Naturally, Chloe learns the true meaning of friendship and ends up saving the day. You just can’t focus too much on the details or else the premise starts to fall apart. Like what exactly is the point of trapping all of these people in a dark room? How do they eat? How do they sleep? How do they bathe? Shh, don’t worry about it. So you defeat the system that has been providing people with everything they needed. What now? This world is still comprised of tiny islands surrounded by nothing but ocean. How are these survivors going to fend for themselves? Where will they get their food and supplies from now? Again, don’t worry about it! Look, we saved the day, so it’s all good!

Some minor tidbits:

— I wonder if Brainwashed Asuka ever woke up. She probably did.

— Yeah, this is how you store a virus, you guys.

— Asuka tries to save her brainwashed friends by tricking them into eating dinner then stealing their phones. I almost feel like this episode was written by a curmudgeonly old person raging against teenagers staring at their phones all day. I’m sorry, but talking to you is just that boring!

— Once again, Ero-Yu is all over Asuka, but in this week’s episode, she even starts to fall for Seriousuka.

— Speaking of Seriousuka, it’s like she never learns. Every time they encounter a clutter, she tells the girls to go home. But every time they’ve been through this, she’s needed their help.

— Nana and Mia end up fighting stronger versions of their previous foes. I dunno, isn’t it a bit early to be recycling the bad guys?

— Chloe finally gets her transformation, but she doesn’t really go to battle. Instead, she has to pilot her underwater suit all the way to the main server that is submerged for some odd reason. I wonder how she’s going to function above ground. If the current pattern holds, I guess we’ll find out in two more episodes.

— Not a big fan of the lecherous teddy bear.

— So who’s up next? It has to be Yu, right? This is assuming that we’re saving Asuka for last.

---

Golden Kamuy Ep. 18

This episode is devoted entirely to Tanigaki’s backstory. We learn that he had left his village and joined the military in order to track down his sister’s killer — her own husband, actually. He does finally find the guy, but the truth is just tragic. There is no revenge to be had here unless you want to somehow kill the gods for being so cruel. So uh, yeah… not much else for me to say about this week’s episode. It’s a nice little vignette, but that’s all it is. Right before the credits roll, we see that Tanigaki and his group has finally caught up to Asirpa. Hopefully, this means that she and Sugimoto will stop trusting Kiroranke. And oh yeah, Asirpa’s grandmother, is about to die, so that sucks.

---

Ken En Ken – Aoki Kagayaki Ep. 7

Zhao and the sisters finally get to have their reunion, but it’s terribly short-lived. Plus, neither Zhao nor Ning come off looking too good after this week’s episode, but we’ll get to the juice drama in a bit. First, we need to get the stupid love triangle out of the way. I like romance in my stories, but this one is not very interesting. So what do you do when you haven’t see the girl you love in years? Naturally, Zhao seizes the opportunity to confess his love to Yin since he never got the chance to do so all those years ago. I guess these two still harbor feelings for each other. This is bad, because Ning ends up overhearing everything. They think she’s sleeping, but even then, they should’ve been more careful. It’s not like people don’t often wake up in the middle of the night. Plus, the girl has been feeling down in the dumps, because she thinks she’s useless compared to her sister. And now she has to hear that she got in the way of her sister’s love (which she already knew). But enough about that.

Zhao quickly changes the subject and tells Yin to join his side. Y’know, join the very same empire that had ruined their lives. Join the very same empire that crippled her sister and enslaved her childhood friend/lover. Join the very same empire that continues to slaughter innocent children without rhyme or reason. So of course Yin can’t join him! You would have to be a moral degenerate to just ignore all these crimes against humanity happening in front of you! I mean, c’mon… what is he even thinking? Well, he’s not thinking. It becomes quickly apparent that Zhao has no sense of right and wrong. He wants to hold onto his position within the empire, because he’s secured himself a sweet position as the empress’s pet. To hell with all the people who have suffered, I guess. Who cares if my own inventions are being used for murder? Who cares if this empire’s appetite for conquest is insatiable? Muh power! Muh imouto!

The worst part is when Zhao tries to manipulate Yin by using Ning against her. He swears that Ning will be safe with him in the palace, so shouldn’t Yin just abandon every single principle she has and join the bad guys?! This guy is a grade-A dirtbag! Luckily, he’s not alone. Remember how Ning has been pretty whiny for the past few episodes? Again, she gets to hear that Zhao has always been in love with Yin. Not only that, she also gets to hear that Zhao now works for the bad guys — the very same bad guys she’s been wanting to kill! Ning has been arguing non-stop with Yin because she wants to murder the baddies and her big sis doesn’t. So what does Ning do? She willingly joins Zhao. Good lord. I doubt she’ll be very safe at the palace anyways. You really want to tell me that the little child empress won’t get super jealous at the sight of Ning? Well, we’ll see, won’t we?

I just know that I won’t be too choked up if neither Ning nor Zhao end up surviving this series (though at least one of them probably will).