Episode 4 of MONOGATARI Series: OFF & MONSTER Season

This episode mostly consists of an in-depth discussion between Nadeko and Ononoki. The two talk about what has happened thus far, which is that Nadeko caught two of her former selves while the other two were mutilating Ononoki. The worst-case scenario that worries Nadeko and Ononoki is that Meek Nadeko would become a deity because of her closeness to deity Nadeko, leaving them to deal with two gods. But after examining all the hints, it seems like a red herring—a setup for an eventual climax.
All of Nadeko and Ononoki’s schemes and anxieties stem from their conviction that God Nadeko is in control. But what if the puppet master is none other than Meek Nadeko? All of a sudden, everything makes sense. For Nadeko, it’s all been a series of traps. Instead of being made to strip, Meek Nadeko delivered Flirty Nadeko her clothing and told her to go to school so she could use her seduction talents to capture contemporary Nadeko. If that didn’t work, Meek Nadeko would entice Nadeko to Araragi’s residence, where Wrathful Nadeko would be waiting, by running around naked. Then, using herself as bait so that God Nadeko might get the upper hand, she changed into a swimsuit as a backup to her backup in order to appear as helpless as possible but not technically in a crisis.

Stated differently, Meek Nadeko is wielding her apparent defenselessness as both a weapon and a shield. She appears to not be a threat, which allows her to manipulate both our heroes and her other selves. In the end, she is ultimately the essence of Nadeko, the source from which all others (including Current Nadeko) emerge. With only a year’s maximum age separating them all, it stands to reason that she would know the most about self-deception at its most fundamental level.

If Wrath Nadeko hadn’t taken her by surprise when she mentioned her current dream, Current Nadeko most likely would have realized this. Adeko just swapped out one obsession—Araragi—for another in order to get away from it. Beyond that, though, putting everything on the line to pursue a career as a manga artist is (at least partially) her means of escaping her previous behavior. She is deeply aware of this and fears that rather than putting in as much effort because she is passionate about her work, she is failing because she is unable to let go of the past and move on.

Having said that, Current Nadeko differs from Meek Nadeko and the others in that she has taken lessons from her past errors. She can overcome them because of this. She is aware of their mistakes and how to take advantage of them. That should be sufficient as she searches for her last two copies the following week.