English Dub Review: Deep Insanity THE LOST CHILD “take 06”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

The day of the plot has arrived, and the team heads into the Asylum. But when Hayden appears during the mission, things go very wrong.

Our Take: 

It didn’t take us too long to get the most critical mission yet started. While it would be nice to spend more time with Platoon 11 outside of their jobs, it’s easy to assume that now’s the best time to get the plot going. Since its third episode, we spent a couple of episodes getting to know the Platoon 11 members while preparations were underway. Now, we see if this essential assignment is worth the wait.

The episode sees Platoon 11 attempting to assassinate EL-Cee after Vera gets permission to commence the assignment. Their mission leads them to a mansion in the Exile village of Ruois, where the Cultists host a celebration to honor EL-Cee as the “Child of God”. Unfortunately, their plan gets derailed thanks to the arrival of Hayden.

The episode marks a solid improvement over last week’s chapter as it continues the season’s arc with a fast-paced and engaging infiltration plot. What makes this story work for me is the development between the characters. With Shigure and Leslie being the only members who knew about the mission, it served as a possible start of the strained trust between the Platoon 11 members. There’s also the fact that Vera is determined to get the mission done whatever means necessary, so I’m assuming that would make the situation even worse later on.

The other element that impressed me in this episode was its intense moments. When it comes to Yusuke Sekine’s direction and the animation, “take 06” offers plenty of sequences that actually got me on the edge of my seat. The primary examples of this were Leslie’s battle against Hayden and Shigure’s decision between killing EL-Cee and saving Leslie. The show took at least six episodes to find the right amount of intensity, and when it’s there, it paid off more effectively than it should.

It all leads up to the real gut-puncher that was the finale, where Leslie met his tragic demise because of Hayden. I think that scene would’ve been more emotional if the show had spent at least a couple more episodes developing the friendship between Leslie and Shigure. Other than that, it’s a decent twist that could play a role in the season’s second half.

Overall, “take 06” doesn’t exactly get the job done as planned, but it does accomplish its task in providing a great end to the first half of season one. Regarding the direction and animation, this is my favorite episode of the anime adaptation of Deep Insanity. As for my overall thoughts on the series so far, I would say it’s pretty enjoyable in terms of its concept and narrative. As someone who hasn’t read the manga, I’m impressed with what I’ve seen so far. It offered enough material to get me hooked for its second half, which would feel very different now that Leslie is out of the picture.