Thank you for visiting Anime Rants. Today, we’re covering episode 4 of the following series: Black Butler: Emerald Witch Arc, Kowloon Generic Romance, Lazarus, and Your Forma. I also want to watch Apocalypse Hotel and Once Upon a Witch’s Death, but I don’t have the time or attention span currently. I’m also very excited about Apothecary Diaries this spring. Besides that, my favorite so far is Lazarus. Now let’s get to the episode reviews.
Contents
- Black Butler: Emerald Witch Arc Episode 4
- Kowloon Generic Romance Episode 4
- Lazarus Episode 4
- Your Forma Episode 4
Black Butler: Emerald Witch Arc Episode 4
Episode Rating: 7/10
This episode was quite enjoyable. Miss Sullivan is very cute, and it was nice to see her happy with Sebastian as her dutiful butler, even though I find his flirtatiousness extremely creepy. Sullivan is voiced by Rie Kugimiya, who is a talented veteran of the seiyuu world. Despite often being type-cast into defiant young girls with limited character development, Kugimiya always does a splendid job with her roles, including the little emerald witch.
This episode showed us the dark past of Finnian, who was raised as an experimental weapon. As the illegal lab was hurrying to shut down, the researchers shot the test subjects, Finnian’s two companions. Finnian, who had no name at the time, responded by massacring the rest of the lab researchers. That’s when he was discovered by Sebastian and Ciel. The latter asked what Finnian’s name was, and this question changed the boy’s fate forever. Ciel later named the boy Finnian and taught him to be a gardener. Very wholesome.
I thought it was interesting that Miss Sullivan, being a real witch, could tell there were supernatural shenanigans going on with Ciel and Sebastian. She saw the demonic seals on Sebastian’s hand and Ciel’s eye. However, she didn’t make the connection that Sebastian was the demon who was summoned. Sebastian didn’t bother to correct her. At any rate, Sullivan understands it’s a sensitive topic and agreed to keep quiet about it.
Ciel definitely isn’t acting like himself. I still don’t think this boy is the Ciel we know. He’s probably either the soul of another boy who knew Ciel and died, or he’s an alternate personality of Ciel developed from severe trauma. It might have something to do with the demon summoning ritual, too. I’m excited to see more of this season soon, including what Sebastian is up to wandering around in the cellars with Snake. To be continued.
Kowloon Generic Romance Episode 4
Episode Rating: 8/10
Although I’m certainly not understanding everything, I’m enjoying this anime a lot. I’m still disappointed that the bisexual/gay men are creepy antagonists, but there are other parts of the show that interest me, such as the theme of personal identity. I absolutely love shows that explore this idea and have elements of dissociation and existential dread. When Reiko was talking about wanting to be her absolute self, it really spoke to me on an emotional level.
Miyuki Hebinuma and Gwen are definitely a romantic couple and not just some one-night stand or throwaway fact, which I somewhat appreciate. I just wish Miyuki wasn’t such a creep, feeding into the anime stereotype that gay or bisexual men are evil. I suppose I can still enjoy the romance between the bad-guys though. Anyway, Miyuki and Gwen are trying to solve the mystery of what’s going on in Kowloon. They have figured out that there’s two versions of certain people in Kowloon. However, it’s unlikely that these are clones. Interesting.
Last week, I speculated that Generic Terra had somehow replaced the moon, but both were seen in this episode. Generic Terra didn’t take the moon’s place, but I think I’m right that it’s a space colony for humanity to live on. I get the idea that the earth is dying and is barely livable now due to pollution and climate change. So, as Reiko pointed out, people look to Generic Terra with great hope in their hearts. In other news, I really loved Yaomay in this episode and I think she’s an amazing friend to Reiko.
The final note I have for today is genuine surprise. I wasn’t expecting that Kudo accidentally killed Kujirai B. That news definitely had the shocking effect it tried to go for, at least on me. I wonder how the incident happened. Hopefully we’ll find out more next week in this intriguing mystery anime.
Lazarus Episode 4
Episode Rating: 8/10
This episode was a lot of fun, with plenty of action and many enjoyable moments. Doug dancing stiffly on the dance floor was one highlight, and another one was Leland in girl’s clothes with a wig. “Lola” was very cute, but I think Leland is probably still a teenager, so I’m mildly surprised they put a minor in danger of being sexually preyed on. Then again, these are all outlaws who don’t care about standard safety. Perhaps Leland also insisted on coming along on the mission. Either way, I’m just glad Leland wasn’t assaulted.
The introduction was spoken by Eleina, who’s been quite mysterious so far. Her words showed that she used Hapna almost like an antidepressant, and that she viewed Dr. Skinner as a god early on. I empathize with Eleina’s seemingly depressive attitude, and I wonder what she’s thinking now. She seems highly determined to find Skinner and is major contributor to Lazarus, even though she works “behind the scenes.”
I’m also interested in Eleina because I like the seiyuu who voices her, Manaka Iwami. I know her best from when she played Tohru Honda in Fruits Basket (2019). So far, I’ve only heard her do a high-pitched, extremely “cutesy” voice, but as Eleina, her voice sounds lower and more natural. I look forward to more of her excellent voice-acting. Also, speaking of voices, Tomokazu Sugita voiced Sam Stephenson and did a great job with the role. Sugita is a well-loved veteran of seiyuu, and it’s always nice to hear him.
This episode was more about action than anything, but it did have some important character moments for Christine in particular. She is the kind of women who wants to stand up for herself and other women when there’s injustice, and I have mad respect for that. It was great to see Christine beat up the misogynistic pig, Sam, after he drugged a bunch of women. It’s also impressive that Christine has high alcohol and drug resistance, good physical skills, and can use a gun. What a woman! ❤
Your Forma Episode 4
Episode Rating: 8/10
Even though there was a lot of dialogue and exposition in this episode, I enjoyed it and now feel like I have a better grip on Your Forma as a series. It has some interesting things to say about the development of intelligence machines, the ethics of creating humanoid beings, and more. I liked the tense and informative scene with Lexie, Furman, and Echika, but I am slightly sad that Furman got shot. He seemed like he might be an interesting, morally grey antagonist.
This episode at one point mentioned Mnemosynes, but didn’t explain what they were. I looked it up on the Fandom Wiki. Apparently, Mnemosynes are the memory recordings associated with Your Forma devices. (Those are the devices installed into almost everyone’s necks, which also allow brain diving.) Dr. Lexie erased the Mnemosynes of herself and Furman for that whole scene, meaning there’s no proof that could expose the secret of the RF models – at least for now. Harold is safe thanks to Lexie.
This installment had a number of references to Frankenstein, the famous and timeless novel by Mary Shelley. There was even a good quote from the book near the end of the episode. Speaking of the ending, I loved it. The scene with Harold and Echika opening up to each other was great. I’m glad they’re getting along better and want to understand each other. I hope for some romance between them, too. That’s all for today.
~Thanks for reading~
Written by 7Mononoke at Anime Rants
