English Dub Review: My Happy Marriage “My Mother’s Legacy”

Overview (Spoilers Below):
Yoshiro Usuba tells Miyo about how her mother came to marry her father—and why she made a decision that changed her only daughter’s life forever.

Our Take:
The plot thickens further for young Miyo as she recently discovers that she’s been holding a supernatural gift the whole time. But it’s not just any gift. It’s a rare Usuba ability, allowing her to enter and manipulate people’s dreams. Of course, Miyo’s powers are sealed away by her own mother, Sumi, who married into the Saimori family. So what caused Sumi to perform this questionable action on her daughter? Well, to no one’s surprise, it’s the goodness of her heart. As seen in a flashback, Sumi sealed Miyo’s Dream Sight into the cherry blossom tree to ensure she lives a normal life and protect her from those wanting to use it for nefarious purposes.
At first glance, “My Mother’s Legacy” seemed like an entire episode consisting of a flashback detailing Sumi’s origin and the estranged relationship between her and Yoshiro. However, the flashback only occurred in the first act, with the remaining episode dealing with Miyo’s stay at the Usuba house and her learning about the importance of family from Yoshiro. Not only was the flashback well-paced to avoid its unnecessary padding, but it further developed Yoshiro’s character as someone who isn’t as selfish as the Saimoris. Because Sumi left to marry into the Saimori family to save the Usuba business, Yoshiro is angered by her departure but is later saddened when he hears of her passing.
There’s also a matter of Arata, who strives to protect Miyo from harm. He even goes as far as not allowing Miyo to visit Kiyoka to apologize for what she’s done to him. This would’ve made Arata an overprotective nutcase who does whatever’s possible to fulfill their goal, but that isn’t the case. Arata’s actions are due to him making a deal with the Emperor to deliver Miyo to him so he can remove the Dream Sight from her. Thankfully, out of the goodness of his heart, Arata decides to go with Miyo to see Kiyoka, who’s badly injured by a Grotesquery.
“My Mother’s Legacy” displays Arata and Yoshiro as kindhearted and understandable characters who are easier to tolerate than the Saimoris. Even though her heart still belongs to Kiyoka, Miyo may have found a family willing to share that love with her. But, of course, Miyo’s happy life still isn’t complete without her husband, who lies unconscious after a challenging fight with the Grotesqueries. Based on its conclusion, I feel that next week’s episode will be a roller coaster of emotions as Miyo finally puts her powers into action to save Kiyoka.