Dark Gathering – Season 1 Episode 4 Recap & Review

Eiko Hozuki

Episode 4 of Dark Gathering begins with Yayoi realizing the picture Eiko showed Keitaro in episode two wasn’t his hand, but Eiko’s. Keitaro says he got him with the spirit who cursed him during his ninth-grade Summer and that it also affected Eiko. Keitaro ponders Yayoi’s offer because as much as he wants to be away from all supernatural activity, he’d like to free Eiko and himself from the curse.

Afterwards, Keitaro and Yayoi go on a college campus tour with Eiko since he and Eiko are finally starting their college journeys today. They arrive on campus. Many club holders beg Eiko to join their club. Keitaro vows to break out of his shell to receive the same treatment as Eiko. Keitaro confirms Eiko didn’t have any ill will toward him for affecting her with the curse he received. Eiko asks Keitaro to register for similar classes since she finished getting her new friends’ numbers. She tells Keitaro she isn’t joining their clubs because she’d rather take more classes with him.

Although Keitaro doesn’t want to register for the Urban Legends and Scary Stories classes, Eiko convinces him to attend the demo for each class. He knows she loved spooky things before the tragic incident. The instructor shows the class a spooky tape during the demo, and the person on the tape changes their appearance to look like Keitaro. Everyone but our three protagonists leave the room out of disbelief.

Yayoi’s monkey plushie that she put her, Keitaro, and Eiko’s nails in stays burning. This signals to Yayoi that a spirit’s present. She tells Keitaro they must eliminate the spirit or remove the curse before it burns through the plushie, and Keitaro dies a fiery death, as shown on the tape. Yayoi rushes to the VHS player and ejects the tape. She pours salt on it and uses one of her dolls to catch it. Yayo tells Eiko and Keitaor she can’t kill it yet, so they’ll have to stop the curse.

Yayoi places the doll in a box and in front of a mini tv. She’s going to force the spirit to watch the tape because anyone who watches it can become the victim dying in it. The spirit will dispel the curse to avoid danger. Yayoi checks the box after closing it because Keitaro gets affected by its curse. She asks Eiko to drive her home since she has another way of handling this spirit. Keitaro says he’ll handle the spirit since he doesn’t want the two to get hurt by the spirit’s abilities.

Yayoi questions why the instructor didn’t get affected by the spirit’s curse since he said he watched the clip many times. She speculates the spirit chooses who it wants to affect. Eiko comforts Keitaro about his guilt over Eiko getting cursed. She says she wants to handle this situation to pay him back for all the years he used his spirit-sensing powers to protect her. After executing Yayoi’s plan to get home, they make it there without issues, and Yayoi throws the doll-infested spirit into her room to let the others attack it.

Eiko takes Keitaro to the hospital and picks him up later. She tells Keitaro that Yayoi found the carcass of the spirit in the video. Eiko explains its origins to Keitaro and informs him that Yayoi “taught the spirit a lesson.” She tells Keitaro she can’t wait to start classes with him as Keitaro hopes he can continue protecting her from danger.

Eiko returns home and enters her Keitaro-themed room. She admits she loves spooky things and loves being with Keitaro. The episode closes with Keitaro questioning if he should accept Yayoi’s offer or not.

The Episode Review

This chapter gave fans a better look into Eiko’s character. While it doesn’t delve too much into her background, it at least gives fans an idea of how she perceives Keitaro. She has some Yandere-like tropes but isn’t fully one since she hasn’t displayed any murderous intent. Nevertheless, her obsession with spooky things and Keitaro is off-putting and jarring, in a great way. 

It adds more horror to the show, a field that could use some improvement. The spirit case for this episode was a bit underwhelming compared to previous ones in the spooky department but tackles themes like bullying in a decent manner. It’s a touchy subject, so it’s nice to see this anime bring it to light in its own twisted and unique way.

The spirit’s abilities will remind people of horror icons like Sadako from Ringu. Furthermore, fans will find Yayoi’s vast spirit knowledge impressive. Although we know she’s a smart young girl, this episode demonstrates her expertise in the spirit-hunting field. However, it’d be great if we received a flashback or two showcasing what Yayoi did to become as much of a professional as she is now.

Overall, this was a fun episode of Dark Gathering, and I’m looking forward to seeing what else our trio will encounter down the line.