Surprising as it is, this episode appears to be mostly anime original content. Though not quite filler as it appears this content was supposed to be in the original manga but the author was pushed to cut it out due to the series not doing particularly well at the time. Seems that with the anime the author got it added back in with this episode and I am quite glad he did as it really shows Riko growing to appreciate just how much Regu does for her. As well as the dangers of Regu’s incinerator weapon which may pack a powerful punch but it’s cooldown time puts Riko in serious danger. On top of that we have an example of just how devastating the curse of the abyss can be on someone in the lower levels even when ascending a small slope.
I was originally put off by Riko sacrificing the little creatures in order to distract the bigger monsters from noticing them though it certainly isn’t out of character for her. After all she is the survivalist type who believes in the natural order of things. The thing is that I believe this action had great ramifications for her throughout this episode. These things have been watching them since they entered the great fault and after that action it honestly looks like they were trying to kill Riko. Riko comments the little guys were leading them to food and water however they end up leading her straight into the lair of a Madokajack. Then when being chased by the Crimson Splitjaw the Neritantans blocked the exit so she couldn’t get out before chickening out at the sight of the massive predator. Then it appears they lead her to a monster who would eat her up only for her to cut her way out of it. Finally they all gathered and attacked her at once which Riko blamed on her smelling like the fruit they eat. Taking all these little things into account I think these creatures were holding a grudge.
As pointed out by a commenter in the last post, the last episode of this series will be a one hour special. Taking that into account this series has about six episodes of content left. At the moment the anime has covered up to chapter 18 of the manga with about 42 chapters out currently. From what I hear there is a good ending point at chapter 38. Possibly with some faster pacing the anime could reach that point but I feel reluctant to say it should speed up. From what I seen, Manga readers appear rather flustrated over the anime’s pacing. Not due to it being inaccurate but rather at the speed it’s currently at they won’t be able to see the moments they want to see animated. However I find the pace of the anime to be perfect as we spend just enough time in each level of the abyss to stop it feeling like a tick on a checklist. My general problem isn’t so much how this series is presented as i actually considering it superior to it’s manga counterpart. My problem is more that this series doesn’t have the runtime it truly needs. The extended last episode certainly helps in this regard but having a two cour series could have done wonders for this show.
