Greetings. I’m Mono and I’m very grateful that you visited my blog today. We are continuing the episode reviews for Beastars Final Season (part 1), which aired in Fall 2024. Episodes 9 and 10 were highly entertaining and exciting. The ninth installment showed us Melon’s face, while the tenth installment contained important character information and development for Legoshi. Let’s review the main events.
Article Contents
- Episode 9: The Rotten Egg Hatches
- Episode 10: Bambi is Alive and Well
Episode 9: The Rotten Egg Hatches
Episode Rating: 9/10
This episode got off to a slow start but was still beautifully directed. It was a highly important episode, since it finally provided a good look at Melon. But before all that, there was a heartfelt scene involving the drama club. They decided to protest the school’s segregation policies. This decision was largely inspired by Kibi and Tao, who shared about their bonding experience following the violent accident last year. It’s great that these young characters are learning to get along.
There was another scene (much later on) that was unrelated to the main events of this episode. The scene in question shows Louis’ father Ogma meeting with the Mayor of the city. As you probably recall, the Mayor is corrupt as hell and completely self-interested. He proceeds to blackmail Ogma, threatening to reveal to the public that the wealthy business owner “purchased” his heir at the black market. Ogma seems ready to meet the Mayor’s demands, but it remains to be seen what the lion wants.
Now let’s talk about the greatly anticipated underground masquerade party, where the new drug Melda will be released. Legoshi is able to attend the masquerade by playing the part prepared for him by Yahya. His role is to be the new chaperone for the strippers Cosmo and Luna, who will both be performing at the party. Legoshi has a comm link set up in his ear linking him to Yahya. The plan is for the horse to help locate Melon and for Legoshi to catch him. It was humorous watching Legoshi get into his role.
It was great to see the strippers again, especially Cosmo. The leopard lady, Luna, was less of a pleasant face to see. (I mean, she’s pretty, but her personality in season two was awful.) Everyone apparently fully forgave Luna for sabotaging Cosmos’ performance and nearly causing her death. That strikes me as weird, but whatever. I love that Beastars gives a positive image of an indepedent sex worker like Cosmo. She is also great to have on screen because she’s so insanely hot. (I am normal, I swear.)
(Side Note: During the party, we briefly witness two feminine-looking animals sharing a sensual experience. This is the first time I recall seeing a depiction of sexuality in Beastars that is not hetero. I’m pleasantly surprised that this episode showed lesbians. It’s a step in the right direction. Of course, it’s not perfect, since 1) it festishizes the lesbians, and 2) it can be interpreted as “deviant behavior” caused by drugs. Still, this is better than ignoring queer sexuality completely, which is the usual pattern of Beastars.)
Thanks to his sharp senses and situational awareness, Legoshi quickly finds Melon. He informs the hybrid beast that he will be placed under arrest once his backup (Yahya) arrives. Melon doesn’t try to run, acting instead like he’s done nothing wrong. He casually chats with Legoshi for a few minutes. Legoshi had already torn his mask off, so Melon decided to make it “fair” by removing his own. Although Melon has an unusual face, I don’t think he’s bad-looking (especially with that sexy voice and graceful body.)
The conversation between Melon and Legoshi was fascinating but also quite concerning. As the viewers, we already know Melon is a serial killer. Legoshi doesn’t know that for sure. He is falling headlong into Melon’s emotional manipulation. Because Legoshi plans to have hybrid children someday, he desperately wants to believe that “mixes” are not evil. So, he’s heavily biased to believe that Melon is just misunderstood. In reality, though he may play the victim card, Melon is a scheming psychopath.
This conversation is also where we learn the sad news that Legoshi’s mother killed herself when he was 12 years old. That explains a lot about the wolf and his melancholy disposition. But back to the topic at hand, Melon soon realized he was being targeted by Yahya. After taunting the horse over the intercomm, he fires a handgun at Legoshi and throws him to the ballroom floor below. To be continued.
Episode 10: Bambi is Alive and Well
Episode Rating: 9/10
This was an emotionally rich and diverse episode with amazing visuals, music and voice-acting. It begins with Louis having a strange experience. He feels intense phantom pain where his leg used to be. Apparently, Louis feels this because Legoshi’s life is in danger. I’m not sure if this is a special phenomenon between Louis and Legoshi or if it’s true of everyone. Maybe all herbivores who have been partially eaten are psychologically linked to whoever consumed their flesh. It’s a weird and interesting idea.
Louis has been investigating the Kines drinks with the help of the scientist lady Kuroe. She reached the end of what she could find out and thus instructed Louis to ask “Kopi Luwak.” (That’s the shady company run by Deshico, I believe.) Kuroe warned that this person was sketchy, but Louis didn’t expect the address to lead him straight into the black market area. The Shishigumi were nearby taking care of the masquerade aftermath. They immediately picked up on Louis’ presence and surrounded him.
Free prepares to shoot Louis to follow through on their last promise. If the Shishigumi ever saw Louis again in the black market, they were supposed to kill him. Louis pauses as his antlers come off. It’s the time of the year for them to shed. Free is intensely amused by the sight of Louis minus antlers. He uses this an excuse to not kill the deer, revealing that he is actually thrilled to see his old boss. In an incredibly cute moment, Free lovingly embraces and nuzzles Louis.
Louis goes to the Shishigumi HQ to get his head bandaged. While he’s there, Melon comes to eat dinner with his gang. The six lions quickly hide Louis to protect him. When he finds out that the lions didn’t kill the strippers at the masquerade as he instructed, Melon becomes savage. He wounds the youngest lion (Agata) for daring to voice an opinion. Melon also smelled a herbivore, but Miguel told a lie that saved Louis. Melon finally left, and Louis was once again safe with the Shishigumi.
While Louis reunites with his old gang, Legoshi is having a near death experience in the hospital. It’s been about three days and the wolf hasn’t regained consciousness yet. He “wakes up” only to find himself in a dream of sorts (or possibly afterlife limbo). In this state, he sees his own body from outside it. That must be a trippy experience. Legoshi worries about what Haru will do if he dies. Just then, he hears the voice of his mother and sees her appear before him, looking far more real than a typical dream.
Legoshi talks to Leano about her story and how she lost herself to suicide. It was a truly tragic tale. Based on her actions, Leano may seem like a selfish person. She abandoned her small son in the worst way possible. While this was certainly a selfish action, we must remember that Leano was dealing with severe depression and possibly other mental disorders. She probably didn’t seek professional help. As someone who attempted suicide in the past, I can empathize with the hyper-emotional wolf girl. Of course, this doesn’t excuse what she did to her son.
It’s especially heartbreaking to think that Leano came to cuddle Legoshi one last time before killing herself that night. That was a terrible thing to do. It left Legoshi forever wondering what would have happened if he had turned around, hugged his mom, and told her how beautiful she looked. Although it’s sad, I’m excited to write more about Legoshi’s psychology in greater detail at a later time.
Thanks to this “dream,” Legoshi finally expressed his unreleased feelings, telling his mom how much he valued her. In turn, this spiritual experience granted Legoshi some psychological solace. He was able to see Leano smiling softly and hear her expressing her love. That must have been a bittersweet experience. In the last scene, Legoshi regains consciousness and, without even dressing, hurries to the grave of Leano. Naked and alone, the wolf howls out his emotions. And that’s all for my notes today.
~Thanks for reading~
Written by 7Mononoke
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