That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime S4 Ep 20 Review
Oh, I have been waiting a while for this part of Slime Tensura. Ever since season one, the series has kept dropping hints that there is something special about Chloe Aubert. That she has an important role to play. Well, if you’ve read the light novels already, then you know the story was setting us up for one of the best time travel stories in anime. If you thought Trunks’ attempts to save the future were crazy, then you haven’t seen what Chloe has had to go through for the sake of her beloved slime, Rimuru.
Hinata Really Hates Herself
The last episode of the anime ended on a very bleak yet mysterious note for anime watchers. Hinata apparently died saving Chloe’s life, only for her soul to disappear. And then Chloe vanished into thin air. Obviously, the two are somehow connected, and we are about to learn why. But first, we get a look back on Hinata’s life.
Despite many people in her new world calling her a hero, Hinata has never seen herself as one. The reason is that during her life on Earth, she had to watch as her dad became incredibly abusive due to falling on hard times. It got to the point where she straight up killed him to try to end the abuse. And this wasn’t an act of self-defense, by the way; we see her push him off a cliff in the anime. When her mom got worse, she started thinking she’d be better off as an orphan, but then she got isekaied. It’s something that she feels a lot of guilt over, and it’s that guilt that’s kept her from unlocking her full potential. And now she’s dead…or is she?
As it turns out, the reason why Hinata’s soul vanished is that it jumped into the body of Chloe. Then Chloe jumped 2,000 years into the past, and this is where she dumps the exposition on what the heck is going on. I could share a link to a video explaining it all, but I want to try and tell it myself.
Chloe can Time Travel
To put it simply, Chloe has a unique skill that has left her trapped in an infinite time loop thanks to the deaths of Rimuru and Hinata. Originally, the incident with Falmuth, with Rimuru never fighting Hinata and thus making it back in time to stop the massacre. Thanks to that, he never had a reason to become a Demon Lord which left him and Tempest significantly weaker. Five years later, the Eastern Empire invaded and destroyed Tempest, with Rimuru dying in battle. Yes, our OP Slime died. After that, Velodra crashed out and went on a rampage, forcing Hinata and Chloe to fight him, only for Hinata to die in battle. That, in turn, led to Chloe being sent back in time. She would then spend the next 2,000 events trying to change history to prevent Hinata and Rimuru’s deaths, eventually transferring her memories to her future self.
Since Diablo was never summoned, Tempest was completely different which led to the tragedy Chloe spent 2,000 years trying to prevent.
The endless chain is finally shattered in the current canon timeline. This loop becomes an anomaly because Rimuru does not die.#転スラ#tensurapic.twitter.com/yUOoUGcQQX
This was just the most recent time loop. She’s done this so many times that she can’t remember anything past the last few times. All she remembers is that every time, Rimuru and Hinata, the man she loves and the woman she sees as her role model, die. She thought that she had changed things by stalling Rimuru long enough for things to play out as we know, but then Hinata died prematurely thanks to Granville.
Put some Respect on Chloe’s Name
Now, time travel in the isekai genre isn’t a new concept. Arguably the best example of it has been found in Slime Tensura’s contemporary, Re:Zero with Subaru’s infamous Return by Death. And I do mean infamous, because if you have seen some of the ways he’s died, you are left in disbelief at the fact that he is still able to keep going! That is basically what Chloe has had to experience for who knows how long! The only difference is that Chloe isn’t the one dying; it’s everyone else she cares about.
DAMN… what an episode. 🔥 For me, this is easily TOP 3 Tensura episodes ever, 10/10.
Slime really is the GOAT of isekai for me. The story, worldbuilding, characters, lore and especially the rewatchability are all top tier. Bravo, FUZE. 👏
That…might be…some of the most impressive willpower that I have ever seen in a character. Chloe has been living through so much failure and loss and keeps trying. Most people would have gone completely insane having to go through all of that even once! I haven’t even watched Re:Zero, and I know that Subaru goes through absolute hell on a regular basis! But I think Chloe might have him beat when it comes to sheer willpower! And she’s doing all of this for the sake of her love, Rimuru. It’s genuinely sweet.
At any rate, now that she’s in the past, Chloe’s goal is to ensure that the future plays out exactly like she wants it to. First things first, she has to re-befriend Luminous Valentine, and she knows exactly how: warn her about Veldora’s rampage on her old city!
To make a long story short, it works. They’re not able to save the city, but they do get the people out and guide them to the place that will become Lubelious. Having secured the trust of her friend once more, Chloe then sets out to ensure that things play out the way she wants to get the future she wants. A future with her beloved Rimuru. And she even gives herself a new name that will be known by all: Chronoa.
Man, this is peak! What a great time to be an isekai fan!
Guys, I don’t know how Oda does it. I have no clue how he is able to create villains that are so rotten, vile, and despicable that their very existence offends me. But he just keeps doing it over and over and it works so well at angering me! Which only makes it more entertaining when they go down. But this? SOMMERS is in a class all his own when it comes to how much I hate him. And this episode reminded me of it!
BAD! THINGS! HAPPEN!
So, as seems to be the norm for this arc now, things just get worse. We saw Saul, poor Saul, get maimed by Sommers thorns, in the last episode. And this episode opens up with him getting stabbed in the foot. It’s like stepping on a LEGO but ten times worse.
This entire episode serves as a reminder of just how bad things are going to get from here on out, and honestly, I both love and hate it. And for good reason. It only makes their inevitable defeat all the more cathartic. But this arc really tries my patience, especially considering how likely it is that we will not see the comeback until next year.
Half the Straw Hats are Captured!
I love this interaction between Nami and jimbei. They have a certain grandfather/granddaughter dynamic lol and I love how Nami says "how could this happen with you jinbei" cuz she knows he's the most skilled and experienced fighters with being a warlord #ONEPIECE1177pic.twitter.com/oLxPIobI3G
Oh, and just to remind you guys of how bad things are, not only has Collun been captured, but now Brook, Jinbei, Nami, and Usopp are prisoners. The only solace I get is from knowing that this just guarantees that Luffy is going to kick all their asses. Then again, the act of kidnapping children is considered a capital offense in the eyes of the Straw Hats, so they were already going to do that. This just adds fuel to the fire.
What is most surprising, though, is something that I had almost forgotten about: Gunko’s fixation on Brook.
Yeah, Brook Knows Gunko
Now, the thing about Oda is that he tends to be great at foreshadowing. A random name he drops or a character’s habit can end up being an important plot device in the future. And if you recall, Gunko is a fan of Brook. So she tries to make him her slave and write songs for her forever like a yandere fan. But that’s not what’s interesting. It’s the way Brook reacts.
If you know Brook, then you know how he hits on women as much as Sanji does. It’s like his most well-known bit besides his bone jokes. So, and this was something I actually forgot, when Brook speaks to Gunko, he doesn’t make any jokes. He doesn’t ask to see her panties. Nothing; just dead seriousness. THAT is a red flag that something is wrong.
It would be some time until we learn the truth about the connection between Brook and Gunko, and trust me, it’s a tearjerker. But I really liked how the anime foreshadows it here. When Brook says that one thing that makes Gunko have a panic attack, you can tell that there’s more to her than meets the eye.
SOMMERS MUST DIE!!!!
Sommers, on the other hand, has nothing else to him; just pure, sadistic malice and cruelty.
So, by this point, the kids have woken up and realize that they are in trouble. The giant monsters is enough of a warning sign. But what Sommers does next is just pure evil. He has Qillingham broadcast everything to the island, list off the names of the kids being held hostage, and just enjoys seeing the despair on the parents’ faces.
But then, he gives them a choice that offends me to the core of my being: ordering them to burn down the school and library. The library where all the books from Ohara have remained safe for almost 3 decades.
Now, I couldn’t really care about the school, since I hate homework. But a library? When I was a kid, o spent most of my free time at our school libraries. It was my refuge, my safe space! And if Interntational Law didn’t already consider it, I would consider the destruction of libraries to be a war crime.
Now imagine how Robin must feel.
TARGET: SOMMERS. OBJECTIVE: EXTERMINATE!
Robin had to watch as the World Government destroyed her home of Ohara as a little kid. She couldn’t stop it from happening. But she will be damned if she lets history repeat itself! I was all in on Robin’s decision to join the fight. It’s time to go full gangster on these monsters!
Man, this anime is so good! I love One Piece so much! And I’m pretty sure it’s already out by now, but I hope that that crossover happy meal with SpongeBob is doing well!
I Give “A Despicable Hostage Game – Sommers’s Brazen Demands” a 4/5
So, fun fact about this part of One Piece: when we got to this point in the manga, I remember thinking “Maybe the Straw Hats have got this. I mean, they’ve all gotten crazy strong since Wano. Maybe they can handle themselves as a group against one of the God’s Knights. At least Jinbei could!” I was A FOOL. A COMPLETE AND UTTER FOOL! If there was ever any doubt that the God’s Knights are monsters, Gunko just shut that up for good. They are FREAKING TERRIFYING!
The Straw Hats just got clapped
I normally spend the majority of these reviews diving into the details about what happened in the episode. However, I think that I can summarize everything that happened with this simple description: a case study in the art of butt-whooping. Because that is basically what we spend the entire episode witnessing. With some of the best animation of the entire season, I might add.
I still remember the sheer shock I felt when I read these parts of the manga when they came out. I knew that the God’s Knights were strong, but seeing what Gunko managed to do to Nami, Usopp, Brook, and Sanji? It was straight-up demonic. They threw their best attacks at her, and she basically no-selled every last one of them.
Nami and Zeus’ combo attack? She almost fried Nami with it! Brook and Jinbei’s attacks? She uno-reversed them!
And the scariest one had to be how she tanked that attack from Usopp. She got her upper half blown off, and she just regenerated from it like she was Cell or Majin Buu!
There is a war coming
Now, I had already known at this point that Imu had granted his most elite servants some kind of immortality. If you saw the Egghead Island Arc, then you would know that. However, seeing it up close and personal like this is genuinely terrifying. I can’t even call the God’s Knights human. They’re demons, plain and simple! Why else would they be kidnapping children to force the grown-ups to fight for them.
If you’ve been up to date on One Piece lately, then you should already know that what Gunko was saying was true. There is a war coming on the horizon. According to the rumors, Oda plans on making a war so massive that it makes what happened at Marineford look like child’s play. Considering how that was the big war arc of the series until recently, that is terrifying! And I had already known that the Giants would be a tipping point in the whole thing. Hence why Imu is hellbent on making them kneel.
What else is there for me to say about this episode, save for the fact that the animation is ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS. I had imagined what these fight sequences might have looked like in my head, but to see them play out like this is just amazing! I love it! Even if the majority of this episode is about the heroes getting pounded into the ground by the God’s Knights.
There’s no getting around the fact that Elbaph is facing its greatest crisis ever. If the God’s Knights are not stopped, the Giants of Elbaph will be forced to become slaves to Imu. And I’ve seen enough Shonen anime to know that the only way that they can be stopped is if the main character pulls up. Sadly, that is not something that is going to happen anytime soon. Trust me; I’ve read the manga. I suggest you guys get used to things being bad for a while, you guys! But don’t you worry. That’s only going to make it even cooler when the Straw Hats counterattack.
I Give “The Threat of the Arrow-Arrow Fruit – Gunko vs. the Straw Hats” a 5/5
So, where are we with everything on Elbaph? There’s an entire branch of the great tree on fire. A bunch of sleepwalking kids are being led right into it and will burn to death. There’s an army of dream monsters wreaking havoc and keeping most of the grown-ups busy. Yeah, I can safely say that we are in the part of the Elbaph arc where things are going to get worse before they get better. But at least we don’t have to see a bunch of kids burn, thanks to Jinbei. And we just got our first set up for what is going to be one of the GOAT characters in One Piece.
Jinbei saves the day
Instead of talking about the episode in order, I’m going to focus on the second half first, and then go to the first half so I can talk about what’s happening there. The second half of the episode is focused on the threat of that massive fire that’s threatening to kill the Giant kids: it’s too big! The fire brigade has managed to make it to the flames, but it’s glaringly obvious that what they have isn’t going to be enough to stop the flames. And the tension as we see the kids inching towards the fire is sickening. Death by fire is said to be one of the most painful ways to die, and these are just kids! And that monster Sommers is watching the entire thing like he’s getting off from it! It’s horrifying!
But thankfully, Jinbei, our GOAT, comes in clutch to save the day.
This is why I consider Jinbei to be one of the strongest of the Straw Hats. I have lost count of how many times I’ve seen him save Luffy and the others over the years, and that includes emotionally! The man is just amazing!
Too bad that the arc dictates that things are only going to get worse from here. Gunko shows up.
But what I really want to talk about is the first half, as Luffy and the others are helping Loki heal up. Well, everyone else is. Luffy…just makes things worse.
LUFFY HANDING OVER SOME MEAT TO LOKI AND PUTTING ON HIS FACE WAS SO FUNNY😭😭😭
Now, Hajrudin and his crew don’t like Loki, and the feeling is mutual, but despite his namesake, he wasn’t lying about Shanks. I think he really does have an idea where Luffy’s mentor and hero might be. Plus, he wouldn’t lie about something like that, for he knows what it’s like to have a pirate they look up to. The only difference is that Loki’s role model was a scumbag. Awesome, but still a scumbag.
Rocks. D Xebec. In a series that is filled with GOATS, that man is a serious contender for the GOAT of GOATS. Manga readers already know this, but this long-dead pirate has become the subject of so many memes. Some people are even saying that he’s even greater than Gol D. Roger, the man who became the King of the Pirates. Now, we didn’t know it at the time of the manga, but this one scene was setting us up for one of the greatest flashbacks in the entire series. A flashback so great, we got a flashback in the flashback about Rocks specifically, all leading up to one of the most defining moments in the series’ lore: the God Valley Incident.
And get this: it’s going to be made into a movie.
Next year, when the anime comes back and we will presumably head into the flashback part of the arc, they are turning the big event, the God Valley Incident, into a movie! They reached something so amazing that Toei decided to do what Demon Slayer did for Infinity Castle. How epic is that?! Having read the manga myself, I can confidently say that this was the correct decision. It’s too big an event to be confined to the span of a few episodes!
I Give “Elbaph in Flames! Jinbe’s Shoulder Throw Explodes!” a 4/5
We all knew that this was going to happen eventually…but it still hurts. Why did we have to lose Mike McFarland so soon?
Mike McFarland brought so much to all of us who knew him, and to all of the anime fans who knew his work. He was an incredible talent, a good friend to so many of us, and will be sorely, sorely missed. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/dgdyBc93Ph
Even if you don’t know who Mike McFarland is, if you’re a fan of Dragon Ball, One Piece, or Fullmetal Alchemist, you’ll know the roles he’s played. We all know Master Roshi, Yajirobe, and Buggy the Clown. Heck, if there were a council of wise old mentors to shonen protagonists, he would be the chairman. And he would also be a proud member of the dirty old men club, no shame whatsoever. But he was also pretty well-known behind the scenes, serving as a director, scriptwriter, and voice actor. Needless to say, he was a pretty big deal. Which only made it harder for fans and those who called him friend when he learned he had cancer.
In January of 2025, we freaked out when we learned that Mike was in the hospital for a brain tumor, but they got it out. So we hoped that it was the end of it. But then in August, we learned that he had glioblastoma, AKA the worst form of brain cancer you could have. And we knew that Mike didn’t have long for this world. Even so, we all pitched in to help him. His friends set up a GoFundMe that managed to raise almost $270k. They got him the best care. And then, we didn’t hear about him for months. I hoped that he had beaten the odds and had a few extra years left. But it wasn’t meant to be.
How I found out…and Felt Sad for Aaron
I was getting up to go to the bathroom at around 1:00 am when I got a message on Discord from one of my friends who broke the news that Mike had passed. Even though I should have been sleeping, I checked online and saw that it was true. The OG VA for Bulma confirmed it herself, from what I heard. Knowing that Donte and Aaron, the people who founded this blog, were even bigger Dragon Ball fans than I was, my first instinct was to tell Aaron about this. I quickly dm’d him and broke the news, knowing that I would have to write this post about it. And the worst part wasn’t having to tell him the news; it was seeing his reaction. He said that it was just a rumor and that there had been no official word that Mike had really died, and my heart broke as I read his messages. I wanted it to be a rumor, but I could tell he was in denial.
And frankly, I don’t blame him.
Like I have said multiple times, I didn’t spend my childhood years watching Dragon Ball on Toonami. I was too young! I didn’t even get into Dragon Ball until my teen years watching DBZ KAI on Nicktoons (not sorry.) But I knew how much the characters have meant to people, and I can totally see why. Roshi may have been a pervert and would likely be on some kind of list in real life, but he was also a wise and supportive mentor, and while he wasn’t the first, it was ultimately Mike McFarland’s portrayal that defined the character in the West. So, I hate that he had to go so soon.
This also wasn’t just an isolated event, either. This was like the latest in a series of celebrity deaths that have hit us hard this year.
Two weeks ago, we lost three major celebrities in the span of three days. I didn’t know Dolly Parton that well, but I loved Tim Curry and his work over the years. But losing Peter Cullen? Losing the OG Optimus Prime, the guy responsible for making him so beloved that kids were traumatized when Hasbro killed him in The Transformers: The Movie in ‘86? THAT HURT! Especially since his role as the announcer was a big part of what made Toonami so successful in its first run.
What I’m trying to say is that we are all sad about Mike’s passing. Our thoughts and prayers go out to our fellow anime fans, the people who worked with Mike, and his family. I wish he hadn’t had to go so soon, and I hope that whoever they get to fill his shoes does him justice. Now go, Master Roshi. Go to that big hot spring with beautiful ladies in the sky!
So I was scrolling through YouTube a few days ago during a lull in my day job, when I saw this clip Crunchyroll posted for this anime that came out in July, Red River. It’s an adaptation of a 1990s shojo manga that was apparently pretty popular back in the day, if the Internet is to be believed. Intrigued, I wound up researching it over the next few days, and I have to admit, I can see why the comments on YouTube are upset with Crunchyroll for not promoting this. I can also see that the anime is lowering the bar for what is, for all intents and purposes, the shojo counterpart of Inuyasha.
What is Red River?
Released from 1995 to 2002, Red River is a time-traveling Isekai about Yuri Suzuki, an ordinary girl from modern-day Japan who’s just about to enter High School (college in the anime). Right as she and her boyfriend are walking home together, these tendrils of water shoot out of a puddle, and before she can even cry for help, she gets sucked in. When she awakens, she’s no longer in the land that she knew, or even the time she knew.
To her misfortune, Yuri has been dragged three thousand years into the past, to the heart of the Hittite Empire that ruled what is now modern-day central Turkey. The reason is that this evil Queen, Nakia, wants to use her as a blood sacrifice to kill all her stepsons so that her actual son can become the next king of the empire. Luckily for Yuri, she managed to run into one of those princes, Kail, before getting captured, and he realizes his evil stepmom’s up to something. So he saves her by lying that she’s his new concubine, taking her under his protection until they can find a way to get her home. And when Yuri blows her first chance to go home to avenge a servant boy she befriended, she’s stuck in the past for a whole year with Kail. And with Nakia still after her, she has to keep up the ruse of being Kail’s lover while learning how to be a warrior in a world that’s harsher than the one she knows.
To top it all off, Kail tells everyone that Yuri is the incarnation of Ishtar, this goddess of love and war. So, no big deal.
This has SO MUCH IN COMMON with Inuyasha!
I wasn’t joking when I called this series the shojo manga equivalent of Inuyasha. Besides the two of them releasing around the same time in the mid-90s, they share a lot of similarities in terms of premise and the main characters. And that is both to their benefit and their detriment.
Firstly, we have the lead heroines, Yuri Suzuki and Kagome Higurashi. Both of them are young, compassionate, and spirited Japanese schoolgirls around the same age, though Yuri gets aged up to 18 in the anime. Thanks to forces outside their control, they are transported into a distant past they are not prepared for and become the target of evil forces. Kagome is hunted by Demons who want her dead or the shards of the Shikon Jewel she’s searching for, while Nakia wants Yuri dead so she can take over the Hittite Empire. So to survive, they both come under the protection of the lead heroes and other allies as they learn how to get stronger. And in doing so, they become powerful and respected badasses: Kagome becomes a skilled archer and priestess, while Yuri masters swordsmanship and the art of war.
The only real differences between Kagome and Yuri come down to their circumstances. Kagome’s the reincarnation of the well-regarded priestess Kikyo and can go back to her time whenever she wants. Yuri, on the other hand, is not actually the incarnation of a goddess and doesn’t have the respite Kagome does. So she’s got it harder.
At Least the Male Leads are Different
Then we have the lead heros, Inuyasha and Kail. Honestly, there’s very little similarities between them. Inuyasha is a half-Demon with the powers that go with it, and is brash, crude, and aggressive by nature. In contrast, Kail is handsome, refined, and known as a playboy who refuses to be tied down. The only real similarity between them is how their relationship with the female lead starts out: Kagome and Yuri can’t stand them at first. But like it or not, they are forced to work together to accomplish their goals, and it goes from there.
Plus, there’s also the fact that the more time each pair spends with each other, their relationship grows. They go from dislike to respect and friendship, and eventually, maybe even love.
Which brings me to something about Red River that I think people should be warned about: the mature aspects.
Trigger Warning: DEPICTIONS OF SA TO FOLLOW
I never read the manga, but one thing I remember happening a lot in Inuyasha the anime is how often Kagome was captured or targeted by the bad guys. Often it was because she could locate Jewel Shards or for her immense spiritual power, but there were also instances where people did it because of her beauty; sometimes both!
And Yuri? Imagine the same thing, but worse.
It should be important to note that, while Kagome and Yuri are already considered attractive by modern standrards, that doesn’t initially translate over when Yuri’s stuck 3,000 years in the past. Due to her small size, slim figure, and preference for more masculine clothing (some even mistake her for a boy), Yuri is initially not seen as beautiful by the Hittites. That’s already changing in the anime as she makes up for these perceived shortcomings with her fiery spirit and growing skill as a warrior, making more and people see her as beautiful. Which isn’t a good thing, as it leads to several men starting to want her for themselves, with Kail the biggest culprit.
The first thing Kail does when he meets Yuri is kiss her. Granted, it was so he could hide her from Nakia’s cronies, but still. Then he saves her life by lying about sleeping with her, which she is forced to go along with, which is embarrassing. And to keep up the ruse of being his concubine, the two of them have to share a bed together. And, being a young man, it doesn’t take until the second episode for Kail to try and make that fake-concubine thing the real deal. He stops when she says she has a boyfriend back home, but that doesn’t stop him from repeatedly kissing her.
That’s also not even getting into the other guys end up falling for Yuri, most of whom are even less willing to restrain themselves.
The bottom line, due to this being a product of the 90s, and that Yuri is stuck in a time when morals aren’t as high as they are now, parts of Red River haven’t aged gracefully and will likely upset people.
Oh great, it’s like TBATE All Over Again
But enough about that. How is the anime itself? Given how its fans have waited thirty years for it to get adapted, it has to be amaz-it’s mid.
I’m the kind of person who focuses more on the story itself rather than the animation, but ever since the disaster that was The Beginning After the End, I’ve become more aware of bad animation. While this series is nowhere near as bad as TBATE was, it’s not as amazing as it could be. When we get our first large-scale battle, it relies on bad CGI to animate the soldiers, which is a bit of a turn-off. Or when Yuri defeats one of Nakia’s minions that was hunting him and everyone is proclaiming her to be Ishtar, it’s just a handful of soldiers in the anime instead of the large crowd in the manga. It may not seem like much, but if you have read the manga, then you’ll know why older fans are turned off by it.
There is one other thing about the anime that I’m not a fan of, and that’s the censorship, but not for the reason you think. I understand that many of the mature scenes and depictions of dubious consent and assault aren’t going to fly today. I can also understand why the studio would want to tone down things like nudity. The problem is that the show only goes halfway. It should either keep everything to satisfy the fans, or go all the way with the censoring. Compromise can be good, but there are times where doing so will upset everyone.
There are about 7-8 episodes of the anime out by the time this goes up, and it has 28 volumes of manga to cover. That’s not enough time for a 12-episode anime to cover everything, meaning it would need to come back for more season. Those seasons, though, won’t happen if the show doesn’t do well, and so far, that seems to be the case. Even I’m not that overly interested in it, with most of it being due to me liking tomboys like Yuri.
The manga, on the other hand…
After learning about the anime and what it’s about, I wound up going online to find the manga it’s based on. I then proceeded to binge-read the majority of it in the span of a few days, and I have to say…wow. What a story.
Firstly, the artwork is absolutely gorgeous. Far, far superior to what the anime has given us so far. I can totally understand why the older fans are upset with the low quality of the anime, even if it does capture Yuri’s cuteness well enough. And the story! It’s a geopolitical story in the vein of things like Game of Thrones that spans the ancient Near East, and one that Yuri has to carefully navigate her way through to survive. And she doesn’t make it through without suffering plenty of loss and hardship. Plus, the relationship between her and Kail does become genuinely sweet to watch. I have a soft spot for good love stories, you know.
There are Still Some Issues, but Nothing’s Perfect
The main criticisms that I have about the manga, though, besides the adult stuff, center around the plot holes. For example, around the halfway point in the story, Yuri hardly thinks about her family and boyfriend back home in favor of the life she’s built in ancient Anatolia. She doesn’t even get the chance to say goodbye, let them know she’s alright, or give them some form of closure. And then there’s Nakia’s plot, to begin with. Why does she need Yuri specifically? For that matter, why did she need to kidnap someone from 3,500 years in the future when she could have gotten someone from her time? And she just keeps persisting in her attempts to kill Yuri when a more pragmatic person might cut their losses and send her back. She’s not that interesting as a villain.
And there’s also the setting itself. I’m not sure if Yuri knows this, but by the time she gets sucked into the past, the Hittite Empire’s days are numbered. Around 150 years later, it and most of the societies in the region will enter the Bronze Age Collapse that will take centuries to recover from. So, it makes the ending very bittersweet in nature.
Despite all of this, though, and all the faults I found, I couldn’t help but like Red River. It was such a page-turner that I couldn’t stop reading it, even if it gets repetitive after a certain point. It really did remind me a lot of Inuyasha, and I’m grateful for that. Plus, it did give me some ideas for when/if I ever decide to try my hand at my own historical isekai. So, go watch the anime if you’re up for it, but I think that the manga is a much better use of your time.
Oh, boy; I remember this part of the Elbaph Arc in the manga all too well. This is the part of the story where everything that can go wrong does go wrong for the good guys. I know that it seems like a few things did go right for the Warriors of Elbaph, but mark my words: the show is lulling us into a false sense of security. Need I remind you that not only does Elbaph have to deal with the fire, kids being abducted, and the God’s Knights, but the GIANT MONSTERS? Who, I might add, are incredibly well animated!
The MONSTERS ARE COMING!
The episode starts off by reminding us that not all of the Straw Hats have gotten the message about what’s happening. Besides those in the Underworld, the only one who still wasn’t in the loop was Franky, as he’s with Collun’s mom and ends up running into Lilith and Bonney. They got lost trying to get their papers, and wound up finding this weird, sci-fi looking building.
To this day, we still have no clue what this place is supposed to be, if it’s even a building to begin with (it looks like a robot to me.) All we know is that it’s around 3,000 years old, making it older than even the stuff from the Void Century. Knowing Oda, he will eventually enlighten us on its importance. In the meantime, the quartet are attacked by one of the dream monsters!
I just want to say this: the animators for the dream monsters cooked. The animation for One Piece has gotten some notable improvements over the last few years, but they really knocked it out of the park with the dream monsters. The way they’re so crudely drawn really makes it seem they’re something that a kid created. The fact that they are all so powerful and deadly only makes the contrast even more unsettling. Even worse, though, is that nothing the heroes do seems to put a dent in them! Even the adults of Elbaph are struggling to stop them.
And that’s why the Straw Hats have to get involved.
NO ONE HURTS KIDS WHILE THE STRAW HATS ARE AROUND
Nami comes clean about the intruders in the Castle, and between her and her crewmates, our protagonists are able to get a better idea of what’s happening. They know that there’s two or more intruders on the island, and that they have Devil Fruit powers that are causing this chaos. It’s not a lot, but knowing the enemy you’re facing is half of the battle. Too bad Jarul and the other Giants insist their guests not put themselves in harm’s way!
But, since the Straw Hats have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to hurting kids and those they call friends, they’re going to get involved. Which leads to this cute moment where they catch Collun going off to help and decide to enable his plans.
Meanwhile, the God’s Knights are watching as Saul tries to save the kids from the burning inferno that awaits them, and for a moment, he thinks he figured out a way to stop them. But Sommers, curse him, is truly sadistic. Even if they try to stop the kids, they’ll run into each other and hurt each other with the invisible thorns. It’s monstrous!
In case you guys haven’t figured it out, I loathe Sommers with every fiber of my being. He’s one of the few characters in fiction I consider so evil, so monstrous, that the very thought of them breathing feels like an offense to all I hold good and dear. At least Gunko went down on my list because of her love of Brook’s music. That makes her cultured.
Ultimately, the episode does end on a bit of a high note as Dorry and Brogy take to the field and annihilate one of the dream monsters with their combo attack. And for good measure, Scopper Gaban is coming with them!
Full disclosure: I don’t know if Dorry and Brogy could make a dent in the likes of the God’s Knights. But Gaban? Gaban could take them on. I’m really looking forward to seeing what a legendary pirate is capable of when they cut loose!
I Give “Save the Children! The Elbaph Warriors Rise Up” a 4/5
Elbaph is under attack. The God’s Knights Gunko, Sommers, and Qillingham are trying to abduct the children of the Giants to force their parents to submit to their dark master. If they are not stopped, all of Elbaph will be enslaved. And the irony of all this is that the guy who feared this would happen is trying to intimidate Luffy and his group into setting him free. Like I told you guys, there is more to Loki than what his name implies.
THE GOD’S KNIGHTS ARE THE WORST!
By this point, the teachers at the Walrus school have begun to sound the alarm: Elbaph is under attack. And I can appreciate the fact that the anime finally lets us see the horrified reactions of all the grownups that were partying with the Straw Hats. Some of their kids and grandkids go to that school. Knowing that your child is in mortal danger is one of the scariest parts of being a parent, and while Jarul may still be drunk and acting goofy, that does little to lighten the mood.
As for the culprits behind this attack? They are nonchalantly eating lunch while watching everything go down l. And all the while we have to listen to Sommers the sadist laugh about the love of a parent for their child will lead to them getting killed thanks to the thorns he placed on the kids. And he’s laughing about it like he’s the Joker! And when they all realize the kids are walking into an area that is currently on fire, they don’t care. They just say they can grab the next batch of sleeping kids!
You see why I hate the Celestial Dragons so much? With a handful of exceptions, they are the worst of humanity personified, and I pray for the day they get brought to justice. But for the moment, I’ll settle for the Straw Hats kicking their butts. But to do that, they need their strongest members to join the fight and they’re dealing with Loki.
I Told You Loki Was Bluffing!
When we last left off in the Underworld, Loki was threatening to set the Treasure Tree Adam on fire unless he was fully set free. Doing that would put all of Elbaph in danger, something that neither Luffy nor Hajrudin could not allow. For a moment, it looks as though Luffy and Loki are about to fight, but it turns out that that was never necessary.
Loki gives a choice: uncuff him and let him go – or they all die together. ⚡️ After unleashing his power, Luffy jumps into action to attack Loki…
Remember when I said that Loki wasn’t as big of a threat as he seemed to be? That’s because I read the manga and knew what would happen next. However, even if I hadn’t read it and went into the episode blind, it was pretty obvious to the more astute people that Loki was bluffing. He just got badly injured by Shamrock and Gunko and has had no time to recover. The anime even drops subtle hints that he’s running on fumes with the way he’s holding his hammer, which I appreciated. Besides, if Oda really wanted Luffy to fight Loki, he wouldn’t have it happen when the latter is this weak. He might tease us a lot, but not to that extent.
In the end, the group decides to spare Loki and get him back to fighting shape. All except for his older half-brother Hajrudin. He remembers how their dad told them how he loved them both and wanted them to work together for the good of Elbaph. But Loki was such a huge bully that he can’t forgive him, and even tries to kill him whenever he has the chance.
That’s when Loki decides to drop this bombshell about the crime that got him imprisoned, ie killing their father: he never wanted to do it.
How did Harald Really Die?
When this came out in the manga, fans had already been theorizing that there was more to the death of the late King Harald than what was initially revealed. The fact that there was that summoning circle in the ruins of his castle was a massive red flag that something was seriously up with the story. Plus, there was also the man’s name: Harald. I remember reading a Twitter thread mentioning how that was the name of Kings who united Norway and Denmark, important parts of the Viking world. One of them also introduced Christianity to their land, beginning the eventual transition from the old Norse Gods to Christianity. Savvy readers picked up on this fact and came to a startling conclusion: Harald might have attempted to give the World Government control of Elbaph, either of his own accord (making him a traitor) or against his will. Loki found out, and was reluctantly forced to kill his father to stop this from happening.
Now, what Loki said can be taken with a grain of salt thanks to his reputation for tricking people. However, I didn’t think he was lying in that instance. The most telling piece of evidence, though, has to be how Luffy is reacting to all of this. The guy is an idiot and can’t do a lot of things, but he’s always been a great judge of a person’s character. If he thinks that Loki can be trusted, then we should give him the benefit of the doubt. Just…just don’t uncuff him. We need to be compassionate, not stupid.
Well, guys, we are now in the thick of things, and I have no idea how far we’ll get this year in the anime. But if it ends where I think it does, then next year is going to be awesome.
I Give “A Nightmarish Game – The Dark Plot of the Knights of God” a 3.5/5
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation S3 Ep 9 Review
I am sick and tired of the vile accusations that our dear Sylphiette is somehow responsible for Nanahoshi coughing up blood. We knew it wasn’t Sylphie’s fault, so why are we making memes about it?!? Even Rifujin, the author of Mushoku Tensei, is getting in on it!
In all seriousness, though, we know that Sylphie didn’t do this to Nanahoshi; she’s Rudy’s Goddess of Love for a reason, after all. This is just our way of coping with what has happened to her. And, as this episode confirms, this isn’t the kind of problem that can be solved with magic. If Nanahoshi wants to survive, then Rudeus and the others need to find her a cure.
DON’T DIE, NANHOSHI!
Three days after Nanahoshi collapsed in a pool of blood, her condition begins to stabilize a little. Perugius’ familiars are skilled at their work, but there is only so much they can do. At the very least, they confirm what Nanahoshi’s suffering from: Dryne Syndrome. In a nutshell, her body’s unable to neutralize the mana saturating this world, and it’s been slowly killing her. If I had to compare it to a real-life counterpart, it feels a bit like radiation poisoning. Since Nanahoshi has no mana, this means that she’s suspectible to it. And if nothing changes, she’s going to die.
What happens next can only be described as one of the most valid crash outs in the history of crash outs.
This moment is one of the reasons why I consider Mushoku Tensei to be one of the best isekai of all time. A lot of isekai treat coming to another world as a form of escapism and act like it’s a good thing. But the truth is, not everyone will see it like that. Nanahoshi was happy with her life back home. She misses her family, her crush, her friends, modern technology, everything. And she was summoned to this world without being asked or even wanting it and has had to work hard to survive.
I think a lot of our hearts went out to Nanahoshi in this moment. A lot of us may see isekai as a means to live the lives we have always wanted, but for every person that would thrive in another world, it feels like there will be plenty who just want to go home. And as harsh as she is to Rudy, she’s also right. He’s had his own share of struggles, but he could’ve gotten it way, way worse. And that’s why Rudy is determined to find her a cure.
How are we going to find he-never mind!
Now, there’s only one person alive who could possibly know a cure for Dryne Syndrome (or is it Drain Syndrome?): Kishirika Kishirisu, the former Demon Empress. AKA that little shrimp that Rudy gave food to one time, and she gave him his magic eye. She wanders around the Demon Continent at her own leisure, doing whatever she wants. Which means that, in order to track her down, Rudy has take himself, Cliff, Zanoba, and Elinalise to the Demon Continent.
Considering how this is the first time in years that Rudy has set foot in the land where he began his great odyssey home, you would think that he would feel a little nostalgic. But the city they end up doesn’t exactly have pleasant memories for him, and he’s too focused on saving his friend.
And then, just when it looks like they’re in for a wild goose chase trying to find Kishirika, this happens.
We have just earned another wish from the great Demon Lord!!
Un. REAL. The plot must love Rudeus and his friends, because that is the only feasible way that this could happen. The bad news is that they’re not the only ones looking for her: someone has a bounty out for the former Empress. But no spoilers! Let’s just say that we’re about to deal with someone…crazy.
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation S3 Ep 8 Review
You know what’s cooler than a floating castle? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING I CAN THINK OF RIGHT NOW! Sorry, I’m just a little excited at the fact that we are starting a new arc for Mushoku Tensei that will take us to some interesting places. To begin with, though, Nanahoshi decides to reward Rudeus and their friends and family with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. They’re getting the chance to travel to Chaos Breaker, the floating castle that’s home to the great hero and Nanahoshi’s mentor, Perguius Dola! Several of Rudy’s loved ones have reasons to want to meet him, and we get to see some cool stuff in the process. But then, something bad happens.
It’s Like Magic Uber!
Does The Name "Man-God" Ring a bell!? WE ARE SO BACK!
So, in order to travel to the fabled castle in the sky that is Chaos Breaker, Nanahoshi brings them to a secret location marked by this tablet. From there, she can basically summon one of Perugius’ familiars, Almanfi of the Bright. Rudy actually knows this one, though. Right before the Displacement Incident, Perugius sent Almanfi to investigate what was happening, and he tried to kill Rudy and Eris. He might have if Ghislaine hadn’t been there. The good news is that he’s willing to take everyone there…except for Roxy. Thanks to his experience with Laplace, Perugius doesn’t like Demons. So, Roxy has to be left behind, to her and Rudy’s dismay.
Once they get teleported to Chaos Breaker, though, it proves every bit the wonder of the world that books say it is. The castle is gorgeously designed and ornate, there are beauitful gardens with flowers. The whole thing is nothing short of incredible. The fact that Rudy and the others are able to set foot there is incredible. And several of them have things to ask of the Dragon God.
For such an intimidating-looking figure, Perugius is actually a pretty chill guy as long as you don’t offend him. He’s very friendly with Nanahoshi, having agreed to help her with her efforts to get home by telling him everything he knows. Plus his familiars are nice enough to go out and get food for them, allowing Nanahoshi to have something close to a Japanese meal for the first time in forever. He is, however, a little weary of Rudy, saying how his mana levels remind him of Laplace. If he had resisted getting teleported, he could have stopped himself from going.
To business. Rudy asks Perugius if he can help restore his mother. Alas, he doesn’t know what’s happened to her. The most he can say is that her time in crystal made her some sort of Blessed Child, like Zanoba. He does, however, reveal that that’s how Elinalise was found almost two centuries ago by one of his friends. She kept it secret because a.) she never regained her memories from before she was in crystal, and b.) that was how she was cursed to have s** or die. It also indirectly led to the death of her first husband and her being exiled from the village she made her home.
Ariel’s request is much more overt: she wants his backing to become the next Queen of Asura. But Perugius isn’t going to just give it to her like that. She’s going to have to work to secure his support, and it’s going to be a slow-going process.
Sylphie tries asking Perugius if he knows what caused the Mass Teleportation incident, but not even he knows why or how it happened. All he knows is that it wasn’t man-made. Almost like there was some sort of error in the universe.
Oddly enough, it’s Zanoba who hits it off the best with the Dragon Hero. All he wanted to know was if Perugius knew anything about the automaton they found in Rudeus’ house. It was made by the Mad Dragon King Chaos, a long-dead artisan and craftsman. But Zanoba and Perugius have a mutual love of arts and craftsmanship, so the Dragon God agrees.
I Wish I could Find that Mural to show you!
Everything seems to be going well for the group as they explore the legendary castle, but there was one moment that stood out to me. Nanahoshi shows Rudy, Zanoba, and Cliff this secret room that’s filled with this old mural that came with the place. Not even Perugius knows what it’s for, but…it feels familiar. A little bit like what we see at the end of every episode as we get the title of the next one. That can’t be a coincidence.
Whatever this mural is supposed to be about, though, it winds up getting a backseat, as the episode ends with an emergency. Nanahoshi is in worse shape than we thought.
Nanahoshi doesn’t feel so good!
The anime has done a good job of dropping hints that whatever Nanahoshi has been suffering from isn’t normal, but it really starts to gain attention in this episode. She’s coughing a lot more and she looks notably weaker than normal. But it’s the final moments of the episode that make us realize just how dangerous things are.
I knew that this moment was coming, but that didn’t stop me from being just as horrified as Rudy and Sylphie were. That was a lot of blood that Nanahoshi just coughed up. And the look of horror on her face right before she passed out! She was probably thinking that she was going to die. Death can be scary at any age, but she’s still a teenager. A scared teenager who came to this world against her will and just wants to go home. We can’t let her die here!
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