This week sees the return of Masou Shoujo Ayumu, but not before some good character development for Hellscythe.

Why kids avoid the purple stuff.

After Ayumu blacks out from Sera’s insanely hot cauldron of whatever and comes to and orders a pizza, a Doberman/Megalo arrives at Ayumu’s house to take Ayumu back to the Underworld. Upon seeing Hellscythe heal Ayumu, Doberman eases up and explains that someone is going to be killed tonight. Who knew that it would be…

A brief glimpse of the serial killer.

The serial killer in this series is a little more than just an ordinary guy it would seem based off of Doberman’s line that souls haven’t been making their ways to the Underworld. I really like how things are being broken down with the serial killer storyline and I like how this week’s portion of the story was inserted in the first half of the episode. It makes the storyline more interesting for me while not feeling like it’s breaking the flow of funny or in a situation where you know one show is ending and another is beginning in the same episode of an anime. We get a slight glimpse of the killer, and while small, who really thinks it’s Hellscythe, eh? There’s also a bit at the end of the episode where Kyoko (from last week) is once again attacked.

Hellscythe's tears speak more than enough words in a key scene with Ayumu.

Hellscythe gets some good character development this week as we learn a little more about her rather quiet persona. Hellscythe can’t talk, but it’s not for a disability or a sacrifice taken in order to save Ayumu; it’s all out of fear for her own power. She can’t speak because her words carry magic, and the gauntlets and armor are also a necessary component of suppressing her power. Seeing her tears and hearing her little cries really added strength to the scene, as Ayumu definitely seems more on the same page with her now than his fascination of her as an imoutou. There’s still plenty to learn of Hellscythe and her involvement with the Underworld, and if there really is any correlation between her and Ayumu’s death. If you didn’t like Hellscythe already, you’ll probably care for her much more after this episode.

When Did My Zombie Become This Cute!!

Cut to the big action sequence of the show, a random attack by a big whale, categorized by Haruna as the Weak and Defeated Blue Whale (correction: Victorious and Invincible). Everybody got a charge out of Ayumu becoming a Masou Shoujo back in episode 1, and it’s great to see him back in action as he somehow got even cuter en route to blasting through the atmosphere to give the whale a big kick in defeat. I love the moment where Sera says she believes in Ayumu’s strength, and after making her sword longer, she remembers to call him a piece of shit. I was like, “Where’s the condescending at?”, and then it came up.

Nice legs, buddy. Those heels must be hell, though.

Episode 4 isn’t as comedically sharp as the past 3 episodes were, but it’s purpose in the serial killer storyline and Hellscythe’s fear of what power she holds helped make 4 a valuable episode to the series. And it still tossed in a fun action sequence with Masou Shoujo Ayumu.

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