©バード・スタジオ/集英社 ©SAND LAND製作委員会
Last week I mentioned that Bred, based on what we've seen of him and his past, might consider himself a hero—someone willing to do just that. do whatever is necessary to keep its people safe from threats both domestic and foreign. The problem is, in doing so, he allied himself with a narcissist who saw no problem with using the Sand Land equivalent of nuclear weapons on their territory.
It's pretty clear from Bred's facial expressions in this episode that he doesn't approve of what Muniel is doing. However, Muniel has been consistently successful so it's hard to go against him. After all, at this point, who will the soldiers follow, the general or their “hero”? He may not want to find out.
Luckily, having the overconfident (and extremely incompetent) Muniel in charge is what gives our heroes the opening they need to counterattack. In the second season's best action scene to date, Rao comes up with the idea of dropping his tank on the flying fortress while the rest of their hastily recruited army attacks as a distraction. . And when things go wrong (which they inevitably will), his quick thinking will accomplish the mission.
What's great about this scene is that, on a character level, it once again reminds us of the close friendship between Rao, Bezebub, and Thief. I mean, Rao actually told them to drive into a giant hole—a hole with a weird dragon at the bottom, and they did. Even Ann, the newest member of the group, did not object.
This entire episode demonstrates the entire cast's trust in Rao—as a friend, a general, or an old enemy. This is the kind of faith that Bred and Muniel do not have. And in the end, it will most likely be their undoing.
Rating:
Random thoughts:
It never occurred to me that Beezelbub might have thought that his father and sister were dead. Maybe it's the fact that, when I watched Dragon Ball, I had a pretty good understanding of how such jars worked.
I was really choked up when Rao hung his wife's photo in the tank. He's doing all of this for her—so no one else will have to die like her.
→ Ann had a difficult time after being turned into a demon. Being surrounded by people who knew and accepted her—along with those who only saw her as a skilled mechanic—helped her mentally.
“The living legend is a legend once again.”
SAND LAND: THE SERIES is now streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.