天下制覇

Good boy.

Impressions:

I’m not as big a fan of this episode as I was of the first, just because the angst is starting to get cranked up quite a bit and I’m not sure if they’re going to be crucifying Casshern every single episode or if there’s going to be a little more depth to this world beyond various levels of "kill and eat Casshern." I can understand the need to build up a despairing world, but aside from the green haired girl who was sort of half crazy from fear to begin with and the partially dismembered guy, the shift in the rest of the village from "life sucks, but… what are you gonna do about it?" to "MUST EAT BRAINS ROBOT" was just a little bit sudden. I’m also not really certain what to think of Friender yet… I mean… he’s a dog. A robot dog, sure, but I don’t really expect much, if any development or personality from him.

Ultra-Brief Summary:

A couple is assaulted by a trio of robots. A robot dog (Friender) comes to their aid, but he isn’t enough. Casshern arrives in the nick of time to rescue them. They take him to their village where Casshern (who doesn’t tell them his name) learns more about his past and that he was the one that brought the decay to the world.

At night, one of the elders falls to pieces while entertaining the others. Shortly thereafter, the couple is attacked again by a robot that mistakes the guy for Casshern. Casshern steps in and announces that he is the real Casshern. He easily defeats the robot, but the badly wounded guy in his desperation to live stabs Casshern. Most of the rest of the villagers start coming after Casshern as well and he’s forced to kill them all. At the end of it, only the woman is left. Casshern, still out of control, attacks, but Friender throws Casshern back as the girl decays into dust, cursing him.

Preview:

Casshern finds another traveller.