Overview (Spoilers Below): Atsushi and Akutagawa find themselves cornered, with no choice but to fight Fukuchi and his seemingly insurmountable powers. Combining forces and trusting in one another, do they have what it takes to defeat the mightiest Hunting Dog?
Our Take: In a shocking twist, the leader of the Hunting Dogs reveals himself to be the leader of the Decay of Angels. Even worse, Fukuchi’s ability to increase his power through his chosen weapon is overwhelming enough to make Ranpo flee in one of Poe’s novels, leaving Atsushi to face the villain alone. Fortunately, Atsushi won’t be confronting the traitorous Hunting Dog alone for long, as a new ally arrives to assist Atsushi in the fight. The partner I speak of is Port Mafia member Akutagawa, whom Dazai sends to help Atsushi defeat Fukuchi, or in this case, attempt to defeat him. What follows is an exhilarating, game-changing showdown that’ll determine the remaining season regarding the characters’ fates. More importantly, it emphasizes the relationship between Atsushi and Akutagawa through their motives. While Atsushi hopes to retreat after seeing Fukuchi’s true power, Akutagawa desires to defeat Fukuchi to earn back Dazai’s respect. He’s also not very pleased with Atsushi being Dazai’s favorite, which I assumed was an essential element in the previous seasons. What a way to make me feel more guilty about not visiting the show’s early episodes. Amid the action that’s brilliantly animated by Bones, the episode reveals that Fukuchi’s true intentions came from him not being recognized for his efforts. To make the struggle more challenging (and unfair) for the were-tiger and his unexpected partner, Fukuchi unleashes his secret weapon upon them: a mystic katana called Amenogozen. With it, Fukuchi can travel through space and time, even after dying by Atsushi’s powers enhanced by Akutagawa’s Rashomon cloak. In other words, Fukuchi can erase their successful plans to kill him or escape, making him almost impossible to defeat. So not only is Fukuchi the most formidable antagonist the series has delivered, but he’s also a cheating asshole with a no-death cheat code: his space-time katana. It also doesn’t help that he killed Akutagawa with Amenogozen, resulting in Atsushi going solo again. It’s a frustrating struggle to watch, considering Fukuchi’s ability. However, the show’s high stakes are raised because of it, which is enough to get me excited for next week’s continuation.