Shoumetsu Toshi (AFTERLOST) Episode 3 Review: Memory

The third episode of AFTERLOST turned out more intriguing than the previous two. The story starts being more unambiguous and, finally, we get to understand more things. I was ready to consider this series a total failure, but now it’s finally going somewhere. The ’three-episodes rule’ seems to be true once again, and I find myself interested for what comes next! So, let me elaborate a little more and tell you what changed my mind.

Plot

Everything seems to have a bit of a flow. There is a start, a middle, and an end. The first minutes of this episode were promising, lived up to the expectations, and led to an auspicious finale. We also got to meet the famous J-Pop group which was mentioned throughout the whole series, the SUPREME 5. Unfortunately, their personalities appear to be a little bland, but at least they were introduced properly. Sadly, there is a lack of interesting characters, but at least we finally got a storyline! The structure of the series remains unclear, and the artwork is poor (though the colors are beautiful), but the soundtrack makes everything better and suits the anime well.

When the characters ended up in a time loop, taking place in the city of Lost, I was happily surprised. Finally, it was time for some answers. It may not been as suspenseful as it should, but it kept my interest alive and made me curious. The fact that the souls are trapped in loops based on their biggest regrets sounds alluring, and the ending was the cherry on the top of the cake. The -almost nuclear- explosion Yuki caused was a plot twist and makes her the number 1 suspect for the tragedy in Lost. Plus, did she just murdered thousands of people by accident? Did the scientists had a good reason to keep her imprisoned? Finally, AFTERLOST gives us something to wait for.

Episode Highlights

Amateur Murderer: Souma wanted to murder Takuya by twisting his HAND. Not his head, but his hand. Geez, wonder why he survived!

Yuki’s power: What is wrong with Yuki’s powers?! She’s extremely strong and if she learns how to control them, no one will stand a chance against her. Oh, except Takuya’s scooter.

Takuya’s insensitivity: So, Yumiko is alive but hurt, Kouta’s fate is unknown, and Takuya doesn’t even bother to send help? I’m sure that there would someone who could do something. But this person is not our courier boy; he is too fancy to care.

Comments

Eventually, I got to feel some chills from AFTERLOST. I am not convinced yet, since everything is still quite absurd, but surely I’m looking forward to the next episode. It seems that Yuki is the reason behind Lost, and it was very soon for this to be implied. I mean, the series just started, we basically know nothing about the characters or the story at all, and we get all those hints?! Anyways, we get the feeling that sooner or later everything is gonna make sense. Concerning the ending, it was actually good, thought I’m fed up of the ‘evil-sibling’ thing, so I’ll say that my favorite parts were the time loops. But, the final scene had a twist which managed to save the day and I’m sure many fans will keep watching the series because of the 3 last minutes. What I disliked in this episode was the fact that when the truth about the loop and the trapped souls was presented through a trivia way, not much attention was given to it.

About the characters, the most interesting ones appear to be Yumiko and Kouta. Plus, geeky guy really adds up to the series, with his everyday flaws, fears, sense of humor, and his weird addiction to cute singers, while almost everyone else seems inhuman and it is impossible to get attached to -until up to this point. But, in general the majority of the characters is quite boring and it feels like I’ve seen them again in a thousand other anime.

‘You don’t have to sacrifice yourself so much’

The execution of the story is getting better, and hopefully the plot will unfold more smoothly from now on. Maybe this rock turn into a gem, who knows? What do you think of the third episode of AFTERLOST?

Don’t forget to check the rest of our Spring 2019 reviews. AFTERLOST is also part of our weekly anime previews.