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Mieruko-chan Episode 9 Review – Best In Show

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Mieruko-chan Episode 9 Review – Quick Summary

In Mieruko-chan Episode 9, “Things She’s Seen Before,” Miko Yotsuya is horrified to see that her substitute teacher is Zen Touno, who she had met before. Most of Miko’s female classmates think of him as a young, hot teacher. Miko, though, sees that he is surrounded by the ferocious spirits of dead cats. Can Miko protect Hana Yurikawa and Yulia Niguredou from this new, physical threat? Or is the situation even more complicated than that?

Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.

Favorite Quote from Mieruko-chan Episode 9

At least Hana had her priorities in order! Alternate caption: Yulia, moments before The Squish threatened to suffocate her! Capture from the Funimation stream.

Hana’s appetite is legendary. In case we forgot about that, the show treated us to several scenes of Hana on the “See Food” diet — she sees food, then she eats it. The chocolate-chip melon bread was probably the best example.

In this episode, the donut shop she and Miko frequented put on a haunted house. Any group who got through it would get 20 free donuts. Now, despite having an aura that is so powerful it serves as a cooking grill for apparitions, Hana is terrified by the very idea of ghosts. Yet, she wanted to go into the haunted house and earn her 20 free donuts. 

Seeing how scared Hana looked, Miko said they didn’t need to go into the haunted house if she didn’t want to. Hana protested that she absolutely had to go in!

“If you get the stamp at the end, you get 20 donuts for free!” she said (11:29). “I don’t have a choice in the matter!” 

Hana knows what she wants, and she goes after it even if she’s afraid! That’s admirable!

Best in Show Moment for Mieruko-chan Episode 9

Finally, Miko gets a moment to just be happy. Capture from the Funimation stream.

For the first eight episodes, we have watched as Miko struggled to keep herself from reacting. Every time she saw an apparition or a ghost, she had to stop herself from showing any emotion whatsoever. Even if an apparition sunk an axe into her skull, she had to keep her feelings inside. None of us know what would happen if she acknowledged she could see the critters, but she suspects it could be very bad.

In this episode, Miko got a break!

She, Hana, and Yulia went through the donut shop’s haunted house. As they encountered actor after actor dressed as a chainsaw-wielding maniac, Frankenstein’s monster, and more, Miko, out of habit, kept her reactions to herself. 

For the first part of their trip through the haunted house, Miko kept herself more or less expressionless. Capture from the Funimation stream.

Suddenly, as Hana screamed her lungs out beside her, it dawned on Miko. These were fake monsters. These ghosts weren’t real! When an axe-carrying clown jumped out in front of them, Miko let out what has to be the most adorable scream I have ever heard (17:01). The more creatures jumped out at her, the louder she screamed and the louder she laughed. 

Yulia, of course, misinterpreted Miko’s joy as sheer badassery. But seeing Miko finally, finally get a moment to just enjoy herself was awesome.

To top it all off, they made it through and Hana got her donuts. So, it was a good day all around!

What did you think of the creature following the new teacher? What were your favorite moments in this episode? Feel free to let me know in the comments!

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6 thoughts on “Mieruko-chan Episode 9 Review – Best In Show

  1. That haunted house part was really adorable. I don’t think anyone’s had as much fun in a haunted house as Miko. Generally, the show’s getting a bit repetitive for me, but when it hits it really hits home.

    1. Wasn’t it great to see her happy and laughing for a change?

      I’m wondering how/if the teacher will shake up the status quo.

  2. I tend to agree. That’s one of the good ghosts and I think its purpose is to somehow deal with the teacher, who may be a serial cat killer.

    Doesn’t Mieruko-chan still have one save left from the shrine cat? Wonder how it would feel about this guy?

    1. If “three” referred to number of saves, I think she’s used two, so you’re right.

      The reason I say “if” is that the Reddit thread for episode 6 brought up an interesting possibility:

      https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/comments/qop79k/mierukochan_episode_6_discussion/

      The thread mentioned that “three” might refer to the number of times Miko should have clapped during her prayer. The conjecture is that the spirit was trying to educate her. Not sure I buy it, but it was interesting to consider!

  3. I notice something. That female ghost was clearly trying to get at the evil substitute. She couldn’t do it, which, considering her zealous effort, indicates to me that Miko ought to generally have nothing to fear from the ghosts. However, then the ghost said, “Don’t look,” just in time for her to stop looking at the teacher, just barely before he looked back at her. I have a feeling that the ghost noticed Miko looking and actively tried to protect her. It’s something of a feeling meeting an observation when I say that had their gazes met, she would have caught his attention as a predator. It’s possible this ghost was murdered by him, and thus would know how it begins: with a shared look.

    1. I noticed that too (the ghost telling Miko not to look), too. The more I think about it, the more I think you’re right. It did seem like it was trying to warn her.

      The possibility that the ghost was a murder victim never occurred to me. But the evil substitute’s demeanor certainly suggests he’s capable of violence. His barely suppressed rage at Miko denying him the kitten did, too. And then there’s his entourage of outraged evil cat spirits!

      I like where this series is going, even if I’m not sure of its destination yet!

Please let me know what you think!

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