Mostly Slice of Life, Partially Intrigue.
So, this episode is largely focused on Atri’s feelings, reinforcing how human-like she is in terms of personality and how dependent she is on being seen as useful to her master, which seems to be her primary robotic trait. Even as she relates to it in a more human way.
We also do a good deal of work rehabilitating Cathrine (the sketchy lady). First, we fish her out of the ocean, where she’s bobbing drunk, and for some reason our main character takes her in and tries to talk with her despite their last interaction involving friends held at knife-point.
This is interrupted by the episode’s drama, when a group of thugs initially thought to be Cathrine’s debt collectors attack, and Atri is given the order to team up with Cathrine (who seems to regret her former misdeeds) to take them on.
However, it turns out that the gang is here not for Cathrine, but for Atri herself. Their orders are to either retrieve her, or to destroy her if that’s what it takes. After they’re taken out, it’s revealed that the junk merchant is one of the game, seemingly driven both by greed and terror thanks to an unknown backer pushing him and his to do the deed for essentially “name your price” terms. We briefly see a guy with a robot hand watching as the goons are defeated, so that might have something to do with it.
The junk seller buys his life and freedom from any legal involvement with an arbitrary payoff to Catherine that should free her from her debt issues, and a load of batteries for our lead, which is exactly what was needed as of last episode to finish that whole “tidal generator, light the school” plan.
Which is what most of the rest of the episode is focused on, doing the work to put the generator in place and re-introducing Cathrine (known to the kids as Hana-chan-sensei) to the school. Ultimately, with several scenes for Atri’s personal character on the way, a test goes well, and the flourescent lamps at the school are once again switched on, allowing the kids to do things like read at night.
While charming and heartwarming in intent and at least a little in execution (it works), this does however seem to mark the end of an arc, without really introducing us to what our next situation or crisis is going to be. Of course, we have the shadowy forces gunning for Atri, but I somehow doubt that just having the gang randomly attacked by thugs with even fewer ties to anything is how this story is going to go. That sort of thing works as much as it does with shows like Bubuki Buranki that are centered in action, so just getting to the next fight is a goal. Atri is a drama with significant slice of life elements by my estimation (perhaps even a slice of life with drama elements) so there has to be some sort of setup and payoff. The arc that just finished had it, establishing the junk seller and his desperation to get Atri and using the attack to clear Cathrine’s debts and provide the needed batteries. It’s a fairly safe bet that the next arc will do as much.
As such, we’re kind of at a point where the next move is a big question mark. One chapter ends, another must begin… next week.