gallifreyians: Well I have to say this is embarrassing, I ended my review of episode ten as if this episode was going to be the finale of the show. Obviously I was wrong, and I would like to start off for making everyone think that Tsuritama was an eleven episode show when it is actually a twelve episode show. I would also like to apologize for saying that Ayumi died in the previous episode, because it was a premature conclusion for me to jump to.
For a penultimate episode to a one cour show, I actually find episode eleven to be fairly underwhelming. I think that in any show, but especially a show with a high-stakes plot like Tsuritama, the next-to-last episode needs to have a feeling of mounting tension and uncertainty. Honestly, based on the way the plot of Tsuritama is set up, this episode should have been either the pinnacle of the rising action so that the next episode can be the climax and resolution, or the climax itself with the following episode as a heartwarming resolution – the former of which I was certain was going to be the case.
As Natasha and I have previously noted in our reviews of episodes nine and ten, the show has recently been mounting a lot of tension and building a lot of suspense, episode ten especially with the apparent death of Ayumi. This episode, which was coming off of such suspense and high emotion, completely ditched everything that the previous episodes had. All I can hope for is that the finale can recapture that magic and tension of the show.
illegenes: Steven isn’t the only one who was embarassed; this was rather…..anticlimatic and so I can’t really bring much to say about it. I am glad that Tsuritama decided to surprise us all and have a run of 12 episodes instead of 11, because it did need that. There was no way this sort of battle would take only 1 episode to really finish and give time for a solid resolution. But I’m not sure how to feel about this episode- it does extend the climax to a higher threshold, but other than that….there’s nothing much to add here. Yuki, Natsuki, Haru and Akira’s friendship are put to the true test as they are forced to capture a fish none of them have ever seen before, in a certain amount of time before everyone starts performing the Enoshima Dance, and also before Duck sends off missiles. It’s quite a heavy burden to put on three young teenagers and an adult, but somehow, we just know they can manage to pull it off. Whereas the plot still rides rockily with the reveal of the bait and the meaning of the legend that was introduced in episode 1, I feel like the center of the episode- and the show- rides at the heart of how these boys trust one another. With Yuki and Natsuki being in charge of the fishing, and Haru being the sort of protector from the massive alien, and Akira controlling the boat, it seems like nothing could stop our heroes from fishing except a massive storm and the fact that this fish is incredibly powerful to catch. The episode ends with a climax with Haru being ready to sacrifice himself after Yuki’s brilliant idea of coloring the bait red goes wrong and the bait itself breaks. With no lure, and only little time left, luck is really running out and you really do have to wonder: how on earth is this show going to end?
I’m not the one to make predictions, especially for a whimsical show like Tsuritama, but I can say that despite the serious turns this show has been taking, at the end of the line, it’s still a happy and endearing show. As thus, I expect it to end on a good and warm note; the only concern I have is: how is it going to get there? We can only hope and wait to find out.
Isn't It Electrifying? 