Changes continue in this far flung and mysterious future now that Shun has disappeared.
What They Say:
No episode summary provided.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
With the series shaking things up a bit in the previous episode by advancing the storyline ahead by two years, and the heavily sexualizing it because of the way it’s showcasing the open love concept of this utopian society, it’s easy to see why so many people were thrown off about it, even down to the changes in the character designs to accommodate the new ages. But all of it worked well for me in that it showed more of how the kids were growing and that realization that the events of two years prior aren’t going to go unpunished, just that it was merely delayed until now. And all of it has put a lot of pressure on everyone, especially now where Shun has gone in his own way and there’s some dissent about who should be going to look for him.
As they split up and start to figure things out, it gets even more complicated as all paths to Pinewind village is cut off and none of them have come to school at all either, which raises some red flags. But for Saki and Satoru, they’re the ones going to investigate and find out what’s giong on firsthand, which is only getting more and more curious as they sneak closer through all the barriers and even find some Monster Rats lurking about. Their exploration is pretty interesting from the way they find more and more unusual aspects to it but also just from the visual design of it where there’s a growing sense that something is simply very wrong out there.
As we’ve seen before, there are a lot of secrets kept within this world and Saki’s confrontation with her parents later on about it just reinforces how difficult all of it is. They’re not allowed to talk about much, but there are some little twists to it that definitely makes it work with how restrained they are and how they try to make it a lesson. Their fear over losing Saki is also profound, something that really says a lot about their own past and what they’ve lost already. It also turns the gears in Saki’s mind, causing her to remember things about her past and her family that are key to understanding all of it as it unfolds.
To make matters even worse for her, when Maria arrives and reveals what she’s discovered about how the elders are likely going to deal with Shun as he’s transforming into a Karmic Demon, it redoubles her efforts to save her friend in a big way. With her time out in the wilds with Satoru as she had before when they were younger, she’s certainly more prepared than she would have been otherwise and it’s really good to see some of these kids being so proactive with it. Even more interesting is how she’s doing it alone at this stage, something that one might not have guessed she would do based on her younger personality before the encounter with the Library. Of course, there’s a price to be paid and by all appearances, it could be a significant price going by the final frames here.
In Summary:
From the New World continues to be an intriguing series that really leaves me craving more. I can imagine it as the kind of novel where it’s impossible to put it down without reading one more chapter and trying to get a bit more out of it with what you understand. In this form, it’s difficult because it teases so much and offers such tantalizing ideas but hasn’t followed through significantly on any of them. This episode puts a few things into play but it really puts Saki front and center and makes her the focal point for trying to deal with what’s going on with her parents, her family in general, Shun and all those from Pinewood who are now out of the picture, even temporarily.
Grade: B
Streamed By: FUNimation
Review Equipment:
Sony KDS-R70XBR2 70″ LCoS 1080P HDTV, Dell 10.1 Netbook via HDMI set to 1080p, Onkyo TX-SR605 Receiver and Panasonic SB-TP20S Multi-Channel Speaker System With 100-Watt Subwoofer.
