English Dub Review: Hand Shakers “Shake the Hands”

Shake it!

After Hand Shakers season 1 episode 11 “Cocoon Cocoon,” “Shake the Hands” resumes with Tazuna (Justin Briner), Koyori (Lara Woodhull), Mayumi (Ai Kakuma), and Nagaoka (Kenjiro Tsuda) in the Ziggurat. The pairs of hand shakers battle, with Nagaoka and Mayumi providing a steady challenge.

Nagaoka and Mayumi feature ornate robes and unique powers. Mayumi throws bouncing balls, while Nagaoka causes explosions. Like Koyori from earlier in the series, Mayumi is at least initially, unable to speak. Eventually, Koyori and Tazuna gain the upper hand.

“Shake the Hands” includes a neat segment where the Ziggurat dissolves back into the real world. The animation shines during this masterful moment. But peppered throughout “Shake the Hands” is a bit too much 3d CGI that simply fails to mesh with its 2d counterparts. While I admittedly have a preference for 2d, and hand-drawn, animation, it’s not the CG that bothers me. It’s that it doesn’t gel with the 2d images.

The Ziggurat appears gorgeous as Mayumi attacks, infusing it with a floral pattern. There’s a revelation about Nagaoka and Mayumi which lends depth to their relationship, as well as Nagaoka’s motivations. Additionally, during their battle, Koyori and Tazuna pull an unexpected move. While I appreciate this complexity, “Shake the Hands” is a bit mixed.

Once the action stops, “Shake the Hands” devolves into almost entirely recap and wrap up. Koyori and Tazuna accept the position offered by Makihara (Anthony Bowling), and even Break (Alejandro Saab) and Bind (Monica Rial) reappear briefly. “Shake the Hands” fails to set up much new plot or clarify any mysteries.

Yet in his lab, Makihara (Anthony Bowling) offers a brief speculation about the role of hand shakers. “I can’t help but wonder why god came up with all this nonsense,” Makihara wonders. “Was he really looking for someone with the power to challenge him? Or did he just want to watch people duke it out for entertainment? On the other hand, when I look at Tazuna and Koyori, it makes me think it might be something else entirely. Something we can’t comprehend.”

Further, there’s an odd hand shaker within the Ziggurat. This mysterious entity states in a deep baritone, “You who received the revelation of Babel. You who have overcome many battles and trials. You who received the revelation. You who would dare to challenge even me. You are a hand shaker. Just messing with ya.” It’s unclear if he’s a hand shaker, as there’s no partner. Maybe he’s the god referred to? It’s unknown. There is an upcoming 13th episode so potentially this is poised for revelation.

Overall, “Shake the Hand” is somewhat mixed. While it boasts superb animation in places, in others the CG is atrocious. The music is on point, jazzy and enjoyable. The narrative gets a tad boring once the main battle is finished. It’s mostly recap, a little mystery, and few answers.