Tokyo Ghoul: re - Episode 15 (Review)
By: EyeSpyeAlex
After last week’s intense episode I couldn’t wait for this week’s episode of Tokyo Ghoul: re. Need to catch up? Check out my previous review here!
The Story
Battle on Rushima continues, and there is action and bloodshed everywhere. Hachikawa is killed early on in the battle by the SS-Rated ghoul, Owl. The battle continues on the other side of the island, where Abara is fighting Kurona. Kurona plans on killing Abara to get back at Juzo, who killed Kuro’s sister, Nashiro. Just as it seems like Kuro will land a fatal blow, Juzo shows up and defeats Kuro.
Meanwhile, in one of the facilities on the island, Akira, Houji, and a squad of CCG agents face off against Tatara. As they prepare to battle Tatara suddenly transforms into his kakuja form. Then, in what is a completely surprising move, Takizawa betrays Tatara, killing him effortlessly. When the CCG agents recover from their shock, they decide to eliminate Takizawa for the threat he poses. In response, Takizawa advances on Mado and begins to strangle her. He is only stopped when Amon intervenes. Yep, Amon is back and has been transformed into a ghoul by Dr. Kanou.
Speaking of Dr. Kanou, Kuro, having fled the battle against Juzo, enters Kanou’s lab and asks him to revive Nashiro. When he tells her that is dead, Kuro loses it. In response, Kanou reveals another CCG agent he has transformed into a ghoul: Okahira, a former investigator. When Kuro kills Okahira, Kanou doubles down and releases a multitude of Okahira clones to defeat her. Just when it seems like Kuro will lose, Nishio shows up and apprehends Dr. Kanou.
While Nishio deals with Dr. Kanou, Takizawa fights and defeats Amon. He doesn’t have long to rest though, as the Quinx squad shows up to assist the other CCG operatives in killing Takizawa. Back outside the facility, Naki and the other White Suit ghouls find themselves surrounded by CCG agents. As the agents advance on the ghouls, Tsukiyama suddenly appears and offers to help.
The Review
I have spent a lot of time wondering when Tokyo Ghoul: re was going to address the Battle of Rushima. Having only seen a glimpse of it in the season premiere, I’ve been eagerly waiting to see how the battle pans out. My wish has been granted, but not in the way I had hoped. This season of Tokyo Ghoul: re has jumped around far too much for me to be able to focus on the content. It’s hard to feel satisfied when I had completely forgotten who was at the Battle of Rushima. It would have been helpful to have a forward before the episode reminding the audience of who is at the battle and why it is happening.
Not only is it totally uncool to jump into a plot point that has barely been addressed, but we have no resolution to Arima and Kaneki’s battle. I understand that there is a lot happening all at once in the show, but this is not the way to handle it. It would work out much better if each episode spent some time on both plot points. Or, devote an episode to each plot point and include a recap at the beginning of each, like Game of Thrones does. Anything would be better than what they’re doing now.
Still, there are some positive things that happen in this episode. We finally get to see Amon again. Given the mystery surrounding his death and funeral, I was wondering when they would introduce his character again. We are also treated to a flashback of Takizawa receiving ghoul transplant from the Dr. Kanou. There’s even some decent fight scenes in the episode, although the animation is a little too dark to enjoy them. I’m hoping that Tokyo Ghoul: re fixes these issues so fans can enjoy (and see) the upcoming episodes.