Demons of the Shadow Realm Episode 18 of the first season of the anime titled “Fujin and Raijin” and episode 19 titled “Sword and Bow” continue to balance action, comedy and mystery as Yuru and Asa continue their respective missions.
In episode 17, Yuru is kidnapped and taken to Shingo, and I’m excited to see how he will figure out a way to escape. Even if Yuru cannot escape alone, Dera is on her way to Yuru’s location. Asa is with Gonzo and slowly approaches Shingo’s headquarters. Our young protagonist just has to stall until rescue happens.
We need to know more about Shingo’s daemons, the titular Fujin and Raijin. As the name suggests, his demon controls lightning and wind. However, Shingo doesn’t like using lightning attacks because it disrupts electronic devices. As someone who prefers weather-related power sets (I’m a Storm/Ororo Munroe fan after all), I wouldn’t mind having Fujin and Raijin as my daemons. I love their lizard-like design that allows them to sit on his shoulders like Shingo’s two little devils.
One of the interesting moments in this episode was how Della and Asa figured out specific locations in a meaningful way. Della is working with an East villager whose demons can control humans. The Higashi villagers took control of one of Shingo’s men to learn about Shingo’s headquarters and where the fake Asha and the village girl were being held hostage.
As for Asha, she found the location of the hostages after recognizing a smoke signal sent by Danji. Giving Asha an understandable way to find the hostages, rather than her just randomly visiting an area, adds to the show’s well-written narrative.
one thing i always like Demons of the Shadow Realm The writers chose the “show rather than tell” route where possible. The creative team could have taken the easy route and just added a throwaway line explaining that Asha is still able to recognize smoke signals in the East Village after being taught by her father Megan. But no. “Fujin and Raijin” has a full flashback that actually shows young Asa learning about the village’s special smoke signals from Mine. Thanks to Mine for teaching his two children survival skills instead of just focusing on Yuru.
This particular flashback also gives the audience a better understanding of Yuru and Asa’s mother Nagisa’s emotional state after escaping the village. Of course, she felt guilty for leaving Yuru like this. But something else demands her immediate attention, as she tries to find a way to keep Mine and Asa safe on their way into the city.
Back in the present, I couldn’t help but laugh at Asha’s disappointment when she discovered that Yuru was no longer where the hostages were. Instead, Asa comes face to face with the fake Asa. And Asa doesn’t like fake Asa at all.
As for Della and Higashikata, the two did find Yuru at Shingo’s headquarters. However, before the real battle can begin, Asuma’s demon Yozakura flies away with Yuru. Della’s decision to run also led to another hilarious moment. There was no way Della could fight Shingo and his demons himself.
The reveal of Asuma’s true intentions was handled well. It turns out that everything that happened was part of Gonzo’s plan to eventually remove Shingo from the board. The head of the Kagemori clan is tired of people like Shingo messing up Yuru and Asha’s fate.
It didn’t surprise me that Asuma remained loyal to Gonzo, but as mentioned before, the whole plan was still handled well. Every character’s reasons for supporting Gonzo make sense, including Yuru and Della agreeing to be part of the plan.
One of Yuru’s big moments involves Danji’s smoke signal. Yuru faces two choices. He can either pay attention to Danji’s smoke signal and help Danji rescue the fake Asa, or he can ignore the hostages and help Left and Right fight Ivan and learn more about the whereabouts of his parents. It’s a nice little dilemma for Yuru, especially after his recent betrayal by Danji.
Episode 19 “Sword and Bow” shared Yuru’s answer. He decided to help Danji. I’ve been waiting for these two to talk about their feelings, and I did get a satisfying reunion considering the circumstances. Even though Yuru said he didn’t join the fight left and right because he believed in their power, you could tell Yuru wanted to make sure everything was okay with Danji. Yuru also wants to save the hostages, despite the lies the fake Asa has told him over the years.
After the dust settled, Asa did order the fake Asa to tell Yuru the truth. So, I’m looking forward to seeing that particular conversation. Yes, there’s a whole bunch of lies going on between them (for the so-called greater good), but at the end of the day, Danji, Fake Asa, and Yuru do still care about each other.
After the hostages are rescued and Asa accompanies Gonzo to confront Shingo, Yuru leaves to assist the Left and Right against Ivan. Danji and Dera also followed Yuru as support.
I have to say, I’m impressed that Ivan has lasted so long, both on the left and on the right. While the right wing tried to capture Ivan alive, the left wing began killing people. Yes, Ivan wields a powerful demon blade, but he’s still a human who wields them. I mean, I hope he dies, but I’m still impressed with his skills.
I really liked the moment when Ivan tried to piss off Yuru by lying about killing his parents. Ivan hoped that Yuru would lose his cool and rush in to attack, instead of shooting arrows at Ivan from a distance. Ivan’s emotional strategy almost worked if Yuru hadn’t remembered Asa’s confidence that his parents were still alive. The creative team once again showed Mine teaching Yuru to stay calm under pressure, rather than relying solely on dialogue.
In a 5-on-1 battle, Ivan is cornered and unable to escape, and decides to take it seriously. I’m not sure how his Demon Blade works, but from what I understand it might have something to do with Ivan sacrificing his life force to gain an insane boost in strength and speed. Both left and right are genuinely concerned about Ivan’s new form. I’m excited to see how their fight ends!
Did you watch it? Demons of the Shadow Realm Episodes 18 and 19 of the first season of the anime? What do you think of them?
Let us know.
author: Farid Haq
Farid holds a dual master’s degree in psychology and biotechnology and a master’s degree in molecular genetics. He is the author of several books, including Somerville Missing and Somerville Game Masters. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime, video games, and movies.
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