Rooster Fighter

Episode 2

Keiji and I have something very important in common, and it is that I, too, will smash my face against a window if I see anyone eating a succulent piece of juicy, briny sea urchin. Oh, to feel that unctuous, silky bite of ocean—ahem, but I digress. We are here to talk about more important things, namely, the poultry pals serving as mankind's last bulwark against death and destruction.

May I complain about the first 25 seconds of this episode, though? Mostly, it's simply not long enough. The episode opens on a shot of Keiji sitting in a wooden bucket at sea, only to learn that he's watching over the catches of a trio of ama, female freedivers who harvest seafood (and oyster pearls) from the ocean floor. The gag that the production team went with here is the most straightforward one: the visual absurdity of a rooster floating in a bucket and then going ham on some sea urchin, but we're missing the piece of the puzzle about how Keiji can't swim. I assume they're saving this tidbit for later, but they could have easily milked this for more screentime. This is only relevant because the next fifteen minutes of this episode are… pretty boring, which is shocking considering we see not one, but two demon fights.

Perhaps your mileage may vary depending on how you feel about Piyoko, the new addition to the cast. She's a chick with attachment issues who's bullied by her coopmates for being a bit of a bootlicker who shamelessly adores their owner. Where they see a shady yakuza henchman whose main revenue stream seems to be illegally selling chicks by the side of the road, Piyoko sees a strong and stoic hero with a blazing sense of honor. She's so enamored with him that she even asks him to “tattoo” her back, which he obliges by scrawling “DUTY” on her feathers with a Sharpie.

Unfortunately, Piyoko is also deeply annoying in every regard. Her dialogue patterns are irritating, and her naivete doesn't ever cross the line into full-send humor. It's also possible my brain just shuts down when I hear a certain frequency of high-pitched squeak, which, in that case, I apologize to Piyoko and all animals with a sharp pip. But it also must be noted that this show is generally less fun when Keiji isn't on-screen. His presence is so commanding that his absence is deeply noted, and unfortunately, he is missing for much of the first half of the episode until the moment Piyoko's guardian morphs into a sinewy ogre. Sadly, Keiji is gone again before we even realize it, but in a transition scene that feels simultaneously too sudden but also impossibly long, we meet again when yet another demon spawns. This one takes a nearly fatal swipe at Keiji, which leaves our rooster hero to recuperate in an alleyway under the steadfast care of Piyoko, who must now brave predators and wriggling earthworms to keep him alive. It's sort of cute, but it's just a lot of Piyoko. If Keiji is a photo-realistic Ferrari of a chicken, Piyoko is a bit like a week-old balloon animal, rasping as the air is being let out. I'll note that Keiji doesn't like her either until the end, so maybe kudos should be given for taking us on this journey with him.

Again, your feelings towards this episode will likely hinge on your feelings towards this literal pipsqueak. If you find Piyoko funny or charming, you may very well love this long introduction to her. Unfortunately for me, she is my least favorite of the chicken chums, and I find her persona to be wearing. Everything about her is just slightly too much, and it makes for a long episode. She's the polar opposite of Keiji in every way, which is great for cast depth, but poison for this show's particular formula. The upside is that right at the end, we are introduced to the third of our squawk squad, the beautiful and cool Elizabeth, who provides a soothing antidote to Piyoko. I'm not sure if chickens are allowed to be sexy, but somehow this one is.

Credit where credit is due, the best part about this episode is actually in the small nuggets it drops about the demons. As we saw last week, demons appear to be created through seeds of insecurity, so for our downtrodden yakuza goon, it bubbles to the surface when others belittle him. This idea of our inner demons manifesting themselves as real-life monsters isn't exactly earth-shattering, but it does provide a little depth into what would otherwise be a stale concept. Interestingly, we also learn for the first time that these demons can revert as well, which apparently is new behavior to Keiji. Between this and the weirdly sexy lady chicken, I'm already looking forward to next week.

Rating:

Rooster Fighter is currently airing on Toonami and streaming on Disney+/Hulu.