This was a rather slow week for Yaiba. As we meet the rest of the Hashira, the Master of the Slayers and the whole thing takes place in one scene. Still, there are things worth talking about, so let’s dive in!
Right off the bat, this was a very slow episode. Little actually happened this week, and the whole thing took place in effectively a single scene. Yes, a number of important things are/did happen during the scene, but a large chunk of it felt… dull. This isn’t surprising though as a majority of the scene was just introducing new characters. This is of course a historical problem for Yaiba. The series tends to ramp their eccentric personalities up to 11 on first introduction. We need only look back at Inosuke and Zenitsu’s introductions for evidence of this. The exact same issue occurred this week. With each of the Hashira coming off very strongly, pushing a singular character trait forward over anything else. This is decent for establishing the basics of a new character quickly. It’s just not particularly interesting or fun though.
This isn’t to say Yaiba doesn’t have good characters, I quite enjoy Zenitsu and Inosuke now. Yaiba just can’t seem to start off on the right foot with them. Take the Wind Hahsira, Sanemi for instance, who feels like another Bakugo. Or the Love Pillar, Mitsuri, who you have to wonder how they became one at all. Yet surprisingly, Yaiba still managed to start expanding them a bit in the same episode they were introduced in. As when the Master told them his acceptance of Nezuko and Tanjiro, many of them outright disagreed. I wasn’t expecting this kind of public disobedience/refusal of their apparent master. Not after they bowed so quickly. I feel it shows their, mostly collective, extreme distaste for Demons and their view that they are less than human. Sanemi of course has the most characterization through his actions, and I am looking forward to what happens.
As far as the general plot, I will admit to not being particularly interested. One of the issues with this kind of scene is that, as the MC, we know Tanjiro and Nezuko will get out. We know there isn’t really any danger. Maybe they get sent on some crazy mission, or they have to prove themselves in some way. The only question was how. For this, I think Yaiba managed to do it in a rather novel way. With Sanemi directly disobeying his superior and actively tempting Nezuko in front of everyone. It made the ending for more interesting than the episode began. As balls began to roll and other characters got to start doubting Tanjiro’s actions. Simply put, I am happy that the letter from Urokodaki didn’t settle the matter immediately, but instead prompted further response. It made an otherwise dull episode end strong.
That said, the cliffhanger itself was rather annoying. We know how it’s going to play out, there isn’t any real reason to have a cliffhanger here because there’s nothing to be kept in suspense for. I think it would have been better to end it on a sweet note of Nezuko refusing. Rather than trying for a tense one, especially as it could never compete with the arc we just finished. This whole theme of “She’s one of/the only good one” is just not as interesting to me as what we just went through. When I wanted Nezuko tested, I was hoping it would be done by her choice. She would be confronted with it in a more meaningful setting where failure to adhere was possible, and wouldn’t immediately result in death. Because of the consequences, Nezuko simply isn’t allowed to fail here.
So all in all, how was this episode of Yaiba? Well if you can’t tell by the length of the post, it was probably the dullest in a long time. Little happened until the end, and what did finish the episode seemed incomplete. The core themes of the series are all still there of course. There are still things to like. Yaiba still looks pretty, etc etc. It’s just narratively I think introducing 7+ characters at once, ramped up to 11, is difficult for the audience. Only one got time to really stand out and make an impression. So I suppose, tl;dr, the episode isn’t bad. Just dull compared to what we just got. And while expected after the arc finale, that doesn’t change how it makes the viewer feel.
Maybe you should lower your expectations a little bit. You cannot expect every episode to be amazing you know.
I suppose I was to negative in that sense. You need lulls between action setpieces of course, not everything is gonna be a 19. It’s just… There were better lull episodes in Yaiba I feel than this one, though that probably has to do with the mass introduction of a bunch of strong personalities. It’s also that, at this point in my effort to not rehash things I have said before, I tend to refrain from gushing about some positive aspects. Like the OST and animation/art style are still on point. Its a good series to look at, the character designs are fun to. I just don’t wanna keep hammering you all with that same information each week, which I think can lead to these sometimes just being negative posts.
Guess I need a better balance.
I actually liked this episode, since it’s pretty logical that the demon slayer corps wouldn’t be cool with just bringing a demon along for the ride. Also shows another side to the conflict with the intrigue and strategy, instead of just wild sword swinging.
All of that makes sense, I am with ya they wouldn’t be into bringing a demon along. It just felt… slow? Like Yaiba has been burning forward with its pacing, but it really drug its heels here I think.