Train to the End of the World – Episode 08

Episode Synopsis:

The Apogee continues through a few more brief but harrowing stops before arriving in a town that has been transformed into the setting of a popular Alice in Wonderland-themed anime, but with a twist – the villains have won and eliminated the heroes! The girls try to restore order, but every ridiculous step seems to make things worse until they begin to grasp the rules of their current realm. Eventually they uncover information that could change the entire nature of their mission and what they can expect to find in Ikebukuro.

Review:

There is so damn much going on in this episode, but I kind of love it for fully committing to the dark absurdity of the show’s premise. To begin, the girls pass through two more seemingly abandoned stations – the first of which gives me an excuse to refer you to this very specific scene from Invader Zim.

The second station is far more unsettling, apparently dredging up everyone’s deepest regrets and traumas. Each memory flashes by in mere moments, so it’s easy to miss how troubling some of them (particularly Akira’s) are.

Eventually, the train pulls into a third station, which supposedly transformed into the setting from a widely-watched anime called Alice in Nerima Land, but after the protagonists defeated the villain and lived happily ever after. Turns out, the villains managed to break out of their imprisonment and eliminate most of the heroes.

The girls manage to find the one surviving hero and attempt to revive the others, but everything goes disastrously wrong at every turn. The citizens are on the verge of giving up, but Nadeshiko is able to inspire them enough to reinvigorate the rebellion. Thanks to Akira’s understanding of shogi (long story) and the other girls’ talents for violence, they’re able to turn the tables and become the heroes that the town needs, but not without learning some disturbing news. Not-particularly-surprising potential spoilers ahead:

Well that certainly puts a new wrinkle into this journey. Is the reunion going to become more of a rescue mission, or a confrontation?

Throughout recent episodes, Shizuku has been thinking back to more and more moments in her friendship with Yoka, wondering what she could have done differently and slipping deeper into regret. The theme of this episode is moving past that regret and focusing on what can be done in the present, which I suppose is meant to galvanize Shizuku. While I appreciate the sentiment being expressed, it doesn’t really feel like this has held her back in any meaningful way. Shizuku has still been able to thwart tiny military battalions and fend of zombie hordes – she’s not exactly wallowing in her pain.

That said, the girls’ ability to bounce back after so many ridiculous setbacks in one episode and manage to absolutely trash their opposition is satisfying to watch. The off-the-walls anti-logic and snappy line delivery lines up perfectly with the Alice in Wonderland pastiche, and leads to brilliant moments like this:

Summary:

This episode probably is probably the densest in terms of absurdities-per-minute so far. The message is a little muddled by the rapid-fire gags, but that approach means that even if one joke doesn’t land, the next comes along so quickly that you can look past the duds. It’s wacky as all hell, and entertaining enough to keep the momentum going while setting up a new dynamic for our heroes. We’ll see how well they follow through in the back third of the season!

---