Steins;Gate – 14

Even with all the doom and gloom going on in Steins;Gate, Kurisu still is a beacon of light for Okabe.  Her intellect, attitude, and thoughtfulness were again brought to the forefront in this episode and it’s about time we examine just how great a person Kurisu is.

It’s no surprise that Kurisu is one of my favorite characters in Steins;Gate.  Not only has she played an integral role in the whole time-travel aspect of the story and is a major romantic interest for the main protagonist but her personality allows her to do well in comedic roles.  And the cherry on top is her mysterious backstory with her father and Suzuha’s behavior around her.  She’s the most versatile female in the entire cast able to drive the scene in regards to the story, character development, or comedy, at sometimes all three.  That alone is enough to make her one of my favorite characters but what she did in this episode helps justify her cause to be my favorite (and hopefully yours too).

Her jokes, now, are the best in Steins;Gate.  It’s a complete reversal from earlier when Okabe was the only one who would get me to laugh, with his eccentric monologs and asinine laughs, and Kurisu was a one-trick pony calling anything and everything a pervert, a stage she thankfully outgrew.  Now Okabe has been reduced to a depressed and tearful character, not that I blame him after seeing the death of his childhood friend dozens of times, the spot had become vacant for most humorous character in Steins;Gate.  And Kurisu couldn’t have made a better entrance to fulfill that role.

Kurisu’s impersonation of our old, familiar Okabe might’ve been the most well-timed joke in the series.  It happen at a time in the series when the comedy of Steins;Gate had taken a backseat to the drama and mystery afoot.  The show had steadily waned away from its strong comedy in the first half and was nearly entirely absent in the previous episode.  But with that single line and signature laugh following, one of my favorite elements of Steins;Gate returned in a flash.  And the joke was great, too, showing the humor in Kurisu’s character.  Her impersonation of Okabe, both her voice and her visuals, were spot on for a return of comedy in Steins;Gate.  And not only that, but that impression had another effect.

Not only is Kurisu able to make us smile, through her evolved sense of humor, but she’s also able to inspire Okabe.  Okabe tried to deal with this certain calamity on his own, without help from his friends, and started to fall into an isolated and depressing world.  But Kurisu’s inspiring words broken through Okabe’s shell and showed him that he’s not alone in trying to solve this problem.  I doubt any other character would’ve been able to fulfill this role in the series, although you could make a case for Suzuha if you wanted.  And it turns out it was Kurisu who had the solution to help Okabe sidestep this repetitive sequence and actually progress in the story.  And not only that but it helped set up another comedic moment: when Kurisu cursed her future self for diverging some information about a fork and a spoon.  What a great character she is and I’m glad she’s so well represented in Steins;Gate.

Whatever happened to Faris Nyannyan?  After her D-mail changed all of Akihabara from an otaku-paradise to another uneventful borough of Tokyo, she’s been completely absent from the series.  All the other lab members are present in the current events, including Ruka, so I can’t help but wonder where our nekomimi maid went.  And also, since it was brought up in this episode, Mayuri still is interested in cosplay, but with May Queen Nyan Nyan no longer operational in Akihabara, I wonder where she works.  Does she commute to the new otaku oasis of Tokyo to dress up and read doujinshis?  I’m actually curious to see what other parts of Tokyo are like.  But when comparing it to the mystery at hand and the actions of the characters and time-travel, I can let my curiousity slide on exploring whatever timeline of Tokyo we’re in.  But I can’t help but wonder whatever happened to Faris.  Perhaps she’ll be play another integral role in the series in future episodes?  That’s almost certain, judging that we still have the entire summer to go until the finale, so the only question is when will she return?