English Dub Review: Natsume’s Book of Friends “One Night’s Cups”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Natsume meets a yokai couple whom his grandmother had met. The couple specializes in making sake cups, particularly sake cups that add glorious tastes to whoever is drunk from them but then turn to dust after one night.

Our Take:

The fifth season of Natsume’s Book of Friends came to a mixed yet rewarding close last week.  However, there’s still the matter of its OVA specials packaged with season five.  I didn’t expect to look at one of the OVA episodes after reviewing the entire season, but here we are.  

One of the OVAs involves Natsume encountering another friendly yokai with a shared history with Reiko, or should I say, two friendly yokai?  Hatsuna and Hizuchi are a world-traveling yokai couple specializing in making sake cups.  However, these sake cups are unique, as they strengthen both yokai and humans who drink sake from them, but they disappear after one night.  The episode has Natsume assisting Hatsuna and Hizuchi in making sake cups and retrieving the water from Bousui Rock, which gives the drinker incredible strength.

OVAs usually provide something special in specific anime compared to their season episodes, whether regarding the story, the animation, or both.  However, “One Night’s Cups” just resembles any other episode from a season in terms of its structure, but that doesn’t deter my experience with how it turned out.  It’s another tranquil and heartfelt episode that doesn’t add much to its stakes but compensates for its peaceful nature and charming side characters, particularly Hatsuna and Hizuchi.  Don’t be surprised if I wind up reviewing another OVA of Natsume’s Book of Friends next week.