Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 11: Almost time for the boss battle

Probably the worst lesson that I’m going to learn from watching so much anime is this. The next time my life is in danger, I’m going to jump into the nearest body of water to guarantee my survival.

Don’t think you can get away with this. We know Mumei’s mind is dead right now, so this is just a standard villain monologue.

This guy explains himself to a kid like the kid could understand this. Yes, I understand Biba was precocious, but he’s still not going to understand the inner mind of someone who’s mentally ill (or at least, I’m assuming the shogun is mentally ill).

Delivering injections like this…

This divine bird is so random. I guess every nation needs an emblem?

The series thinks it can make me forgive Biba’s character by showing us how messed up the shogun really is. We already predicted this level of insanity based on Biba’s behavior, so at this point I’d say this is too little too late.

I’m really surprised the shogun just lets Biba in to the city here. Given his personality, I feel like it would be more appropriate for him to just make sure Biba is killed instead of letting him return a captive.

Wow…Kurusu managed to find Ikoma? That’s impressive. Also, there’s a question I’ve been neglecting to ask for a while. Why is Ikoma’s arm not still bleeding? Why hasn’t he died from blood loss?

THEN WHY DID YOU LET HIM IN???

Also, the shogun is simultaneously smart enough to realize Biba is plotting something but dumb enough to follow Biba’s request in spite of that…

I’m actually fine with Biba’s plan here…it makes enough sense and preys on fear like you would expect. Still, I have to ask…why?

“Brainwashed ally spared you on purpose meaning there’s hope for saving her” cliche.

Yeah, there’s totally time for this haircut. Also “hero changes appearance to indicate character growth” cliche.

I’m actually fine with this.

I really hate this mechanic. Why arbitrarily make this distinction between Ikoma and the other Kabaneri? Why not use the very obvious explanation: Ikoma would react unpredictably to the black blood because he didn’t become a Kabaneri in the same way as the girls. He did it to himself rather than going through some surgery that they never explain. Creating this “male vs female” distinction just feels like an unnecessary trope to bring into the series.

First off, I’m reminded of Iron Man here. Secondly, why does Ikoma inject himself now? The scientist guy just told him that he’d be burning through his remaining life force until he dies like a candle flame. Why not wait until he’s closer to the city?

Well, let’s see how crazy the ending of the series gets…

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 10: So close and yet so far…

I’m fine with this…I think it fits his personality and it makes his character more interesting than the rest. Plus, he’s probably going to pull the reverse betrayal later to get back on everyone’s good side.

Seriously, what? Let’s just make this guy look at evil as possible so we have a good excuse to kill him off later, right?

This background story is a bit late, but I’ll take it. Still, were these troops dissenters? Followers of Biba? Why would you let 400,000 troops die so easily? If you were trying to get Biba killed, was it really worth it? Or was the number of troops meant to discredit Biba as a commander? Even if that’s the case, I still have a hard time believing it’s worth it. Plus, why didn’t Biba have a retreat plan for his troops?

Not a bad plan, Ikoma…

I don’t know how to feel about this scene. Does this “bro” moment mean that one of these two is going to die?

Is this line supposed to have an effect because someone else said it last week? Because I don’t think it does.

Uhh…what? Did he recognize that Ikoma was a Kabaneri from a single glance? Or was this line supposed to be translated as “He’s the Kabaneri”?

Yeah, this really fits his character well. It’s about time Sukari had a good role.

What is Ikoma even using to block this kukri? He doesn’t even look like he’s touching it. Maybe that little notch at the bottom?

Also, apparently male Kabaneri are rare…this feels like a cliche.

My immediate response was “yes…yes, it is”, but Ikoma says that too. I give the show points for that.

Well, it’s about time. I don’t even mind what Biba says about the drug suppressing her Kabane transformation. The fact that she’s willing to risk becoming a Kabane shows some character growth.

You just want to die, don’t you Takumi?

See?

So many limbs lost this season (not just this show)…

Seriously? Screw you, series.

I dunno…I didn’t mind the first half of the episode too much. Takumi’s death flags were even excusable. But having Biba brainwash Mumei to keep her on his side feels like the laziest mechanic of all time. I’m guessing it’s happening because Biba has no more Kabaneri with him on the train and the writers are trying to build to a Kabaneri vs. Kabaneri showdown, but it makes Mumei’s character lose so much impact.

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 9: Can we just go back to the zombies thing? I think we’ve crossed a line…

Wow…that’s so convenient. It’s almost like the writer knew that Biba’s Kabaneri were specifically a woman and a child. Seriously, why even have this line?

Well, since you asked? Absolutely! You’re not an important character and you’re obviously hiding the danger of the situation from Mumei. As I’ve said before with other shows, this is not how you do foreshadowing!

Your question above seems to suggest otherwise.

I like this guy.

Wait…this is all part of Biba’s plan, right? You mean his big plan involves having Mumei fake a trip to the bathroom?

If Mumei still trusts Biba after seeing this, I have no idea what to think.

Wait, seriously? You’re really expecting me to believe that humans have survived this long with rope as the primary point of failure on their drawbridge? You use steam-powered gears to fire an arrow, but you can’t build giant gears to lift your bridges? Heck, at least use metal cables.

You see what you’ve done, minor Kabaneri character whose name I forget? You’ve pissed off the fans…now you’re pretty much condemned to death.

And even though you were kind enough to trust me, you must die for your master’s deception! Logic!

Huh…this entire scene seems to suggest that the fused colony we saw a few episodes back really did have a Kabaneri in the core. In which case, why didn’t Mumei freak out more about that?

Humans defending a gate against a giant who wants to break it down? This show just literally became Attack on Titan, didn’t it?

What?

This guy has a minigun? Are you serious?

WHAT?? Please steampunk world, enlighten me with your physics.

Sure, I believe this is possible.

We need a reason to keep the main character alive, right?

If Mumei doesn’t turn on Biba after this episode, there’s something wrong with her. This episode makes me feel bad for saying I thought Biba had a chance to be interesting. It looks like they introduced him the way they did last week specifically so they could juxtapose it with this week’s brutality. Buuuut I guess he’s just a generic psychopath…man, I thought this might be cool.

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 8: Snake? Snaaaaaake!

Yeah, only in anime would they make this assumption for two people with such vastly different hair colors.

Rooooooll credits.

My reservations about this show aside, I actually like this scene quite a lot. They’re giving us these scenes with Biba that clearly show that he’s a man of the people, willing to step in and help the standard commoner. Couple this with Ikoma’s growing suspicions of his true character based on experiences with Mumei and we have a good setup for a reveal. I’m totally okay with this.

Coming from the praise I just gave the last scene, this scene with the “oh, I wasn’t aiming for you” gag is actually pretty facepalm-worthy.

While it’s true that Biba’s level of thinking doesn’t really work in our current society, it might actually be reasonable in an apocalypse. For the whole “standing up and fighting” thing, though, I’m a bit more skeptical.

Why exactly do the Kabane turn around here? In previous episodes, Ikoma had to cut himself to make this happen.

Okay, this is kinda awesome. The action sequences finally return!

We’re given this circular arc animation which makes it look like the old guy tried to fight back, but then Biba just stabs the guy in the next scene…I feel betrayed.

This is a very correct line of reasoning from Ikoma given the fact that Mumei said she was never bitten…I’m starting to like this guy. It also explains the “operation” thing from the beginning of the episode that was tripping me up.

Totally not sketchy…not one bit. And yet Mumei just goes with it…

Haha tricked!

I understand why Mumei has to be brainwashed by Biba, but watching her act brainwashed is actually quite painful…can we just skip through this part?

Sure…

Well, it looks a lot like Biba is going to be our last boss for the series. Based on the preview for next week’s episode, it looks like he’ll make his move quickly, so we can get through the whole “conflicted Mumei” phase. This episode was alright…I’m glad the characters seemed to be quick to suspect Biba’s actions. Plus, the fact that Ayame deduced so much from Mumei’s request for the master key seemed somewhat uncharacteristic of her…in a good way?

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 7: Zombies on break

This seems like something that will be useful in the future…maybe even in this episode. But on to my main complaint…I don’t think you should be allowed to make this statement about the Kabaneri’s ability to copy others without some sort of explanation. In most cases, you can wave it away with “oh, that’s just one of their powers”, but in this case, the Kabaneri are a combination of human and Kabane, so I expect an actual reason. Remember how they said the Wazatori just randomly learned to use a sword well by instinct? That means it’s likely not coming from the Kabane side.

…I actually agree with Mumei here.

Ahh…how the standards have dropped.

And yet they feel the need to explain this “daita-iron” thing to us? The low evaporation point thing makes a little bit of sense because that means it’s easier to cause it to expand and increase pressure. But why is the evaporation point relevant for iron?

Ahh crap…that means this episode is going to be a filler episode where everyone does an apocalypse-style Tanabata celebration, doesn’t it?

…no complaints on this one.

Do I really need to see this?

Seriously, why is this scene even important?

Now this scene, I don’t actually mind…mostly because Sukari just doesn’t care.

This scene is like a random stab at comedy, but I have no idea what I’m supposed to make of it. Ayame got hungry as she was waiting and Kurusu is embarrassed to interrupt her while she’s eating alone? I mean…so what?

I don’t understand your surprise here. If your regular guns couldn’t pierce the heart cage, what did you even use them for? Were you aiming for the gaps in the cage mesh? I’ve never tried shooting at a fence before, but I imagine most of your shots go through the holes…just saying.

Why do I get the feeling we’ll never see this name again?

Random stuff aside, I actually respect that Ikoma notices Mumei’s internal pain here. It’s clear from the way she acts that she’s legitimately afraid of becoming a monster.

Mumei would be great at Cinema- err…I agree with Mumei’s attempts to inject logic into the situation. I would do the same. But clearly she’s never watched anime with this statement.

…kill all the tita-*immediately stabbed*

Haha this face.

Aaaaaand then the Kabane attack?

Hmm…I feel like I’ve seen this exact scene before in a different series…

Honestly, this side arc where Ikoma is suspicious of the shogun’s son is actually a bit promising to me. He’ll probably get the standard backlash of “you’re a Kabane trying to defame him” or something.

So yeah…not really much going on this week. The rest of the season better be full of action. Either this or the episode is actually a bunch of death flags as everyone broadcasts their future plans.

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 6: Mumei joined your party!

Being Mumei is suffering.

Okay, this is pretty cool. Still, why exactly does the giant Kabane conglomerate have a big glowing blue spot on the chest where the Kabane weak point would normally be? Do some of the Kabane just randomly start glowing when they combine?

Mumei, you have that giant pipe lying on you…does it hurt? Solid question, Ikoma. Anyway, since it looks like Ikoma’s going to be spending the entire episode freeing Mumei, I guess they have some time to talk and get to know each other.

Yeah, listening to how much these guys hate the Kabaneri never gets old!

Explain the plan to me, Ikoma. Are you really going to use the winch to yank this rock out to make it easier to move the other rocks? Because physics would suggest that the rock is going to immediately fall down when it gets loose and crush Mumei.

Luckily the rope snaps and Ikoma doesn’t accidentally maim Mumei, am I right?

I’m assuming this is the moment when Mumei realizes the humans and Kabaneri can be friends? I’m just judging from the flashbacks she’s been having.

Nah, it’s just a flesh wound, buddy!

Well, that answers my earlier question about the glowing blue spot. Does that mean they have to hit the heart of that Kabane? Because if so, that’s actually a pretty decent weak spot…it’s not just a giant glowing blue thing that they can blast away with their cannon. I’m glad that the weak point requires actual precision to hit, but why make it glow in the first place? What do the Kabane gain by doing that?

Character growth! I still think it was forced, but I guess I’m okay with this.

Can we make this guy say “Yes!” and “Show me your moves!”, so I can pretend he’s Captain Falcon?

Hate it when that happens…

You can tell he’s a swordsman in an anime because he wastes most of his time making cool poses.

The pulling of this level requires the removal of this shirt…pretty sure there’s no one complaining, though.

It’s unclear whether the heart of this Kabane is actually a Kabaneri or whether Mumei is just projecting the image of the Kabaneri on to the core to indicate that she has gotten over her insecurities about weakness. Both seem equally likely to me.

This…actually is how physics works.

This, however…sigh…

Hmm…fewer complaints this week, right? On to the next adventure?

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 5: Nothing could possibly go wrong!

Yay new weapons! Still, I have to get upset with the fact that they gave us the sound of the guns firing and then explained how the bullets worked instead just…showing us the entire sequence. That just feels lazy to me.

Uhh…the Kabaneri didn’t show up in last week’s fight until the very end? You guys were doing fine before then if you don’t count the Wazatori.

Again…this sword had no problems against the Kabane except for the Wazatori. The only way this is an upgrade is if you coated it with the Wazatori’s metal plate, which I highly doubt you did because there’s no way there’d be enough material. Still, Kurusu needs a decent weapon, right? Man, I was hoping he’d make a gunblade…

Mumei is not amused.

Uhh…no. That would be you, Mumei. Weren’t you listening to the kid before? These guys might be “bothering” the kids, but I doubt they’re “scaring” them.

I’m pretty sure this is peer pressure.

Oh look…an old friend!

“You’re only a weapon” cliche.

This whole “switching back and forth from the map and the actual location” thing that’s happening in this scene isn’t actually helping. If anything, it’s a bit distracting to randomly switch so much.

*facepalm* Why would you say this?

You’ve made me weak! I only work alone! Where have I seen this development before? This entire scene makes me cringe…

So Ikoma is basically telling us that all of the unnamed characters are going to die in this operation…

…aaaaaand she goes to the boiler room, I’m guessing. THIS IS NOT HOW YOU DO FORESHADOWING.

Who’s surprised here?

Part of me wants to forgive the boiler room thing because we get this action scene…I doubt the others could have contributed much.

Don’t you hate it when that guy on your team aggros the mob?

No, Ikoma…you should be fighting. Let these guys do some of the work.

I’m so shocked right now…seriously, look at my face.

I thought they were joking when they mentioned the Black Smoke earlier. The Kabane actually combined? That’s so random…

Seriously, who writes these episodes? Usually I’m pretty neutral, but this week’s episode was infuriating.

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 4: Time for the real story to start?

The people of this world confuse me so much. They’re so paranoid about Kabane that they will label people as Kabane at the slightest indication, murdering them without prejudice to save themselves…yet they somehow care so much about this pregnant woman that they all turn on Mumei for killing her. I get the feeling some of you will say “oh, but Marth, you monster! Think of the baby!” And I am…but why wouldn’t a society so paranoid consider that the infected mother would infect the baby? Do people not know how umbilical cords work?

 

I didn’t get the chance to ask this last week…how does an American reach Japan in this world? Do they have air travel in this world? Or is there a giant train track that crosses the Pacific Ocean? Either way, I get the feeling this guy’s Engrish is going to get annoying really quickly.

This picture without context. Go nuts.

The train is ours!

…that’s discrimination?

Even the girls fall in love with Mumei.

DRAMATIC SLO-MO!

Are we sure the Kabaneri are the good guys? These Kabane showed up at just the right time to prevent the humans from disconnecting the train car carrying the Kabaneri…seems pretty fishy to me.

Special infected! I guess it would be too easy if they were all just mindless zombies.

Ahh…nothing makes a fight seem more epic than a shaky still picture of the battle with gunshot sounds in the background.

Someone explain to me how this bow works. It looks like the engine (steam engine?) triggers the spinning of a gear which reels in the bow string and pushes the arrow forward. I’m willing to accept this, but it means that Ayame should be letting go of the bow string BEFORE pulling the trigger and activating the steam. A bow string is always kept taut, so the second the gear starts spinning, the string should start moving, meaning that holding on to the string only acts against the force pushing the arrow. Also, I’m pretty sure the bow string would pull against her hand, injuring her in the process. Does a composite bow even need a steam engine to propel the arrows anyway?

I think the expression is “I wouldn’t do that if I were you”…either that or “You shouldn’t do that.”

This guy is clearly in front of Ayame when he kills himself and ignites the barrels of gunpowder.

However, the hole he creates is suddenly right next to Ayame for some reason. How does this not kill her?

Haha this is awesome! And say what you will about Kurusu’s behavior, his battle scene is pretty sweet too. Ikoma on the other hand…sigh…

This looks too far off to the side to be a lethal blow. How considerate of the Wazatori.

This counts as a confession, right? Also, I’m curious how Mumei would have fought the Wazatori. We saw from the battle scene just now that Kurusu’s blade didn’t have enough force to penetrate the Wazatori’s heart, meaning that it will be revealed that Ikoma’s enhanced gun is the only thing that can do the job. I guess he could have just given it to her…

Luckily, Kurusu was just stabbed in a nonlethal manner, so I’m sure you could use his blood. Also, why is there a hole at the top of the train? The gunpowder barrels were on the ground on the side, so an explosion that could affect the ceiling should have taken every on that side of the train out (specifically the ground under the barrels).

Or that.

Wow…this guy went down pretty easy. He even gave Ikoma enough time to monologue before landing the final blow.

Wait…Ayame was just bleeding on the roof of the train. How did she climb back down the ladder and get herself bandaged up in the time it took Ikoma to jump through the hole and shoot the Wazatori?

Look! A picture of a healthy baby saved by Ikoma’s actions! You forgive us for killing the pregnant woman’s baby, right?

The last time we saw this key was when it was being used by those guys outside the train that got attacked by the initial wave of Kabane. How did we get it back? Don’t worry about it…

And so the team is assembled! Episode 1 is over!

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 3: Enemies

I get that humans are inherently fearful and whatever, but these guys just saved you hard in the last episode. Weren’t you watching when Mumei cut down basically all of the Kabane? Yeesh…ungrateful.

What am I watching here? It looks like the pellet just bounced off the top of the rifle barrel. Why does that impress Mumei so much? Did Kurusu angle his gun at just the right moment or something? It certainly didn’t look like the gun fired.

What the heck does a schedule have to do with this train going to Kongokaku? It should be based on the direction the train is traveling, right? Unless you expect me to believe that they’re just arbitrarily following some sort of schedule despite leaving the station in a panic.

If these wrapped things are anything like tamales, I’d be happy with getting one of these as a meal. What are these guys complaining about?

Uhh…the skin wrapped around the food isn’t edible, right? Who cares if he grabs it with an oil-covered hand? It’s like grabbing a wrapped burger from a fast food restaurant…no one would care how dirty your hands are (or at least I wouldn’t).

Is this supposed to show that these two are siblings? Because if not, this scene is just super random. I mean…I guess there was the scene with this girl and the pregnant woman before, but isn’t this going a bit overboard to show her as the protective mother type?

Is he even fast enough to do that? She moves around pretty quickly…

*facepalm* Sadly, I can’t even ask “do people really think like this?” because I know they do…

So they actually need to keep the things around their necks to keep the Kabane virus in check? Do you honestly expect me to believe that this ribbon is enough?

Ugh…seriously? You’re going to refuse to explain yourself here?

Also, is the fact that Mumei sensed a Kabane and couldn’t find it supposed to indicate that there are actually Kabane that are smart enough to hide among the humans? I suppose that would explain the intense fear around the Kabaneri. Or maybe it’s the simpler explanation…maybe the unborn baby is the Kabane (the episode seems to be focusing an awful amount of attention on this pregnant woman).

Enter random white dude.

Are these rocks going to be revealed as magic anti-Kabane rocks or something? Also, a pretty typical “I couldn’t protect her” background story for this guy.

I’m fine with this.

Wait…is she the Kabane? The glowing thing looked like it was positioned around her heart, not her womb. But why couldn’t Mumei figure out it was her if that’s the case?

Mumei says something right here, but there’s no subtitle. I’m not sure whether it’s done on purpose because she repeats herself right after this, but it’s the second time I’ve noticed that happening this episode. Anyway, Mumei does a pretty good job of transitioning between carefree, serious, and silly in this episode. Why isn’t she the protagonist?

This is apparently enough to convince everyone…I feel like anyone really trying to trick them would have seen through Ayame’s ruse pretty quickly.

These guys can’t figure out whether they’re vampires or zombies. Anyway, I’m guessing this is the reason that Ikoma passes out next to Ayame…he probably hasn’t had any blood since becoming a Kabane. I wonder if it will make him lose his mental faculties and attack Ayame right when she trusts him most.

Yup. Still, why didn’t Mumei realize this could happen if she left Ikoma alone?

More yup. Mumei’s anguish at killing the baby along with the mother is also pretty cool. Seriously, why isn’t she the main character?

Haha…this series is fun…

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Episode 2: Rise of the Kabaneri?

It’s been a couple of weeks since we saw this series (blame nature?).

Haha this guy’s face. This scene loses a decent amount of impact for me because we don’t really know how people that have just been affected by Kabane tend to look. Is Ikoma’s friend reacting to just a general change in Ikoma’s appearance or does he see Kabane-like characteristics in Ikoma? All of the Kabane we’ve seen so far have the glowing eyes and glowing veins to clearly identify them.

I think you mean “bitten”. Saying “I got bit” sounds like someone from southern USA. (I would know…I’ve been there)

Also, can we talk about this “virus”? You’re telling me that if he stops the virus from going to his head specifically at the time of infection, the virus just spontaneously dies and he’s safe from it? Given how quickly this virus dies, you’d think most people would have countermeasures against it. I also don’t understand why they have such extensive measures in checking for the bites. If the virus acts so quickly, detecting the bite mark so long after it happens shouldn’t be helpful at all. Surely, there are better indicators for turning into a Kabane once the virus hits the brain, right?

Time to casually introduce all of the main characters.

That seems like something you would check right before jumping into the mob of zombies. If you were a nameless character, you’d be dead by now.

Nice. The music makes this scene even better.

Given that the episode started with Ikoma shouting “I am a Kabaneri”, does that mean his condition is nothing new? If so, I’d guess Mumei is another such Kabaneri.

Never underestimate human stupidity, kid.

SHOCKING TRUTH!

But yeah…Mumei specifically says that Ikoma is “not a Kabane”, rather than saying he’s not infected or that he’s human, which further suggests that she has a similar condition.

Well, Mumei looked pretty cool in the first half of the episode, but I’m somewhat glad that she has a drawback. It also explains her obsession with how much time she took to kill the group of Kabane.

If you look at the rings on the other pipes, you’ll notice that they are bolted down, but Ikoma is somehow able to attach this pipe back by hitting it like a TV set that’s fuzzy. The show tries to distract me from this fact by having Takumi reveal that the pipe is really hot and that Ikoma has no heat sensitivity, but there’s no way I’m going to let that slide!

This Kabane’s elbow is going backwards…it gets a pass because it’s a zombie, but still…

Oops…

Well, he’s dead now…series over!

In zombie language, I think this translates as “one of us! one of us!”.

Haha that zombie did such a fancy spin move to just blow up against the water tank.

This is actually pretty badass…are we sure this guy is a main character? He’s completely right, but can he really blame them? Given how close he is in appearance to a Kabane, they have way of knowing if he’ll eventually lose his mental faculties and turn.

So in the first screenshot, the cable has barely enough slack and the train is moving. In the second screenshot, the cable starts getting dragged by the moving train. And in the third screenshot, Mumei jumps down to grab the cable, which suddenly has enough slack to allow her to stand still while the train is still moving away from them. That’s not how cables work, guys.

I’m so shocked!

Did we hear the ending song in the first episode? It’s pretty good.

It’s funny how many holes you can poke at this series…time to watch it for the action, right?