The happiest moment of Yuno’s life. Which of course happens when she’s holding a knife to someone’s throat.

And it’s the turning point of Yukkiteru’s life as well! I love how he’s more afraid of being Yuno’s girlfriend than he was of his friends trying to murder him. He is wise beyond his years.

Yuno Love

This episode is starting to capture why I love Yuno so much.

In a way, Yuno is admirable. She has clear goals (a happy ending with Yuki). She knows how to reach them. And she’ll do anything to achieve them. Yuno is a person who follows her dreams, no matter what. This is something we are taught to admire and strive for ourselves!

So what went wrong? Yuno takes this to far. She takes the noble idea of following your dreams to its logical conclusion. So what if the most effective way to reach your goals is in a way society finds abhorrent? The most important thing is to follow your dreams.

And Yuno does just that. She has no compunctions about murder and blackmail, if it’s for her love of Yuki. She’s perfectly willing to abandon other people to die. Like Kanba in Mawaru Penguindrum, she will do anything for the sake of love.

Of course, her love is selfish and possessive. But her devotion to her goal and to her love is true. She may be batshit insane, but once you understand her motivations, all of her actions are perfectly reasonable. It’s this that makes her personality so effective: she’s a crazy murderer, but she’s still understandable and a bit sympathetic. She can switch in a heartbeat from a gentle smile to tears to slitting your throat. And it’s all just different sides of the same coin. Despite being “insane”, Yuno’s actions are perfectly logical if you simply proceed from her set of priorities.

Jealousy

This was my favorite scene from the episode:

This has got to be the most afraid Yuno has ever been.

Further Thoughts

• Yukiteru continues to be pathetic. I think we’re well past the point of “let’s all be friends.” But his idiocy is part of his appeal, especially in contrast with Yuno’s plan to leave their friends for dead even before they were betrayed.
• Akise is great. I especially liked how he just flipped Yuno over when she tried to slit his throat.
• I thought it was hilarious when Yuno just casually knocked Yuki unconscious.
• So many knives in this episode! With Mirai Nikki, C^3, Ben-to, and Fate / Zero, this sure is a great season for crazy people.

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