English Dub Review: HAKYU HOSHIN ENGI “The Buseiou’s Rebellion”

Does this episode make me want to rebel against this show?

Overview (Possible Spoilers Below)

When we last left off, Taiko continues his ongoing quest to gain allies in an effort to overthrow Dakki which we estimate isn’t something that won’t happen overnight, otherwise, it’d be a much shorter series. At one point Taiko does meet the man who will become king if they succeed named “Ki Sho” and we even get his backstory too. Long ago, he and the four other individuals were summoned by Dakki to attend a “party”. At this party, they are given a choice to either submit or die with the old man being ballsy enough to show defiance but was saved when Koh Hiko stepped in and the old man was imprisoned for 7 years instead. This leads to a scene that takes place during the time he was imprisoned where Ki Sho’s son later arrives to beg for his release. Dakki tries to control Ki Sho’s son but is shown to be just as ballsy in resisting temptation. Out of nowhere, this leads to what I felt was at first, a random, out of place scene when it resembles a lighthearted cooking show, but the twist is more disturbing than it seems…

When we cut to the present, Ki Sho is uncertain what to do since Dakki’s corruptive influence over Emperor Chuu has pretty much destroyed any trust people had for the Yin kingdom, so Taiko suggests to raise an army and create a new nation to stop end Dakki’s rule once and for all. Later on, Taiko is given a message to save Koh-Hiko as what’s left of his family is in danger after he openly quitting the Yin Dynasty due to the emperor indirectly killing his wife & sister for impulsively thinking with his dick. Meanwhile, Taiko’s master sends help in the form of Taiitsu, along with a newly trained Nataku who we last see in Episode 2 find Taiko and ask him to aid them in saving Koh Hiko who’s now on Dakki’s shit-list after the previous episode.

Just when all hope seems lost for Koh-Hiko and a handful of rebels who left with him, We meet another new character, a badass in a leather vest named “Tenka” who turns out to be Koh Hiko’s “second son”. Although the monologue before the opening sort-of introduces him briefly, It kinda spoils things regarding specific events that may lead to Tenka possibly joining forces with Taiko, but at least we delve more into Tenka’s backstory. His weapon, in a nutshell, is even revealed to be a magical lightsaber. The episode ends when Bunchuu’s magical death squad is sent to take out Koh Hiko, but Nataku & Taiko show up just in the nick of time.

Our Take

Aside from the disturbing plot twist regarding Dakki’s cooking scene, the action scenes and minor character moments seem to be where this episode shines in places. I really want to like this series, but it still suffers from the same problems with its breakneck pacing and the unwarranted spoilers that we’re immediately getting this far in before the opening intro of each episode.

I can do without knowing who’s going to die next early into the plot, so way to ruin the surprise Assholes!