It was sympathy that became the key differentiator between this and its predecessors, with characters and their respective stories having earned their worth for investment, a depth and a cause for reflection that had caught me off-guard. The titular character remains a distant observer, but this time her curiosity-stemmed questions are far more careful in their execution, as a striking balance is now found in the lives that are followed and her place within the narrative. Undoubtedly, that dramatic energy remains here, it is a pace away from the melodramatic coarseness that I had previously felt. Though it is now firmly evident that the intention for Orochi was to be simply a conduit for its anthropological and voyeuristic form, I had hoped that a greater depth of her would at some point be evident. At least, we are finally seeing a sense of heart, and arguably positivity, that was barely previously offered.