Jormungand – 12 [END]
Here’s a lesson: Guns don’t kill, people do
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…This should be obvious at this point in time, but Jormungand is a bit late due to me being distracted by Arcana Famiglia. This was a fun series while it lasted and I’ll definitely look forward to it when it starts again in the fall. |
Before I go into Valmet’s half of the episode, I’ll focus a bit on Koko and the hitmen. Koko’s team was extremely impressive when they turned the fight around, but I can’t help but feel that the opposing team was way weaker then they came off as the last episode. They had Koko’s team at their mercy for all of two minutes before things went sour. Sure, it’s more than most antagonists have gotten over the course of the anime, but they looked really impressive the last episode, only to turn out slightly better than average (combat-wise; personality-wise they were levels above most antagonists). Long story short, I’m disappointed. Though on the bright side, them not doing any damage means that Koko didn’t need to kill them.
The character focus on Ugo was probably unnecessary in all of this, but it was great nonetheless. It was an interesting callback to the last episode where Koko killed someone for trying to pay in drugs. Also, it one again brings up the fact that Koko is pretty impulsive and that her team trusts her enough to take on a random guy just because she liked the fact that he looked disgusted.
And no one ate dinner that night.
Jormungand came in going all out and it left in the same fashion. …Though this time, what was going on actually made sense. Valmet’s revenge story was easy enough to follow, as was watching Koko get the upper hand on her would be assassins. For a show all about gun porn and action scenes, I’m surprised that they cut out the whole fight between Valmet and Chen. …Though judging from the way he was dead at his desk, there probably wasn’t much of a fight between them. I also want to know how the hell Jonah managed to overcome being drugged. Was he resistant or what? On the bright side though, that whole issue was probably the thing that made the least amount of sense this episode (other than Ugo having the strength to break through what appeared to be a solid wall).
So Valmet’s side story is now over… or is it? That other woman looks like she’s now in the same position (having everything she lived for taken away) Valmet was in before she joined Koko. …What were they thinking putting the two women who JUST tried to kill each other in the same hospital room without supervision? No, seriously. I guess it worked out okay since Valmet didn’t die, but normally I don’t think that would be such a great idea. I understand the necessity of containing them in a single room since Koko already had to bribe the hospital to keep the whole thing quiet, but still. Someone should have been there to make sure that they didn’t try to kill each other.
As for the last part, YES R is actually part of the CIA. I don’t think they explained that clearly, but oh well. Sure, I could do some speculating here, but this is partially what I spoiled myself on regarding the manga, so I’m not going to go through the effort of pretending that I don’t know. Were the CIA the ones who sent the hit men after Koko? That, I don’t know. I wasn’t expecting Koko to even bother asking them who they were hired by. I guess they were a big enough threat for Koko to be concerned about who sent them… Either that or she just wanted an excuse to let them go. Maybe it’s a mix of both motives.
End Thoughts:
This episode could have fit pretty much anywhere in the series, but it wasn’t that bad of a place to end off. It’s also forgivable for them to end it this way since there’s a whole other season of this coming up again in fall. …If they pull something like this at the end of the next season, I’ll be pissed. So over the course of the anime, Jormungand has proven itself to be… well, a dumb, over-the-top action anime with great character interaction. Not to say that the fighting wasn’t fun to watch, but they didn’t always make a lot of sense. This show was too busy racing forward to actually explain what was going on. On the plus side though, one could hardly call the pacing boring. Also, despite all of this, I can’t say that this was a complete failure because the character interaction was always enjoyable to watch. Sure, a few of them were complete asshats, but the characters added life to the show where the plot didn’t.
For those of you who aren’t aware, the OST for Jormungand is out and the tracks are… odd. Not only do they mix names like “Rock n’ Roll Boobs” in with a bunch of Latin, but the song genres cover classy violin, techno, some guy singing Italian (…?), and even something that sounds like it’s coming from an old western movie. I didn’t realize that this anime had so much variety until I listened to this. And before you even ask, yes. THAT song is on there under the name “Time to Attack”.
So yeah, overall I can conclude that this was fun to watch as long as you don’t care about the small details since Jormungand likes to focus on explosions and high action content.
Until next time~
About Karakuri
University student and the one at Metanorn who's known for wearing glasses. Likes blood, insanity and plot twists, but also plays otome games and adores cute romance anime. It balances out... somehow.
POWUH: iLurker with 7 comments
Ugo’s back story was very sudden but it probably saved his life because being characterized means he’s less likely to die. Plus his back story wasn’t as “silly” as some of the other characters.
I’ll be sure to watch more episodes of this when they air.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Ahaha true that. His story was one of the simpler ones out there for Koko’s team. Though there’s also the fact that the antagonists here weren’t as formidable as the previous episode made them seem.
Yeah, I’m looking forward to seeing more of this when it comes out. It’s stupid in a good way.
POWUH: iLurker with 3 comments
The last song is sung in portuguese, a brazilian guy ^^
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Whoa, I was WAY off. Thanks for that.
POWUH: 400-499 with 428 comments
The end of Black Lagoon’s spiritual sequel (I know, different studios and creators and whatnot but hey, we can imagine 😀 ) and it won’t be back until October, wasn’t it?
Oh well, at least they’re moving into a more serious arc now after the attempted assassination by the Three Musketeers, and the subtle hints of Bookman and R…oh, it will be a long wait indeed, especially when it comes back right in the middle of exams…
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I saw similarities to Black Lagoon myself, but I found that with Jormungand, I cared more about the characters and in BL, I cared about the plot more. I’d say same amount of action though.
…Oh damn, it will be coming back when I’m in the middle of school too. Sigh. On the bright side though, since they’re hinting about R now, I think the next arc is the one that revolves around him. THAT will be interesting if what I’ve read is correct.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Great show so far. One that you can enjoy and barely care for the plot and where the character is one of the strong points so I’ll be waiting for the second half. October just can’t come fast enough. Note to self: Whenever making deals with sadistic albino arms dealers, make sure to pay with cold hard cash.
The ending was a cliffhanger I can live with. After seeing this ending with R, it could make sense he’s a spy. As an example with the shoot out with the drug cartel last episode. R wasn’t settled with how Koko chose to deal with the situation.
I feel Valmet’s arc was kind of rushed and so in my opinion, was anticlimactic. I wish the entire fight was shown. What is on my mind is figuring out Karen’s motives. She shot Valmet to avenge Chen but didn’t finish the job when had the chance in the hospital. And they were room mates. That’s one of the most dangerous situations ever sharing a room with the enemy.
Despite seeing what Valmet is capable, I’m more frightened of Koko. It seems dealing with her is like dealing with the devil. Especially with the look in her eyes when she looks at somebody completely at her mercy like Ugo and Dominique and when she tries to hide her emotions like in front of Valmet. Those she doesn’t have killed or kill herself, she takes them in for her own ends. The other one I know with that kind of essence is Mayo Chiki’s Kanade Suzutsuki. They’re both high class sadists.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Yeah, the plot was weak and the characters were what held this production together. Ahaha Koko didn’t like it at least. I doubt Kasper would be any more welcoming.
Yeah, it’s enough to get you interested, but not so much that you’ll go insane waiting to see what happens next. Oh, wasn’t he? It feels like so long since I watched episode 11…
Eh, well the fight to her revenge was exciting, but Valmet seemed satisfied enough by just killing Chen. I think the whole point of this plot-wise was to start the new cycle of revenge with Karen. I don’t know how or why she restrained herself from killing Valmet before she left, but I’m sure she’ll be back later.
Ahaha instead of a high class sadist, I’d say Koko is a manipulator (Kanade was one too), where she has absolutely everyone under control at all times xD. Truly she is a woman to be feared.
POWUH: iLurker with 12 comments
Honestly I don’t think the plot really has had a chance to show it’s true fangs. This entire season has been character set-up and development. There are hints of a more epic plot scattered here and there that are cleverly placed. I wouldn’t go as far as saying it is dumb, but I will say that the unveiling of the overarching plot is slow. The writing was very clever as well. What I’m waiting to find out what the true meaning of the Jormungand metaphor is!
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
By ‘epic plot’ do you mean the hints about Koko’s father’s involvement and such? I think those might play out near the end of the series as well, but yeah, this season was all about self contained episodes and such. Unless you were digging deep into it and actively looking, Jormungand looked like a show the majority would watch for the action and maybe for the characters. They may have something great in store for the series later, but at the moment, there’s not much substance to form a great overarching plot for the show.
Oh yeah, I think I read on your site about the myth with the giant snake in Norse mythology and whatnot. Wonder how that will play out.
POWUH: iLurker with 16 comments
I will admit that the story of this series felt uneven at times, but it still managed to be highly entertaining all the way to the end. I can’t wait to see the second season, though I don’t think I’ll be waiting for the soundtrack. I liked “Time to Attack” in the moments it played during the show, but by itself songs like that should be quarantined.
POWUH: Meta Resident and Werewolf Chaser with 1270 comments
The top image caption kinda reminds me of A certain famous line frm Fate/Stay Night….
Welp, since S2 is confirmed I better strt catching thius up….
POWUH: Meta Team and The Mad Scientist with 5525 comments
….orrrrr the lyrics to “Time to Attack” from the Jormungand OST