REVIEW: ‘Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon,’ Episode 33 – Mayonaka the Visitor

Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon (Yashahime) is a fantasy/adventure anime from Sunrise. Having escaped her confrontation with Kirinmaru, Towa continues to travel with Riku and Rion as Moroha and Setsuna’s battles continue to unfold. But while Moroha’s battle is a straightforward fight, it seems there may be more to Setsuna’s situation than meets the eye in Yashahime Episode 33.

After providing the viewer with brief visits with Towa and Moroha, this week’s episode comes to focus purely on Setsuna and the Demon Slayers as they work to fulfill their contract to fend off a local Deity from taking the blessed object from a besieged village. This focus instantly uplifts this episode past last week’s entry, as we actually get enough time with Setsuna for the story to make real progress.

Yashahime Episode 33 further elevates itself past other recent episodes by connecting its story to the season’s larger narrative in meaningful ways. While no direct progress is made in the story, Setsuna takes some steps in her personnel journey that seem to get her closer to saving Rin from her linked fate with Zero. Again, I was happy to see that the writing hadn’t completely forgotten about this plot thread.

While this larger narrative progress was nice to see, the episode’s primary tale provides an entertaining story of its own. Opening with an interesting look at the Demon Slayers as a unit, we see the more strategic side of their training as the group prepares the village’s defense. As the fight unfolds, we learn the truth behind the attacks on the town and the motivation of Mayonaka. These revelations deliver some unexpected twists that came together to form an exciting and emotional tale. This excellent narrative delivery helped give Yashahime Episode 33 some weight to its story, making me feel invested in the story surrounding the village.

Another aspect of this episode’s narrative that has me curious is the show’s continued attention to Towa and Setsuna’s lavender-scented hand cream. Its presence is brought up repeatedly in both characters’ stories. With so much attention being paid to the unassuming item, I can’t help but think there will be some relevance to it later on.

Yashahime Episode 33‘s visual presentation does a solid job of bringing its story to the viewer. The battle at the village captures the moment’s action well while also keeping the events clear and easy to follow. The other aspect of the confrontation that the art does a great job with is the scale of the battle. While the Demon Slayers are once more confronted by Mayonaka’s Flame Bulls, there are far more of them than I expected to see. The numbers the defenders face give the battle a far greater sense of direness than it would have if the enemy’s strength were less significant.

When all is said and done, Yashahime Episode 33 manages to deliver an engaging story that not only makes the episode itself interesting but also gets the show reengaged with the larger narrative it felt like it had forgotten about over the last couple of weeks. Hopefully, future episodes will keep this narrative momentum going.

Yashahime Episode 33 is streaming on Funimation and Crunchyroll.