RobiHachi Episode 6 Review: Qu-eel-le Surprise

Robi and Hachi are continuing their space holiday, this time at planet 29: Hamama, the planet of EEL.

Plot

As they are flying in space, heading towards Eel-land, we find out that in their time, humanity has basically been eating all the eel on Earth, so Hachi doesn’t know what real eel tastes, having tried only eel-flavored condiments. They land at Hamama that seems to be inhabited by some really buff tanned guys and a generous number of oxes. As the massive naked men run around with these massive cows, an enormous eel pops out of the sea and starts gobbling the cows down. Turns out they are using the cows to bait the massive eels, then capture them and do a live filleting for the crowds to enjoy. Let’s just take a moment to appreciate that the governor of the planet has an eel-shaped mustache.

While they’re blabbering about tradition and other things I can possibly not relate to on an intergalactic level, a tiny female local shows up (her appearance is inappropriate for so many reasons I’ll avoid describing them altogether) and commends their bravery for participating in the massive eel festival. I am cringing. Robi even takes the time to explain to her that she’s not old enough to be worth of any attention, to which she replies crying that her father was eaten by an eel last year?! WHAT THE HELL AM I WATCHING. She convinces them to hire her as their guide by making them pity her for being an orphan. In the meantime, Mr Yang’s spaceship is approaching Hamama.

Robi and Hachi are enjoying ridiculous amounts of grilled eel. Needless to say, it’s not cheap. The little girl (Unami) is trying to convince them to participate on an eel-touching contest, and even though Ikku seems extremely keen, they reject the offer. Mr Yang and his minions are walking around naked having eel bones and liver. The whole setup is extremely homoerotic. It looks like a luxury gay cruise. Speaking of luxury, I still don’t understand where the guys find the money to be on holiday in the other side of the galaxy for so long. They even check in at the planet’s fanciest hotel. Meanwhile, Mr Yang had so much eel, he seems like he’s about to have a stroke. Needless to say he walks around naked screaming Robi’s name, I mean, do I even need to say anything else? Naturally, he checks in at the same hotel. As they keep eating tons of fish, Robi FINALLY notices that there are no women on the island. Note to self: also, eels do look very phallic, so something is telling me there is more than meets the eye here. They go to some dance show, but it’s basically men in skirts dancing. Robi is fed up so he goes to bed, but Hachi decides to look around some more and tries the electric eel hot springs. Sigh.

In the middle of the night, as Robi is fast asleep, Hachi hears some growling sounds outside his room. It is Mr Yang, who has finally lost his shit after eating too much. He somehow senses Robi’s presence and is about to barge in, but one of his veins pops and he changes back to his regular mediocre self. Hachi witnesses the whole thing in terror but completely misunderstands what happened, and, thinking he saw a ghost, he goes back to bed, crying.

THe next day, Mr Yang find Robi riding an enormous eel at the eel rodeo. He hunts his about screaming things like ‘butt’ and ‘ass’ (in Japanese). It is very, very embarrassing. They both win, Robi gets the money, and after tipping Unami, he finds out that a. Her dad is not dead, and b. She is also, a male. Everyone in Hamama is a male. And so they leave.

Themes & Trivia

Unami: His name is probably a reference to ‘umami’, the Japanese term for ‘savory taste’. It is basically one of the five basic tastes (sweetness, sourness, bitterness, and saltiness). It has been described as savory and is characteristic of broths and cooked meats, but also, cheese, mushrooms, green tea, nuts, potatoes, tomatoes, seafood, and other things that give my life meaning. I’m hungry.

Are eels endangered? Yep. Yes, they are. Especially in Japan, it is recommended that consumers avoid eating eel due to significant pressures on worldwide freshwater eel populations. All eel species have seen their population sizes greatly reduced in the past half century. The Japanese Ministry of the Environment has officially added Japanese eel to the ‘endangered’ category of the country’s Red List of animals ranging from ‘threatened’ to ‘extinct’.

All I got was more hunger.

I am not sold on this show but would genuinely eat a whole giant eel right now.

How did you find this RobiHachi episode? Let us know in the comment section! And don’t forget to check the rest of the Spring 2019 anime reviews on MANGA.TOKYO!