Recap: Keita's Big Dream/Yokai Yakimochi/Bakezouri

Hello everyone. It has been more than a year since my last recap of Yo-Kai Watch, and things haven't really improved for the franchise outside Japan since then. Although some fans are still confident that Yo-Kai Watch 3 and the Blasters spinoff will release before too long; official word has been scarce as of late, especially given others' growing frustration over the series' official Twitter account. I still stand firm behind my decision: unless I get official confirmation of the third game getting a domestic release, I will not recap the third movie. Since the third season of the dub is starting, however, I will finish what I started; and start tapping my backlog beginning with this episode I've had on my radar for a while from the subs. So, let's open it up.

Skipping the intro, our first segment is "Keita's Big Dream." Apparently, during a hot night where Keita summons Baku to help him sleep. This leads to a "Star Wars" spoof where he casts himself in bit parts. Though the humor might not tickle my fancy the way Mel Brooks ' classic "Spaceballs" does, I do have an appreciation for the ensemble dark horse of each given movie or other fictional work. A well-done Jek Porkins anyone?

There is also a literal space cowboy known as “Han Zo,” riffing both legendary samurai Hanzo Hattori and Han Solo. Even with what Disney has planned next, I will just deal with it as it comes. Again, might as well enjoy being mindfucked for the next half-hour.

To think people gave Alden Ehrenreich so much heat.

He doesn't even give himself the role of director, instead choosing to be a stagehand to help cool off the guy who's the body double for this Darth Vader knockoff, Mr. Epockman. Not the worst gag I've seen here, but still nowhere near as hilarious as the real body double for Vader, David Prowse before they cast James Earl Jones to voice him.

I can't breathe in this thing!

At the risk of editorializing, before I move on, I will note that I finally figured out how to take screenshots on my mobile and my iPad mini 2. Not ideal, but it's workable for now. The next segment deals with the Yokai Yakimochi (Minochi in English), of the Isamashi class. It's a reasonably tough yokai in the games, and he made a decent wall in Fleshy Souls, even if he lacks the same teeth here.

Want proof? His actual power is once again thrown out the window in favor of just being the source of jealousy. This also causes Fumiko to move in with Keita to be closer to him, something Keita is strangely fine with. I will say that it's somewhat more amusing in light of Shadowside, though I won't say exactly why just yet. I'll get to that later.

Even when Keita tries to summon more yokai to deal with Yakimochi, they're apparently all jealous of him because of the power of... mochi. While Monster Rancher managed to make that a somewhat amusing monster, the approach of this anime dilutes a lot of the potential of the series. I am somewhat pleased that Shadowside is starting to rectify this.

Before Keita can do anything else about all the cliched bitten handkerchiefs, other yokai actually start eating Yakimochi before they present him with his medal! ... Well, that's a dark way to sell that toy. Not as dark as the 1986 Transformers movie, but I had no idea Himoji (Hungramps in English) had it in him.

As Fumiko heads home, this segment doesn't really end so much as abruptly segue into the next one. With the dub finally starting up again on July 2, I thought I would go through a similar pattern to how I first started in 2015 with this series: to work with one that's not too bad before I start dunking on the real shit. I never bent to anyone else's will before, I'm sure as Hell not going to do it with my final year underway for this blog.

So, we enter the final segment of this episode, "Yokai Bakezouri." We see Keita walking down the street, wearing a pair of flip-flops instead of his usual spangled zipper boots. This is a setup for him hearing footsteps, knowing something's up when he hears the feet of a mecha. We are then introduced to the Classical Yokai, Bakezouri (Pittipat in English), who resembles a straw sandal.

Bakezouri is another yokai who wants Keita's help in trying to make amends with a little girl, who he pulled a prank on by impersonating her mother. ... I know the anime says she's in the hospital, but that came dangerously close to why Scott Freeman got blacklisted.

Also. little side note; but why wasn't the yokai with the running shoe on his head called "Nekidspeed" instead of "Nikespeed?" It was right there! Hell, just call him "Shoe" and he'd go great with Roostor and Lantron!

Thankfully, before Keita can get involved and before Bakezouri can get any unintentionally creepy; it turns out that the little girl's mother really is all right as she runs into her arms! Note to self: rewatch My Neighbor Totoro again sometime, it's a better take on this plot thread.

While I've openly admitted that I'm not a fan of this franchise (more of a Pokémon/Ni no Kuni guy), part of me wanted to like it as much as the fans do. It's just that when the series just can't seem to get the Hell out of its own way to succeed outside its native country, I have little recourse but to just lament what could have been instead. It's particularly telling that not only is Level-5's own social media manager can't answer questions about the series (to say nothing of other IPs like Snack World), but even AbdallahSmash026, one of the biggest supporters for the series outside Japan; can't say for sure whether or not Yo-Kai Watch 3 or the Blasters spinoffs will be localized. Maybe it's some kind of NDA thing, but this interview; much like some rather cryptic social media posts have strung the fans along and raised more questions rather than answer ones they already have. You can see it here, and depending on what happens on the 27th in Japan, I might look at it in a future post if I feel like it.

Depending on what is announced with this mobile app, I might address their comments about this "timeline" after season 3 of the dub starts airing on July 2. It really is telling that even people who are fans of the series or who work for the company are hard-pressed to paint a good picture about the series. I will say for now that whatever it turns out to be, the idea that it will outperform Pokémon Go is laughable, especially with similar AR apps coming out I'm more interested in like Jurassic World Alive and the Ghostbusters app. I'm also enjoying Harry Potter Hogwarts Mystery, but that's not important right now. Although they say that "Yo-Kai Watch isn't dead here," it is on life support. I'm not writing a eulogy just yet for the series (especially with the 3DS being supported through 2020), but even I admit this a make or break year for it. Seriously, guys, slow your roll: no other franchise has pulled the trigger on a fifth anniversary aside from a joke. Though I still have a few candidates I'm considering for my next recap in my backlog, I still stand firm on my plan for the third movie: no recap without a domestic release of Yo-Kai Watch 3.

I am also working on my next piece as I type this, and depending on what happens while I watch the house this weekend, I will possibly consider reworking an older post that I had previously canceled last year.  I don't have the answer to what will happen next for the series outside Japan, much less a remedy for its woes as an IP in Western markets. All I have is a keyboard, and uncertainty. That's all for now. Bang.