Akame ga Kill / First Impressions

「三匹を斬る -前編-」 (Sanbiki o Kiru -Zenpen-)
“Kill the Three -Part One-“

After last week… I don’t think my heart can take it anymore. No one is safe and death flags are popping up everywhere, mainly over the heads of the Night Raid members. It’s hard to say that I don’t see it coming, so just knowing that next episode could be “it”, makes me feel anxious. Luckily, this week gave us a break and a cool down period between the fights and deaths. As much as I’d love to keep my heart rate high, I think hearing how Sheele’s death has impacted each of the members is equally as important. I think the repeated mention of Sheele and Tatsumi’s friends, reminds the audience that they are humans and they don’t forgive nor forget very easily. Without these moments, you might not sympathize with them anymore and then, the death of a Night Raid member would no longer be impactful. A lot of people probably felt this way when Sheele passed and although I thought it was sad, many people might need more screen time to build that rapport with characters. Now I treat these moments with each of the Night Raid members as a rare treat because before you know it, the next one might be gone.

Up until this point, there are only a few remaining Night Raid members who haven’t had their own dedicated episode. Bulat being one of them and this week we finally get to see where he came from and how he fights in style. It’s hard not to like his character, and I can see why Tatsumi is smitten by his outgoing personality. His history with his former superior, Liver (Nakata Jouji) wasn’t surprising, although seeing Liver in person didn’t have much of an impact as it would’ve because it was literally moments later. I guess given how fast-paced Akame ga Kill is, I shouldn’t expect secrets to be held for long. Was I shocked seeing Liver team up with Esdeath? Not really… but it’s still an interesting story to hear eventually. The final showdown has to be Liver up against Bulat, but I wonder if old feelings will come into play and if not – well then, they are trained killers so it’s not uncalled for. Tatsumi is just a sitting duck out there huh? I hope he doesn’t turn into a liability.

Esdeath is another story entirely and I can’t seem to read her at all. I don’t know if that’s because of how the anime is portraying her or if she’s just a very multidimensional character. We know that she claimed the North, she’s quite feared and well respected around the capital and it builds this idea of a strong kicka** female villain. On the other hand, she wants to find love? I think my face was as shocked as the Prime Minister’s. Say what…? I can’t say that romance is the first thing on my mind when I’m watching an action-packed anime, but it’d be interesting if it was actually incorporated in the story in a not-so-creepy manner. Although she sends this message of being a strong, feared woman (especially with Leone’s reaction while spying on it), to me, Esdeath doesn’t seem like she’s just a crazy maniac killer. She knows that someone is watching her, but she’s enjoying an ice cream on the side? Not only that, but she shows signs of liking the flavor and wanting to share that with her 3 killers – Liver, Daidara (Katsu Anri) and Nyau (Nabatame Hitomi). To me, it sounds like Esdeath doesn’t just think about herself but she’s probably a strong leader for a good reason other than her abilities on the battlefield. I’d have to see more of her before I change my theory, but I’m enjoying the scenes that show her not-in-combat. It demonstrates a different side to her character.

Bottom Line – @RCCherrie: Nooooo… I think I know what’s going to happen and I can’t watch anymore! =( #AkameGaKill

Author’s Note: Once again please be courteous of other visitors and use the spoiler tags (<spoiler> </spoiler>) if you’re going to be referring to future manga chapters or any content that anime-only viewers would not know at this point in time. Also, please keep the comments relevant to the episode and the topic at hand – if I think something is inappropriate, I will delete it and you will only receive one warning before I remove your privilege to comment. Thanks for understanding!

 

Preview

82 Comments

  1. Wow, i thought that the anime would only get to this point at the end of the first cour… Anyway, the good thing is Show Spoiler ▼

    Higure
    Reply

  3. I totally get your impression of Esdeath as the anime makes her seem pretty mild. The anime in general is toning down the torture and gore aspects of the manga, so I think they cut out the entire scene where Esdeath visits her torture factory. Yea, not just a torture chamber, an entire assembly line of people being tortured.

    Ptolemaios00
    Reply

    1. @Ptolemaios00 – I think they cut out the entire scene…

      Didn’t they show that in “Akame ga Kill Theatre” 06 (though the chibi characters also toned done the impact)? I agree with what you wrote about why only viewers only viewers may have a different impression of her at this point. That being said, we did see Esdeath mind-break some guy, turn him into a human dog (complete with collar and chain), then kill him with one kick to the head in EP 05.

      daikama
      Reply

    2. I feel like so far, manga readers have been pretty satisfied with the adaptation of the story even though there are minor differences and spoilers everywhere!! I only started hearing differences now (with this recent ep) that didn’t show more sides of Esdeath and her Show Spoiler ▼

      I think for something that significant to her character and the story, they will have to animate it soon. Probably in a future episode that isn’t focused on “The Three”. I’m hoping they do anyway because it does demonstrate that Esdeath is uh… more extreme than people might think.

      Cherrie
      Reply

      1. It’s what it sounds like. Show Spoiler ▼

        michaelman90
        Reply

      3. @Giorno. Yes the scene was included in the Theater omakes. But the tone and style of those make a mood dissonance/whiplash against the original scene in the manga where it was serious and showed the sadistic side of Esdeath.

        Kamui04
        Reply

      5. I never specified on whether they did an accurate and gory adaptation, but they did an adaptation nonetheless. And if you’re talking about people watching things through crunchyroll… who’s fault is that other than their own for missing out? The quality that they put out is just downright terrible, not even to mention about the quality of their translations and subtitles.

        Giorno Giovanna
        Reply

  4. I think a lot of why Esdeath is popular is that she isn’t a maniacal crazed killer (I’m looking at you Seryu ಠ_ಠ ). She’s intelligent, a good leader, and she knows exactly who and what she is. That being said, you do find that she has just as much of a dark or twisted side as everybody else.

    Show Spoiler ▼

    StrenX
    Reply

    1. I think that:
      Show Spoiler ▼

      RIP

      Kabble
      Reply

      1. Show Spoiler ▼

        Higure
        Reply

      3. Show Spoiler ▼

        Kabble
        Reply

      5. Throwing my 2 cents into the discussion: SPOILERS *Manga Readers Only*
        Show Spoiler ▼

        daikama
        Reply

      6. If you are gonna put spoilers please put a note there that they are manga references!!

        Especially @Kabble’s spoiler. if you are not a manga reader and do not want to be spoiled, do NOT read that!!.

        .Mero
        Reply

      7. Omg… I just spoiled the story for myself!
        But that’s not the point of this message =P I’m not a managa-reader but thank you guys for keeping everything in the spoiler tags. You help make RC a better place XD

        Cherrie
        Reply

      8. Show Spoiler ▼

        Giorno Giovanna
        Reply

      10. @Giorno

        That speculation of yours sets it up for a rather interesting climax…
        Though that would probably be the last one out of Show Spoiler ▼

        Techim
        Reply

      12. @kabble yes you did, but since you started it, it could also be speculation that you don’t want to spoil.

        People put spoilers for many things. imho it’s best to just really put the mark down if it’s a mangaspoiler.

        I stopped actually commenting on Akame ga kill and Tokyo Ghoul because i’m afraid to say some wrong stuff and start spoiling shit 😛 even with the use of spoilers i think it’s a shame ^^

        .Mero
        Reply

      13. Show Spoiler ▼

        Giorno Giovanna
        Reply

  5. This EP had one of my favorite scenes when Akame shows that she’s been holding back her sadness over Sheele’s death. For me, that scene brought some appreciated character depth for her given how Akame is usually quite stoic on the outside. I thought the anime did a good job with that. I also liked the scene where Leone’s instincts told her not to take on Esdeath. Nice change of pace from simply attack only to get pawned. Sometimes retreat is the right decision.

    Overall, I don’t mind the anime toning down the more grim-dark aspects of the source material, but here I wonder if it came across to anime only viewers just how sadistic Nyau really is. That poor girl. 🙁 Cherrie mentioned the fast pacing which I’ve noticed as well. I don’t think the pacing overall is bad, but it does seem a bit rushed at times despite a 2-cour run – at least compared to the manga.

    As I noted before, I think the story hits stride at this point so looking forward to future episodes. Oh, one last thing. Please put spoilers in tags and/or just wait until the anime gets to that point. It doesn’t affect me (already spoiled), but I have to say a few of the most recent comments (including in other RC posts) have been pretty bad lately in terms of spoilers.

    daikama
    Reply

    1. The show is fast paced, but I think it’s just a result of the manga itself being a pretty fast read once you reflect on it.
      Each chapter is like 40 pages, but boy it’s easy to plow through them.

      Kabble
      Reply

    2. Personally, I think the toning down of THAT particular scene with Nyau was okay, since really it was hard to swallow in the manga. I’d post the manga page of Nyau doing what he did but it somehow isn’t too comfortable to do so. Kudos to the readers with strong stomachs.

      Zhinvu
      Reply

      1. @Zhinvu: “Personally, I think the toning down of THAT particular scene with Nyau was okay…”

        I understand what you’re saying. Best to put in a spoiler -> *Spoiler* Manga Readers Only
        Show Spoiler ▼

        daikama
        Reply

      3. I will have to look up that scene now… got me curious =X
        But ya… Nyau seems crazy! X__X I hate people who mutilate the victims bodies after killing them… or worse, just torturing them like that while they die a painful death =(

        Cherrie
        Reply

  7. Welcome to Akame Ga Feels
    Are you ready for an emotional rollercoaster?

    Btw, Esdeath is just multidimensional.
    One thing the anime has done well is stay ridiculously true to the manga. Anything that was left out (if there was anything) was just not necessary to the story.

    The great thing about the fast pacing of the show is that Tatsumi ought to have his teigu pretty dag on soon.

    Kabble
    Reply

  8. They did leave out a few scenes. One was during the Meeting with the Emperor. Esdeath stated that one of the things she wants in order to take out Night Raid is a team of six Imperial Arms Users. The Prime Minster during the meeting with him in the back said that he thinks asking for six is a bit much given that he already has the three beasts and their Imperial Arms. However he says he will grant them to her in exchange for a favor. This leads her to sending the Three Beasts to kill the PM’s rivals.

    Another was just a cute scene with the Three Beasts. After they finished that first group Liver says he feels like cooking for the three of them. Daidara and Nyau state this is a terrible idea because Liver is a horrible cook and his food made Esdeath pass out once.

    The third and last thing I remember them leaving out was when Leone’s stalking her and she goes to the ice cream shop. The guy there recognizes her and starts over flattering her, upon which she says she hates ass-kissing and shoves the coins she is paying him with into his eyes. (Note this does not blind him or anything it’s just painful.)

    Envyus
    Reply

  9. Not as good as the previous episode, but it’s clearly a setup for the next big shocker to come (which all the spoilers flying about have annoyingly ruined). Only major irk for me is the over-focus once again on Scheele’s death, especially the drawn out scene between Akame and Tatsumi. Rather than a sombre memorial as was obviously intended, it just came across as cheesy and forced. There are better ways of showing memory IMO, such as the common method of using flashbacks during the fight scenes (could have easily been included in Tatsumi’s fight here or in one of Akame’s later ones). Might just be me, but I think subtle is better than direct when it comes to character remembrance, especially when said character possessed little overall development.

    Everything is made better with bombastic uncensored fights though, hopefully we get another here very soon 😛

    Pancakes
    Reply

  10. Esdeath threw one hell of a curveball there… I knew it was going to happen, but that left my mouth hanging open when I read the part. I found the emperor saying Esdeath could marry the prime minister pretty funny.

    Speaking of expecting things, that reveal about Liver and Bulat seemed less obvious in the manga, at least as far as I remember. Maybe the lack of color played into it. Of course, since I knew it would happen, my opinion about it isn’t really valid.

    Erimaki
    Reply

  11. >] “Esdeath is another story entirely and I can’t seem to read her at all. I don’t know if that’s because of how the anime is portraying her or if she’s just a very multidimensional character.”

    Nah, Esdese (and yes, I will be referring to her as such as I think “Esdeath” is just stupid, correct grammar or not) isn’t really multidimensional at all, IMO. She’s a very straightforward character that lets you know exactly what she’s all about. You can decide for yourself whether or not to be absolutely terrified, strangely admiring, or some odd combination of the two afterwards.

    One thing I will say about Esdese is that she strikes me as a very whimsical person, not unlike myself. While very smart and overwhelming in more ways than one, her main focus is, ultimately, on what makes her feel alive, what makes her heart beat. To that end, she’ll do pretty much whatever she thinks will achieve that, whether it’s bringing an entire region and it’s so-called hero to its knees or falling in love.

    Now, understandably, one could easily make the argument that a mindset like that is proof enough that the woman’s totally bonkers, perhaps even a yandere. Can’t really argue with that, but Esdese is a strange sort of bird. She’s one of those controversial kinds of characters that, while doing some very, very bad stuff, the person herself is actually quite likeable.

    Ryan Ashfyre
    Reply

  12. sadly it felt kinda rushed, because White fox skipped various things, they put like 3 manga chapters in one episode, however these weren’t that important, and overall is still a rather faithful adaptation, at this pace, get ready to see some serious sh*t later on

    madao
    Reply

  13. https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2009.jpg
    “I want you to hit me as hard as you can hard like this.”

    https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2012.jpg
    “uhm, okay.”

    https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2014.jpg
    “Now hit them.”

    https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2032.jpg
    “ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA! ORA!”

    https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2035.jpg
    THWUNK!

    https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2002.jpg
    https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2033.jpg
    “You’re next big guy.”

    Impel Down Hippo
    Reply

    2. https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2001.jpg
      “I want to find love”

      https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2033.jpg
      “Hey babe….”

      https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2026.jpg
      “Die you yaoi freak…. I want total hard on yuri love….”

      https://randomc.net/image/Akame%20ga%20Kill/Akame%20ga%20Kill%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2002.jpg
      “Da shiz~~~~~~”

      cruiser2710
      Reply

  14. The moment I saw the title of this episode from the preview of episode 6, I knew that they were gonna either skip quite a few of chapters or were gonna include very tiny material from them, and I wasn’t wrong. The former turned out to be what the studio saw decent. While those chapters aren’t that important in terms of events, they are essential in calming down the situation after Sheele’s death.

    The episode overall was good, but they skipped a few scenes which show the horror in the series (that girl’s skinned face; Esdeath’s visit to her torture chamber, although the latter was animated as a Theater-special… in chibi). So far, Akame ga Kill anime seems to me like just a shounen with bloody fights, and not a thrilling horror shounen with a tiny bit of seinen elements. What I feel that is wrong with this whole adaption is that even though the studio has been pretty loyal to the source material, it isn’t conveying the dark atmosphere at the least.

    And this goes to all of those fellow manga readers: Please, don’t spoil people’s fun by making unnecessary comments such as “feel trip” or whatever. If there is one thing that the anime adaption has got going, is its unpredictability.

    Swirl9
    Reply

  15. Ugh…I can’t stand it when characters try to act all tough immediately after they’re put in their place. I wish Tatsumi just didn’t say anything much, less punch himself, during that scene with Akame.

    Otherwise, probably the best episode so far

    James
    Reply

    1. Right from the start (since I’m following Tokyo Ghoul as well), I thought AgK had more gore or had more guts to animate the gore than Tokyo Ghoul did. There’s just too much censorship in Tokyo Ghoul – although I still find it entertaining to watch. AgK shows almost everything… except for Nyau’s victims who seem to be mutilated… >_>

      Cherrie
      Reply

    1. I was actually gambling it will be the main character. Anime seems to do that quite often and this was hasn’t been an exception. We got a bunch of ninjas with the hots for him already (and Bulat as well). EsDeath wouldn’t shock me. I am guessing her idea of ‘love’ is straight up torture & pain 🙁

      (Still didn’t read the Manga btw!)

      Rick Anime
      Reply

    1. Please use spoiler tags. Even if you haven’t read the manga, your comment kind of suggests that you know what’s going to happen or have read other spoilers. Please don’t ruin the experience for others. Thanks.

      Cherrie
      Reply

  24. I like Esdeath for many reasons.

    One, she’s not just some maniacal psychopath killer. She knows full well of what she’s doing. She’s only cruel to her enemies but she treats her own men and subordinates extremely well, and have every good qualities of a strong and good leader. Even average soldiers gets treated well by her, so how can you not like her when you work under her?

    And two from what I’ve seen in the manga, she’s not a completely hopeless cause like Seryu. I’m still crossing my fingers that eventually Esdeath will join the good guys side. She’s too awesome of a character to be killed as an enemy (if the story even gets to that).

    The romance aspect of her actually makes me live her character more. It adds some entertaining comedy to an otherwise dark and gruesome series.

    YanDaMan
    Reply

  26. Well I must say I was dreading this scene but the anime is a LOT more tame then the manga. Reading the manga disturbed me on so many levels. The ANime clean it up nicely. WHy they didn’t even show the guy cutting off her face then showing off the SKIN of her face like in the manga. That outline was leatherface creepy which mean and I hope it will come true.

    Show Spoiler ▼

    🙂 All in!

    Duzz
    Reply

  27. If they keep hacking of characters left and right at one point i’m just gonna end up not getting attached/ giving a shit. Thankfully though, doesn’t seem like this show is gonna really do that, so that’s good. I mean, what’s the point of growing attached if you KNOW the creator is so trigger happy that a whole bunch of characters(specifically, most of the main cast) can get the axed. If this show does decide to go that route, it’s gonna have a tough time walking that fine line. Though, again, that’s IF this show becomes that trigger happy. On the flip side, I’m glad Bulat finally got his own episode. He’s definitely the Bro of the team and my personal favorite so far.

    Catsrofl
    Reply

  28. Wow this show definitely has a Dark side to it. Hated to see what happened to that poor bodyguard at the beginning. Don’t know if I can stomach this sort of thing. What’s sad is I imagine the Manga must be much more brutal 🙁

    I hate to see innocent, cute ladies get brutalized even if I just barely met them 5 mins ago

    Beyond that though I must say this show is getting better and better. We have been thrust into an ongoing story. We are not just going after easy targets anymore. Our ‘prey’ now has teeth and they are much more vicious

    Rick Anime
    Reply

  29. Esdeath seems like endboss after quirky miniboss squad. She is VERY powerful, and looking for love… interesting combination. Last time I saw woman so calmly acting as a bait in the trap it was Balalaika in Black Lagoon, and everyone who watched knows how it ended for poor kid who did fall into it.
    The three (now two only) are intersting bunch – the level up maniac is now out of action, the psycho kid seems like someone for our MC to handle. The former general Liver is the most interesting one, from his history with Bulat to his “it’s only following orders” attitude. I am betting he is the strongest of the three too… and can be dangeros for Bulat for both knowing his fighting style and weapon , and, more importantly for the emotional ballast involved.

    ewok40k
    Reply

  30. well death flags are going up this series i want to know how their doing this i hope this is just season 1 and that we will later get a season 2 not an anime original cop out ending as i really like this series so far and there is a lot of good to like in it -problem is that im not sure were they will get to and it could be good or bad at the end -we will have to see -but the manga is worth reading-as far as i can tell it gets 2 chapters a month and its getting closer to the end but is not there yet

    chaos
    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *