Recap

Satsuki and Ryuko square off again, this time in their opposing kamui.

Gee’s Thoughts

After the amazing reversal last week, things are a little more straightforward now as Satsuki and the remaining members of Nudist Beach work to break Ryuko from her trance. Ryuko in Junketsu is a frightening combo, and Satsuki’s inability to truly synchronize with Senketsu proves to be too much for her to handle. Still, this is the woman who waged a secret war against her own mother for years, amassed a following of loyal vassals, and freed herself from her own prison with her toenail. If there’s anything Satsuki’s got, it’s resolve and good planning. I was particularly pleased that everyone seemed to get a chance to shine in the fight, barring poor Tsumugu. Man, for a guy voiced by Kamina, Tsumugu’s fallen a fair amount since his bombastic introduction all the way back in the beginning.

Alas, things can never go as planned when you got a little shit like Harime Nui around. I really must give Trigger credit. To deliberately create a character so distinctly unlikable as Nui is an achievement in and of itself. Thankfully, Trigger stacked the deck on the opposite side of the spectrum with Mako, and boy does she steal the show at the end when she and Senketsu finally break Ryuko out of her delusion. That combined with seeing Nui impaled like the vermin she is was immensely satisfying. Trigger is the master of the payoff, making each episode exciting right from the get go, and then living up to the expectations its set up for itself.

Another area in which I think this episode really excelled was showing off Satsuki and Ryuko at their best and worst respectively. Both are characters with a lot of good traits, but those traits can be used for both good and evil. Satsuki as a villain was driven, resourceful, and a schemer. Satsuki as a hero is still all of those things, and her actions reflect that. Satsuki being on the side of the good guys changes nothing about her character. Same goes for Ryuko. Sure, she’s being mind controlled, but Ryuko’s best traits have always been her dogged tenacity, her disregard for enemies, and her powerful drive. Junketsu Ryuko is still all those things too, for better or worse. In the end, Junketsu Ryuko simply felt like a harsher rougher version, not something so entirely off-base as to be unbelievable. And it’s that kind of consistent characterization that makes Kill la Kill such a strong show.

Overall, I was really impressed by this episode, and while in the grand scheme of things like most of the episodes, it doesn’t do anything particularly groundbreaking, its Trigger’s deft execution of familiar tropes that makes the episode so strong. Sure, I knew in the end that Ryuko was gonna rip off Junketsu through sheer willpower and that it’d be thanks to Mako and Senketsu’s valiant efforts, but I’ll be damned if I wasn’t on the edge of my seat the entire time. By the time the episode was over, I felt like I had been holding my breath the entire time. While I’m aware of the irony of a show called Kill la Kill where technically not a single named character has died yet, I was still anxious. A few times here and there this episode, Kill la Kill had done such a great job of wrapping me up in its drama that for a moment, I honestly didn’t know what to expect next.

With the original Life Fiber taking to the skies, the secret powerful kamui that was alluded to earlier being completed, and Ryuko finally back in the saddle and ready to dole out some tasty revenge, we are truly approaching the climactic endgame of this show. On one hand, the idea of them going to space to fight an epic battle seems awesome. On the other, Kill la Kill has done a great job of subverting my expectations, so I’m ready for anything to happen at this point. One way or another though, we’re in the final stretch. It’s gonna be a wild ride.

Zigg’s Thoughts

Firstly, can we please stop using ‘creepy sexual molester’ as shorthand for how evil your major villain is? If you really must get all your cast members fondling each other, can you at least do it in a slightly more palatable way?

That aside, this was an outstanding episode, one which dug really deep into all of the main characters to produce a conflict that felt raw, genuine and extremely visceral. There’s been much criticism of Kill la Kill as style over substance, but episodes like this refute that thoroughly with their impressively layered depiction of the characters. In fact, the action segments are easily the least interesting aspect this week, thanks to some ropey choreography and the predictably sub-par animation. There’s some cool visual stings but they’re mostly unrelated to actual combat.

You don’t really need much action though thanks to the abundant character drama. What most impressed me about this episode was how much evil Ryuko acts like the Ryuko we know and love, just twisted a little too far around. Normally when good guys are brainwashed bad, they basically become insane psychos regardless of how they were before. But Ryuko still feels and acts like Ryuko, albeit a much harsher, less sympathetic incarnation of her. And that’s way scarier than a killing machine.

It’s also an episode which showcases everyone’s individual strengths. Satsuki is cool, calm and collected, but also fiercely passionate about the battle. The Elite Four are organised, competent and undyingly loyal. And Mako is stupid but has boundless faith in her friend, showing real bravery in trying to bring her back. For a character who spends almost every second on screen as a living joke, it’s remarkable how much empathy we have for her. The ending sequence in the ‘dream world’ was a superb combination of writing, music and visuals, giving the entire thing a chilling air that the show hasn’t been able to reach too much. I really like that Ryuko actually attacked Mako too – it shows how damaged she is, and how attached to this fake reality where she’s happy. It’s also way less predictable than the standard THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP REDEEMS ending (which they’ve already used once anyway).

The combination of this big emotional heft, some truly grim sequences (Nui is as outstandingly creepy as ever and Ryuko tearing off her clothes at the end is simply gnarly) and Ragyo’s apocalyptic overtones to the True Life Fibre means that this episode more than ever feels big and epic. We’ll see just how far back Ryuko has come over to the side of the angels, but no matter where she lands, it seems the time has come for the humanity’s last stand.