Wagnaria!!3

Episode 4

I'm starting to think that a job at this restaurant should include some kind of hazard pay. If you find yourself in the wrong place at the wrong time, you run a high risk of ending up on the business end of a right hook, a frying pan, or a sword. Maybe this season will include a storyline about a personal injury lawsuit.

Takanashi, Satou, and Todoroki all have complicated feelings to work through in this episode, which is bad news for anyone foolish enough to wander into the crossfire. Souma gets clobbered for asking about Satou's night out with Todoroki, while Yamada receives similar treatment after helpfully suggesting that Takanashi might actually like Inami. When they're not beating their coworkers and customers to a pulp, the clueless lovebirds all make a bit of progress in sorting out their emotions. With the rest of the staff caught up in personal angst, Taneshima ends up running the restaurant for most of the day. After all, someone still has to take the customers' orders.

As was the case in previous seasons, Wagnaria!!3 is able to pull a lot of humor out of its characters' uniquely clueless attempts at understanding their own feelings. Takanashi is easily the highlight of the group, clutching his chest in physical agony every time he catches himself thinking of Inami as cute or attractive. Satou is blunt as ever, even to the point of announcing that he's going home because all the drama is making his stomach hurt. Everyone gets the usual helping of useless advice from their coworkers, but there are also some brilliantly straightforward attempts at bringing the restaurant back to normal. When all else fails, it's apparently acceptable to lock your employees in the storeroom until they can talk to one another normally again.

For all its physical humor, the show never quite abandons its sweet side. There are a few moments in this episode that warm the heart without losing a step in the comedy department. Despite his comprehensive ignorance of Todoroki's personal life, Satou demonstrates an impressive memory for everything that she tells him in her rambling monologues. It's a clever way of showing the audience that there's a decent guy behind Satou's tough act. Inami leads the way when it comes to tugging at the audience's heartstrings, however, in a way that feels all too appropriate for her character. When Takanashi unknowingly reveals that he still doesn't know how she feels about him, she winds up for what should be one of her deadly punches. Instead, she taps him lightly in the chest and calls him an idiot. This might be the first time Inami has genuinely meant to hit someone, and the relationship between the two characters makes it into an emotionally charged scene.

It's encouraging to see so many characters actually confronting their feelings in this episode, since it means that the plot is slowly moving forward. Rather than banking on existing jokes, Wagnaria!!3 is making an effort to freshen things up a bit. It's nothing big or groundbreaking, but it's the sort of modest progress that the series needs to make in order to keep this third season from running out of steam. For a laid-back workplace comedy, there's actually a lot going on here. If anything, the show might be trying to do too much at once.

For anyone who was worried that Wagnaria!!3 might end up resting on its laurels (myself included), this should serve as an encouraging sign of things to come. The comedy remains strong and varied, and there's just enough of a plot to add some meaning to everyone's antics. The show has given itself plenty of material to work with, and now it simply needs to let these storylines unfold at their own pace.

Rating: B+

Wagnaria!!3 is currently streaming on Crunchyroll and Viewster.

Paul Jensen is a freelance writer and editor. You can follow more of his anime-related ramblings on Twitter.