Overview: Yuen (Christopher Wehkamp) informs Soji (Nazeeh Tarsha) of the unexpected bitten gold intended for one of their members, Raizo, (Aaron Campbell) as the group prepares for battle against Sada’s (Austin Tindle) Revengers.
Our Take: With Gerald manipulating the Revengers’, the religious motivation in creating a Christian state through opium is surprisingly mundane.
More interesting are the moral implications of Usui’s decision not to kill Kurima. Yui’s bitten gold is a rough scene in her raw misunderstanding, but most importantly, hatred of Kurima is. Her bloody vendetta is fair, truly hammering home the totality of what Raizo did. Equally compelling is the internal bind Usui finds himself in not being able to kill an innocent albeit manipulated man.
Their relationship in this episode highlights the hope Uzui has in Raizo and the results of that. Yeun’s time and labor put into the ronin has bore fruit in his artistic side and prosperous future.
Soji and Kurima have always had more in common than meets the eye in being abiding soldiers. A wonderful progression of that similarity is how the gambler is willing to follow orders and kill Raizo. Initially, the potential development seemed premature and, truthfully, still is on his part. However, it is much more understandable when his sense of duty comes into play, even if misguided. Of course, Kurima’s good heart made the solution easy, making for strong simplicity.
Yuen’s Revengers having found Sada’s gang and the opium, the final stage is set for an epic, climatic assassin battle.