Mr. Osomatsu Season 2

Episode 11

Mr. Osomatsu does great things when committing entire episodes to a single story, allowing the show to fully embrace the genre it happens to parody that week. When Chibita goes bald (by his own standards) thanks to the Matsus, the loss of his last hair sets off a tale of epic revenge. Armed with a giant razor to pay back the sextuplets in kind, Mr. Oden traps, hunts, and torments the brothers, picking them off one by one in a parody of classic horror movie tropes.

After calmly preparing for the terrible storm approaching with black clouds to cover up the sun, dramatic wind to send the leaves flying, and lightning to illuminate his evil grin, Chibita (with a little help from the weather gods) has the Matsus where he wants them: physically isolated, with no cell phone reception, nothing but noise on the TV, and lights flickering before finally going out completely. It's a classic setting for the horror to begin, and it does so with a vengeance. Our favorite NEETs slowly go from barricading themselves within the house (with their parents once more conveniently absent to live the good life their sons will never get to enjoy) and joking about each others' fears to realizing how trapped and doomed they truly are.

The dwindling Matsu party seeks shelter with an unusually kind Iyami, who of course betrays them to the highest bidder. By the time we get to the short but magnificent slow-motion showdown between the last Matsu standing (Jyushimatsu of course) and Chibita (with a little more help from his friends), it's also time to take the soundtrack's epicness to eleven. Creepy singing, walking down a long dark corridor with jump scares lying in waiting, and the girl – well, Choromatsu – (in)conveniently stumbling and falling when it's time to run away, only to be rescued and carried by the hero (Jyushimatsu) are just some of the tropes used to great effect this week.

Beyond Mr. Osomatsu's comedic and parodic values, it's always fun to look appreciate the little details, from the Matsus finishing not just the plate Chibita generously gives them but everything in his stand, to Iyami finding himself a lady friend willing to take him in, to Totty crying out for his oldest brother – even after all the crap Osomatsu put him through, he's still the one Totty turns to in times of desperation. The sextuplets' parents have long stopped worrying about the consequences of their sons' mischief, and seeing them walk past their strung-up, half-dead offspring without batting an eye would make me feel sorry for the brothers, if only they didn't deserve pretty much everything they bring upon themselves.

Even if the second season has yet to deliver an emotional equivalent to Jyushimatsu Falls in Love, Mr. Osomatsu has no problem treating viewers to moments of honest feelings in passing. Watching Chibita cry about his last lost hair is oddly moving. He really is the closest thing to a friend the sextuplets have, and seeing them bail on him sobbing was cruel even for these guys. The entire scene was very well done, taking us from a mad high-energy chase to awkward silence in mere seconds. When the Matsus leave Chibita behind, we don't cut to him sobbing in close-up, but stay in the same shot as before, leaving him hunched on the ground, pushed to the side, while the brothers' absence leaves most of the frame empty. This show wouldn't be half as good if it couldn't back up its crude humor with equally precise cinematic execution.

And yeah, the brothers got what they deserved.

Rating: B

Mr.Osomatsu Season 2 is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Anne is a translator and fiction addict who writes about anime at Floating Words and on Twitter.