I definitely liked this episode, but I also can't shake the feeling it's a bit plain? I feel like an episode like this, dealing with some backstory that's only been hinted at for a huge chunk of a series, there's generally some kind of extra hook to it that this one doesn't have. Like some character would be finding this information out too, and it changes the way they feel about something or another; maybe a character in the backstory changes a bit in the present after some introspection about their past; or maybe just, as viewers, there's some secret within that story we never would've guessed. I don't really feel like the episode does any of that, which is maybe a criticism, but...!

...None of that is some absolute I want to force on an episode that is absolutely well-executed and emotionally engaging even just as is. I can call it "plain", but that also means it's an episode that gets in, does what it's doing super cleanly, and gets out with not a single extraneous thing ever once pulling focus away from the core concept. It's cool to do this just as its own episode, really giving it that time to breathe, and there are a lot of great touches throughout. The way they establish how Soul Metal works and then use that to symbolize how much of a struggle Kouga had living up to his legacy is brilliant, for one thing. Plus, you know, as a Kuuga fan, I appreciated how this show's two kanji, one word episode titles allows the name of this one to literally just be Kouga's dad's name. Like, what's this one about? Well there ya' go! Could not possibly be more fitting.

That was such a great directing choice! Sure, it'd've been easy to just fade to each stage of Koga's' life and show him practicing, but to have them all side by side, hammering in how he compares to himself over the years, it was so cool to see and delivered in such a visually stimulating way!

I mean, just speaking for me personally, I never actually guessed that Taiga was directly connected to the Horror who killed him, much less the heavily implication that it was a fellow Makai Knight. Especially given how every other character has talked down about Taiga before now. It made the entire thing even more personal than it already was.

It also retroactively puts way more symbolic emphasis on the sword Koga used to achieve Goten; It was only by letting a peace of his father go that he was able to move forward and become greater. Heck, makes me really wish that "Ordeal" were placed after this one.

Recap episode.

...Oh, you're still here? Uhh, alright then. So, this episode has Zaruba break the fourth wall to both recap and fill us in on lore that the audience might've missed.

And I'll admit, it actually was nice for me given that there were a few small details that I'd either forgotten about or totally did not realize their intent after the initial viewing of the episodes they highlighted.

For example, we haven't seen any Horror Mooks since episode 1, and I did not realize that Koga slotting his sword into the dog statue was him purifying his blade. And by extension, I never got what was up with the tiny swords either. Until now I just figured they were trophies or something.

And on that note, I do wanna say how smart it is that the show is very intent using the word "seal" when it comes to defeating Horrors and not "slay." And it helps to clarify why the Makai Order has such extensive notes on each Horror and why ancient beings such as Zaruba know so much about them. It's a detail that I don't remember the anime ever bringing up.

I also found it very interesting that Zaruba had no idea who the Watchdog's' Butler was. I imagine that'll be a plot hook for later; Just as Kaoru's' guidance counselor so obviously is.

Also didn't expect there to be an official music video at the end either!

But... yeah. It's the halfway point of the show and they probably wanted to save some budget, so it makes sense to do a recap episode here. I'm not complaining, especially given that I got something out of it, but it does mean it leaves me with not much to talk about.

Tomorrow we return to the plot at hand!

I really did appreciate the extra effort to end with the punchline that Garo was, presumably the entire episode, in the middle of like, the most awesome fight ever, and we just barely got to catch the end of it, completely divorced from context.

Also, I now like to imagine Zaruba is secretly always recapping his favorite TV shows and making sick as heck fan music videos out of them. Even a magic ring has gotta have hobbies, right?

Not my favorite Garo recap, there are like two in contention for that later on. But this one's cute because of the greater context at the end.

The fact that Zaruba was like "Okay this is business as usual, let me break the fourth wall and give you all the tea" while Kouga's fighting a bunch of Horror's in a fantastical set-piece with us only getting to see the end of it... it's a fun way to do a recap.

Also the fact that Kouga was listening the entire time. Simple but effective I'd say, especially for a weekly show with a lot to chew on like Garo.

So he's Kamen Rider Die, got it.

Oh wait, nevermind, he's En-chan.

It was a cute little moment for sure. Thankfully I don't think about these things too hard or I'd start wondering who the heck Zaruba was actually talking to in-universe. Maybe he's a Godtuber like Gowasu?

I came out of this one pretty disappointed.

Like, right off the bat, is it bad to say that I actually like the first opening way more than the second?

What makes the first opening so good is both how much the song used matches the overall tone of the show as well as all of the greatly done, striking visuals that went into it.

Meanwhile with the second opening, sure the song is nice and all, but nearly all of the visuals that accompany it are reused shots from either the first opening or the show itself, and what few aren't are just stock CGI action shots. And to top it off it premieres in an episode that guns for melodrama nearly all throughout.

Getting to the episode at hand though, this one felt like it was two different episodes glued together. For the first few minutes we have the backstory of Rei, and while it is nice to know what exactly his deal is, it's a major letdown after how thorough the Taiga episode was, as not nearly enough is put into this entire segment, especially comparatively.

It gave me bad flashbacks to Kamen Rider Build in a way with Banjo and how utterly confused I was at how the show handled all of the characters involving Banjo's' driving motivation. Sure, I get why Rei does what he does, but I would've really felt so much more for him if I both got to know all of the characters more as well as if the entire segment didn't just feel like clunky exposition dialogue.

Making it worse is that the rest of the episode really doesn't do anything with that entire flashback? It ends and... that's it. It's back to business as usual. Only this time almost the entire rest of the episode is a giant CGI battle against a hoard of Horrors which, while cool sounding on paper, I found very underwhelming in execution, especially for a show that's had such incredible fight choreography up to now, CGI or not. There's really no character development to speak of to cap anything off either.

That's not to say the episode is a total wash though. I did find the idea of Koga and Rei exchanging Mado Jewelry to be a fun idea, even if not much was done with it. Got a decent chuckle out of how Silva prefers to have a friend as her partner whereas Zaruba prefers someone more mission focused. Though I do have to wonder how exactly they're supposed to function given how one has to make a pact to work with a piece of Mado Jewelry. The idea of the color-coded letters is also a neat bit of lore, given that something like that was never brought up in the anime.

But outside of those few things, yeah, this episode really did nothing for me. Which is a crying shame because really, on paper this all should be right up my alley, but the execution left alot to be desired.

Ah I see you're not vibing with Saviour in the Dark as an OP

But I should mention that this is pretty much the pattern for Live Action Garo's that are more than 12 or so episodes. The first half will have a more atmospheric/different lyricless opening before switching to one Jam Project does.

I think I remember a painting that Kaoru does in this that's of both Garo and Zero. But other than that I remember it just being a "forced team-up" episode that made me raise an eyebrow at our Watchdogs given what ended up happening.

Oh yeah we also got a new ending... which I don't really like as much as the first one. While the first one isn't my favorite ending theme in the series (we'll get to those later), it's still a step up visually from what we get in this one.

I love Savior in the Dark as the opening, but always preferred the original ending theme and imagery.

So I'm gonna like all of the first openings way more, gotcha.

Yeah, and it's a nice looking painting too! It's kinda weird though because it seemed as though it was being used as a sort of framework for the episode, and yet Garo and Zero never actually strike that pose during the war sequence. Maybe in a future episode.

Ah, right. I forgot to compare the endings. I don't think either is particularly great, but yeah the first one wins easy. The visuals for the second ending are practically non-existent.

Straight to the point, if you're sensitive to particular kinds of content, especially those of sexual deviancy, you might wanna skip this episode.

As a result this was also probably the scariest episode so far. For me atleast.

That said I did like this one, especially since it was a bit more like what I'd wanted out of episode 10 with a bit of a bigger focus on Rei and how he does things in terms of the "standard" Horror plot.

It helped too that despite the content being rather graphic by toku standards, none of it really felt tasteless or done just for shock value(and yes I can easily see people disagreeing with me on that one). It still very much felt like all a part of the same GARO universe.

The only thing of note is the growing idea that the Watchdogs are nowhere near as innocent as their angelic appearance might suggest. Which, while that isn't any sort of surprise to me as I've already watched the anime, thinking about how this was the first of the franchise and the time it came out... yeah, having the Zordon of the show being morally questionable is a neat spin on things.

So yeah, not much for me to say on this one, but I did feel it was well put together overall. No idea what was up with the constant POV shots this episode, though.

This is a rather disturbing episode in some aspects.

Other than vaguely recalling the content... yeah not much to say on this one sadly.

I came out of this one extremely satisfied! The flashback stuff with Rei, even though I completely agree it's composed mostly of obvious expository dialogue, it was also closer to what I was hoping for out of Kouga's big origin story? Like, I don't know, it's definitely not as strong in its delivery of the material, but I thought it did a great job recontextualizing a major character with new information, right down to the appropriately edgy reason behind him taking on the name Zero.

I thought it made for a nice little pair with episode 12, and maybe it would've been a much better one if the whole episode was that, but I also really loved the other story this one tells? Like, I said how much I loved episode 7 despite/because of its adamant refusal to ground its high-octane action in too much pesky human vulnerability, and here comes this episode where Kouga and Rei run off to the Playstation FMV dimension to fight an army, because an epic task like that, cruelly enough, is easier for them than simply being emotionally honest with the woman their macho pride keeps hurting.

It's definitely another episode that lacks the cohesion that I generally find to be one the show's biggest strengths, but all those disparate elements here are so equally entertaining and interesting to me, I didn't find myself caring all that much.

This one was pretty solid, too, even if I'm *this* close to being the person who argues it's sort of tasteless. I kinda had this problem watching Kamen Rider Amazons sometimes, too, but there's a certain vibe to material like this where it goes so far in the attempt to disturb that I just kinda... laugh, instead? I'm not sure what that might say about me personally, or whether it's a mark for or against the episode, but, yeah, that was my reaction to a lot of the Horror-focused scenes here. Regardless, it's a strong enough regular episode of the series, telling a unique standalone plot, inching some overarching stuff along, and even flipping around Rei's deubt, where Kouga is now the one sitting back as Zero does his thing, so it's got that hook of being the first time we really see him take down a monster on his own.

I don't really like the new OP/ED combo, either, by the way!

Apparently the whole reason they held off on using Savior in the Dark in the first place was because they realized it'd make the show seem like any random kid-oriented toku hero show, but just because the show has established itself by now, I don't think it changes anything about how ill-suited it is tonally. The instrumental theme was extremely well-done, and gelled perfectly with the abstract visuals to communicate what GARO is like as a show, the way any opening should. Savior in the Dark is quite literally a JAM, of course, but I can't see myself ever quite coming around to its use this way, even if that was always what it was for. Both openings and even the episode preview share bits of melody and stuff, so... I don't know, it's all cohesive and everything, but something about it just feels wrong.

My distaste for the new ED is less vehement, but yeah, I think the song and the visuals of the first one made a much stronger impression there too. Who knows, maybe if these had been the songs from day one, I'd think they were perfect too, but I really get the feeling this is just a straight downgrade? Crucially, it doesn't feel like there was any purpose to changing them, beyond it being 13 episodes in. There's no real new chapter of the show we've entered, and when nothing about the style there has changed, I find it makes the changes in the musical style stick out in a bad way.

Even disregarding the NSFW stuff, yeah. It's really overall a scenario that definitely got to me a little. Maybe I'm a scaredy-cat, but yeah, it was effective in that sense.

I will say that one detail that I did like was the shot showing what the symbol on the back of his coat means. "Sealer of bad dreams" is the kinda hook that wouldn't be out of place in a JRPG, haha.

This should be the title used for every time a Toku has an extensive CGI setpiece. Gotta remember this for the eventual Revice thread.

Nah, I get that. One of the reasons I love Stranger of Paradise is because it takes itself so seriously that it flips right around to being hilarious to me, afterall.

And uh, let's just say that the way the Horror possesses the sculptor in this one is very much a joke that like, a 12 year old would make, haha.

That basically sums up where I'm at with it, yeah. Putting aside my dislike for how the song has been used in-show so far, "Savior in the Dark" really does feel more like an insert song to me rather than an OP to a Horror Urban Fantasy Toku like what GARO is. It's not the worst ever, sure, and it is a good song, but in terms of an OP the original instrumental gels with me far more.

Like, there's a reason Kamen Rider Black Sun used "Did you see the Sunrise?" as its ED, afterall.

Talky episodes are a tricky thing to pull off in fantasy shows.

In my experience, they more often than not come across as boring to many viewers, especially those who are initially drawn in by the action.

And while I certainly have experienced a bit of that myself(hi Blassreiter), I actually find myself drawn to them more often than not, because the key thing in making these episodes work is the subject matter at hand.

While the majority of this episode is just characters talking, it's all about the continued arc of Koga ontop of establishing a bit more world building lore for the show, namely the establishment of Makai Alchemists and what exactly it is that they do.

So if that didn't make it already clear, I really liked this one! It was like I was watching an episode of Yu-Gi-Oh, except in the GARO universe, and I feel it came together rather well. Loved the use of the silhouettes from the opening sequence to represent the battle of ki between Koga and Zaruba's' father, and despite the heightened drama, most of the dialogue felt natural.

Though it is a bit obvious, there's also a bit of furthering in the plot pertaining to who killed Taiga, but I did like how the episode played into how Koga might not be remembering everything as vividly as he thought due to his own trauma, and it's likely connected to the incoming threat of a great Horror, if they aren't one in the same. Needless to say I'd be very surprised if the Dark Knight who looks like Garo isn't the final boss in some form or another.

Lastly, while it is brief, I did like how Amon brought up that morality is very rarely ever black and white or some sort of straight line. It's the sort of lesson I think alot of people could stand to learn. Today's' friends could become tomorrow's' enemies and vice-versa. It's good to keep an open mind, because valuable information could come from the least likely of sources. Sure, it's mainly foreshadowing Garo and Zero working together, but it's still a nice lesson for, well, just about everyone, I think.

So, yeah. It's the first episode with no real action scenes to speak of, but I still loved it all the same.

This was absolutely an episode with enough drama in its dialogue to make up for the lack of showy action. It's all about giving Kouga someone he can feel more comfortable opening up to a bit, and it works great at giving more insight into his character specifically, while doing all the other stuff on top of that. It may not have a golden and/or silver knight fighting a monster, but it's got plenty to keep the viewer's attention anyway.

Oh yeah this one!

I remember us getting some cool lore/tidbits of information all while we played a Makai Order version of chess, checkers? Idk the equivalent game.

Anyway this is definitely one of the ones I remember from the OG Series the most despite it just being two dudes talking over a small game.

So now the real question is when do we get to see Rei play Makai Chess?

is it because you could really relate to it

There is a LOT going on in this episode.

And I don't mean just in terms of events unfolding, but also in terms of character development, themes, and fully swinging GARO as a whole into its third act.

Or atleast that's certainly what it feels like, because lemme tell ya, I did not expect an episode with a title like this, which opens in the way that it does, to be the episode where everything reaches its emotional boiling point.

The biggest theme of the episode is Protection. What it means to protect something, the reason why people do so, and how while it sounds nice and flowery on the surface, it can easily be twisted into something obsessive and nasty. It can just as easily be a tool of malice as it is of justice.

But I won't lie, the aspect of all of this that stood out to me most, whether it be intentional or not, is another thematic idea the story of GARO as a whole has had which comes to a point here; Truth. The time has finally come for Kaoru to learn the real reason Koga has stayed with her, as well as just what exactly her being stained by Horror blood means going forward.

While it's not revealed to her that she'll eventually die, what is brought to light is more than enough to break the poor girl. Koga can't even bring himself to try and justify his actions or plead with her to stay, because he knows he doesn't have a right to. Just when it seemed like she and Koga were making real progress together as people, life came and dropkicked her right down into the dirt. The worst kind of betrayal.

Koga isn't off scott free in any of this though. His actor does a fantastic job with his body language here; Showcasing how Koga's' own sense of ethics being at odds with both the philosophy of the Watchdogs as well as his own treatment of Kaoru over the past couple of months are really tearing him up inside despite all of his attempts at staying vigilant. His sense of justice gets challenged the most here, via meeting a human who's not a Horror, yet still has no issue committing to the evils of one.

Everyone is put through the wringer here, and it's not due to any sort of grand scheme or ultimate evil, no. It's all been snowballing this whole time due to the actions of Koga, only to come to a crash thanks to a random, pathetic Horror who can't live outside of water and her lackey who has no qualms with murder. The entire scenario is one that outright defines the sort of storytelling I love most: A plot driven almost entirely by its characters rather than the other way around. It's intense, it's dramatic, and by the end, it's an awful situation that was bound to happen eventually.

This was a really friggen good episode you guys.

Ah yes, this is another episode I remember purely because of the end scene, but everything leading up to it is also very good too. There's admittedly another episode later on in the franchise I feel gives similar vibes in terms of the Horror Plot in general, but man is this a rather unique beast.

There's also something almost magical about how what is basically a standard Horror of the Week plot basically snowballs into the ending we receive here. Just the amount of tension in the scene where Kouga confronts the Horror and her lackey, like, it's so thick you can cut it with a soul metal sword. All culminating in the Horror just badmouthing Kouga and basically blabbing about everything.

Like, despite the formula we ended setting up for the show with Kaoru and Kouga and how we get kind of comfortable, from the start you can tell that this is not a perfect situation and that the shoe was going to drop eventually. And boy did it drop, huh?

Also while I don't want to say spoilers in regards to like, story stuff, I will say at least that uh... after that ending? Yeah we're in for something different going forward. I mean we have to be, you know? You can't just end it like that and expect everyone to go back to their usual routine.

Yeah I completely adored this one. The Horror stuff was at peak creepiness without tipping too far to the point where I start finding it funny, and then it's also like this extremely emotionally raw, important episode for the overarching plot on top of that. It's really, really great!

Naturally, I especially loved how everything blows up in Kouga's face at the end. It's exactly what Amon was talking about in the previous episode, where his refusal to get close to people has left him trying to maintain a comfortable uncommitted middle-ground that was always doomed to end like this. Kouga would never be cold enough to kill Kaoru, but he also didn't have the courage to actually engage with her in a way that might've prevented things from getting this bad. Like you said, this one was very much driven by the characters, and the writing and performances are insanely strong here.

The only other episode that I can think of that comes even remotely close is the "Scar Flame" episode from Carved Seal of Flames. And even then I would not at all try to directly compare the two anytime soon. Love both episodes equally though.

Thinking about it, the title of the episode is actually kinda brilliant. Not only is it describing what the gate for the Horror is this time around, but it's also the episode where, figuratively speaking, the bubble bursts.

I'd be incredibly disappointed if there wasn't at least some sort of shake up going forward! You don't just pull something this big and then try to sweep it under the rug, ya know?

I feel like whoever wrote/and directed this episode had a serious phobia of koi fish when they were young. And if so it certainly contributed heavily to the atmosphere of the episode!

It just makes the previous episode all the better by extension, and it makes me wonder if the other things that Amon warned Koga about are going to come to a head soon too.

This is probably the episode of Garo that freaked me out the most. I generally don't find the show to be very scary, but something about the fish lady just really wigged me out.

A memorable, creepy and important episode. Oh, those prickly fingers!

so what ur telling is that ur not into mermaids

Who knew a box cutter could be so dangerous? (The answer is everyone should know that)

More that I have a pretty intense fear of something unseen being in the water with me. It's the main reason I could never finish Outer Wilds.

I totally get that. There's a reason it took me forever to finish Monster Hunter Tri, despite how much I love that game.

So much going on in this episode too!

The biggest standout for the franchise as a whole is Jabi, who would serves as the inspiration for almost every Alchemist in the anime entries.

And while Jabi is certainly cool, if we're strictly talking characters the big standout for me in this one was Rei, because I personally find him to be everything that Date from Kamen Rider OOO should've been.

One thing the two definitely share is their method of basically outright challenging people to put their worst foot forward. The main difference being that Date is often called cool, or smart, or kind for it, despite his blatant disregard for the safety of others.

Rei, however, does it here as a way of measuring Koga. He does it solely because he's conflicted on whether or not Koga really is the one that he should be taking his revenge out on, and if Koga steps forward to kill Kaoru, or tries to stop him from telling Kaoru the truth, then that dispels any and all doubt from his mind. It's not dolled up as anything glamorous or noble; It's very much a selfish endeavor and Rei's' way to easy his own mind.

Speaking of the Dark Knight though, I could easily be wrong, but I'm calling now; It's Kaoru's' therapist. There's a brief shot of him talk to her, where you can just make out that he wears a necklace, and it sure as heck looked like a Mado Necklace to me. Add onto that how he had no trouble believing everything Kaoru had to say about Koga and it all lines up perfectly.

...Man, I haven't even really talked about the plot of the episode, have I? It's a wonderful extension of the previous one; Continuing on with its themes and how everything is coming to its natural boiling point in terms of both characterization and plot. There's not even a standard Horror to get in the way this time either, just the internal politics of the Watchdogs and Makai Knights going awry every which way, and a new Makai Alchemist, Jabi, arrives to make everything even more chaotic.

And Jabi makes a good point that I'll admit I never thought about: Why exactly DO the Watchdogs keep all of the Horrors sealed in little daggers and then inside a carrying case? Wouldn't it be simpler and to everyone's' benefit to just chuck them back into the Makai Realm? If it weren't clear that something were going on before, it definitely is now, especially with the revelation of a legend that any Makai Knight who consumes 1000 Horrors would be granted ultimate power unlike anything ever seen before. And I have a feeling that if that's not what they're after, then they certainly are connected to the Dark Knight somehow.

I also wanna note a neat little touch of color symbolism I noticed here too. Koga's' eyes when donning the armor are white this time instead of the usual green, which I think helps to reflect just how lost he is in all of this and that his mind really can't take much more of it. Even if it weren't there, the fact that he struggles hard against Zero when they were an even match before would be telling enough. But still, it's the sort of small detail that I definitely appreciate.

The emotions continued to run high all throughout this episode, and I dug every second of it.

Really loved the way this one just continues blasting the status quo apart. As usual with this show and its cohesion, everything is all tied together by the specific theme of (again just like Amon said) people not knowing who to trust... you know, except for the one person who specifically assures us he's unquestionably on Kaoru's side, which does not at all stand out as suspicious in an episode where literally everyone else is questioning these things.

First, I appreciate the meme image. Very nice.

Second, you know I'll be completely honest, totally forgot Kaoru's therapist was a thing.

Anyway yeah, Jabi! She makes a pretty strong first impression here and she's definitely a favorite of mine.

That being said, I vaguely recall this episode, mostly because we're sorta just starting to kick into gear our next act of sorts. Lots of fun character work here, to where we don't even need a Horror to detonate! Always a fun time.

Time, Trust, Truth... Three Ts, all interwoven so wonderfully into this show's' narrative! Really looking forward to how it all plays out now that everything's been blown apart!

Makes me wonder what a GARO Keyblade would actually look like.

I don't blame you for that one. He's only shown up like three times so far and I think said his name all of like, once.

I think you're up to where my rewatch stalled out. I may have also caught the episode after this, but this is around where I got sidetracked. Really should go back and finish things up.

But yeah, great episode. Real escalation of the plot, to start, but Jabi is just fantastic. I don't know if I can still say she's my favorite Makai Priestess after how much a couple of other characters have developed, but she's definitely still a fantastic character and I am never, ever unhappy to see her show up.

She definitely makes a very strong first impression for sure! My current favorite of the Makai Alchemists is Luke from Vanishing Line, so we'll see how she measures up to him by the end.

Well Jabi certainly didn't last long.

Almost the entirety of this episode felt like an extended cinematic cutscene that you'd find in a modern fighting game.

And ya know, given that I'm an avid fighting game fan, that's a compliment! The action, while certainly fantastical, was still great all throughout this episode. Like, Garo and Zero fighting while their blades duel on their own? Just over the top and ridiculous enough to flip right back around to being cool and exciting to watch.

There's also of course the arrival of Kiba, the Black Knight, and the reveal that the Watchdogs aren't just working with him, but working for him. Of which I'll admit I didn't consider.

If I had to make a small critique of the episode though, it's that it just kinda glosses over the part that I was most invested in: Kaoru talking about how Koga straight up lied to her all this time about, well, nearly everything. Yeah, sure, he's doing his best to save her, but that doesn't change the fact that alot of this could've been avoided if he'd bothered to be more straightforward.

Regardless, while not quite as strong as the previous two episodes, there's still alot of strong character drama throughout, and the episode slows things down just a tad so that the audience can catch their breath, which I think is a good move. Such a shame about Jabi though. Was starting to rather like her.

Well, now the truth is out for everyone's' personal quests. I can only imagine things will only get more intense from here.

Yes, the secrets are revealed and the final battle is approaching. A very intense action episode.

Yeah I'll admit I had to do a double take at what happened at Jabi in this episode.

That weirdness aside, yes, here's Kiba.

And sadly I checked and I never did comment about it on the Anime Garo threads, but it was around endgame of Carved Seal of Flames in which I was basically thinking to myself "Oh you've seen nothing, Garm is not the worst Watchdog by a long-shot" with this particular series in mind.

I do hope that Kiba is actually the final boss. Given the trend of the GARO anime, maybe not, but it'd be cool.

It makes me also wonder if the lore that we got about the East Watchdogs, with them actually being one immortal woman split into three, actually extends to Garm, given that she and the Watchdogs of the anime act somewhat similarly.

I've really got hand it to this show for ludicriously epic it knows how to make its fights between Garo and Zero. Things are already awesome enough from last episode's climax, and then here comes the start of this one, with this really thoroughly considered escalation where it just gets more and more intense and brutal, to the point we've got the two of them just beating on each without even using their swords. You can tell how much attention was given to making sure the fight itself kinda has a narrative of its own, rather than simply being one beat of a larger story. Extremely impressive stuff.

Of course, that larger story was still just as good as they usually are lately. There's just as many revelations and twists as ever, but they all start to get us to a point where the protagonists can maybe start working against what really stands in their way, with some of the doubt filling the past couple episodes cleared up. This show has gotten me very, very invested in where it's going!

"Black Flame", though, huh? Could've sworn I remember a picture book with that in the title, but once again, I'm sure nothing about this is of any importance.

(Also, I'll just note here that Savior in the Dark is stuck in my head constantly lately, so, without taking back anything I said, I think I'm starting to understand why they couldn't resist making it the opening.)

Not gonna lie, I actually totally forgot what the title of the picture book was until you brought it up. Nice catch!

A Mado Tank was not something I expected, that's for sure.

This episode is all about obtaining Varnacas Fruit in order to purify Kaoru, with Koga having to go it alone since all of the Alchemists he knows are gone.

If I might get my one minor critique out of the way for this episode, it's that there really wasn't any sort of smooth transition between the previous episode and this one. We're just kinda thrown right into the thick of things.

I don't really mind it too much though given that I still rather enjoyed this episode all around. Especially since, and maybe it's just me, but this episode felt the most videogame-like out of every episode so far? Am I out of line in thinking that the GARO franchise draws alot of inspiration from JRPGs?

And with that being said, it also doesn't leave me with a whole lot to say. The episode didn't come across as anything profound or "deep" to me, but then, I also didn't really expect it to. I'm just here for a good time and, hey, straightforward episode or not, that's what I got. It's Koga's' quest to set right everything he did wrong, and in the end, he makes a giant step towards it.

Rei also acknowledges that like it or not, he's gonna need Garo's' help in order to bring down Kiba. It's a small thing, but necessary in order to help establish how the two will interact going forward. And it also makes me wonder how, now that she's cured, Kaoru is gonna factor into the story at hand? Given that she's my favorite character in the show so far, I'm really hoping they don't just write her out of it or put her in the background from here on out.

Again, nothing I really feel I gotta go into detail about, but just a solidly put together episode all around. The piano and orchestral version of Savior in the Dark were nice too!