Akame ga Kill! – 03
Your weekly reminder that things are still terrible.
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You were expecting Sumairii, but it’s me, |
It was training with Mine this episode, but unlike Akame, Mine’s training didn’t really have much hidden meaning to it. She just wanted to use Tatsumi as a pack mule, apparently. But what the adventure did set up nicely was an opening into Mine’s backstory. It’s interesting that racism exists, since this country is pretty terrible itself (would anyone be really proud to say you lived there?), but I suppose the bullied need to pick on other people to feel better. Foreigners would be the easiest targets.
As for Mine herself, she has the haughty ojou-sama thing kind of down. Or maybe that was supposed to be tsundere? Either way, she has a kind of thorny personality. Though like Akame at the end of episode 2, by the end of this one, she seemed more accepting of Tatsumi being in Night Raid. Tatsumi seems to have toned down his “let’s change the country for justice!” a bit too, though he was still concerned about the innocents surrounding the target at the end, so it’s not like that’s gone away completely.
Anime Santa Claus is an asshat.
I had forgotten how ridiculously terrible the capital is all around. Night Raid said that they were just as evil for killing people, but the rich and powerful group in Akame ga Kill! seems to have it coming. Beating women, framing innocents and just using their power to do whatever they want, the capital isn’t exactly a great place to live. Though really, the whole country seems like a bad place to live, since Tatsumi’s village was overtaxed and poverty-filled. Obviously things are going to collapse at some point, because this system of having the powerful abuse everyone else isn’t the greatest. The Prime Minister isn’t going to live forever either and maybe things will be better if he disappears. But obviously, nobody in the Revolutionary Army or Night Raid wants to wait until he dies from natural causes. Since other countries obviously exist, it makes one wonder what those places are like, though I guess the matter at hand is having Night Raid try and revolutionize the country from within.
They even have wanted posters! It’s interesting how only four of the members are wanted since it’s not like Night Raid disguises itself (or in the case of Leone, that’s not exactly a great ‘disguise’), but on the other hand, since they kill everyone they make contact with, no one knows their faces. They only reason they know about Akame, Bulat and Najenda is because they’re all originally from the capital’s side of things. Plus looking from the other end of things, Main being unknown makes sense too, since she seems most efficient when she strikes from afar.
The story went over the Teigu (or “Relics”, I guess) this episode, which is a huge reason why Night Raid is formidable. They’ve won pretty much every fight thus far with little to no effort, and their weapons are why. It’s certainly convenient that nobody knows how to make them anymore (imagine how screwed they’d all be if the capital had that technology), but the weapons having abilities are interesting. How exactly does Pumpkin gauge how much danger Mine is in? Or how does the poison in Akame’s Murasame work? There was a more detailed explanation of how they were made in the manga at some point (maybe it was in here or maybe it comes later, I forget), but it’s really not that important at the moment. The important this is that the Teigu and their vaguely established powers give Night Raid the upper hand with their assassinations thus far (…while Tatsumi does perfectly okay on his own). When Night Raid finally meet another Teigu user, that’s when they’ll start having difficulty. Oh look, that’s going to happen in the next episode.
Well, they’re still putting in an awful lot of effort into making the blood look cool. I’m totally okay with that. Things are kind of moving slow, but this is more than likely just a problem I’m having since I have specific events and characters I’m looking forward to seeing. Hopefully the story moves away from the “Tatsumi trains with XX for a while” formula, but the change in pace is coming eventually, I guess. That aside though, I’m enjoying what they’ve adapted so far. All of the seiyuu fit the characters really well, and they’re making the action parts look pretty good. …For the most part, I don’t know about that running in the forest bit at the beginning. They’re also managing to get by without censoring a lot. Even more of a plus, Tatsumi isn’t being dead weight. This is always good to see in a protagonist (…though of course, he’s like this because the manga was written that way). Hell, none of Night Raid are dead weights. I’m looking forward to seeing more of them.
In the mean time, there’s more beheading coming up.
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: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
I generally liked this episode, but felt a bit put off by the whole shopping trip thing. Espcially when they decided to showcase a town square crucifixion. It was like, “Hey let’s go bra shopping, are you embarrassed yet. Oh, look! Crucified people! Will they did of exposure, dehydration, or asphyxiation first?….Ah, well, nothing for it…carry my stuff, mule…”
POWUH: Novice (36-50) with 39 comments
Is it weird that I find the episode great exactly for that,
Well that and the litle touch of yaoiish undertones, now I wont say it was as good as the first episode, but it still delivered to me!
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Pfft, this is probably just a common day in the capital. Two streets over, you’d probably be able to see the guy being dismembered by bulls or whatever that punishment was.
…I do like your rendition of the episode though. xD
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
The capital is just one huge breeding ground for suffering and injustice on an unimaginable scale. Like Rome and Constantinople in their respective times… before they were both burned down to the ground. Wouldn’t surprise me if the capital is rewarded with a similar fate.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
The more recent chapters to the manga pulled out a pedophile clown character around the capital. …And I have to admit, that’s the first time Akame ga Kill! has made me feel slightly uncomfortable.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
As if sick things weren’t going on in the place already.
POWUH: 900-999 with 915 comments
When that unexpected show gets more gory than the other branded as “horror”. Tokyo Ghoul had one scene where only 1/20th of the screen wasn’t black just because. I’m glad Akame ga Kill don’t need to make the deaths look fake by not having any blood at all. Swords cut deep and guns make big enough holes to put your head through it.
You guys were so much like “that show is the one where everyone will die” that when Bulat was speaking about his past, I thought that he would die in this episode. Same to Mine. I can’t stand it thinking that everyone will die, it’s too painful TT.TT
And there was one line in this episode where they kind of implied that Night Raid lost already lost a lot of members before… That’s sad…
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I’m waiting for Kaneki to get past his boring whiney phase before I catch up to Tokyo Ghoul, so I’ll take your word for that. …If anything, they’re overcompensating with the blood. But it looks cool, so I’m totally okay with it.
Uh, give it a couple of episodes. They want you nice and attached before ripping those characters away.
Reading the prequel manga where Akame is still working for the Empire is pretty sad. Her old team of assassins is so endearing, but since none of those characters are around in the current manga, you just know that they died at some point.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Sadistic beasts! This is looking to induce Attack on Titan level of trauma for having liked characters taken away.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Pfft, please. You talked about this long before an adaptation was even announced. I’m not surprised by turn of events. With blood and gore, this suits you well.
Generally, this episode was good and did well to reflect the differences in social status. The capital is nothing but a cesspool and it’s far more disturbing its ruler is so naïve and such a puppet he can’t assess the condition of his own land. By comparison, he’s almost as pathetic as the Pope from Trinity Blood.
Night Raid is deadly as ever. I certainly wouldn’t want to cross their path. Akame’s, obviously. The life of an assassin can also be a piece of shit, especially when you have to do things you don’t want to. I sympathized with Lubbock when he regretted killing that girl but leaving her live was a risk he couldn’t take for the sake of him and his friends.
For one of low status, Mine sure acted high born during her shopping and dragging Tatsumi around. I’m betting she didn’t approve of him on the assumption he was all with no resolve. Now that she’s seen he has guts, a second opinion should be in order.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Well, there are theories floating around that the shounen ruler is actually just as big of an asshat as everyone else, and that he’s only pretending to be following the prime minister’s words. Really with this series, I wouldn’t be surprised if he wanted everyone to suffer for the hell of it.
Yeah, the downsides of killing people for a living. Though Lubbock will score someday. Maybe. Probably not, seeing how the manga hates happiness. xD
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Congrats on 3000 comments, Kara!! Finally “Meta Team and Megane-chan”!