For lack of a better screencap.

Recap: Kasuga’s first heart-to-heart with Saeki after his confession goes surprisingly well, but brings him to the point where he cannot contain his guilt any longer. Luckily, Nakamura is there to “help”.

Absolute bliss. Can we take a moment to appreciate what might actually turn out to be the best anime scene of the entire year? Nakamura and Kasuga venting their frustations on the classroom and bringing out their inner ritualistic serial killer is one of the manga’s most iconic scenes, and seeing it brought to life with an excellent combination of splendid directing, great acting and the original mix of the show’s infamous ending theme song rouses a plethora of emotions. Nakaura’s orgasm euphoria as she redirects Kasuga’s anger and frustration with himself towards everyone and everything she hates is both uplifting, mesmirizing, terrifying and saddening. For the very first time, The Flowers of Evil manages to  soar above its source material, and the results are glorious.

In the manga, this is around the part where I completely fell in love with Nakamura and the desperate battle she is waging against the average Joes and Janes of this earth. Admittedly, feeling misunderstood by society — also known as common teenage angst — is one of the most blatantly grating character traits in fiction, but when done right, it becomes poignant and horrifyingly confrontational. It marks the very first time she reveals any of the angst hidden underneath her malicious, sadistic exterior, which makes her genuine, triumphant bliss in this episode’s final episodes so enthralling to watch.

While we will probably never find out just why Nakamura loathes the world so much, it becomes more and more obvious she wants Kasuga to end up just like her. Underneath all of her sadistic antics, Nakamura is trying to shift Kasuga’s guilt and self-loathing into a hatred for the entire world. She has given up on blaming herself for doing something wrong, instead blaming the world for considering her actions to be wrong. Why do I have to be nice? It’s a familiar, relatable question being taken to its very extreme.

The diabolical duo’s ravaging of their classroom is one big middle finger to anyone who deems their behaviour to be out of bounds. In the manga, this scene marked an important shift in the dynamics between Nakamura and Kasuga, from disturbing sadomasochistic outsiders to equally disturbing co-dependent anarchistic partners in crime. Now Nakamura has managed to drag Kasuga to her side, her manipulation turns into collaboration. Has Nakamura turned from antagonistic spanner in the works to twisted spin on the Manic Pixie Dream Girl? As always with this show, it remains to be seen.