No.6 – 10

 

All I do is save babies and kill people. And I already saved a baby.

Can you believe there is only one more episode of No.6 after this one? In a week’s time, everything will be over? The summer season sure went by quickly. I hope I didn’t use up all my bandwidth on Persona doujinshi, because I need to catch up on all the anime that are ending now. Aiyaaa.

After the carnage of “cleaning duty” is over, Inukashi searches through the rubble for money. She gets a bit more than she bargained for when one of her dogs brings her the baby Shion saved. Rikiga and Inukashi aren’t heartless enough to just throw it away, but at the same time they don’t know what to do with the gurgling lump of flesh. It takes an immediate shine to Inukashi, even calling her mama. Well, that might be the final nail on the coffin in terms of figuring out her gender.  In the end, they leave the baby with the dog. If Inukashi cold survive being raised by dogs, the little meatsac can handle a day or two.

Babies or being thrown into an endless pit of rotting corpses…I’ll let you decide which is worse. Shion is repulsed by the sight, but he has to just suck it up and climb to the top with Nezumi. Along the way Shion slips a few times and grabs onto a knitting needle (you know, the one Safu’s grandma had?) but he makes it to the top. Of course he does, we couldn’t bloody well end the anime with him milling about in a pile of bodies, right? At the top, Nezumi continues being Batman and throws a grappling hook for them to get to higher ground and squeeze into a vent.

Now that the two of them are in the facility, they need someone to open all the doors for them. That’s where Inukashi and Rikiga come in. They get the janitor to smuggle them in and then promptly steal his clothes so they can get into the control room. Just to be safe, they leak a disgusting smell into the building that pretty much cripples all the prissy No.6 workers. They slip in no problem and open doors one after another for Nezumi and Shion.

Nezumi and Shion put on disguises too, if you can call throwing on a lab coat a disguise. Still, it does manage to fool everyone. When it doesn’t Nezumi just punches them in the face. As they race through the facility, Nezumi notices that Shion is getting way too into this. He memorized all the camera angles, he claims to hear Safu calling him, and he’s smiling as if he’s savouring the moment.

There’s only so far they could get without being noticed. They go into lockdown mode, forcing Shion and Nezumi to slide under doors that are about to close. Their main path is blocked, but Shion seems to be able to hear Safu calling him in the right direction. Along the way, Nezumi shoots some guards while Shion throws a lab coat on them. They duck into a small room with a maintenance ladder and start to climb. Shion is pretty “meh” about the whole leaving severely injured guards behind deal, and this greatly worries Nezumi.

Never been mauled by a lab coat before? Consider yourself lucky.

Just before the last elevator (Oh God, it’s just like Fractale…) is a group of guards waiting to fire at anything that moves. It’s a shame the first thing that moves is an explosive smoke bomb. Nezumi rushes into the cloud of smoke and works his magic. By magic, I mean stabbing people. He kills all but one guard, holding him hostage when another guard suddenly enters. He’s not at all deterred by Nezumi’s hostage, and just shoots at the two of them. The guard dies, and Nezumi has bullet wounds on his leg and his arm.

Before any sort of bad ending can occur, Shion goes into yandere mode and shoots the guard. I am ever so grateful that the first time he fired a gun in his life went so smoothly. Nezumi pleads for Shion to stop, but he won’t rest until the man who hurt Nezumi has stopped breathing. He kills him, and then promptly feels bad for doing so when he snaps out of it (again, like Fractale…Man, I’m scared…).

Seeing Nezumi sob while soaking wet reminds him of the time they first met. He was seeking kindness back then, and he doesn’t want Shion to lose the side of him that saved him. That means it’s time for hugging and extremely close talking. The two of them hobble onto the elevator and end up face to face with Safu and the scientists she killed. She seems happy to see Shion, but I doubt things will go smoothly.

Bonus Screenshots:

Oh good, a dark space, time to take off all my clothes…Wait, baby, where you going?

Good boy! Now go piss on the dead people to amuse me.

“How..how could you do that?” “If I bring my face real close, will that make it better?” “Yeah.”

Worst. Roadtrip. Ever.

End Thoughts: Let me start of by saying that I really liked this episode. It didn’t rush things, giving Shion and Nezumi an entire episode to infiltrate the facility, and was still full of action. There aren’t many action scenes in this show, but they’re fantastic when they actually happen. I find the most important things for fight scenes is fluidity, so that you can discern the movements. If I wanted a jerky, stop and start fight, I’d read a manga. No.6 constantly delivers in that regard, and the movement looks great. I really hope there’s one last kick at the can in episode 11 in terms of fight scenes. I want to see Shion or Safu just go berserk.

Aside from gallivanting in lab coats and dodging bullets, there was actually some nice character development going on. Shion and Nezumi had a complete role reversal. Shion has softened up Nezumi to the point where he is no longer “black and white” about things, and realizes there is more to living than only surviving. He may complain about how kind Shion is, but he secretly really admires how strong Shion is to be able to care for others even in dire circumstances. Saving that baby is an example of that. However, Shion started to get a taste for danger. He was always intrigued by the possibility of a thrilling, dangerous life as he wasted away in No.6, and now he’s finally getting it. It’s like never being allowed sugar all your life, then being thrown into a bathtub full of skittles. I’m not surprised he got carried away with the novelty of it all. He’s been in danger before, but this time he’s motivated to actually be proactive and take control. He’s not just being saved by Nezumi.

It was a powerful moment when Nezumi started sobbing and screaming until his throat was raw when Shion mercilessly killed that guard. It seemed like he was caught in his emotions of wanting to save Nezumi, and once the adrenaline wore off, he freaked out. I thought this would cause some tension before they went to Safu, but once again, the conflict was resolved immediately. I know there’s not enough time to show how any of their actions have lasting ramifications on their relationships, but it’d be nice if everything wasn’t solved the episode it happened. This happened with Shion leaving for No.6 by himself as well…they certainly made up after that fight real quick as well.

All that’s left to ponder is how things will ultimately wrap up in the next episode. Safu has been communicating with Shion now, but is she still Safu? I get the feeling she’s become some sort of vessel for Eliurias. I guess she will be the one answer all of Nezumi and Shion’s questions for a bit so that we understand everything. As for what happens after, it’s anyone’s guess. I just REALLY hope Nezumi  doesn’t die from blood loss or something. What I’m really hoping for, is an ending where Safu turns into a monster and destroys No.6 while Nezumi and Shion ride on her back. She could be their pet. It’s the perfect family ending, no?

Preview:  Nezumi insists that he has a specific job that he must do, not Shion. I don’t care, just don’t die.

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A neuroscience graduate, black belt, and all-around nerd. You'll either find me in my lab or curled up in my rilakkuma kigurumi watching anime.
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18 Responses to “No.6 – 10”

  1. 2PacFan says:

    I’m going to miss this show soo much! I have loved it since I first started watching it and it hasn’t disappointed me yet !
    I broke down the moment Nezumi started crying. When I saw Shion going all crazy on everyone’s ass, all I could think was DAMN! It was crazy. I’m glad he actually killed someon.e Not like in most animes when they stop before they actually do something tragic. This way it has more drama and what not.
    Honestly the plot with Safu is just to bring Nezumi and Shion together. I can’t really see Shion leaving Nezumi anymore.

    I think I would prefer shows like these instead of actual yaoi because Shion has blushed only like a couple of times, and when you think about it HE kissed Nezumi and stuff, without blushing or stuttering. i think that’s why I don’t hate him . I love both of them though.

    • Overcooled says:

      Me too. It was such a nice mix of bromance and sci-fi. Not to mention emotional drama. I’m glad Shion actually went through with it too, because it really made us understand how much he’s changed since coming to live with Nezumi.

      Yaoi is all about the blushing, stuttering, and overall acting like teenage schoolgirls (also, rape). :/ I can’t say it’s very clever, but I’ll always have a special place in my heart for yaoi XD I do feel way less guilty watching shows like this where there’s an actual plot going on, and the romance is a bit more realistic.

  2. Snowley says:

    Is it me or Sion’s character developement is so bloody sad. He’s like one of those characters from Full Metal Jacket, being idealistic at first but when confronted by harsh reality, his humanitarian side lost. No wonder Nezumi freaked out beacuse his character went in opposite direction, he started to believe in what Sion said (notice he didn’t kill any of the guards). It’s like loosing the last thing that kept you going forward, and yes, it was partly his fault. Then again if he hadn’t attack Sion that day there’d no story whatsoever.

    PS Safu is scary. I hope this anime won’t end with Sion and Safu looking at people dying or dead from the killer bees and smiling. *sunset in the bg*

    PS PILE OF DEAD BODIES EW EW EW EW ;____;

    • Overcooled says:

      Never seen Full Metal Jacket..is it good? Because I really like when a character slowly loses their innocence. It’s even better when contrasted with someone like Nezumi who is gradually becoming a better person. They both influenced each other to become what they are today. So yep, all this was Nezumi’s fault.

      lol yandere ending, oh god…creepy…

      • Snowley says:

        FMJ is a great movie, if you like war movies (this time it’s Wietnam). The best part is it doesen’t show American army as the ultimate heroes, more like broken idealists who lost their innocence in the combat (but still ani’t bad people).

  3. Kitty says:

    I was amazed at how subtle they were about making Sion slowly take control of the situation until finally the climax ended with his changing. So wanted them to kiss in that moment. Crying Nezumi was so touching, why does Safu have to ruin everything!!

    • Overcooled says:

      I loved seeing that slow change in him over the episode, and how more and more worried Nezumi became over time. I wish Shion gave him a kiss too to try and calm him down XD

      Come onnnn ShionxNezumi ending!

  4. BlackBriar says:

    I have to admit, this series pulled a 180° turn for me. It went from average to exciting in no time flat.

    I’m impressed with how they’ve mentally broken Shion. The people dying in the town and that massive pile of bodies did it and he let go of his idealistic traits. Since when did he go into plan mode and kept himself completely calm and cold? And I can’t believe how easily he shot and killed that guard. He’s now a full fledged yandere. This is how Deadman’s Ganta should have been before he had a lapse and went back to being pathethically weak-minded. I can’t stop comparing those two.

    Nezumi didn’t get his wish. Shion has changed thanks to the brutality of reality and his obsession with rescuing Safu.

    Only one more episode to go and it looks like Safu’s become a yandere herself. She has the same look in her eyes as Shion when he killed the guard and obviously she killed the doctors that are lying on the ground. Can they really close this story in just one episode? I gotta know.

    • Overcooled says:

      I wish Ganta had went through the changes Shion did too. While Shion’s change in character is now a permanent change, Ganta always regresses back into his weakling self every now and then. :/

      I’m really freaked out by Safu. What has she become now? I almost feel like she’s going to try and kill them now.

  5. Foshizzel says:

    DAMN!!! Things got real so fast and suddenly super Shion for the win!! I liked berserk Shion he was awesome the whole scene with him about to shoot that guy I know a few of us were like DO IT SHION AAAHHH OMG!! PULL THE TRIGGER!! Anyway good stuff.

    I was sort of expecting Safu to be some sort of Elfen lied powered up “monster” Or a brain inside a awesome robot! But I guess we will have zombie looking Safu for now. Because in the episodes leading up we had no idea what her face looked like at the time! So they could have turned her into some weapon.

    I did enjoy that amazing animation for Rat fighting the random guards in the smoke cloud! Very impressive fight ahaha one more episode to go! I wonder how things will end with a cliffhanger? Or Safu gets to be with Shion and Rat walks away.

    • Overcooled says:

      The next thing you know, limbs will be getting chopped off left and right. Elfen Lied level gore yeaaahh! XD But yeah, I think she’s become some sort of killing machine…I fear for Shion and Nezumi.

  6. Elyon says:

    I always loved Shion in a “Dawww I want to lock this little guy up in my closet AND NEVER LET HIM OUT” kind of way, but now I love him because he’s YANDERE. B) This episode was just awesome. I almost shed a tear for poor Nezumi ;w;

  7. Junko says:

    That awkward moment when a character you love and adore goes BATSH*T INSANE. WHAT ARE YOU DOING SHION, NEZUMI WASN’T THE ONLY PERSON YOU MADE CRY!

    Ahem..That asides, I loved this episode. No.6 knows human natures and it knows it well. I loved what they did here, and not only was there some amazing animation that honestly helped the whole twisting of this so much, but Shion suddenly knowing everything was amazingly believable.

    Now, that just leaves T&B and Penguindrum for me to freak out over. Something crazy has made its way into the anime world as of late, and I’m okay with this.

    • Overcooled says:

      Every show is just going crazy this week, huh? Everyone is either dying or killing people or being too fabulous to handle. Seeing Shion go crazy made me like him more though.

  8. Keiko says:

    I loved this episode so much, especially all the character development. The scene where Sion shoots the guard was amazing.
    But I’m nervous for next week. I’m terrified that Nezumi is going to die. I have a feeling that they’re going to have to take down Elyurias, and they’re going to do it by transferring Elyurias into Nezumi and killing him (thus saving Safu). Think about it – Nezumi’s the only other one we know of with such a strong connection to Elyurias, he’s already seriously injured, and why would they go through all this trouble to save Safu just to kill have to her? Volunteering to sacrifice himself would explain what Nezumi says he’s “supposed to do”.
    I haven’t read the novels or anything, so I really don’t know what will happen, but I’m really dreading my prediction might be right…
    (this isn’t totally related to this episode but yeah)

    • Overcooled says:

      I’m scared too. Transferring Eliurias into Nezumi is a big possibility since he’s the only other compatible vessel. That, or Safu might just straight up kill him. I really, really hope it doesn’t end like that…

  9. Miyu says:

    I LOVED THE EPISODE SO MUCH ♥
    I liked how they sort of switched roles, because Nezumi’s usually the strong one protecting the crying Shion and now it’s reversed. I like seeing these new, different parts of them.. although I’m glad Shion didn’t become some kind of blood-thirsty monster.

    Nezumi will never die )< He's a main character so he can’t HAHA. Rabid fangirls will lose their minds (yes, including me). But still it can’t possibly just work out like this like POOF shion nezumi safu happy reunion let’s have a threesome!
    I have a feeling Shion will have to make a choic between Nezumi & Shion. That will suck very badly, but it’s just my hunch x_x

    And yes, PET MONSTER IDEA FOR THE WIN (Y)

    (this is a lag reply because exams are nearing and i tried to resist …but i failed D: no.6 is too tempting.)

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