Recap: The dolls battle over who will take Jun as a medium, before an unexpected resurrection catapults them all into the N-Field.

Zigg’s Thoughts: I praised Rozen Maiden last week for finally stepping up and delivering some action and explanation, but this week sees the show attempt to be too clever by half and the result is a mess of half baked ideas that don’t really go anywhere.

The opening segment with the dolls squabbling over Jun makes the most sense, but also is the creepiest and most unnecessary. Kirakishou’s bizarre pseudo-sexual come-ons to Jun just kind of disturb me and though thats arguably the point, I would have hoped we’re over this sort of unnecessary sexy distraction, especially since, you know, they’re dolls. Other than that this doesn’t really work because the whole doll/medium relationship has always been hazy at best. Three of the dolls here technically already have a medium – Shinku and Suiseiseki have Wound Jun and Suigintou has Megu. I suppose they want this Jun as a power boost but really it’s not very clear, and the fact that the big showdown descends into a bunch of standing around talking is pretty anticlimatic. I will give credit for Jun not pontificating and immediately choosing Shinku though, sparing us the dreadful will he/won’t he fake tension most stories would have put in here. Props too for a Souseiseki return that, if not logical, at least works when you don’t look too closely.

Really though the biggest problem with this episode is the Jun/Jun meeting, which is utterly unsatisfactory on every level. Wound Jun is too casual, too peppy and too completely at home with the situation, reducing what should be a foreboding moment into the equivalent of a fireside chat. Unwound Jun is too mopey and melodramatic. Furthermore, his sudden epiphany at the end of this conversation is completely inexplicable – perhaps it’s just bad translation but I couldn’t follow his train of thought to save my life and subsequently what should be a big emotional moment just had me going ‘what?’ at the end. Another problem is that this segment is too short – barely have the two Jun’s met before they part ways and it really feels they should have let this segment go much deeper. As it is it feels rushed and shallow.

Meanwhile, the revelation that unless Jun rescues the dolls time will rewind and all the events we’ve witnessed will be undone is equally out of nowhere and is given barely any justification. It just looks to be an additional way to create drama and ensure Jun’s ongoing personal battle continues. There were a lot of plot points thrown out in this episode, and not very many hit their mark. There continue to be interesting wrinkles to explore, but the show has already squandered much of the momentum it so surprisingly gained last week.

Random Observations

• The episode is improved immensely by (finally) a healthy amount of Kanaria.
• Extremely weird use of the cold open this week.  Why have one at all if it’s just a fifteen second recap?
• The animation is again very rough in this episode – check out Kanaria playing the violin for a particularly egregious example.