Ushio & Tora

Episode 7

We've known since June that Ushio & Tora is scheduled to run for 39 episodes. But until now, that seemed like a tall order. How can a Monster Of The Week show, which neatly wraps up its latest plot in just one episode, continue to satisfy viewers for such a long time? Now, the answer is obvious—Ushio & Tora is much more than a Monster Of The Week show. This episode saw the establishment of the anime's first multi-episode plot.

What do you make of Ushio's father? He seems like a bit of a deadbeat dad, always traveling for nebulous reasons, leaving a middle-schooler unsupervised at a temple responsible for sealing a dangerous yet easy-to-stumble-upon yokai. His relationship with Ushio can switch from serious to slapstick in an instant, but only now does it appear that Shigure is using levity to conceal his true self. Episode 7 finally revealed that Shigure is not what he seems. This revelation occurs immediately, when he saves an old woman and a child from vengeful spirits. By immediately planting Shigure in a scene where he's the hero, the show cements his trustworthiness right from the start.

This is a little convenient all by itself, but it's more powerful when juxtaposed with Shigure's other actions—convening with a mysterious council and engaging in an all-out battle with Tora. As usual, Ushio serves as the show's moral center. He's the one who ultimately has to decide who the audience can and cannot trust. It shouldn't be a surprise that he chooses to defend his dad no matter what. Shigure is just one of the two morally ambiguous entities in Ushio's life, now that Tora has come around. Between both of them, his relationships can quickly span from comedic to dark. He can't fully trust either of them—Tora because he's (halfheartedly) trying to kill Ushio all the time, and Shigure because he's never been emotionally or even physically there for him. They've both tried to hurt Ushio in the past, but he defends them the best he can, in a way that really makes you feel for Ushio. “He may be a lousy dad, but he's still my dad!” he says. And of Tora: “He's done a lot of bad things, but I don't think he's done anything bad lately."

Shigure's hands-off parenting involves sending Ushio and Tora on a journey to figure out what happened to Ushio's mom, because apparently he can't just tell him. There's a lot on Ushio's shoulders right now, and I don't just mean because Tora likes to perch there. Ushio only just discovered that his mother may not be resting as peacefully as he's always thought. He only learned the night before that his dad is much more powerful than he knew, and that he's a yokai exorcist to boot. There are still many things Ushio doesn't know about, like this Hakumen no Mono thing his dad mentioned. He only knows that it may be his fate to exorcise it. “I may be just a kid, but I have to face the truth,” Ushio says. Every line he has makes me sympathize with him.

Ushio & Tora is a show with range. We've seen its lighter side, but now it's time to see just how dark it can go. Even Ushio's allies haven't proven to be all that reliable, but his own actions show us that Ushio is somebody the audience can trust in the journey ahead.

Rating: A

Ushio & Tora is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.