English Dub Review: Ninja vs. Gokudo “Part 3 The Great Burial of Love #3”

Overview (Spoilers Below):
Yajima toys with Shinoha and pierces his skull with Pistol Disco.  Shinoha gambles with his life…but survives by the skin of his teeth!  At first, the ninja’s strength impresses Yajima, but he soon becomes irritated when Shinoha points out that his regrets are why he has to rampage.  Cornered by Shinoha’s monstrous power, memories of his beloved daughter flash through his mind.

Our Take:
The chaotic war between the ninja and the Gokudo continues with Shinoha’s confrontation with Hiroki Yajima.  However, unlike his fellow ninja buddies, Shinoha is having a difficult time battling his formidable foe due to the latter’s ricochet bullets.  He even took a bullet to the head, though, since we’re only halfway through the season, it’s unlikely that he would bite the dust that early.  Through his quick thinking, Shinoha took a massive risk that ultimately paid off, giving him the upper hand over the gun-toting Gokudo.  It’s too bad that Yajima didn’t get the same luck when he attempted to pull a similar risk.  Following that, we get a brief showdown between Shiki and Gamute, with the latter using his childhood trauma to even the playing field.
This episode is another occasion where its emotional depth is supposed to come into play.  In addition to Yajima’s grief over the tragic death of his daughter, the episode expanded upon the personal bond between Shinoha and Shiki, who has personal feelings for him due to his generosity towards her appearance.  Shiki’s death was supposed to be a sentimental gut punch regarding this relationship, but the show’s poor direction, rushed plot elements, and schlocky performances immediately undermined this potential and its art style.  This could have been an improvement worthy of continuing the show’s “Great Burial of Love” arc.  Instead, this episode further establishes this arc as one of, if not the most poorly executed anime arcs I’ve ever seen.