The Promised Neverland (ANIME-ONLY)

Internal monologues or not, the adaptation is still cutting out parts of their thought process and how they get to their conclusions.

Personally, I think it's better to overall know what the characters are actually thinking than having to infer it. Some situations are better than the other.

Episode 7! So Krone has got mail, and it's apparently not good news. Meanwhile, the kids finally have what they need to disable the trackers.

This episode had some… hiccups in its animation, but still solid direction overall. I do think not hearing the thoughts was detrimental to the tension in this particular instance, though.

They also might have gone a bit overboard with Krone's goofiness. Large Ham is one thing, but literally singing her lines…?

On the plus side, I really liked the scenes of Ray actually trying the camera. It gave the whole thing a more intimate vibe.

Edited by Lyendith on Feb 21st 2019 at 1:37:38 PM

...yeah, this episode kinda puts the bad parts of Krone's character in the spotlight. I can see why you're a bit iffy on her, Lyendith.

Animation and direction were all over the place this episode, for better or worse. The kids also barely get to do much, since this episode is focused almost entirely on Sister Krone's character instead. The kids are much more reactionary this time around. Makes for a slightly less interesting episode, in my opinion.

So So Krone has a number as well. I get the feeling every human has them. Izabella included. It would be fitting for the setting. And, at the end of the episode, Izabella gets to remind everyone why she's the superior villain here.

So I've got two questions: what's Izabella's "secret" that Ray revealed to Krone, and how is a camera supposed to help him break the trackers? Suppose that's an answer that'll come up by the end of the season.

Here are my guesses for those:

Ray is Izabella's biological son, which she is aware of. If the Mamas are... bred when they become adults and have their children shuffled into the system, they get Replacement Goldfish and could possibly be taking care of their own children, too. Izabella probably isn't supposed to know.

As for the other, I think Ray plans to use the camera flash to silhouette the tracking devices in their ears.

We see Izabella's neck number very early on in the manga actually. Dunno why they removed that scene in the anime.

IIRC didn't she list off a number when she was talking on her radio early on in the show?

Edited by doineedaname on Feb 23rd 2019 at 12:34:31 PM

Anyway it is only reasonable to guess she has one. A reveal would be the opposite. (I say, having not read the manga).

I could have sworn one was shown on her neck when she was radioing headquarters the one time we saw her do it.

Episode 8 was one I was waiting for. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, I must say.

At least Krone got a small chance to "fight back" against the demon, although Grandma watching gleefully made that old hag even more unlikeable. I liked the music and the silent flashback during the scene.

And then there's the second half… Izabella's no longer fucking around and shows everyone why she runs this place. A mother tenderly holding her child has never been so terrifying. Also, err, Don is strong enough to smash down a wooden door in one hit apparently? Weird, as in the manga it was Ray who smashed the door…

Maybe a little hiccup in the soundtrack with that weird sax music near the end…

That was a damn good episode.

Well, mostly. The first half is clearly important, but I think the show kinda overestimated how much people care about Krone. Her death is well-shot, but the flashback to her life was a tad too long.

Still, Izabella is a damn good villain. In but a few minutes, she completely destroys the escape and the resolves of everybody (and a leg to go with it). Props to Emma's VA, she sold that scene really well too.

So Norman's shipping date is set, and most likely, Emma's leg won't heal in time to get him out. Stuff's getting dire now. Presumably the things Krone left behind will save everyone now, though I wonder how. Phil will probably have something to do as well. To my money, Izabella is trying to recruit Norman instead of sending him away. There were some guys in that lineup in Sister Krone's memories, so it wouldn't be too weird.

I'm really glad this episode happened. Things were starting to feel a bit slow these last few episodes, what with the slowly increasing tension, so it was about time that it burst. I'm more invested in the next episode than I've been for a while.

Edited by TheLovecraftian on Mar 1st 2019 at 9:06:34 AM

The next few episodes will be the best part of the series so far, plain and simple. The last stretch of this arc is incredible.

By the way, full opening!

…I really can't get used to these "nanana"s… They're so damn cheesy they almost ruin the song for me. =[

I've kinda gone from watching this show out of a sense of obligation because of its popularity, to watching it because of the Shocking Twists (and associated cliffhangers). Don't know if that's a positive thing though.

Episode 8 has further solidified this. Couldn't help laughing at the juxtaposition-cut from Krone about to get "eaten" by a demon, to the children's mealtime chorus of "Itadakimasu!". Probably the best example so far of why I have a hard time taking this show seriously; the overly-stark contrast between perfectly wholesome orphanage facade and dark scheming evil murderous reality is just too much. I know it's a metaphor for growing up, real life, societal issues, and so on, but yikes, tone it down a little.

Besides the cheesiness, some other issues are keeping this from being harmlessly entertaining. Now that Krone is dead, the Unfortunate Implications of her character design are behind us, and this technically isn't Black Dude Dies First because Conny. But now Emma will presumably have damsel syndrome for a while due to that injury and, frankly, she and Gilda haven't gotten to do a whole lot so far compared to the boys. They've so far served mostly as The Positive One and The Anxious One, both standard self-limiting female character types. Emma is supposedly as intelligent as Ray and Norman, but she rarely gets to prove it. Maybe this will improve later, I don't know.

Going by the spoilers I've read, it should be.

(Manga spoilers) As Norman's not gonna be around for much longer...

Emma is more of a standard shonen protagonist, so she tends to be the brawn more than the brains. It is indeed a pity that she's basically The Watson for most of the first arc. =[

This show continues to make me wanna read the manga, it's unfortunate that I hate the art there.

Yeah, obviously there would be more than just a wall to keep them from running away. A giant cliff is quite the obstacle.

What a bullshit use of a rope.

Especially for someone who's supposedly not very athletic. >.>

As usual, I loved the direction in this ep. It was slow, but in a good way that made you feel how doomed they are. Enough to make me forgive the slightly ugly CG backgrounds.

Also loved Emma's logic. As stupid as her "plan" sounds, it actually makes sense in a screwed-up way.

I was a bit surprised that they changed the ending song (although it might be a different part of the same song?) And we see a bit more of lil' Izabella in this version. As well as lil' Krone.

Edited by Lyendith on Mar 7th 2019 at 11:56:45 AM

Before we saw the Cliff, i thought Norman came back to free everyone.

Edited by Cortez on Jan 21st 2021 at 11:33:39 AM

That was a bit of a heavy episode.

Alright, so there's a cliff on the other side of the wall. Nice. I get the feeling Norman's got something cooking, though. I'm not sure if he plans to run or not, but he doesn't look to me like he's given up yet. I'm also slightly surprised Krone left those things with Norman, because I was expecting her to leave them with Ray. Don't know where I got that impression now that I think about it, though.

I also get the feeling that the other children are in on the picture. Their reactions to Norman "finding a family" were a bit too weird. Lots of little weird details in this episode could look like setup, actually.

As usual, direction was on point throughout the episode, but this time they were really inspired. Almost every other shot had something interesting being done with framing or camera movement. Special props to Norman returning to the house and placing himself under Izabella's shadow. Beautiful and very understated. Me likey.

Hmpf, even though I've read the manga this one hit pretty hard in the feels.

The farewell, Norman making Izabella flinch for just a second, that closing door, the depression, Izabella telling − almost begging − Emma to give up, and that chilling final shot with the echo suddenly stopping.

They did a damn good job. And I'm really glad they adapted that little bonus strip with the paper cup phone.

Jesus Fuck, Izabella, take it easy on the despairing children.

This was a really effective episode. The despair is all over in here, and this time the show sells the episode's death really well. The mood, the string phone flashback, the goodbyes, it all worked really well to put us into the mindset this episode wanted so it could have that last-minute twist, which, again, is perfectly executed, and even has some foreshadowing if you look the episode over a second time.

I'm... not entirely sold on the idea that Norman is dead, but I can't as of yet put it into words why exactly I think Norman wasn't killed. I might come back to this topic later.

Hmmm… Regarding the overall execution, I have a comment that I can't quite make without spoiling, so… spoiler ahead, you've been warned. I think the anime managed to make Norman's fate more ambiguous. You can sorta buy that he was killed. In the manga, it was immediately obvious that he wasn't.

I'm not sure why I feel that difference though, because the scene was pretty much the same in both versions. Maybe it's the additional shot of the door closing behind, I don't know.

Hm... I'll hold back on that spoiler. We're just two episodes away from the end of the season anyways, so it won't be a long wait. I'll definitely come back to it, though.

Not reading the manga, but I thought so.

So on Wakanim there's no new episode this week. Does anyone know why that is?