English Dub Review: SSSS.Gridman “Collapse”

It’s what’s on the inside that counts.

Overview (Spoilers!) 

Yuta, Utsumi, and Rikka consider the possibility that Akane made them, that there really is nothing outside the city. They begin to doubt their own memories. Akane has a nightmare where Tonkawa and her friends have returned to life. Alexis goads her to create a new kaiju, but Akane is having doubts.

Yuta decides to confront Akane. The gang heads over to her house—but on the other side is a confusing, abstract mess of squares. Akane doesn’t show up to school for the next week. Yuta isn’t concerned, but Utsumi worries that her absence might make everything vanish for good. Neon Genesis theorizes that the fog surrounding the city is toxic nerve gas. Gridman explains that his gang arrived from another world; they believe that they were once one being, forcefully separated by Alexis.

Utsumi has been studying hard for midterms. Gridman says that Akane made a world she could “live easy” in, but Yuta points out that she seems “suffocated” by it. Rikka believes she escaped from a world of gods. In the streets, Caliber battles Anti, asking what he’ll do once he defeats Gridman.

Finally, a kaiju attacks. The group combines to become Full-Powered Gridman—and kills the pathetic kaiju within seconds. Then Anti attacks. They spar for a while, but as Gridman’s about to unleash his final move, Anti shrinks down to his human form. Caliber claims that Gridman held back the final blow because Anti is a “living being with a heart now.” Anti finds Akane in the rain and offers her an umbrella, but she sends him off.

Suddenly, the kaiju tears off its fleshy exterior to reveal a second, living kaiju underneath. It traverses the city, destroying the giant kaiju that lurk in the mist. Akane watches outside the shop as Gridman reforms. But this new kaiju is able to dodge all Gridman’s attack and score some devastating blows. After creating a massive explosion, the kaiju tears off Gridman’s appendages one by one, sending the crew back to the shop. Anti comes to Gridman’s aid, ripping apart the other kaiju—and evolving into “Gridknight,” a mecha like Gridman!

Akane walks into the shop and asks to speak to Gridman… and then she stabs Yuta in the chest.

Our Take

Holy shit. I wasn’t expecting that ending.

But before all that, this episode continues to explore the confusing, horrifying, thought-provoking themes that make this show so enjoyable. I do wish we’d gotten a little more action during the episode’s runtime—while I’m really intrigued by the dialogue and ideas presented by the characters, a lot of “Collapse” is just people explaining stuff to each other. But it’s still interesting to watch the characters go down the same intellectual rabbit holes that viewers are inevitably scratching their heads at.

I’m not sure how I feel about the whole “Akane is a god and there’s nothing outside the city” storyline. On the one hand, it’s insanely compelling and creepy, and it really ups the stakes for the story’s main conflict. On the other, it’s a little difficult to wrap my head around. So these are the only humans that exist? There are no other countries? If the characters hear about a celebrity from America or China or even Tokyo, that person is an illusion fabricated by Akane? Did Akane decide what humans look like as a species? Is all of human history a lie? Did Akane invent all human technology and create all human social customs? And what does Alexis mean when he says that “real humans don’t actually sleep”? Who are the real humans here? Is Akane one? Are Yuta, Rikka, and Utsumi? Are the Neon Genesis Junior High students? Additionally, if Akane’s house becomes an impenetrable void while she skips school, how can we also see her sitting in her room?

It’s all very abstract—especially a moment when Utsumi is studying for midterms and his notebook reads, in English, “God’s in his heaven — all’s right with the world!” This is a pretty chilling shot, but I don’t know how literally to take it. Did Utsumi actually write that? Was he conscious of writing it? Or is the super-relevant quote a fun Easter egg slipped in by the crew? This show’s execution is so tight that I usually don’t mind its ambiguity, but I do hope we get some clarity on some of these questions eventually.

Honestly, though, Akane just doesn’t seem powerful—or otherworldly—enough for me to really believe she built our entire society on her own. Plus, if there’s nothing outside the city—if Akane’s humans are all that exist in the whole universe—who is Alexis and where did he come from? I really hope the final two episodes offer us some insight into his motivations because while I love his spooky villain persona, I’m dying to learn more.

I’m also super pumped to see where Akane ends up. She’s passed a redemption arc at this point, but her descent into depression and doubt (“Can you remind me why I have to make kaiju again?”) makes her easy to empathize with. Akane’s dream—where people start materializing in her classroom in an overstimulating and disorienting way—is an interesting metaphor for Akane’s mental state. Like Rikka says, she’s sensitive—one tiny thing that throws off her perfect world can drive her to murder or despair. She’s such a compelling character, and I enjoy every minute that she’s on-screen.

The kaiju this episode, once again, has an original and frankly terrifying design. The original kaiju is the color of pale human skin, and something about that fleshy appearance combined with its lumpy, lopsided proportions makes me deeply unsettled. When the real kaiju climbs out of its false skin, it leaps around the city in motions that are half freaky and half humorous—it almost looks like it’s doing some hip new Gen Z dance moves. Plus, I’m sorry, I don’t want to be the one to say it, but this kaiju looks like a vagina. There, I said it. But on the plus side, the animation as it twirls around is top-notch, seamlessly blending CGI spins with traditional animation.

So, yep. Despite some confusion and lack of action before the final battle, this is another exemplary episode of SSSS.Gridman. We seem to have ditched the silly romance and swimsuit diversions for good, and the show is thriving because of it.