D.Gray-man / First Impressions

Episode 02

「ロンリーボーイ」 (Ronriboi)
“Lonely Boy”

Summary: As the Black Order reels from an attack on General Cross, Allen officially returns to his role an exorcist due to his abilities as The Pianist. As the remaining exorcists receive orders to kill Walker should he transform into the Fourteenth and become a threat, they are deployed to investigate “Phantom Thief G,” a criminal who has been using supernatural abilities to steal various items. Upon discovering his true identity and location, they are attacked by various Level 2, Level 3, and Level 4 Akuma.

 

Episode 03

「顔を洗えば大丈夫」 (Kao o Araeba Daijobu)
“It’ll be Fine When I Wash My Face”

Summary: As the fight continues, Timothy awakens to his new powers of Divine Possession just in time to turn the tides. A brief awakening of the Fourteenth comes after the revelation of new type of exorcist, and Timothy joins the order as its newest member.

And just like that, we’re three episodes in and one mini-story arc down. Needless to say, they’re doing anything but holding back, and given the series’ short run, the fact they skipped some chapters in between adaptations, and the amount of material remaining—it’s a decision that makes sense in the grand scheme of things, but throws a wrench in regards to expectations for the series. As it is, we’ll likely have to deal with more quick transitions like the one we received between Cross’ Disappearance and the Phantom Thief G arc, and given the adjustments that we’ve already had to make in regards to the cast and the new backdrop, it’s a notion that comes with its fair share of disappointment.

Thankfully—from what I remember from my reading of this arc many years ago—things do seem to be generally faithful to the source despite the obvious need to cut material and speed things up, and they’re doing a good job of working within the limitations they’ve been given. More importantly, the feel of these past two episodes have been similar to what we’ve seen from this series during its initial run, and for all the quick transitions and comedic moments that get lost in between as a result, I’ve found myself slowly re-acclimating to the series as it goes, which is certainly a good sign.

Development-wise, this week brings us perhaps one of the series’ most significant moments in the brief awakening of the Fourteenth, which follows on the heels of a revelation that Allen’s Crown Clown can no longer be used on himself without harm. The latter, while a notable tactical loss in the long run (self-impalement is a pretty effective strategy given certain situations, especially if you don’t suffer any of its negative effects), ends up nothing compared to the implications of the whole situation, and Allen’s apparent loss of body control (even if it was for the smallest of moments) hints at a potential future where the Fourteenth can effectively use his body to do what he wants. The fact that he awakened in the first place also means that future could be coming sooner than anticipated, and it’s certainly a scary thought to think about the “what if’s” when it’s all said and done—especially now that his fellow exorcists are dealing with Akuma that seem to be quicker, stronger, and more versatile than ever before.

Granted, it’s been an arms race from day one, but it’s one in which humanity’s been falling behind since the beginning as well, and it makes you wonder at what point the precarious balance tips completely in favor of the Noah and their ever-evolving Akuma. The revelation of a new type of exorcist does at least help the overall equation, but I’ll say—when you’ve suddenly got humans without Innocence capable of defeating Level 3’s with their bare hands, there’s a measure of skepticism in regards to their reliability and the methods necessary to grant them those abilities. Seeing how the Central Agency seem to be the ones behind Cross’ (attempted?) assassination, it wouldn’t be surprising if they’re utilizing some less than proper methods, and the potential of the Order itself being not quite friends in the long run merely adds to the overall grimness of the situation. Still, I guess it ultimately isn’t D.Gray-man without the dark backdrop, and I guess we’ll see how things develop from here.

Author’s Notes: D.Gray-man will be picked up for weekly coverage from this point forward. Posts will likely release on a 24-48 hour delay (Tuesday/Wednesday Eastern Time) however, and will be more brief than typical posts due to its air time and how it fits into my schedule. Once again, please remember that spoilers for future chapters should be placed into spoiler tags. Feel free to ask if you are unsure how to use them.

 

Preview

10 Comments

  3. I am quite loving the developments so far. The fourteenth’s intervention came sooner than I thought it would, but it did make sense given Allen’s body being impaled by his own innocence. Man that was tense. Glad you’re gonna cover it Zephyr 🙂

    yoloalchemist
    Reply

  5. So glad you decided to blog this!! Still shipping Road x Allen from the previous seasons though I know when my ship is bound to sink -_-

    In other news, I’m glad that they are introducing new and interesting exorcists, I have a feeling the Timothy is just what a 2016 adaptation needs in regards to appealing to the crowd today.

    Also glad to see that they are still having trouble with level 4s. It shows continuity from one season to the next if problem the of these ridiculously strong Akuma is still a big concern. Initially I thought the Akuma from ep 1 were also level 4s and I was like since when are they able to handle them so easily??

    FallenRock
    Reply

  6. YAY FOR WEEKLY COVERAGE! 😀

    I actually enjoyed watching the Timothy arc better than reading it. It felt long and drawn out in the manga.

    I’m getting used to Allen’s voice finally! The impaling scene was really well done. In the manga, there was so much gore and guts that I could hardly follow the action. The voice acting in this episode was great too. Dang, it feels awesome seeing it all animated though. Timothy’s super cute too and acts his age. The timing of the humor falls flat usually, but I’m glad they’re trying. Seeing Allen impale himself seemed even more ridiculous/tragic animated.

    Is it just me or is the animation getting more consistent with each episode? Episode 3 looks much better than episode 2.

    I agree, the feel of this episode seemed more like a continuity from season 1, which is great. So happy you’re covering it Zephyr and thanks for squeezing it in. 😀

    Chloesong
    Reply

    1. d(^_^d)

      And you know, I kept feeling like I saw the whole Timothy arc before but then I realized I actually read it before hand back when I was still current on the manga, haha. That said, generally I’ll agree on the arc being a better watch. They pretty much cut out everything that wasn’t needed and fit it in the span of time they got, which is exactly what they’ll need to do if they keep going at the rate they are. The actual transition between Cross’ arc into this was pretty rough though.

      Zephyr
      Reply

  7. Amazing pace in these eps, maybe a little too much on ep2 but amazing anyway.
    Learn howbyou have to do the things right, One Piece. Almost 100 pages per episode, almost x10 times OP actual pace.
    Great.

    Nico
    Reply

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