Episode 6 – Mechanical Marie

What’s up with Arthur’s school and the sheer number of weirdos who attend it? In this episode, we meet not just one member of the Teenage Geek Club, but two. First, there’s the hilariously titled women’s-only “Society for Want Arthur to Look at You Like Trash.” They pretend to strike up a friendship with Mary in order to get closer to Arthur, not because they see themselves as his potential romantic interest, but simply because they want to savor his expression of frustrating disdain. I’m not one to hate how delicious they are, but, well…ladies, that doesn’t sound like a healthy obsession. Once they realize that Mary loves him in a pure, “normal” way, that is, she’s not weirdly excited about him rejecting her, but is rejected by them. However, it was not until their leader’s nosebleed spread all over Mary’s face.

The second club, more threatening than the first, is the Robot Club, filled with mechanically bewildered male nerds who kidnap Mary in order to tear her apart. The only thing holding them back was that, predictably, neither of them had ever taken a girl’s clothes off before. Maybe if they gave girls his age in real life more of Arthur’s withering stare, they might have better luck. The funny thing about the whole Marie kidnapping thing is that she’s been “pretending” to not be a robot at school, but the nerds have “figured out” her “real” robot nature, making them doubly wrong about everything.

I found the whole kidnapping scene a little creepy in a show that usually feels much more harmless. The nerds even managed to (very slightly) damage Mary’s dress, so when Arthur rescued her, shockingly and horrifyingly, he had the tiniest chance of seeing her underwear! To give props to the show, even as Mary frequently high-kisses the numerous one-time antagonists who sneak into the mansion, we only see the hem of her petticoat. There are no unnecessary slutty panty scenes. Mechanical Mary! Mary’s panicked reaction to the possibility that Arthur might have a wandering eye is downright bizarre – for some reason she’s pretending to have lost her memory, which confuses poor, long-suffering Roy.

This leads to another rather bizarre sketch in which Arthur tries to jog her memory by lying to her, supposedly making her follow the “seven commandments of flirting” every day. Now, most of these are completely harmless (but would be weird if he actually believed she was a robot), like morning cuddles, holding hands, saying “ugh” while feeding him lunch, staring into each other’s eyes, lap pillows, and head pats. Taken individually, they’ve done most of it naturally, but the last mitzvah Arthur suggests is a kiss goodnight every day… which may be him crossing a line that Mary isn’t ready to cross. She rightfully scolds him for lying to her, something he generally despises in other humans. I’m not sure what to think of this short section. I guess this proves that Mary later revealed her lie about being a robot.

Overall, this was a weaker than average episode that I felt wasn’t very coherent and had some uncomfortable moments that I didn’t like. The first few minutes are the strongest overall, with Arthur explaining why he hates birthdays. This is completely understandable, considering that his birthday has been used as an excuse by his enemies to try to poison, maim, or murder him. I felt sorry for the poor guy, who could never accept a gift without question. At least he has Mary now, even if her attempts to bake him a cake are predictably cursed. I’m glad she’s someone he can trust, even if their relationship is currently based on lies.

grade:

Mechanical Mary Currently live broadcast
Crunchy roll.