Why couldn’t it do this during the tournament? How Evil are episodes 21 – 23 of Golden Kamuy?
Golden Kamuy
Studio: Geno Studio
Genre: Action, Adventure, Historical, Seinen
So the dysfunctional family continues their quest to meet the guy who made all of the tattoos. But they get sidetracked by stories about blind bandits terrorizing people nearby. That doesn’t make them want to stop until they hear one of them has weird tattoos. And that’s all it takes for them to visit the hot springs in the area… Wait, is this another excuse to get the guys all together again? Of course, it is. It could be worse. There could be sea otters involved.
Anyway, the whole thing turns out to be a trap set by the bandits to help them get back at the people responsible for their blindness. They manage to catch most of the group with their pants down… literally. And to make matters worse, the rumors about one of them being tattooed are true. Shiraishi even knows the guy by name.
Toni and his men seemed to have a sort of sonar-like ability to use their hearing to see their surroundings. Because of this ability, the group has a hard time trying to fight back with multiple members getting shot while trying. Ogata was the only one really fighting back for the longest time but even then it was taking him forever to get a clear shot at night. Inkarmat and Tanigaki had another moment during all the chaos too. I’m guessing she might actually have feelings for the guy after all. After surviving until the sun came out the Sugimoto gang finally gained the upper hand. They chased the remaining bandits back to their home and eventually captured Toni and only him. The rest are dead. To be fair if Hijikata didn’t step in, Toni would be dead too.
And why would Hijikata save Toni? Well, it just so happens that we find out pretty quickly. Hijikata wants Toni to help with the plan to infiltrate Abashiri Prison. You know, only the place where the whole tattoo thing started and where Asirpa’s father is possibly being held. And like every good infiltration you have to have a plan. But first the group sits down to eat together and this is a thing.
If that doesn’t tickle you, Ogata got in on it too. He even said the Chitatap thing once just to mess with Asirpa. That was pretty funny because he only said it once and not loud enough for the others to hear. After eating, the real plan comes into play. You see, they’ve arrived just in time for fishing season. “But Bob, what does that have to do with getting in the prison?” Well, the prison is right on a river that the fish swim through.
How does that help? Well, they have Ainu teammates. The Ainu fish around this area anyway so it’s not all that suspicious. Plus they bribe the guards with fish so it works out perfectly. In their fishing hut is a tunnel to the prison that leads to their inside man’s place. The plan goes on without a hitch until they start sneaking around.
It’s hilarious how this group only really seems good on non-stealth missions. That makes two out of two stealth failures so far. Maybe next time they should charge the front entrance? Who knows? It might work out better. Oh, on top of the massive stealth failure, Inkarmat and Tanigaki basically said they’re gonna get married after all of this… Welp looks like a funeral is coming up in the near future. Maybe even a double one.
Anyway, with things going to hell within the first five minutes of the plan’s execution, you would think they would’ve been caught already. You would be wrong because somehow despite their previous failure they make it to the main building without much difficulty. They even manage to reach the cell of their target but there’s one problem.
And that’s just the start of the madness. Hijikata seemingly betrays the group just to get Asirpa to the real guy. This left Sugimoto in a really bad spot. He’s outnumbered and looks like he might just die. Of course, he’s not going to. Suspense and all that.
Oh, and we aren’t done with the madness yet either. Inkarmat has apparently called the 7th to begin their naval assault. They blow up the only bridge out and everything. And in case there was any doubt about Nopperabo being Asirpa’s father, Lieutenant Tsurumi may have given away the truth.
As you can imagine the next few minutes are utter chaos. Lieutenant Tsurumi’s forces break through the prison walls like they’re nothing and they begin to slaughter everyone in the place, prisoner and staff alike. Of course, this chaos is exactly what Hijikata was waiting for. You see, everything up to this point is part of his master plan to get the location of the treasure. Right down to Sugimoto being separated from Asirpa.
Sugimoto realizes exactly what’s going on but he can’t do much to get out of the situation. To make matters worse, the army has closed in on his location preventing his escape. And the good news isn’t over yet. Sugimoto gets spotted by Lieutenant Tsurumi. So, yay, happy reunion.
Sugimoto manages to bluff his way out of it long enough for the inside man to release the prisoners which makes Sugimoto’s escape possible. It’s not easy though. He has to fight the guy who lost his leg not too long ago and gets his leg blasted by the hidden gun in the process. Meanwhile, Hijikata is taking on the warden in a sword duel.
With both the warden and Hijikata distracted, Nopperabo makes a slow beeline to safety. A slow, can’t-walk-very-fast beeline. What in the world did they do to this man? He’s got a messed up face just like the fake and everything. Sugimoto also finds out one crucial detail. Nopperabo has blue eyes.
God, why did it take so long or it to get this good again? In fact, I’d say that these episodes are about as Evil as a Super Villian (10). It got really tense this time around. If it keeps this up, the ending is gonna be great. If you have time, make sure to check out what Voyager is up to. Well, that’s all I have for you today. Thanks for letting me waste your time, people.
Golden Kamuy’s second season is on Crunchyroll.
Keep It Classy,
Evil Bob
