What They Say:
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The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
As Amnesia pivoted in its previous episode to Ukyo in order to start in on its final arc and path of the series, we got to see someone who has a pretty split personality if you go by the first blush impressions. While there’s an aspect of him that feels like he’s the one who knows the truth of what’s going on and can offer the right path out of it all, there’s also that subtext that he may be part of the cause and the root of the problem in the end. When he goes from deadly serious to friendly and happy, you can’t be quite sure where he’s coming from each time that they come into contact with each other. And his declaration that the pair are actually loves, even though they’ve just started dating in this path prior to her accident only adds to the tension overall, but also the softness that lies underneath his exterior.
Ukyo’s offer to help guide her on her path is one that you have to be wary of, though there’s that potential for honesty there with what he’s saying since there’s so much honesty. Even Orion starts to feel confused about the events that could transpire with him in the picture, particularly since he does admit that he could be the most dangerous of them all. He makes some plain assertations over the episode, noting that she should stay away from the well and later on to not leave the house, but our Heroine continues to do things that are beyond stupid as she does exactly that at the times that will leave her in the most danger. She’s like the classic horror movie girl that goes down the dark corridor when there’s safety just behind her because she just can’t help herself. The only thing that’s giving some of this any weight is that even Orion realizes that Ukyo may be the only way to safely navigate all of those, if only she’d actually listen to him.
The way Ukyo lashes out is definitely engaging to watch since he has this mindset when he’s like that about how she’s not even supposed to be in this world, and that has him ready to off her again in his thinly veiled threatening ways. But of course, our Heroine is just so oblivious to danger throughout that she ends up in this situations that just put her at risk, even as he warns her away from his bad side as he knows it’ll come into play. There’s a certain back and forth aspect to this episode as it unfolds, getting the times where it seems like he’s helpful and then the darker ones, which of course leads us to the previously mentioned bit about her going to palces she shouldn’t be where she’s bound to get in trouble. The split later of Ukyo is at least more engaging to watch than the other guys who were all mostly milquetoast and it actually leaves me waiting and hoping to see that he does her in.
In Summary:
With Ukyo being a fair bit of a psychotic here with his personality and what he wants to do to our Heroine, it’s getting hard to know who to root for. Ukyo brings someone with some real personality to the series, the first one of all the characters in my opinion, and a sense of tense energy about it that has been lacking since day one. What he does here is to play her like an instrument, telling her all the things not to do only to have her end up doing them, walking her right into his trap. You can easily see her falling for the carrot under the box trick without a second thought. Though Ukyo isn’t a likeable character in the classic sense, he’s managed to make the series mildly interesting here and has given me hope that he’ll end it all by killing her off.
Grade: B-
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
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.
