English Dub Review: Tower of God “Tower of God”

Overview(Spoilers Below):

Tower of God closes off its first season with a deep dive into the trouble mind of Rachel. After the seismic betrayal that plays out between Rachel and Bam, she gets lost in her head and thinks back to the decisions that brought her to this point and why she’s entered the Tower in the first place. Rachel’s perspective colors in many previous events from the year in new ways. However, as Rachel thinks back to the past, the rest of the Tower prepares for the future, oblivious that their new hero and martyr is more duplicitous than any of them could have imagined.

Our Take:

Expectations are a hell of a thing. There’s really nothing quite like being completely blown away when something defies conventions or even operates in contrast to what it’s been building towards. Tower of God has handled this idea expertly so far through its debut season and this seemed to culminate with the conclusion of last week’s episode, where Rachel betrays Bam just when it seems like they’ve reached their happy ending. This season finale goes even further as it tries to discourage the idea of what its finale should look like. Early on, Rachel triumphantly declares that she’s reached the peak moment of her life, only to immediately receive a very rude reality check. Tower of God’s season finale tries to create that same feeling of confident anxiety in its audience and it results in a more understated, but enjoyable, end to a very strong season.

Surprisingly, Neon Genesis Evangelion and the series Hannibal are what I continually thought of during this finale. These glimpses into Rachel’s depressing subconscious as her mind begins to fray are very well handled. Also kudos to Valerie Rose Lohman for absolutely nailing Rachel’s complex pain through this episode. There’s a palpable sense of dread that builds throughout the entire episode and it’s a deeply nihilistic conclusion where the bad guys effectively win. It’s honestly chilling to see Rachel not only succeed, but for the rest of the Regulars in the Tower to actively band around her and turn her into the star that she craves to be as a tribute to Bam.

Tower of God’s season finale doesn’t try to get overly ambitious and while much of this installment does cover events that have already happened, the clarity that’s achieved by them is huge. After a season of keeping Rachel and what drives her a mystery, this episode finally pulls back the curtain. In some ways this feels like a strong bookend to the season premiere, with one focusing on Bam’s journey and the other looking at Rachel’s. At the same time, this episode is all about Rachel and nobody else really gets more than a few lines of dialogue, which may irritate those that are already soured on Rachel. More than anything else “Tower of God” establishes the new status quo for what’s to come. There may be minimal plot movements, but the show feels more dangerous and energized than it’s been all season. It’s the right energy to head into the second season.

When this episode begins, Rachel declares that “it’s finally over,” only to quickly be corrected that “this is just the beginning.” That feeling is omnipresent throughout this season finale and while this first season was incredibly satisfying and well-paced, it feels like the second season could operate very differently. The “fun” tests that have occupied so many episodes and feel like a staple of the series could disappear in favor of the darker tone that this finale builds up to. Phase one of Tower of God is complete and now it’s time to get into the real stuff.

Much like the Tower Administrator declares, “I’m interested to see what will happen next.”