Just done with episode 14...And since it's been talked about so much already, spoilers would be as good as price tags on an overdue can of peanuts.
-If this episode was meant to play more on emotional value, it succeeded, IMO, in Sayuri's story of her being an Onee-chan and Mai's hysteria only. Somehow it gave me a greater feeling of anticipation than emotional tugging of heartstrings unlike the Makoto arc.
Of course, Sayuri's story about Kazuya gave a little explanation about her behaviour towards Mai. It somehow bothers me a little that for all the chains put in place about him unintentionally by Sayuri, he only finds enough reason to smile only in his dying days. Was it the guilt that allowed her to carry on, and to care more for Mai as she thought she should have done for Kazuya? By no means, though, do I believe that Sayuri would replace Kazuya with Mai. Perhaps it just might be that guilt-driven instinct that perked her interest in Mai and made her want to take care of her as a good friend. The scar on her wrist seems quite obvious what had happened, so I won't go there.
-Subtlety comes into play for yet another arc. We know Mai cares for Sayuri, at the very start of her arc, but to what extent? The scenes shown with Mai, Sayuri and Yuuichi, despite seeming light-hearted and not that important plays a part in showing the relationship between Sayuri and Mai (well, Yuuichi was thrown into the mix, so it gets a little confusing
). IMO, the fact that they showed Mai and Sayuri's first meeting, Mai going berserker mode over Sayuri getting hurt twice (during the ball and after the goddamned demons attack) and her apparent show of despair was a 'snowballing effect', starting from the small, somewhat unnoticeable hints of that to the bigger reactions and events that occur. Very, very well done.
-Despite what people say, Mai's reply to Sayuri's "Am I in your way?" was extremely appropriate, if not a little bit too tactless. The attack on Sayuri just confirmed that Mai seemed so cold and aloof at times only because there's a warm, big heart within that cared so much for her friends that she rather distance herself from them in order for them not to get hurt (First, the dog and boar treatment with Yuuichi and the tactless reply to Sayuri). While I have my doubts on how Sayuri got to know about Mai's whereabouts at night, I just can't help but feel extremely sympathetic and sorry for Mai when Sayuri was hit by the demons.
-Speaking of which, I really do hope Yuuichi and Mai somehow quadrupled the treatment Sayuri received to the demons. It's only right to return the favour, after all.
-Yuuichi scores 'manly' points once again, courtesy of Tomokazu Sugita as well as how he got Mai to pull together and calm her down as well as standing up to the fight instead of thinking of stupid ways to escape or putting finding out the reasons why he was targeted as a top priority. He's fast becoming one of my favorite male leads to boot.
-Of course, the humor doesn't fail to impress. The focus on the terrible jam, butter knife and bread with Ayu in the background-Almost made me feel as though I was watching a scene where you see a killer's knife in the foreground with his victim in the background walking, facing the opposite way, not knowing what's going to hit her.
-Points to Nayuki and Yuuichi for the conversation about Yuuichi with bunny ears, and the shiritori thrashing by Mai.
Mai: "Kirin-san."
U1: "....."
*stares at each other*
Mai:"...Kirin."
When the rules of the game become more apparent to me, it tickled my funny bone non-stop then and there.
-I think it's now painfully obvious who's the friend that 'left' Mai a long time ago, possibly causing her to be what she is now. If you still can't get it, watch the part with the bunny ears, Mai's part in the OP and about the times where she was talking about her friend from before.
Another perfect 10, no less, thanks to the feeling of anticipation it left me with.
One last thing: Screw your comments, DanielSong39. I think I had enough of them, because most of them are simply not convincing and unjustifiable. Come on, man; Just be goddamned honest and say you're watching it for the sake of finishing something you've delved into for a considerable amount of time. If not, just stay out of the commenting (to save some grace) and out of the polls (so as not to incur too much wrath). That's all I have to say. This topic will no longer be brought up. Gets me vexed sometimes.