Chaos Dragon

Episodes 6-7

"Ibuki, it seems you've taken a liking to Gakusho, despite having only gotten to know her recently."

If you listen closely, you can hear the sound of hundreds of palms meeting hundreds of foreheads at this painfully true observation from Ka Grava at the top of episode 6. Boy, if this show had characterization problems before, they're nothing compared to the avalanche of stillborn drama that comes rolling out of these climactic episodes.

Yes, we are at the climax already, or at least the very beginning of the climax. Even though it seems like the party has just gotten together, it's already time for them to start pulling apart, as they reach the fated Ogani Volcano, and various circumstances drive them to pursue their different fates. This is not one even full episode after the volcano was introduced as The Big Showdown Location. It feels like the first act of this story ended and jumped directly to the top of the third act with no fanfare or catharsis for the journey not-taken. One minute we're elephant-riding through the desert making quiet character observations about the journey ahead, and the next minute we're at a zombie-infested volcano, where the entire party recoils in horror at the undead ranks of not only Eykha's old friends, but all their brand-new Kouran allies. It seems like the sort of emotional payoff you would save for the eleventh hour, after we've gotten to know the party better, given Gakusho more screentime, and elaborated on Eykha's relationship with her fallen rebellion comrades. But that's not how Chaos Dragon rolls! Next quest marker, let's go, chop chop!

And yet, this big pacing hiccup wouldn't even crack a top ten list of the problems causing this story to crumble right now. So let's return to that scene between Ibuki and Gakusho I mentioned earlier. Things aren't going so well for the lady general, now that she's devolved into a moaning, undead version of her former self. Since the only way to save her is to blow her brains out before she can transfer the virus to others (yes, these monsters are just literal Romero zombies), Ibuki comes to a morbid conclusion. He decides to sacrifice the undead Gakusho to the Red Dragon and redirect its hellfire onto "whoever killed her." Not "whoever zombified her," since we can blame the undead rebellion army and/or the Red Dragon himself for that. No, Ibuki is willing to further tarnish his soul in exchange for an act of wanton violence against an unknown party (we know it's Lou), just because a former enemy general died. What?! Gakusho was at best a frenemy to Ibuki. The show is wildly overestimating the friendship between these two, so much so that even Ka Grava has to point it out. Gakusho treated Ibuki kinda nicely once, after almost executing him or worse. That was their relationship. Things get even more bizarre when this entire potential conflict is thrown out the window by a Nil Kamui rebellion soldier killing Gakusho humanely before Ibuki can complete the contract to take her life for revenge. Not only does it negate the point of even setting up this battle with Lou, but Ibuki gets comically upset at the soldier for doing the right thing and sparing them all further bloodshed. Who is this completely different version of Ibuki they shipped in for this pointless scene?!

Let's remind ourselves of who Ibuki has been as a character up to this point. Ibuki has been so traumatized by the dragon's cursed power that he doesn't trust his own comrades not to abuse him as a weapon on a daily basis (and rightfully so!) Ibuki is so obsessed with peace that he has repeatedly sacrificed the welfare and wishes of his own people to avoid further conflict with foreign oppressors time and time again. Heck, he does this not ten minutes later in this very episode, when he refuses to let that aforementioned Nil Kamui rebel sacrifice himself for revenge against a Kouran general. Despite all this characterization to the contrary, and without any pre-established "seductive hypnotic power of chaos" excuse or even outside coercion from manipulative party members, Ibuki just decides to whip out the dragon's power in a pointless exercise of petty revenge that has no emotional impact on the audience whatsoever. Then he gets angry when a Nil Kamui guerilla, who hates Kouran and has every right to, does the infinitely more humane thing by putting Gakusho out of her misery. Wow. I haven't seen character writing quite this bad and alienating in a very long time.

Please do not make Ibuki king. With a temper and moral compass that unpredictable, along with jaw-dropping insensitivity toward his own people, I think it's safe to say that he's about the worst person for the job. Heck, even Lou might be a better ruler. At least everyone would be united in her sword's soul-sucking belly.

But that's enough about Ibuki. Mostly these episodes are about Sweallow, as his true motivation for joining the expedition is both introduced and destroyed inside of episode 7. Earlier episodes have established that Sweallow's ennui comes from his central skill: the ability to use any tool to its maximum potential at the cost of that tool's "life." I thought this Edward Scissorhands sort of cheese would have a tragic past lurking behind it, but I was not expecting this. Sweallow's sepia-toned backstory turns out to be the most middle-school-poetry-slam version of events you can imagine based on his forever-alone-tiny-violin superskill. We are treated to scenes of baby Sweallow sitting on his four-poster bed in a regal D'Natia mansion with his hands locked in stocks, as a flurry of maids gasp in horror when every spoon he uses to eat his gruel explodes into pieces. His family, once the upper crust of D'Natia wealth, falls into ruin because I guess Sweallow broke too many spoons, and they're eventually seen moving out of the mansion in disgrace, while little Sweallow, still in stocks, continues to sit in his room even after the roof has rotted away. The rest of the mansion is fine. So he just sits in this rotting room, open to the elements, for years after his parents have abandoned him, but he's still considered the prince-duke-earl of whatever, and not just some orphan.

I have so many questions, Chaos Dragon. So many.

If Sweallow's tool-breaking power was this ruinous, why didn't they get rid of him earlier? They're filthy rich, so they have the resources to fake his death and abandon him. They clearly don't love him enough not to abandon him anyway! So why only put him in ineffectual stocks (that he chooses not to touch and break for some reason) and leave him behind in their fancy mansion, without disowning him? His parents moved out forever, but continued to relegate him enough authority to mail-order a servant a few years later? Why would Sweallow stay there, even as his gruel reserves run dry? He willingly stayed in this one room of the mansion, even when the integrity of the structure had been compromised beyond providing him basic shelter? How did he keep his pet parakeet fed if he kept those stocks on all the time? I DON'T UNDERSTAND.

Yes, Sweallow has a pet parakeet that he chooses not to touch just in case his "tool-breaking" power affects people too (it doesn't, by the way) but then a cat breaks in and eats it oh the irony! There's more "things can die even when my cursed scissorhands don't touch them" melodrama in store after the introduction of his maidservant, but it doesn't matter. The damage has already been done. Sweallow's backstory is a threadbare joke, with just enough details included to make it ridiculous, but not enough to make it comprehensible. The point of all that fooforah is simple: Sweallow eventually makes a contract with the Black Dragon to lift his tool-breaking curse, in exchange for the death of the Red Dragon. Seeing the zombie carnage around him and realizing that it's all his fault (somehow...?), Sweallow decides to play his trump card right then and there, dropping the ultimate onyx artifact of D'Natia's power into the volcano, killing all the zombies instantly, and releasing his contract seal with the Black Dragon. (This also allows him to take out the giant undead golem that Lou has been trying and failing to kill for two episodes straight, but we'll get back to that in a minute.)

So, Sweallow's motivation for joining the expedition is now crystal-clear, but he still isn't sympathetic. As usual, Chaos Dragon has done just enough legwork to explain itself, but not remotely enough to make the audience feel anything about it. Ultimately, it gets rid of the D'Natia McGuffin, all the zombies, and Sweallow's dream of dispelling his curse, but that's about it. (Unless the deal just hinges on the Red Dragon's death, regardless of if Sweallow kills him or not? You wouldn't think so. If the Black Dragon can't take over through Sweallow's deposition of his rival, what's in it for him? I'm pretty sure the deal is off.) They still never explain why Sweallow thought this was the perfect time and place to give up on his lifelong goals. Sympathy for Ibuki? Guilt for misleading him? That doesn't make much sense to me, but with no other information, all I can do is assume that's what they were going for. (Oh sure, there's tons more backstory detailing how great Sweallow is, but it's written in oatmeal-flavored Nasu-prose, so it just slid off my brain onto the floor.) Anyway, Lou's sword is very impressed by Sweallow's self-sacrificial show of power, leading him to wonder aloud what it would be like if Sweallow was his master. (You would be incredibly strong for a few seconds and then you would explode, Lou-sword.) This causes Lou to panic for the first time since we've met her, and her jealousy rages all the stronger after losing her arm in battle to the golem that Sweallow dispatched in one blow. This could get ugly. Hell hath no fury like a Boochi scorned.

It's a shame, because I was really enjoying this show more as of the last few episodes, but I guess all good things must come to an end. The Ogani Volcano battle is poorly-animated, incompetently paced, overflowing with out-of-character interactions, and completely ineffectual on an emotional or thematic level. Pacing means nothing anymore. There is no emotional investment allowed here. Only critical rolls. I guess these episodes moved the plot forward, but it's just another checkmark on the quest log, as the group pulls one of the Red Dragon's living claw-tips out of the giant golem's corpse. Was this what he wanted them to see? I guess we'll find out eventually.

The episode's cliffhanger is seemingly unrelated, however. The group receives word that Ibuki's younger sister Inori has appeared, and she's about to be appointed queen by the populace! Was this little sister ever introduced prior to this moment? Well, for the life of me, I can't remember! And I watched the first episode multiple times! That's not a good sign. I'm pretty sure she's never been introduced before though, so that's even worse. Fine, whatever, make her queen! She's probably possessed by the Red Dragon or something, but she's bound to be a better despot than Ibuki. Chaos Dragon has slipped right back into "so bad it's hilarious" territory, but at least I remain entertained week-to-week. Despite its giant laundry list of problems, I'm still excited to see how this story will stumble forward next time.

Rating: C-

Chaos Dragon is currently streaming on Funimation.

Hope has been an anime fan since childhood, and likes to chat about cartoons, pop culture, and visual novel dev on Twitter.