Review of Noragami Aragoto

Despite the fact that I stick to basically using a five star rating to simplify giving ratings and make it as suggestive as possible while also basically being a shorthand to quickly judge and group media together, I was really feeling like I had to justify something to myself on why Noragami Aragoto is a 5/5, 10/10, what have you. I don't think it's the greatest of all time or know if its the very best of its genre or whatever, but it really just clicks well. I think this is better than the first season and really don't have any major faults to giveit even if I don't have this great, personal calling to it like some other media. Which is fine, and also doesn't diminish how well this show is made. I don't have some deep analysis that needs to feel like some unique take to read this review or prove how smarter I am in some ways even if I can't describe my feelings accurately here. That would take more rambling writing.

The last season was basically about the troubles of bringing this group together and solidifying the relationships between Yato, Hiyori, and Yukine, as well as among the rest of the cast. This season is going through all it takes to keep that group together and have positive growth. And boy are they put through the ringer to keep up their 5 yen business and Hiyori's real-life narcolepsy problem. So, I like how the arcs connect together, the change undergone by the characters, and emotional punches along the way. The story of Suzuha and that damn cherry blossom tree which lines up with Yato's fear of being forgotten and needing to feel "useful" ands the end with Ebisu's own struggle with his reincarnation that leads him down the same path. Memory and forgetfulness and going back to do the same things over and over again as an inescapable behavior that everyone comes back to. And that's the subtext or recurring theme, motif, whatever. The two main arcs are a successful takedown of a more powerful force through a spy and sowing paranoia in the same way as the absolute best episode of BBC's Sherlock, The Reichenbach Fall (yes, I rewatched the series to judge it more carefully and it's the only worthwhile one) which leads to a difficult confrontation of past mistakes, and basically falling back on bad habits and literally going to hell to purge your sins before you can be accepted back into society and see your loved ones.

I just really like how it comes together. Yukine and Hiyori make the mistakes they basically swore they wouldn't do and play their part in saving Yato. The relationship between Kazuma and Bishamon really grew on me and I would have liked to see more from them. And while the ED is forgetful, the OP is an absolute banger that worked its way onto my playlist. So yeah, Noragami Aragoto, I liked it a lot. Go worry about plot holes somewhere else.