Black Tea (紅茶, Kōcha) is the fifteenth episode of GARO: The Makai Flower. It is a recap of the first half of the season.
Synopsis
Gonza is interviewed by the media and cannot help but sing the praises of his young master, Crow and Mayuri. This becomes a problem as he almost reveals their secrets while in the spotlight.
Summary
The episode opens with a POV camcorder style view of the Saejima manor entrance with Gonza welcoming a guest into the house. He escorts the guest to the living room and tells him to wait while he prepares some tea. Gonza says he is surprised that there is a Makai news organization that wishes to interview him and feels honored. He then realizes the reporter is recording and at first tries to talk about himself, but the reporter gives silent disapproval and wants to know about his master. Clips of Raiga start playing and Gonza describes him as the kindest Makai Knight he has ever served among his three masters and that Raiga may become the most powerful to bear the title of Garo because he inherited his mother's kindness and his father's strength. He then says he thinks of Raiga more as a son or grandson rather than his employer. The reporter seems a bit frustrated and asks if Raiga has any secrets, to which Gonza simply replies that he has an obsession with details, but otherwise he has none. Gonza regains his composure after laughing and then tells the reporter that he had raised Master Raiga to be a well trained warrior and scholar.
The reporter then asks about Mayuri and clips of her start playing. Gonza talks about how she is helping Raiga try to seal Eiryth and her ability to seal Horrors. He then explains she is a Madou Tool, but he and Raiga see her as a person and treat her as such. He then goes on to say that her time with him and Raiga has made her grow as a person and she is being more open to her emotions and enjoying being alive. Gonza then says he has nothing else in particular that would interest the reporter about Mayuri, but hopes she will continue to be with the family in the future.
The reporter then asks about Crow, but Gonza says that is difficult for him to answer as Crow has not visited the mansion very often for him to get an idea of what he's like. He mostly hears about Crow from Raiga's descriptions. Clips of Crow play and Gonza describes him as a Makai Knight that acts as a spy on secret missions. While he does not know much about Crow, if Raiga trusts him then so does he. He then describes that Crow can fly and that he worries about his grim demeanor but Mayuri and Raiga are helping him be more open about himself. Gonza then tells the reporter about the time he saw Crow styling his hair and says that he is only human and acts like any young man would sometimes.
Gonza then says that is all he knows about the three before being asked what happened to Raiga's parents. Gonza at first does not want to talk about it as it is a painful memory for him and Raiga and it would not be appropriate for the interview. But he shortly gives in to the request and tells how when Raiga was six years old, his mother was sucked up into a black vortex in the sky and disappeared. Raiga's father went to search for his wife and entered the same vortex, never to be seen again. Gonza then tells the reporter not to put that in his story and forget he even heard it, saying that he hopes that his former master and mistress are alive somewhere. Gonza notices that the Reporter has not had any of his tea and that it has gone cold, he then tries to offer him something else before he hears Raiga and company enter through the front door.
Gonza welcomes them home but an angry Raiga asks why a Horror (the reporter) is in his house and draws his sword. Gonza is startled by this revelation and Raiga gets him away from the Horror as the camera moves around the room. The Horror tires to flee out the window only for Crow to block its path, it then tries to go out the door, but Raiga knocks him back with his sword as the Horror drops the camera on the coffee table. The Horror picks up the camera after dodging an attack from Raiga and Gonza hides behind Mayuri as the Horror gets cornered by the trio. Crow slashes the Horror which causes the camera to fly out of its hands again, bounce off the furniture and land on the floor in full view of Raiga as Garo and the Horror in a brief fight before the Horror is destroyed. Crow picks up the camera and it falls again, shutting off.
Later, a curious Mayuri turns the camera back on and holds it upside down. Zaruba says that the unnamed Horror they were tracking specialized in intelligence gathering. An embarrassed Gonza apologizes to Raiga about letting a Horror into the house and offers anything to make it up to them. Raiga forgives him and says he is just glad that Gonza is safe, asking that he makes them some tea. The three examine the camera, with Raiga trying to figure out the controls to erase the recording, Mayuri still curious about what a camcorder is and Crow trying to hide his face from the camera. The camera's recording is erased, but turns back on later with Mayuri holding it. Gonza returns with the tea and Zaruba berates him for letting the Horror in the house, but Raiga asks Zaruba to go easy on him. Zaruba complains that if Gonza was going to talk about someone, it should have been him. All three reveal that they watched the interview before erasing it, Raiga stating that he is not fussy, Crow says he simply practices good hygiene and Mayuri saying that there is nothing more to her.
Gonza apologizes again and asks that they enjoy some tea. Raiga tells Gonza that in his interview he left out one important person: himself. As clips of Gonza play, Raiga tells him that he is an important part of not just his life, but his grandfather's, father's and mother's life. The one family and friend that he can always trust and count on to give advice and support him. Raiga then enjoys his tea. Touched by his master's words, Gonza breaks down and cries and Mayuri puts the camera down on the tea tray after Raiga asks her to join them. Gonza then heartfully thanks everyone for their kindness, bows, and accidentally bumps the table which spills tea on the camera and causes it to short out.
During the credits, Mayuri enters the dining room and Gonza brings her some books to read. She sits down and begins to read, Gonza giving her some tea to drink as she enjoys her book.
Characters
- Gonza Kurahashi
- Raiga Saejima
- Crow
- Kaoru Mitsuki (Flashback)
- Kouga Saejima (Flashback)
- Mayuri
- Zaruba
Cast
- Raiga Saejima (冴島 雷牙, Saejima Raiga): Masei Nakayama (中山 麻聖, Nakayama Masei)
- Crow (クロウ, Kurō): Atomu Mizuishi (水石 亜飛夢, Mizuishi Atomu)
- Mayuri (マユリ): Natsumi Ishibashi (石橋 菜津美, Ishibashi Natsumi)
- Gonza Kurahashi (倉橋 ゴンザ, Kurahashi Gonza): Yukijirō Hotaru (螢 雪次朗, Hotaru Yukijirō)
- Madō Ring Zaruba (魔導輪ザルバ, Madōrin Zaruba, Voice): Hironobu Kageyama (影山 ヒロノブ, Kageyama Hironobu)
Suit Actors
- Garo: Makoto Ito (伊藤 慎, Ito Makoto)
- Horror: Daito Tanaka (田中大登, Tanaka Daito)
Trivia
- While the episode is a clipshow, viewers do get a little more info on Raiga and Crow's personalities. Raiga has an obsession for details such as the spacing of the chairs in his dining room and often tries to correct them. Crow likes to style his bangs in a mirror or window reflection when no one is looking and he is a bit camera shy.
- In the recap about Crow, Gonza says he has "never heard of a Makai Knight that could fly with wings". While Kouga could fly as Winged Garo, Gonza never saw him transform into that form or use it in the first series.
- This episode reveals what has happened to Kouga and Kaoru and why Raiga lives alone without his parents.
- This episode is shot in a home video camcorder style format, namely the camera of the Horror who is interviewing Gonza. Later we see things from the view of Mayuri, who is curious about the camera and uses it to "record" the rest of the episode.
References
External links
| Garo Series Guide | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||