefront of the story by giving her so much focus for now, considering what's about to happen. It's also great to not have Yusuke fight at all this round, in order to leave his newfound power as a surprise for his final match against Toguro.

I also liked the scene where Team Urameshi's former opponents save Keiko out of respect for Yusuke. It establishes a friendship between them and further showcases that not every person who ever opposes Yusuke is necessarily evil.

[Avaitor]

Everything Genkai's material in the past few episodes has been leading toward culminates in these episodes. When younger Toguro skips his team's match, we find that he runs into Genkai, as their history is further explored.

Genkai gets to say her goodbyes throughout, as the episode shows her demise against Toguro, as her fate is decided. It's a bittersweet end for a great character, but we're far from over here!

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Man, these episodes remind me of why Yu Yu Hakusho is easily among the best of its genre. There is such heart and an underlying emotional current going on with these characters that you aren't fully aware of until moments like these episodes, especially the latter of them. I'll get to doing my full write-ups for these later on this week, but suffice it to say that I was really heartbroken when I first watched these episodes on Toonami as a kid. Of course, I didn't know back then that Genkai could be brought back to life (and Yusuke's revival at the beginning of the series were under different circumstances), but even so, it doesn't ruin the weight of these episodes at all, in retrospect.

[Spark Of Spirit]

These episodes essentially complete Genkai's character arc as a tired old woman who thought she had nothing left to give. But she ends up with something of a son in Yusuke and will do anything to help him. At the same time we see who Toguro was once upon a time, and how he slowly moved away from her with the years until they are where we see here.

The question, at this point, is how will Yusuke get past this in time for the finals?

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Man, I really wish I weren't so busy lately. There's a ton that I want to say about these episodes, but I just don't have the time. I'll have to keep it short, for now.

51. Arch-Rivals

I love the whole atmosphere of this episode. Even without anything being said, they do such a good job of establishing an ominous and foreboding mood just through the animation and music alone. Shizuru having a vague premonition of Genkai's passing was an especially great touch, as were Genkai's unusually kind parting words to members of the group, showing us that she knew her time was near.

The exchange between her and Toguro is excellent. You immediately get how these characters had a history together and in some ways still respect each other. But, deep down they also resent the path that each other chose to follow. The whole scene is expertly directed, and full of tension.


52. The Death of Genkai

Yusuke desperately rushing to reach Genkai in time always gets to me. It's just really heartbreaking how futile his efforts to save her are, despite how much he cares, which is also compounded by the scene where Toguro pulverizes him with ease. He points out how his heart wasn't in that attack, symbolizing that he still has a ways to go to complete his character arc, which is in tandem with the ability to tap into his full power.

The scene where Genkai accepts her fate as Toguro charges her down really cements in a feeling of hopelessness. Her tear-jerking speech to Yusuke about never letting himself become the person that Toguro became is one of my favorite moments in any piece of fiction that I've ever seen. It's infused with meaning, and will come back in a big way towards the end of this arc, and in general is a significant aspect of Yusuke's overall character arc.

I ranked this as my third favorite episode in the series a few years ago, and I still stand by that decision. Shonen anime in general rarely ever touch this level of quality, IMO, and I say that as a fan of many series in the genre.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

This week we have an episode that's focused on the aftermath of the previous one, and another episode that's merely just building up to the finals.

In almost any other series, this would come off as boring filler. In YYH, it is incredibly emotionally resonant with Yusuke and the rest of his team dealing with the grief of Genkai's death, while the latter episode does an excellent job of raising the stakes even higher than they already were, effectively increasing the tension going into these battles.

[Avaitor]

Last week's episodes were pretty rough, but we're not really over yet. This episode is titled "Overcoming Grief" in English, after all. And that's what Yusuke is trying to do before he makes it over to the finals. Koenma, who is heading in to replace Genkai for the team, does his best to help Yusuke, but this is something that only he can do himself, and it allows for a great cooling piece before that last rise of action begins.



Although this episode is a little more relaxed than usual, as well. What's even more surprising than seeing Koenma step in for the tournament is seeing Sakyo do the same, but we're not going to see either fight just yet. First, we're getting ready for what's going to be an explosive batch of episodes, which I can't wait to delve into next week!

And while I'm at it, I do find the scene where the girls outsmart the scalper to be a fun little bit of comic relief. Also, I've noticed this early, but am I the only one who thinks that he's modeled after Brian Johnson from AC/DC?

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Could be. It wouldn't be the first reference to American music in this show; Kuwabara has an Oingo Boingo poster in his room, and then there's "Megallica"....

[Spark Of Spirit]

He probably is. It wouldn't surprise me.

It was a great pair of episodes this week, mostly all build up to the finals. Though Sakyo and Koenma stepping in for their teams is a bit of a surprise (Kuwabara's "What's wrong with you?" line always gets me) the real surprises are still to come. These matches are some of the most famous in the shonen genre, and for a very good reason. The first match should highlight that almost as well as any other.

[Spark Of Spirit]

And with this week's episodes we have officially reached the halfway point of the series. So in commemoration, here is a nice pic of the Dark Tournament arc that neatly sums up the whole battle our heroes will be going through.



Not to say it'll be easy of course, this week begins the battle they were all training for in the first place. The toughest team in the human realm awaits them.

I had some free time this week, so I thought I'd post early.

[talonmalon333]

Haven't commented on here much lately, but the last two weeks have been four phenomenal episodes. The Death of Genkai in particular is one of my favorites, and Overcoming Grief has a wonderful, somber ending.

The finals are great. This is what the tournament's all about.

The toughest team in the human realm awaits them.

Spoiler

Well, I'm not sure about that... there's still the seven psychics in the next story arc.

[close]

[Avaitor]

Hey, you're online on a Sunday.

This really has been a good experience. The show still holds up mighty well, and it's going to be a lot of fun to see how things evolve from here.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Damnit! I'm falling behind. I still need to comment on the previous episodes and re-watch these two. I'll get to that later today.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

My thoughts on the previous two episodes:

53. Overcoming Grief

This was a truly beautiful episode. There's no epic struggle, no huge moment of tension, and no real plot progression. Instead, as the title suggests, it is just a time for Yusuke and others to come to terms with Genkai's fate and learn to accept it, while keeping her spirit and teachings close at heart, and move on. This to me is akin to great moments like The Fall of Joe Yabuki arc from Ashita no Joe, or "The Body" from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It's what separates this show from an average shonen. It knows when to give the characters time to breathe, to be themselves as well as to further develop. It makes them feel all the more human and relatable for that reason.


54. The Beginning of the End

I don't really have too much to add here. Like I said before, it's just a great build-up of tension before the finals actually commence. I like how a former opponent, Suzuka, actually decides to help Team Urameshi by gifting them with some useful items, showing us that there are actually a lot of people pulling for Team Urameshi to take down Team Toguro. It helps add a bit more weight to an already high-stakes final round. Koenma and Sakyo stepping out onto the field for the sake of their teams was also a great moment. And I love the scene where Sakyo explains his insane plans to the rest of the Black Black Club before killing them off. It's a great portrayal of Togashi's more morbid sense of humor.

As for this week's two episodes, I'll comment on them later, after I re-watch them.