Dr. Stone: Science Future Episode 4 and Episode 5 Reviews

Thanks for stopping by Anime Rants today. It’s time to get caught up on the latest episodes of Dr. Stone: Science Future. In these installments, Senku and company meet a new enemy – and he’s a professional scientist. This could be the most interesting match yet for Senku. My notes on episode 4 and episode 5 are below.

Episode 4: Dr. X

Episode Rating: 9/10

Much to the shock and terror of Senku’s group, the enemy chased them not in a boat but in a small, one-person plane. It had guns attached to it as well. Whoever was piloting it intended to mow down everyone with ammo. However, Senku put together a calcium carbonate “bomb” that would stop the plane’s engine. Kirisame threw it with perfect strength and accuracy. The plane crashed.

Side Note: This episode had awesome animation for the action/chase scenes!

Because this is an anime, the pilot was unscathed. He seemed to be a young adult man with a slim, feminine build, gold hair, and purple lipstick. He’s hot as fuck. We find out at the end of the episode that his name is Stanley Snyder, so that’s what I’ll call him. As he leaves the crashed plane and lights up a cigarette, Stanley also reported to his leader via radio. The person on the radio is undoubtedly the scientist leading the enemies.

Senku and Ryusui eagerly claimed the crashed plane left behind by Stanley. Senku also sent Gen, Kohaku, and Chrome out to track down the missing pilot. As the three companions walked through the California forests, Gen realized this was probably a trap. But he also decided it’s time to step up his game as a mentalist who is one of the smartest in the group. So, Gen allowed himself to get captured by Stanley. Chrome and Kohaku followed at a distance to see what happened.

Stanley brought Gen back to the enemy base. The base was full of corn, tractors, cows, and a factory building of some kind. There was also a runway for planes and probably more small planes in storage. Presumably, there were enough people around to run everything, but we only saw a random tractor driver so far – in addition to Stanley and the scientist leader. Speaking of those two, Stanley led Gen directly to the leader, who introduced himself as Dr. Xeno.

Dr. Xeno is an older adult and a professional scientist, in contrast to Senku, who was still a student and a teenager at the start of the series. (Senku’s age is weird, however, since he stayed conscious for 4000 years.) Stanley and Xeno hooked Gen up to a makeshift polygraph test and started questioning him. Gen should be able to outsmart the machine easily, since it detects nervousness more than truth or lies. The mentalist proceeded to lie that the scientist in charge of his group was Taiju. To be continued!

Episode 5: Doctor Vs. Doctor

Episode Rating: 8/10

After a radio report from Chrome, Senku’s group on the Perseus quickly finds itself in trouble. Dr. Xeno has found their radio frequency. He demands to talk to “Dr. Taiju,” demonstrating that Gen’s lie was effective. With some coaching from Senku and Ryusui, Taiju successfully pretends to be a scientist who can follow what Dr. Xeno was saying. Negotiations broke down after Taiju refused to give away the recipe for the revival fluid, but the conversation taught us some important information.

First, we learned that Dr. Xeno has established a specific kind of factory that can produce nitric acid, alcohol, and chemicals needed for ammunition. Second, we learned that Dr. Xeno was conscious for 4000 years just like Senku, and probably revived by chance in a similar way. Although nitric acid can be used to awaken those who remained conscious in their petrified forms, it doesn’t work on anyone else. Dr. Xeno hasn’t yet discovered the revival fluid that Senku uses.

Not long after the radio call, a scout plane finds the Perseus. It doesn’t attack this time. How can Senku’s group fight a plane? Senku decides to mod the Perseus to create a runway for their own plane – the one that crashed. Kaseki repairs it quickly. On a less important note, Magma is still dumb as a rock and annoying as fuck. He tries to leave the ship and go hunt down Dr. Xeno, which would put everyone in danger. Luckily, Nikki stops him by beating his ass and throwing him back on the deck. Nice.

From the way the enemy plane had flown, Ukyo could predict the rough position of the enemy base. Using that information, Senku’s group set up a table with a map, board, and moveable pieces like what would be used in a traditional military strategy meeting. Both Senku and Dr. Xeno plan to send a small team to take out the scientist of the opposite team. However, Senku only wants to capture Dr. Xeno, while Dr. Xeno wants to assassinate Senku. Let the games begin!

We’ll probably meet several more new characters in this season. One of them appeared in this episode. She hasn’t been introduced yet, but she is a tall, muscular woman whose design – though a bit goofy – is quite appealing to me. My only concern is that the depiction of this character could be problematic if she was supposed to be black or brown. It’s hard to tell because anime often gives paler skin to black-coded characters. Hopefully, this is not one such case. That’s all for today.