This season finale of Hell’s Paradise was thoroughly enjoyable. It was one of the most satisfying wrap-ups to a season I’ve seen in quite a while. The intense action, character development, and drama were all top-quality. Also, Yuzuriha is alive and back! Let’s rant about Hell’s Paradise Season 2 episode 12 (or episode 25 in total).
Episode 12: Endings and Beginnings
Episode Rating: 10/10
First I’ll mention the scene where Fuchi, Gantetsusai, and Touma were goofing off a little while mostly naked and allowing their clothes to dry. Fuchi fastened a makeshift eyepatch for Gantetsusai and insisted that it looked cool when worn at a certain diagonal angle. Touma disagreed and Gantetsusai said he would rather look like an old wise master. It was nice to see these characters getting a chance to relax, though Choubei reminded them before long that there wasn’t time to spare. When Fuchi asked if Choubei and Touma would come with them, Choubei’s answer was interrupted by a ruckus. It was the sound of the Iwagakure ninjas breaking into the Tensen palace.
Meanwhile, Shion and Nurugai were sneaking through the outdoor courts in the dark night. It was incredibly sweet when Shion told Nurugai he would protect her “until the light leaves my eyes” or literally “until my eyes turn dark.” Nurugai didn’t understand the idiom, which was humorous. But I thought it was great that Shion promised to take Nurugai to a peaceful home in the mountains. Of course, I hope this was more of a fatherly gesture on Shion’s part than a romantic proposal. But with the cultural practices of that time, a girl of Nurugai’s age could be bethrothed to a man decades older and nobody would bat an eye. Even assuming Shoin is in his 20s, it wouldn’t matter, because Nurugai is still a teenager. Whether it’s wholesome or not, Shion and Nurugai’s interesting relationship dynamics will have to wait, because they were attacked by ninjas intent on killing them.
The ninjas attacked everyone at once. Each group was surrounded and fighting for their lives. When Gui Fa reported to Rien, the older Tensen issued an order for the Doshin to defend the palace. Scores of Doshin creatures answered the call, some of them riding on horse-like mounts and all of them armed. Soon it was nothing but chaos as the ninjas fought the Tensen’s army. These action scenes were intense. Everyone was out to kill someone else, a fact which the narrative stressed repeatedly. For once, I agree with Gantetsusai, who basically said that war is madness, and that only a monster could order soldiers to die for them. (The word he used was literally “oni” which refers to a fierce demon or ogre). As if to show a real oni at work, the scene switched to Shugen, cutting up the Tensen’s army like slices of soft cheese. He looked absolutely savage.
Before I rant about Shugen, we need to talk about Shija, the current leader of the ninjas on the island. I was initially guessing that Shija was a woman voiced by a male VA, but it seems Shija’s gender and sex are actually unknown and purposefully ambiguous. In other words, we have a new nonbinary character! Yay! The bad news is that they are already following a trope (usually reserved for female characters) that I don’t like. They are an obsessive, brooding person almost like a stalker. Shija is deeply in love with Gabimaru, whom they have been ordered to kill and replace. I don’t know what Shija plans to do when they face Gabimaru, and I’m not looking forward to their meeting. In the meantime, Shija faced off with Rien at the docks area, planning to burn the ships.
Now about Shugen. I have always loved characters who have a strong sense of justice, even if their thinking makes them a villain. Shugen is fascinating to me from a psychological standpoint. But I want to make it very clear that I’m not defending Shugen or his violent actions. He is an insane monster with sickening levels of self-righteousness. I just wanted to clarify in case anyone gets the wrong idea when I say, “I like Shugen.” As for what Shugen is doing now, he’s come to face with Fuchi.
In my previous episode review, I assumed that Yuzuriha was dead. I was tricked by the narrative this time, but I’m so glad I was wrong! Yuzuriha swung in out of nowhere and saved Sagiri and Mei from the attacks of both the Tensen’s army and the ninjas. It was so good to see the ninja girl alive and to see her sweet reunion with Sagiri, too. Those who ship the girls would have been delighted with this scene, because Sagiri and Yuzuriha were both rather touchy-feely. But the moment was interrupted by the arrival of Isuzu. She was relieved to seee Sagiri alive, but she became grim when she realized the Samurai woman was protecting Yuzuriha, a criminal. Isuzu begged for Sagiri to come to her side, tears in her eyes – she obviously didn’t want to fight Sagiri, but felt it was her duty. Will Sagiri go to Isuzu’s side or stick to protecting Yuzuriha? The scene cut away before we saw the result, but I suspect Sagiri and Isuzu will come to blows.
Elsewhere, Kiyomaru and some ninjas were challenging Shion and Nurugai. Jikka, who was not happy about this work at all, was facing Choubei and Touma. As I mentioned earlier, Shija was facing off with Rien and Shugen had just run into Fuchi and Gantetsusai. As Gabimaru fought his way toward the others, he saw something monstrous appear before him. Remember how I wasn’t sure that Zhu Jin was dead? Well, they were not dead. The Tensen combined themselves with Banko, the giant flower, and became a hideous and huge monster. The episode ends with an epic piece of music playing and a short monoloque form Gabimaru, who says that he will return to his wife no matter what hell awaits him. I was very happy with this ending.
~Thanks for Reading~
Written by 7Mononoke at Anime Rants
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