Last week, I wondered what this show would do with its last bit of show. The world was open because Elle did get her revenge and survived it somehow. How could this show handle what is about to do while moving forward? What other things are available to see or so? So many things considering how society itself is so against replicants still. Well, this episode gave some answers. Even answers we didn’t even need to know.
A Look At The Story
Once again, there isn’t a lot of story to write about but I feel like the execution of this experience was pretty good. Most of the episode was Joseph’s last mission as a blade runner. That mission being killing the attractive lounge singer. While the show does linger on a lot of moments, I feel like Joesph slowly falling deeply in love with her by watching her singing was pretty on point. Especially since it cuts for more and more time of him just gazing at her and her singing at the same lounge. She was pretty smart too because she knew everything that was going.
So of course Marlowe had to be inserted into the scene to add the final nail to Joseph’s Blade Runner career and the replicant herself. So that was a clear transition point right? Joseph crossing the line of seeing all people that look and act human as just being human. Marlowe pushed him into killing her or else there would be consequences and to Joseph this was actually watching his true love die at his own hands. Meanwhile, Marlowe survives and wins in the end. I guess a person does need to be horrible to take the Blade Runner job and stay with it.
After that part of the episode, which was my favorite part, the show sort of leads into a pretty basic direction. Who was Elle’s boyfriend at the beginning of the series? We find out and its Wallace Jr. The same guy who is currently tatooing a replicant girl with white hair. So that black and white dynamic is at play again. Still wondering what this episode will do with this next unless Wallace Jr. wants to see them fight against each other? I hope that’s not it because it feels way too simple. Elle is still getting over her nightmares that will never leave after all.
Some Visual Talk
Visually, this was a very minimalist episode. It mainly focuses on what room where people are just put into a single place and don’t move. For instance, Joseph was the blade runner that just sat down and watched the lounge singer do her acts and that was a lot of this episode. Or Joseph’s apartment. All of which had some classic Noire vibes that I like and Blade Runner carries such a great mood pieces despite the minimalism. I feel like it shows how not all pieces of animation just need smooth movement to capture a mood.
Overall Thoughts
So over all, this was a good episode. I liked the backstory element even if its a bit cliche. Cliche doesn’t meant that its bad because its very well executed for what the episode wants to do. It also leaves some interesting ideas about the last few episodes. You know, unless its the white colored and black colored attractive replicant fighting each other over some psychological concepts and/or nature vs nurture. Then again, that might be OK too. I really wish I knew where this show was going or at least didn’t go for simple ways. Onto episode 11 where these things might be pieced together.
Mechanical Anime Reviews 