English Dub Review: Overlord “Departure”

Who knew lizard politics could be so riveting?

Overview (Spoilers Below)

The lizardmen of the Green Claw tribe are faced with the doom of war looming over them. To figure out what to do, tribe chief Shasuryu Shasha holds a village meeting to decide their course of action. His brother, Zaryusu, proposes that the Green Claw united with the other lizard tribes to combat this new foe, noting that if the Green Claw tribe is indeed the “second sacrifice” to be made, as the giant undead face told them, then the other tribes must be at risk as well. This is essential because the tribes have a history of warfare between them; the last great war, brought about through overpopulation and food shortages, completely decimated the Yellow Speckle and Sharpe Edge clans, leaving much bad blood between the tribes. After some debate among the village, it is decided that Zaryusu will be the emissary to gather the rest of the tribes. Later that evening, Zaryusu meets with Shasuryu, and is surprised to hear his brother say that Zaryusu should’ve been village chief instead of him. Shasuryu also speculates that Zaryusu’s goal in meeting the other tribes might not just be for the sake of winning this war, but to secure the future of the lizardmen so inter-tribal war doesn’t destroy them all once again.

Switching off back the Tomb of Nazarick, we see Demiurge meet up with everyone’s favorite penguin butler, Eclair. The two exchange some witty banter, and the pompous penguin proclaims his desire to one day rule the Great Tomb of Nazarick by being the best butler possible.

Back to the lizardfolk, Zaryusu begins his travels by meeting up with the leader of the Red Eye tribe. As he enters the village chief hut, he’s struck by the beauty of the albino lizard woman serving as the village leader. Crusch Lulu is her name, and Zaryusu is getting all hot and bothered just by being in the same room with her. Unable to contain himself, he asks her to marry him on the spot. It’s a bold move, but Crusch Lulu reciprocates his feelings, despite her apprehension to such a sudden request.

Following their reptilian romantic tension, the two talk business, and Zaryusu explains his plan. The Red Eye plan to evacuate, but Zaryusu warns her that doing so is not in their best interest; if all the tribes evacuate, then inter-tribal war is assured due to the dwindling food supplies such an evacuation would cause. They must fight together against this new threat. If they win, their place is assured, and even if they lose, they lose as tribes united, and can find another place to live as one great tribe working together. Crusch agrees to the alliance, but before they’re through, Zaryusu is curious to know how the Red Eye survived the last war, having remained neutral during the fighting. The horrible truth brings shame to Crusch’s eyes; cannibalism. They survived by eating each other, and the strain of doing so brought the village to a civil war, a war that left Crusch Lulu in charge. Zaryusu, being the totally good dude he is, refrains from judging her harshly, choosing to help share her burden and bring them both to a brighter future.

The next day, the two set out to see the Dragon Tusk Clan, and are met by Dragon Tusk village chief, Zenberu Gugu. Without hesitation, he challenges Zaryusu to a duel, because the Dragon Tusk only respects one thing: strength.

Our Take:

We’re off to a great start to this season of Overlord. While I initially wasn’t thrilled at the idea of spending time watching “Game of Thrones: Lizard people edition”, I was quickly enthralled by the level of detail and realism given to these tribes and their history. By doing so, this episode has not only built the world of Overlord” further, it also expanded the scope of this story in an interesting way. My only gripe is that the dialogue between Zaryusu and Crusch Lulu dragged on a bit too long, and felt like the episode was just trying to fill time a bit. Regardless, it was a good episode, and I can’t wait to see what happens next week!