DORORO: Episode 22 FULL LENGTH Reaction!
Added 2025-04-05 13:00:03 +0000 UTC**DEAL-MAKING HEADPHONE WARNINGS**
I went into this episode feeling a huge sense of dread and SURPRISE! It was warranted! Dororo's been taken by Daigo's men and Hyakkimaru is DONE with it all! Meanwhile, Tahomaru and his two loyalists make a VERY huge decision...that there's no going back from....I can't believe we're in the final episodes of the series! *nervous chuckle*
LINK TO REACTION: https://share.vidyard.com/watch/mnorXwXxXcQpnqSvmh4hiK
Thank you for watching with me and for all the support!
Comments
I loved the team up of Midoro and Hyakkimaru - two scorned could-be-demonic presences! And yesss, the manifesting of that commentary from Episode 21! XD And ooohhhhhhh, NOW the headless fire horses make ALL THE SENSE - wow, what a foreshadowing moment in that! Yeah, I don’t mind the translation issues with Mutsu - I kept wanting to think they were biologically a woman because of the VA, but they never got around to it until this episode, so it was fine. It was at least good to see Tahomaru caring so much for Mutsu, and not totally drinking the Daigo drink at this point. XD Dororo somehow manages to be perfectly a child but also the smartest in the room at times! The boat except with the mother was wild - I really like that we got more with her character at this point. And honestly it just makes me more mad at Daigo with how sweet she is. That is a good point about her being targeted though as his wife. But yes, that scene about his birth was so sad! 🙁 Daigo getting the rub because now both his sons have sacrificed themselves or been sacrificed to demons - it’d be humorous if I wasn’t completely worried for Tahomaru and Hyakkimaru’s health and safety! Midoro as Rapidash is just hilarious to me, still. *Lucille Bluth voice* “Good for her.” The eye animation with Tahomaru is sooooo gross! Very effective. And yeah, “those are mine” and seeing they are different eyes. Ugh. All of the characters and themes ramming together to this climax has been really effective! Everyone is running around on fire and Daigo’s just sitting around like, “What up?” UGGGGH. Definitely drinking his own Kool Aid, I agree. I can’t believe that we’re so close to the end! Thank you for the comment and kind words!
Romaniablack
2025-04-16 14:39:19 +0000 UTCMidoro was definitely like "Ooh, he's also pissed at the same soldiers I am, guess we can team up!" 😅 Every time you mentioned Hyakkimaru riding into battle like a demon on a fiery horse in Episode 21 I kept thinking of Hyakkimaru doing just that this episode. Also I can now say that, as far as I know, back in Opening 1 this moment of Midoro on fire as a demonic horse is what those horses in that Opening were referring to. Such a spoiler about the second cour during the first half of the season! For Mutsu's "gender reveal" that is definitely down to an issue with the translation for the English subtitles, but I didn't want to say until this episode when the subtitles refer to her as a female. The issue with the subtitles is that Hyogo referred to them as "kyoudai" around when we first met them. This was translated to "brothers" in the English subtitles, and while the word can translate to 'brothers' it also translates to 'siblings' [gender neutral meaning, so can be brothers, sisters, or brother(s) and sister(s)]. It all comes down to context as to how it should get translated into English, and with the context that Mutsu is Hyogo's sister then it should have been "siblings". (Just to add further translation pains this term, kyoudai, can also be used to refer to in-laws, i.e. siblings-in-law/sister(s)-in-law/brother(s)-in-law.) The way Tahomaru gets angry at Mutsu putting herself at risk (and not the risk she was putting them in with the chance of Hyogo and Tahomaru getting ill too) shows he's still such a caring kid. The Daigo side of him has not taken complete control at this point 🥺 Dororo's way of rolling over and faking sleep at the approach of someone is perfectly animated and so realistic of a child that age 😆 Dororo and Hyakkimaru's Mum interacting just the two of them was not an interaction I thought we'd get but one I love nonetheless. And while their escape on the boat is terrifying it is pretty realistic. Hyakkimaru's mother is a noble lady who would have always had someone to steer/row a boat for her so it's down to Dororo to help move the boat. But Dororo's just a young child and wouldn't have the strength to steer the boat to safety. Dororo denying that Hyakkimaru's mother is Daigo's wife is such a sweet attempt to protect the woman 🥺 Like even after crashing in the river her clothes are too high quality and numerous in the number of layers for her to be anything but a noble lady. But the land of Daigo are at a time of war and so it's definitely one of the most unsafe times for Daigo's wife to be out amongst the people without any guards. If anyone were to seek vengeance on something Daigo/his men have done, his wife could be a very easy target in this moment. Also there could be Asakura spies that would definitely take advantage of such a situation. Seeing Hyakkimaru's birth from his mother's perspective definitely pulls at your heartstrings 🥺 Hard agree that there is definitely a point loyalty should take you to. Sacrificing your body to demons should definitely be the point a sane person questions if that's the right thing to do. Though I do love that it failed because Daigo sacrificed his heir, when all this time Tahomaru has been treated as Daigo's heir, but because his older brother still lives the title and land would automatically fall to Hyakkimaru instead. Midoro used [flamethrower]. It was very effective. 🤣 Honestly though there are not many characters I'd want to suffer such a painful death as burning alive, but that one soldier definitely deserved it considering he was the one that blew Midoro up. For all of the janky animations in previous episodes, Mappa really put their all into making the animation of that third eye opening up and rolling around in Tahomaru's forehead. The way it moves and the kind of squelching sound it makes is definitely one of the grosser moments of the show. I do love that Hyakkimaru's eyes given to Tahomaru are a different shade of brown to Tahomaru's own colour. Great way to highlight, on top of Hyakkimaru's scream "Those are mine!", that Tahomaru has Hyakkimaru's eyes he's wanted to get back in order to properly see Dororo and the world around him 😢 This episode definitely just ramps up your tension and worry for how the next two episodes will go 😬 So much of this entire story is about people trying to atone or finding justification that means they don't need to atone. I would say the Mum's atonement though isn't just for Hyakkimaru, and not being there for him no matter what. Although she was physically present in Tahomaru's life, judging by his remembrance of his youth, mentally she was continually thinking of the child she lost. Jukai though I agree is a perfect example of someone fully understanding the wrongs they committed and seeking to atone for it, but also knowing that no matter what they do it doesn't mean they'll be forgiven for their "sins". But yes, Daigo's lack in taking responsibility for his role (which is the biggest role) in how events have turned out is like a complete mirroring of Jukai's acceptance for the wrongs he's committed. Honestly with how adamant he is on placing the sole blame on Hyakkimaru, it always gave me the feeling that Daigo had been drinking his own Kool Aid. He fully immersed himself in the role of "saviour of the land" and truly seems to think of himself as the hero that his people declare him to be. A title accorded to him under false pretext because they think he defeated all the demons of the land. Honestly crazy to think next week is the penultimate episode!
Anime Annie
2025-04-06 17:08:23 +0000 UTC
