Well!
Episode 9 was certainly a return to form, in my opinion. I found myself experiencing the same set of emotions that I did with the first few episodes. It certainly helps that the animation didn't appear to be nearly as derpy as it has been recently. The shot of the moon at 19:38 and the use of flickering firelight on the trees was particularly well done.
That being said, I was a little bit confused about something so I hope someone can help me out so I better understand exactly what I saw.