English Dub Review: Kochoki “Kiyosu”

OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)

Oda Nobukatsu practices archery with one of the retainers when an ostrich suddenly comes stampeding through the courtyard. It’s stopped by the handy efforts of Tsuzuki Kurando, who makes the acquaintance of Nobukatsu. As for the ostrich, it seems it was meant to be sent to Nobunaga, being a substitute for a peacock he ordered from a foreign land. But Nobunaga is more annoyed that Nobukatsu didn’t stop by directly, especially since the two brothers haven’t seen each other in some time due to their responsibilities. To remedy this, Naga’s group make plans for a New Year’s celebration to bring everyone together, but while Katsu is more than willing, their mother, Dota Gozen, heavily disapproves due to the conflict between Naga and the principal line. And so, no New Year’s feast came to pass, but mainly due to another battle taking place.

Due to his senior retainers throwing him under the bus, Naga reaches out to Katsu for help, which he hurriedly accepts, but is held back by Dota, even using their younger brother Hidetaka to guilt him. So, Naga defends Owari on his own victoriously against the principal line. Still, the burning desire to see each other continues between the brothers, who remember better days when they were allowed to play together. Tsuzuki shows up and suggests sending Naga a birthday gift, so he sends a letter asking for what Naga would want, but the only thing he would want is to see his brother.

That wish would go mostly unfulfilled, as the principal line, led by Nobutomo (though really being controlled by his senior retainer) is taking drastic steps that must be fought against. Once again the call goes out to get Nobukatsu, but once again he is stopped by Dota…or so it seems. Katsu’s forces arrive to help defeat the principal line, who commit seppuku to take responsibility. However, Katsu is given the condition to not dismount his horse, meaning he cannot properly talk with his brother after the battle. But when he asks why Dota hates her eldest son so much, she simply tells him it is not for him to know.

Despite their brief reunion, Nobunaga is simply pleased he was with his brother again, even for a short time. Nobukatsu mulls this over when they return from the battle, so Tsuzuki decides to help “cure him of his loneliness”.

OUR TAKE

Oh, so THIS is that evil-looking guy from the ending! I wondered when we were going to get around to him, or how he was going to contribute to however Nobukatsu will metaphorically sink into the depths as the OP indicated. After a couple of weeks without checking in with him, I’m glad we finally got back to what he was doing. As I’ve said, I’m not very knowledgeable about the real history behind this show, but after all the importance Katsu seems to be getting in both OP and ED, it made me pretty curious about how he would return to the story, especially with all the heartstring-pulling that goes into his brotherly relationship with Nobunaga. One is forging his own path while running the family (even if that means going against other members of that family), while another is still restricted by the obligations left to him by their late father and the resentment of their mother. That resentment still being pretty inexplicable, because even when asked, Dota can’t give a straight answer as to why she has hated Nobunaga for so long.

We also seem to resolve the issue of the principal line this episode as well, who work as a sufficient common enemy to bring the brothers together but also work as a bit of a foil for both of them in how they deal with their retainers. Nobuhide had command of his retainers during his reign who would then become Naga’s but not follow him, forcing Naga to work without them and use his own people to make his mark. Meanwhile, Nobutomo was more or less a puppet to his retainers, who led him into this war that would cost him his life. As for Katsu, it’s hard to say where the influence of Tsuzuki will push him, but…as I’ve said it’s not looking good for him. Even a cursory glance of his Wikipedia article spells utter doom, which probably explains why they made this version was made to look so cute and innocent.

This marks the halfway point of the series, which ideally means the second half will be HIGH OCTANE BATTLES OF LEGENDARY RIPUTE, WORTHY OF ODA NOBUNAGA’S FAMOUS REPUTATION. I mean, ideally. It could end up being pretty low key and not be that great at all. But DAMMIT, we are here to find out either way, and I’m pulling you with me no matter how hard you scream.