Durarara!! Episode 21

"At a Total Loss" is the twenty-first episode of the Durarara!! anime and the twenty-second episode overall.

Synopsis
Online comments pin the blame for recent crime in the city on the Dollars. Mikado visits Ryo Takiguchi in the hospital, who tells him not to feel guilty. Ryo decides to quit the Dollars, as the safety he felt in their invisibility is gone. When Ryo asks if Mikado is part of the Dollars, he yells that he is not. From her window, Saki watches Mikado leave the hospital. As he walks through downtown Ikebukuro, Mikado thinks on Izaya’s words to him about his need to keep evolving to escape the mundane. He passes graffiti that reads ‘The blue sky has died.’ He pulls out his phone and makes a call but gets no answer. At the Yellow Scarves’ headquarters, Masaomi ignores Mikado’s phone call. He is furious with Horada and his thugs for picking fights with members of the Dollars despite his orders not to attack. He repeats his orders for them to lay low until he contacts the leader of the Dollars. Around the city, small bands of Yellow Scarves corner members of the Dollars and beat them up. Shizuo Heiwajima bumps into a member of the Yellow Scarves, who yells at him until realizing who he is. As he walks away with Tom Tanaka, the Yellow Scarves talk about members of the Dollars who are not to be messed with, namely Shizuo and Simon. Still walking alone through the city, Mikado is approached by Kyouhei Kadota. He tells Mikado that it is unsafe for him to walk alone through town after his classmate was attacked. Kyouhei explains to him that other members of the Dollars are upset that their boss has not responded to the Yellow Scarves' attacks, yet when Mikado asks if he is a member of the Dollars, Kyouhei denies it. Mikado wonders to Kyouhei if the Dollars’ existence is necessary. Online, Mikado scrolls through the Dollars website, reading posts from members who are quitting the Dollars and avoiding Ikebukuro and some from members who want to fight back against the Yellow Scarves. Some members wonder where their leader is. Mikado sends a mass email saying, ‘I don’t think violence is the answer. Shouldn’t we wait for things to calm down?’ Online, members disagree with his words. In their apartment, Celty and Shinra discuss Anri and the gang situation, summarizing the connection between the leaders of the three factions. Celty expresses her wish for the three high school students to be all right.

Several days later, Ryo is back at school with his arm in a cast, and Mikado has not looked at the Dollars website since he sent the mass email. To himself, he expresses his wish to find peace in his normal life. Masaomi leaves school before Mikado and Anri can reach his classroom. As they walk home, Anri bids Mikado goodbye and runs in another direction, her eyes glowing red. In another part of town, a group of Yellow Scarves are beating up a boy who denies being a part of the Dollars. Suddenly, another member of the Yellow Scarves, his eyes glowing red, beats up the gang members. Around town, other groups of Yellow Scarves who are harassing Dollars members are stopped by their comrades with glowing red eyes. They state that ‘Mother’ asked them to stop the others from beating up members of the Dollars. Nearby, Anri watches with glowing red eyes. She asks other members of the Yellow Scarves to break up fights between Yellow Scarves and the Dollars. While running through town, she sees more clusters of Yellow Scarves members. Internally, she asks members of the Yellow Scarves possessed by Saika if they can hear her. Members from each cluster of Yellow Scarves look toward her with glowing red eyes. All over town, she meets with small groups of gang members and gives them instructions. From above, Izaya watches her dash through town through a pair of binoculars. Over the phone, he instructs Namie to move pieces on a game board in his apartment. In the Yellow Scarves’ hideout, Horada assaults three of the boys who stopped their fellow gang members from attacking Dollars members. Masaomi eventually puts a stop to the beating and questions them again. The three claim to have blacked out and have no memory of what they have done. One of Horada’s thugs mentions seeing them speaking to a girl shortly before turning on their comrades. Other Yellow Scarves mention seeing the same girl speaking to other gang members. They give a description of the girl, and Masaomi recognizes the girl as Anri. While walking through town, Mikado passes a group of students who resemble himself, Masaomi, and Anri in simpler times. He thinks about how big the city feels when he is alone and how the city only felt like home because he had Masaomi to show him around. He runs into Mika Harima and Seiji Yagiri, who want to speak with him. Mika asks about Anri, and Mikado admits that he has not noticed Anri’s recent odd behavior. Seiji advises Mikado to commit to Anri if he truly loves her and tells him not to let go of her, whatever he may discover about her. While walking through town, Horada and his thugs spot Anri. In his flat, Mikado agonizes over his ignorance of whatever is bothering Anri. On the Dollars website, he finds more members dissatisfied with their leader’s inactivity and the current affairs surrounding the Dollars and Yellow Scarves. As a normal user, he asks if the Dollars should still exist. Several members say there is no longer a point to their existence. Under the username MONTA, Kyouhei tells the other members not to 'rely on the boss when times are tough.' Another member recalls an old post of Mikado’s in which he suggested making the Dollars stand for something good. Other members rally around this idea, deciding to keep the city safe from the Yellow Scarves. Another member excitedly mentions seeing a group of Yellow Scarves in town surround a girl and quickly gives a description. Mikado recognizes the girl as Anri and begins to panic. In town, Izaya in amusement as Horada and the Yellow Scarves lead Anri away.

Chatroom

In a series of private messages, Setton tries to reassure Saika that none of the events in town are her fault. Saika, who has not figured the PM system yet, is responding in the chat. Kanra tries to correct her and shares rumors with her about the increasing amount of fights taking place in the city, to Setton's dismay.

Later on, Kanra enters the chat room to find it empty. He states that the game is starting to get good before exiting.

Referbacks

 * To the Dollars meeting in episodes 11 and 12
 * To Mikado's first day in the city in episode 1

Trivia

 * While several of the events in this episode are adapted from the third light novel, the majority of events are anime-exclusive.

Character Debuts

 * 1) Mikado Ryuugamine
 * 2) Ryo Takiguchi
 * 3) Saki Mikajima
 * 4) Izaya Orihara
 * 5) Masaomi Kida
 * 6) Horada
 * 7) Anri Sonohara
 * 8) Celty Sturluson
 * 9) Shizuo Heiwajima
 * 10) Shinra Kishitani
 * 11) Tom Tanaka
 * 12) Kyouhei Kadota
 * 13) Mika Harima
 * 14) Seiji Yagiri
 * 15) Namie Yagiri
 * 16) Erika Karisawa
 * 17) Walker Yumasaki

Cultural References

 * Kyouhei offers Mikado a drink called 'Red Snake' that has a label similar to the energy drink 'Red Bull'
 * As Mikado and Anri walk home from school, they part ways under the same billboard from episode 19 that features Chane Laforet from Baccano!, another work in the Naritaverse
 * While running through town, Anri passes two posters for Baccano!

Quotes
Mikado: "If I don't do anything, I'll have peace."

Seiji (to Mikado): "If you love her, then man up and commit to her."