Scarlet Nexus episode 4 is now airing. This time around, an all-out brawl starts between the members of the OSF! And soon after, the status quo of New Himuka is shaken up! Let’s look into what happened this time around in this spoiler-filled discussion!
The episode starts with a massive battle between members of the OSF. Gemma and Seto face off in a heated duel. Nagi, who is acting very weirdly, uses his powers against Yuito and Kasane. Violent gusts of wind attack his friends, as he speaks lightly of “exterminating”. Naomi also happens to see mysterious red strings emerge from Nagi.
This leads to Seto protecting Kasane and Yuito from Nagi. However, Nagi is relentless in his attacks. He summons a vortex spear and hurls it at Seto while launching curved blades at his friends. Seto, overwhelmed by the attack, puts his life on the line for his comrades and is impaled by the curved blades. Using the last of his energy, Seto launches himself at Nagi and shocks him, seemingly freeing him from his condition.
Before the battle between the Guardians ends, a black hole suddenly appears above all of them. Various members of the OSF are sucked into it. Gemma, now realizing the error of his ways, desperately tries to cling onto Seto’s body, as it too gets sucked into the void.
It appears as though both Yuito and Kasane get sucked in. As they fall, Yuito notices that the black hole is made up of red strings. In fact, red strings seem to envelop the entire area they find themselves in. Yuito then sees a vision of what appears to be Yakumo Sumeragi, his ancestor and founder of New Himuka. What he’s doing in the vision is unclear amid the vision’s blurred lines.
Kasane and Yuito are separated by the red strings. As Kasane softly utters that she’d seen this in a dream before, Yuito wakes up in the arms of his teammates in the Seto Platoon. He’s back on the battlefield, with the black hole visible in the distance.
New Himuka’s network seems to shut down, with people around the city losing connection on their devices. As the Guardians recover, answers are demanded from Gemma, who appeared to have instigated the battle, causing Seto’s death. He explains that there’s something out there called “rehabilitation”. Though he does not know what it is exactly, he knows that it’s a tool the government uses to “fix” anyone who gets in their way. He suggests that Nagi undergoes rehabilitation himself, based on how he acted.
In his desire to discover the truth, Gemma was blinded by Karen Travers’ lies. He apologizes to the team. And while the team remains unsure about Karen’s true intentions, they know that there’s something they aren’t seeing yet.
Elsewhere, the rest of Seto Platoon along with Kasane regroup. They find themselves in a forest rife with purple, thick-rooted trees. In the distance, they see a figure. The figure sits on a pile of rubble, donning what appears to be a Japanese straw hat, with a sword sheathed on his back. The figure appears to be a man, who then ominously tells Kasane to hurry up.
This episode has followed the trend that Scarlet Nexus has set so far. The show continues to push the mysterious narrative, woven over the course of four episodes. It is quite exciting following the twists and turns the show has led viewers down so far.
Audiences are treated to the first real “death” of the series in Seto’s demise. This aspect of the episode was handled quite well, seeing a likable character die for a noble cause. It did hit the right emotional tone and effectively raised the stakes of the show overall.
However, the show is getting to a point where answers need to be provided for the questions being asked. It certainly seems like the show is taking on a huge responsibility by keeping almost everything shrouded in mystery. As Scarlet Nexus approaches its halfway point, there still isn’t any guarantee that these mysteries will pay off. So far, it seems like every episode just adds more elements to the secrets in this world.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s all really fun so far. The story is far from predictable, and it’s difficult to see what comes next. It’s just a little concerning seeing just how many questions the show has to answer. Overall though, the episode builds on the good stuff from its predecessors and highlights the stronger aspects of Scarlet Nexus’ story.
Scarlet Nexus is streaming on Funimation and on the Ani-One Asia Official YouTube channel! Its fifth episode will be released on July 29th!
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