Drifters

Episode 5

I won't lie, I had about a dozen scatological puns at the ready to kick off this review. “What a crappy episode!” “This is the episode where the crap hits the fan!” Et cetera, et cetera. In the end though, I decided it might be best to spare you all from my terrible puns and dive right into an episode that digs in deep to expose the grit and grime of warfare. While the wacky asides are still doing more harm than good to the tension and impact of the storytelling, I was surprised at how compelling the episode's many digressions into excrement-based tactics were, and the battle scenes remained as bloody and visceral as ever. In general, I was happy to see the writing attempt to highlight some of the interesting thematic ideas that Drifters seems to be playing around with. Drifters will never be Shakespeare, but it's always good to see the storytelling at least dip its toe into the waters of thematic ideas.

In particular, I'm really enjoying the way the show characterizes the Drifters is an interesting twist on the “Warriors Taken Out of Their Time Period” trope. While there is a fair amount of glorifying the raw, unfettered masculine strength of these fighters from a bygone era, this episode puts an emphasis on how alien and unnerving these people must seem to both the Elves and Octobrists. Olminu herself takes note of this when Oda and Shimazu show her the saltpeter mound they've constructed using feces, urine, and the rotting corpses of their enemies. What sets these warriors apart isn't their strength, their access to technology, or any supernatural powers. The Drifters are so remarkable because of their ruthless, almost obscene approach to slaughter. Oda, Yoichi, and Shimazu carved their names into Japan's history through sheer force of will, using the blood of their enemies as ink. What they lack in material strength, they make up for with a thirst for warfare that borders on the spiritual.

Contrast this to the Ends, who do have manpower and supernatural abilities to aid them. Their bloodlust stems not from innate passion for warfare, but through vengeance that is fueled by their own personal suffering and betrayals. They are the Drifters' diametric opposites, defined by their emotions and the personal stakes that drive their conquest. Of the three Drifters, only Shimazu has shown any kind of guttural reaction to the horrors the Elves have faced, going so far as to abandon any sort of chivalric code the minute he encounters the wanton rape that the captured Elven women have been suffering. The others seem to be motivated purely by their own interests, fighting because it's the only thing they've ever known how to do. I don't know where all this characterization might be headed, but it is interesting all the same.

The episode only had two real missteps, one of which being the aforementioned rape of the elven women. While the scene could have been much more exploitative than it actually was, it still felt a little tacky. Personally, I'm usually on the side of avoiding using sexual assault as a plot device; there are exceptions that handle the subject matter appropriately, but all too often it seems to appear simply for shock value, a means to motivate anger and vengeance in both the characters and the audience. It didn't ruin the episode by any means, but it was still a sour note to end on.

The other misstep is the humor. Once again, though the jokes were fewer this week, they intruded upon the action at the most inopportune times. Moments of Olminu reflecting on the Drifters' character or Shimazu preparing the Elves for battle are needlessly undercut by gags that are neither funny nor particularly relevant. Obviously, your mileage may vary when it comes to things as subjective as humor, but it's the one thing about this show that never ceases to bum me out.

Overall, this was a good episode. The action was engaging, gritty, and affecting in its unfiltered approach to the more disgusting aspects of ancient warfare, and the character beats were mostly spot on. It's too late to hope that the show will tone down its unnecessary jokes, but that's a flaw I can live with. Drifters has been a fun ride so far, and I'm excited to see what next week has in store.

Rating: B

Drifters is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

James is an English teacher who has loved anime his entire life, and he spends way too much time on Twitter and his blog.