Rooster Fighter

Episode 9

Imagine my burning jealousy at the reunion between Elizabeth and her human. Not only can they speak to each other fluently (what, you don't speak Chickenese either?), but she actually gives him cuddles! The only times my chickens have given me anything remotely resembling cuddles is when you manage to grab them and they, like all prey animals, just resign themselves to their fates and give up. And even then, you can never let your guard down because there is always a non-zero chance they'll decide your eyeball looks like an interesting snack. The Rooster Fighter gang would (probably) never peck your eyes out unless you deserved it. They're good eggs.

They're so good that they're willing to risk their lives to return Morio's favor of self-sacrifice to save him from being mind-warged by these new Devil bad guys. Luckily, we also learn along the way, by way of a polite octopus demon, that there is a way to un-control the Demons. Apparently, the Devils have found a way to insert a parasite into the brains of each Demon. It leaves their minds and hearts intact, but makes their bodies vulnerable to control. The downside of this arrangement is that it also makes it difficult to save Morio—if Keiji even thinks of unleashing his kokekoko, he'd end up destroying his friend.

I've spun my wheels on this in the past, but I've mentioned that I can never fully tell how seriously Rooster Fighter wants viewers to take it, or how seriously it takes itself. Because while it usually trumpets themes like Sacrifice and Heart and Friendship in a way that is still within its brief of shonen satire, it often veers into an earnestness that gives me pause. I did show this episode to someone who hasn't been watching this season, though, and they giggled up until the shocking end, so I do think my instincts are correct. But maybe it's also the newcomer's shock at seeing literal chickens. It's funny how the more you watch this show, the more you accept the basic premise. It's still good to have a second opinion, because I worry that a lifetime of watching anime has jaded me to certain things.

That said, none of the anime I've consumed in my life fully prepared me for how gross the last act of this episode was. And I've even seen all the science-fiction classics like The Fantastic Voyage and that episode of The Magic School Bus where Ms. Frizzle shrinks the bus and takes everyone inside of a human body. I think the difference is that at no point did someone say, “I'm going to go inside this opening that looks like a butthole,” and spend the next five minutes forcing themselves into increasingly tight and squelchy vasculature while being doused in mystery bodily fluids and retching about the smell. It's like someone squeezing a blackhead in reverse, except even more visceral and disgusting. I'm a little nauseous just thinking about it, and I apologize for infecting everyone with these mental images.

Piyoko is the only one small enough to make this journey, so away she goes, into the fleshy abyss. The enemy is, of course, far beyond her childish capabilities, but your heart has to melt a little at her attempt to defeat a deadly enemy with a lone carpentry nail. The scene almost doesn't work because it's so visually silly, but it pays off when you're least expecting it. The action crescendos so suddenly that when the tension snaps, you can't help but gasp out loud. I don't want to say anything more, but it's a whopper of a cliffhanger, brought only to a standstill by an incredibly ill-timed Hulu car commercial.

This episode definitely has its ups and downs, and probably dwells too much on a few scenes, but overall it's pretty solid. Truthfully, the whole Devil storyline feels a little slapped together, but it does serve its purpose as a catalyst for Piyoko's character transformation. That alone makes the whole conflict worth it. That and the weird butthole portal.

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