Kami-sama no Memo-chou - Episode 7

If this is not obvious enough, I don't know what is

Episode Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (5/5)

Maybe it's because the past few episodes were utter garbage, but I really enjoyed this one. Even though everything was quite predictable halfway through, it was surprisingly still entertaining. As of now, if I were to choose between Victorique from GOSICK and Alice from Kami-sama no Memo-chou, I would definitely pick Victorique for being able to quickly solve and explain a mystery. It's quite annoying to have to wait several episodes for a case to be resolved. Also, there's probably going to be one or two more mysteries before this underachieving series finishes. Hopefully, during that span, things will improve. Overall, I'm quite disappointed with this show considering the fact that it had a surprisingly good first episode. But I guess I'll finish it since I'm more than halfway through already.

Renji begins the episode by starting to reveal his dark side, threatening to kill Narumi if they ever cross paths again. But Narumi surprisingly stands his ground and even has the audacity to demands answers from a guy who he knows can easily wipe him off the face of the earth. Shockingly, Renji didn't refuse to give an answer and even tells Narumi the whole story behind the broken relationship between The Fourth and him. It turns out that The Fourth used Hison, the woman who designed the Hirasaka Group t-shirts, as a shield against an attacker from the Gotouda Group, a rival gang of the Hirasaka Group. After Hison's death, The Fourth even made sure to erase her existence, not even allowing Renji to see the body. It is understandable why Renji is so angry at The Fourth, assuming that his story is true. But, just like Narumi, I had doubts. However, his words did nothing but enrage Renji even more, to the point where he breaks his cellphone with one hand. That display of pure strength must have sent chills down Narumi's spine, making him think about what would happen to him if he got into a fight with Renji. As for the attacks on the concert, Alice refuses to help with the case because she hasn't had any formal request for help. Personally, I find this remark to indicate that she is quite full of herself just because of her detective abilities. Nonetheless, Narumi continues to work as the advertiser for the band and receives a call from one the members whilst in the middle of work later in the day. During the call, she informs him that the concert will still be as scheduled, despite the incident with the fire. This information seems to have cheered Narumi up as he enthusiastically continues his work. After reaching Yoshiki-san's shop to select a design for the t-shirts, the two end up at an unanimous decision. But soon after this, Narumi notices that Yoshiki-san has trouble standing, which seems to caused by a midsection wound. Upon seeing that, I started to suspect that Yoshiki-san is actually Hison after a sex change. At one point in the conversation, Yoshiki-san randomly informs Narumi that The Fourth used to speak in Kansai dialect, causing him to think back to Renji and his forced Kansai dialect. Knowing this, he immediately calls The Fourth and tries to get him to ask Alice for help in this case, desperately wanting to save the relationship between the two men. But, even with tears in his eyes, The Fourth would not listen, reminding Narumi to stay out this. Depressed, Narumi returns to Hanamaru, slightly ruining the fun atmosphere that the NEETs created while they played The Settlers of Catan. However, his mood quickly changes when he sees The Fourth show up suddenly and ask Alice for help. And now, the real show begins...

With a formal request for help now here, the NEETs jump right into business, informing The Fourth of all their previous preparations as they waited for his help request. Their eagerness to help definitely surprised The Fourth there. But that night, Narumi consults Alice about Hison's death, which The Fourth admitted earlier in the day was his totally fault. However, Narumi believes that there must be something hidden underneath that confession, leaving him to seek Alice's advice. What I don't get is, after Narumi informs Alice that he is aware of the possibility of losing a friend if he hears the true story, she tells him to leave. So much for that minute or two of talking. After leaving Alice alone, he heads over to meet with one of the band members of the all-girls band he's advertising to look over the band's t-shirts. He ends up getting the original as well, complete with embroidery, for his hard work. Upon showing it to Ayaka, she starts voicing her desire to have one, to which Narumi refuses because he feels responsible for getting Ayaka injured through something that he was assigned to do. Tetsu and Hitoshi then show up as Ayaka leaves to go to her club meeting. After a short update about the current situation (The Fourth increased security), Narumi goes to deliver Alice her food. There, Alice explains everything about Hison and the Gotouda Group to Narumi. To summarize it, Hison was suspected to be involved in affair, which gave her monetary benefit, with the leader of the Gotouda Group. After Hison's death, a large sum of money went to a surgeon and real estate agent, which I assume payed for the sex change and cloth store, respectively. On top of this information, Narumi learns, from the testimony of the woman who witnessed Hison's murder, that The Fourth was also involved. So, then, he rushes on bicycle to confront The Fourth. However, upon spotting the scar on his shoulder that the woman talked about, The Fourth quickly reacts and almost breaks Narumi's hand. Back at Alice's place, we are treated to a scene which will possibly melt the hearts of some viewers as Alice rests her head on Narumi's chest after he offers to take some of her burden, if possible, despite the fact that he is a useless idiot. As for information relevant to the case, Alice concludes that the person behind Hison's murder was most likely the ex-wife of the Gotouda Group's leader, who, after being filled with jealousy, stabbed a pregnant Hison in the stomach. The tension then starts rising as Alice feels the embroidery on Narumi's t-shirt, allowing her to come up with a conclusion which she hurries Narumi to tell Renji about. Unfortunately, it was too little too late, as Narumi gets a call from a member of the Hirasaka Group, informing him about The Fourth being attacked, with Renji obviously being the prime suspect. The cliffhanger of possible murder is used frequently, but it still manages to keep the suspense for me. The next episode preview doesn't look to good either with all the blood. Still looking forward to it, though.