Hello, readers! This post covers the episodes released between May 24th and May 30th, 2026. (As always, I am one week behind from the most recent episode of Go For It, Nakamura!) Until now, in my episode reviews, I’ve tried to take several paragraphs to flush out my notes on each episode. But my schedule is now more demanding since I’m in a PHP therapy group. My notes are likely to be sparser now. It is what it is.
- The Ascendance of a Bookworm Season 4
- Dr. Stone: Science Future Part 3
- Go For It, Nakamura!
- Re: Zero Season 4
- That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Season 4
The Ascendance of a Bookworm Season 4
Episode 8: Ferdinand’s Task
This was an uncomfortable episode because it highlighted how wrong things are in the world in which Rosemyne currently resides. Because of the tyranny of the rich and many systemic issues, selling orphan children was not a crime for the mayor of Hasse. He was legally within his rights to sell Nora. The illegal thing he did was argue against Ferdinand in person, thus defying a noble. This is why it’s important to have a moral system that doesn’t equate legality with what’s morally right. Rosemyne is now part of a world that allows humans to be owned and trafficked in some cases. She may be complicit with the wrongs in her society by not objecting – but if she defied the law of the land in any significant way at this point, all that would accomplish would be her execution.
It’s unclear if the mayor put them up to it, or if they did it themselves; but the people of Hasse attacked the monastery to try to get the “stolen” children back. Fortunately, protective magic kept the attackers out. But this meant that Hasse had seriously defied the will of the nobility. Instead of burning Hasse to the ground, Ferdinand tasked Rosemyne with finding a way to entrap the mayor and hold him solely responsible. If she did this, it would lead to the mayor’s execution, but the normal people of the town would be safe. Rosemyne didn’t want to scheme against anyone, especially if it would lead to a death. She was emotionally overwhelmed by the task. Lutz advised her to think of it as “saving Hasse” rather than “entrapping the mayor.” This helped Rosemyne somewhat, and she reported to Ferdinand with her plot idea. To be continued.
Dr. Stone: Science Future Part 3
Episode 9: Wanting Everything
This episode felt at a few points like a classic shounen training episode, mostly because Senku had to undergo intense training to be strong enough to be an astronaut. Also in this installment, the group set up the internet by lying cables with fibers made from the Eucommia plant. The party then decided on who would go on the lunar mission: Ryusui as the pilot, Senku as the scientist, and Kohaku as the fighter. I’m very pleased that Kohaku was chosen to be on the final team. I have always loved this character. Plus, I think Tsukasa was wise to conclude that an agile warrior would be more useful on the moon than a heavier-class fighter like himself.
We learned about the two weapons that would be used against Why-Man: 1) net-grenade guns capable of destroying medusas, and 2) resurrection watches, which allowed the user to un-petrify themselves by releasing revival fluid at a time delay. At the end of the episode, Ryusui went to visit the statue of Stanley, believing that he was actually the person most suited to be the pilot of the lunar mission. I wonder if Ryusui will actually unfreeze Stanley. In other notes, this season has moved at a snail’s pace. I doubt the whole story can be concluded in 4 episodes in anything like a satisfactory way. I’m hoping there will be a movie or something so there’s sufficient time for adventures on the moon.
Go For It, Nakamura!
Episode 9: Pursuit! A Cultural Festival on a Starry Night!!
This episode was about the culture festival at Hoshimi High. Though it’s still an overused trope, I do sometimes enjoy culture-fest episodes in school anime. The adventurers of Nakamura were entertaining enough. The highlight of this episode was seeing Hirose cross-dress as a girl and meeting his older sister, who came to cheer him on in the drama play. Interestingly enough, Hirose’s hot sister made Nakamura start wondering if he could be bisexual. In the end, he concluded he was (at least right now) only attracted to Hirose and anyone who looked like him. It’s possible that Nakamura is pansexual, since gender may not factor into his attraction. Anyway, it was fairly good installment.
Re: Zero Season 4
Episode 8 (AKA 74): Who Are You?
Re: Zero is known for its switches from normal isekai shenanigans to sudden violence and visceral horror. This episode once again demonstrated this strong suit of the series. If you have even a shred of sympathy for Subaru, then this episode was horrifying! Maybe there’s something wrong with me for sort of enjoying the experience, but I know I’m not alone. Anyway, Subaru died twice while trying to figure out why he lost his memories. Someone keeps killing him by pushing him off the stairs in the tower. I’m not yet sure who the culprit is – Meili seems like the obvious suspect, but does she really have a motive to kill Subaru at this point? Maybe it was Echidna or somebody outside of the group. Regardless, Subaru decided he needed to die to reset, so he left the tower. This activated Shaula’s programmed orders to kill any who try to leave. To be continued.
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Season 4
Episode 8 (AKA 80): The Groundwork of Greed
Rimuru treated Glenda to dinner at the Tempest Reception Hall. Hinata came along too and pressured Rimuru into paying for her. It was rather funny. Anyway, Glenda told everything she knew to Rimuru and was accepted as a new spy under Souhei. At the end of the meal, Gobta approached Rimuru to remind him of the upcoming exploration trip with Milim. Meanwhile, Maribel schemed with Johann and Yuuki. Recently, the Hero’s granddaughter had instructed Yuki to bring something back from the nest of a dragon. My guess would be that it’s a dragon egg. Maribel planned to use this in an attack against Rimuru. Based on the visuals in the opening song, she will somehow cause a dragon to go berserk. Maribel planned to strike when Rimuru, Milim, Shion, and Gobta were exploring an ancient ruin near the city of Distave.
When it was time for the exploration mission, Yuuki sent his underling, Kagali, to go with Rimuru and company. I was happy to see Kagali with this role because she’s cute and is voiced by Yui Ishikawa, a popular and skilled seiyuu with a memorable voice. I know her best as the voice of Mikasa from Attack on Titan. Kagali mentioned that she was a demon lord, which I had no clue of before. Regardless, Rimuru’s party and Kagali’s group of human explorers met up and set out. They went through a magical door conured by Rimuru that led them to the city of Distave. Here, they were greeted by some elf ladies on boats. The episode leaves off there. I’m enjoying this season so far, though it’s still pretty slow. This episode was mostly enjoyable for the character interactions.
~Thanks for reading~
Written by 7Mononoke at Anime Rants
Anime Rants 