The Greatest Anime Episode Ever Tournament

[LumRanmaYasha]

"The Obstacle Course Swim Meet" -

Spoiler

This OVA captures just about everything I love about UY, and is my favorite episode of the anime and of anime in general. The series looks great with modernized character designs and a brighter color palette, and makes me really want to see the series get remade or a Mr. Osomatsu-esque revival. The OVA highlights just about all the major characters with great gags that are at once nostalgic but are presented in a fresh and hilarious manner. There are lots of great easter eggs for old-time fans and in typical UY fashion, the scenario just escalates crazier and crazier until it reaches a literally explosive finish by the end. There's so many moments and character bits that I just love in this special, my favorite sequence being the skirmish with those giant water snakes, which has just a rapid-fire sequence of great moments like Ran blasting a snake and using a light saber on another one, Mendou being swallowed by a snake and then melting after being spit out, and of course, the obligatory Ataru loves Lum scene where he unflinchingly rescues her from a snake that drags her under water and attempts to give her mouth to mouth. I get giddy over moments where Ataru does something heroic and openly shows that he cares, what can I say? This OVA is just a treat for UY fans, but I think it's also a very accessible entry point into the series since it encapsulates so much about what's good about it. I know because I've actually gotten people interested in watching the series because of this episode. It's just a shame that this is the last piece of UY animation there's been in eight years, as with the success of Mr. Osomatsu, I think UY could really blow up with a similarly executed revival. Either way, this is my favorite episode of my favorite anime, and ever time I watch it it reminds me just how much I love the series.

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"Miserable! A Loving and Roving Mother!" -

Spoiler

This is one of the most Oshii episodes of Oshii's run on UY, exploring themes of the nature of dreams and one's perception of reality that would be explored further in Beautiful Dreamer. It's an amazingly directed piece that oozes ominous uncertainty throughout, with a lot of imagery and symbolism to unpack. It's also awesome to see an episode on Ataru's mother, who's always been one of the funniest but most underutilized secondary characters, and this episode takes her disillusionment and mid-life crises and dives deeper into her life, her psyche, her dissatisfaction, and what she really wants out of life. The ending where she makes peace with her inner child and childish desires while accepting the reality and responsibilities she has as an adult is great and speaks a lot of her character, and also shows that Oshii really understood the heart of these characters, which is the real reason why this episode and most of Oshii experimental episodes even work as well as they do. One of the most unique and intricate episodes in UY's canon.

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"Under the Sky so Blue" -

Spoiler

The intense and heart-pounding conclusion of Trigun, spending the first half exploring the turbulent relationship between Vash and Knives over the years and how their different philosophies drove them apart, before heading into the nail-biting and suspenseful back-and-forth shootout between the two in the second half, which remains one of my favorite fights in anime. It's a cathartic payoff to Vash's character arc as he sticks to his guns and defends the morals he believes in and stops Knives' ambitions, but now decides to live by his own code of justice instead of exclusively adopting Rem's, no longer following that pacifistic philosophy for her sake, but for his own. One of my favorite endings to any anime series.

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"And Then, He Returned..." -

Spoiler

Joe at his lowest point, directionless and pensive with guilt over the death of Rikiishi. It's interesting to see that sense of guilt carry over to Wolf, and him coming to his defense when Gondo starts wailing on him and then talks shit about him later. In the end, though, that scuffle with Gondo reignites a fire in Joe, and makes him realize that he's not ready to give boxing up after all, leading to his triumphant return to the Tange dojo. A great character piece for Joe's character, with interesting bits involving Yoko and Wolf that develops their characters further, and of course features the introduction of Gondo who becomes a great recurring character in the AnJ2 anime. It's a power and moving start to the second half of the AnJ story and the AnJ2 anime.

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This was a hella tough round for me. I know with the way I voted most people are just going to go "opposite of CX" and not bother to watch the UY episodes, but darn it, I love those episodes so much and rewatch them so regularly that I couldn't vote any other way.

[gunswordfist]

pass

[LumRanmaYasha]

Isn't anyone going to vote? 

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I'll have to pass on this round. As much as I want to vote, I'm both swamped with work and also have been getting episodes of nausea lately, so I'm not in the mood to be watching episodes right now.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Ooph, I know how awful is is to have to do a bunch of work while being sick. I hope your nausea subsides and things slow down a little for you soon.

But I would like some votes from the rest of you guys. I don't want to move on from the match with only my votes, unless everyone else really doesn't want to vote on this match.

[Avaitor]

Sorry, I've been pretty busy lately, but I've been trying to find time to watch these episodes, and I'm done.

"Under the Sky So Blue"
"The Obstacle Course Swim Meet"
"At Last, He Returned"
"Miserable! A Loving and Roving Mother!"

Wow, that UY OVA really was something. Is the rest of it as funny as this ep?

[LumRanmaYasha]

Absolutely! I love that OVA precisely because it captures everything great about the series at it's best. 

Though strangely enough most of the episodes I entered into the competition were the more dramatic/experimental sorts. 

[VLordGTZ]

"At Last, He Returned"
"The Obstacle Course Swim Meet"
"Under the Sky So Blue"
"Miserable! A Loving and Roving Mother!"

[LumRanmaYasha]

Results:

Trigun #26: "Under the Sky So Blue" - 8
Urusei Yatsura #78: "Pitiful! Mother of Love and Banishment?!" - 5
Ashita no Joe 2 #1: "And I am back" - 7
Urusei Yatsura OVA #12: "The Obstacle Course Swim Meet" - 10

"Under the Sky so Blue" and "The Obstacle Course Swim Meet" move on to round 2! The next match will be up shortly.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Round 1: Match 21


Urusei Yatsura #157: "Darling, I Love Your Kindness"

VS.


Ushio & Tora #19: "The Demon That Turns Back Time"

VS.


Rurouni Kenshin #41: "The Ultimate Technique Of The Hiten-Mitsurugi Style: Reunion with a Mentor, Seijuro Hiko"

VS.


Lupin the Third Part 1 #4: "One Chance for a Prison Break"

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Only 1 episode that I need to watch for this round, so I'll probably get around to it sometime over the weekend.

[gunswordfist]

Oh for the love of..that's probably my favorite Lupin episode 

[gunswordfist]

Whoops. I will vote this afternoon.

[LumRanmaYasha]

"Darling, I Love Your Kindness" -

Spoiler

This episode provides really subtle but important insight into Ataru's character. Because of the way Ataru normally behaves, people see him as a flaky lech and don't think highly of his character. Even Lum's become a little jaded when it comes to her expectations with Ataru. But the date with Nozomi reveals a lot about who Ataru really is beneath his foolish facade. Ataru isn't forced to date Nozomi, nor is he getting anything out of it. He dates Nozomi purely because he wants to help the girl be happy and find peace. In this, we also see him employ his schtick in a way that hints that the way he normally behaves is, in fact, an act. When he's asking Nozomi for her name and address, he's not doing it because that information will benefit him, but because he wants to make Nozomi feel good about herself. Even with the sweater, though his first instinct was to run, ultimately he is the one who decides to wear it, and he does so for Nozomi's sake. Everything Ataru does in the episode is for Nozomi, for someone else's sake. It's a purely selfless side of the character we normally don't see but says a lot about who he really is.

Another aspect to love about the episode is Nozomi herself. She's a really great one-off character, who you really feel for in her desire to simply live freely after being caged up in a hospital for all her life. She's attracted to Ataru because he's so full of life, and she admires that quality in him. Similarly, as the episode goes on, Lum herself is reminded of that very quality of Ataru's, and why she really loves him as well.

Of course, the direction and visuals in the episode are brilliant as well. The framing with Nozomi's mother was an added addition to the anime that gives the episode a B-plot in the form of this mother trying to fulfill her daughter's dream despite her skepticism, and it's amazing how her character arc is delivered so clearly and powerfully without her ever having to say a word. Her grateful bow at the end of the episode when she sees the flowers and incense Ataru and Lum left on her grave is such a powerful image that gets me every time. The opening sequence showing Nozomi in the hospital before her passing, and the ending where Ataru and Lum pay their respects and Lum just looks at him knowing his character better than she ever had before, and their playful tickling on the beach and those amazing closing words "Darling, maybe I should become a ghost too" "Don't be silly" - just a great, contemplative not to end the episode on. There's so much great things going on in this episode that I could go on and on about it, but it's a fantastic character piece for Ataru and one of the most iconic stories in the entire series, as well as one of my all time favorites.

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"One Chance for a Prison Break" -

Spoiler

One of the most iconic Lupin stories that has been re-done or homaged in most of the series. The mindgame between Lupin and Zenigatta throughout the episode is tense as you try to figure out just how Lupin will escape and what his game is, and the tension remains high all through to the end where narrowly outwits Zenigatta and escapes. This is a great Lupin/Zenigatta relationship episode, as we really see that Zenigatta almost wants Lupin to escape, as chasing him has become his life's purpose and he's become so attached to him that he doesn't know how he'd live without him. This becomes more emphasized in later iterations of this story, but this initial premise still says a lot about the dynamic and relationship between the two even this early on into the anime franchise's run.

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"The Demon That Turns Back Time" -

Spoiler

The ending of this episode is the first time we see Hakumen in action, and it's a horrifying sight to behold and instantly cements it as a nightmarish and fearsome creature. Ushio's distress at being unable to save Giryou's father is also very tragic and is one of many tragedies soon to befall Ushio in the coming episodes that'll really shake him up and cement his drive to put an end to Hakumen.

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"The Ultimate Technique Of The Hiten-Mitsurugi Style: Reunion with a Mentor, Seijuro Hiko" -

Spoiler

I really like the parallels drawn between Kenshin/Seijuro and Aoshi/Okina in terms of pupil/master relationships that have become contentious because said pupil disobeyed his master's teachings and went astray, with neither master willing to help their pupil because they believe they've walked the wrong path. Ultimately, Seijuro is persuaded that Kenshin has atoned for his mistake by people he's helped, and is granted the right to learn the final technique of Hiten Mitsurugi. In contrast, Aoshi doesn't display repentance, and becomes allured by evil, joining Shishio's forces in pursuit of Kenshin. Kaoru also has a neat little sub-arc in seeing Kenshin again and helping ingratiate him to Seijuro, and then leaving so as to not distract Kenshin. Her presence reminds Kenshin that he has attachments he cares about and that in turn shows Seijuro that he has matured. Really great character interactions here and a lot of character development happens within this episode.

[close]

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

"The Ultimate Technique Of The Hiten-Mitsurugi Style: Reunion with a Mentor, Seijuro Hiko"
"One Chance for a Prison Break"
"The Demon That Turns Back Time"
"Darling, I Love Your Kindness"

I'm sure that I'd rate UY higher if I saw it in context. I'll try and get around to it by the end of the year.