Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon Season 2

Episode 10

At first look, this episode seems to be little more than filler. The citizens of the overrun/devastated stratum have moved into the Clear Lake Stratum, and all known immediate threats have been handled. So, what do our heroes decide to do? Take part in a beauty pageant, of course.

In-universe, however, this silly diversion makes sense. All these people are trapped in a dungeon, with two-thirds of them having been forced out of their longtime homes. While some are adventurers, many others are simply what amounts to support staff—the human infrastructure to keep the adventurers fed, clothed, and battle-ready. They are civilians—ones who have had their lives completely uprooted.

With all that's going on, it's important to form a new, unified community rather than three separate ones. Thus, having a big, silly event where people can integrate isn't just smart, it's necessary. And when you look at it from that perspective, it becomes clear why Munami is so gung-ho about getting Lammis and Hulemy to participate.

Aside from the Origin Stratum's director (who joined at the last moment), none of the participants are from the abandoned strata. As that is the case, who are the Origin and Dark Forest refugees supposed to root for? They know none of these people. However, Lammis and Hulemy were heavily involved in saving all of their lives. They may not be from those floors, but they're certainly heroes to these people—and are thus easy to get behind.

The competition is actually a cleverly disguised bit of propaganda. All three communities like Lammis. They think she is cute, strong, and heroic. As a beauty pageant is basically a popularity contest, she's more or less the one guaranteed to win, and her win would be something all three towns could celebrate together. The only real threat to this is Shirley, because she's just that much of a bombshell. Of course, be it due to Munami's behind-the-scenes meddling or Shirley's understanding of the true point of the competition, she pulls out of the final round to give Lammis the easy win.

On the meta side of things, this episode is also important for what it does—i.e., reset the tension level to zero. This allows the final few episodes plenty of space to build up to the season's impending climax. It also gives the audience time to catch their breath, so to speak. You have to have low-stakes episodes like this one every once in a while.

All in all, this is a decent episode of this type—and honestly, one with more narrative depth to it than your average beach or hot springs episode. It even ends on a cliffhanger of sorts—one primed to let us learn more about Hevee and maybe even shed some light on the missing members of the Menagerie of Fools.

Rating:

Random Thoughts:

• I chuckled at the fact that the “fan service” outfits in this episode actually showed less skin than our heroines' normal outfits.

• I don't know if I'd equate Hulemy with a “sukeban” (1980s delinquent schoolgirl), but I won't pretend she doesn't pull the look off.

• I wonder about the power structure of the adventurers' guild now. As it stands, there are three guild masters on one floor, and while it's Director Bear's jurisdiction, does that mean he gets final say?

• The Sailor Moon parody was fantastic.

Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon Season 2 is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

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Disclosure: Kadokawa World Entertainment (KWE), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, is the majority owner of Anime News Network, LLC. One or more of the companies mentioned in this article are part of the Kadokawa Group of Companies.