Megalo Box: Nomad – 4 [Si la flor del alma florece, el amor no se perderá]

Hello once again, I am back with another episode of Megalo Box: Nomad! Apologies for the wait, I went to go and see Demon Slayer: Mugen Train this weekend and that sort of held me up. Eighty Six should also be coming out tomorrow for those looking for that. In the meantime though we have a lot to talk about with Nomad so lets get right to it!

Starting off let’s talk about the production troubles Nomad has. Just like the first season of Megalo Box, *Nomad’s fights don’t look good. Part of this of course is the weird upscaling, we’ve talked about that. But the other is that they just aren’t animated that well. A lot of the blows lack impact and characters move like stiff cardboard cutouts. In the first season this was a major hinderance, basically every episode was a big fight of some kind. But Nomad’s shift in focus is doing it a lot of favors here I think. The fights are no longer the important set pieces they were in season 1. Now they are closer to important character moments than action sequences. So as long as Nomad can nail the emotions of the scene, which it generally has, then the lackluster fights aren’t that big an issue. Hopefully it stays that way.

Moving on to the actual narrative, lets start with Chief. So much happened with Chief this episode. The aftermath of the fire, the fight, the win and, of course, his death. Don’t worry we’ll get to that last one. Overall I think this was a good culmination to Chief’s story. The way he fought and how the jeers and insults were finally starting to get to him. How he showed he wasn’t perfect but was still willing to fight against the odds, and the cheaters, to win. It really sells this flawed paragon portrayal of him and makes him feel like an actual person instead of just an ideal. My only complaint would have to be his death: Chief didn’t need to die for Nomad to drive this point home.

I don’t mean to say that his death doesn’t make sense, he took a bunch of rabbit punches. Those things are illegal for a reason. It also fit in well with Gansaku’s death, allowing Joe to grieve and accept this one and in a way do what he didn’t for Gansaku. But… it just feels so tropey. Chief didn’t need to die for any of this. He could have just lost the ability to fight or something. Joe still would have gotten the gear, still would have had all the sad moments, etc. It’s not like Nomad didn’t set this up. The constant grave visits, the burning of his house, the birds, all of those were death flags. I was just hoping that Nomad would be able to surprise me a bit I suppose. Maybe I just really liked Chief and I’m still grieving to though. Its hard to tell.

Similarly Mio’s story also finished in a good place but the route to get there felt off. At it’s core I think this worked. Running away, the Sachio parallels, his closing remarks to Joe etc. I like how he figured himself out and returned home in time to see Chief win. That he stood up to the racists kids, stuck by his culture and his home, and in the end at least one sort of respected that. The reoccurring symbolism with the hummingbirds and the way they were portrayed in the streetlights on the wall were great as well. My issue however is that it felt like it was all packed into this single episode. I have no idea how Nomad could have spaced this better as it’s not enough content for a while other episode. But seeing him leave and return in a single 20 minute run felt… fast.

Finally lets talk about Joe. For all that I complained about how Chief’s death and Mio’s arc were handled I think they work well within Joe’s story. The acceptance he found with Chief, similar to Gansaku, and seeing how those around him handled Chief’s death. The legacy he left behind. Mio’s outrage, so similar to Sachio, and his struggle to find a home. The way he raged, destroyed and eventually returned to his community and was welcomed back with open arms. It all fits really well into Joe’s own struggles and it makes sense that they would push him back to his own home. Hopefully this isn’t the last we see of them. I would love for them to make a return later on and to connect with Joe’s other family. Use them to really hammer home this point of human connection and shared experiences, etc.

All in all I would say this episode did it’s job. I wasn’t as enraptured with it as previous episodes sadly. I think that’s somewhat to do with how predictable the ending of the side plot was. Chief’s death and Joe’s return were both expected at this point even if they were executed well. Compared to the uncertainty with which I approached the earlier episodes, and the surprises they brought, I was a lot more prepared for Nomad this week. Still a good show is a good show. Nomad is without a doubt my favorite of the season so far and I only critique because I love it.

Moving forward, I hope Nomad can keep it’s new Latin flavor as we return to the big city. As much as I enjoyed the first season’s OST and style I want more of this. Let the community, the immigrants, be a continued part of who Joe is from now on. Maybe mix the two together as Joe returns to his roots and let the music and style of Nomad tell us who Joe is as a person. I dunno about you but I think that would be pretty damn cool. See you next week when we find out.