The three-episode season finale for Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead aired on Monday giving fans the best Christmas present possible. Despite the long wait for its return, Zom 100 still managed to end a season chock-full of scheduling and production delays on the highest note possible with a new season possibly on the horizon.
A Perfect Send-Off
At times, it felt like I was more concerned with when a new episode would air than the episode itself. Constantly checking the website and official accounts to see any news on when the final three episodes would be released became a daily habit. But despite the delays, Zom 100 managed to give us one of the best new anime of 2023 after a perfect send-off of a finale.
The final three episodes being released on the same day made out to be a perfect situation. Everything flowed well with one another and I think waiting three whole weeks for each episode to be released and having the season end in 2024 would’ve derailed what was already a questionable production even more.
Episode 10 was a perfect setup to begin what would eventually lead to the climax of the season. It was full of heart-touching moments and realistic downtime that people would more than likely find themselves if they were in a fenced-in countryside village with a bunch of strangers coming together to help one another. Reminiscing over lost loved ones and having heart-to-heart talks with family members in rare moments of peace during a zombie apocalypse are two things the Zom 100 finale covered extremely well with this episode in particular.
It can be argued that some of the new girls introduced at the start of episode 10 had no emotional weight given we didn’t know them or their pasts beforehand. But it was a nice down moment for Akira to listen to other strangers and their stories that, in the end, just aids his character development. And I think that was the essence of episode 10 in its entirety. Shizuka showed off her love for medicine. Kencho made a lonely little girl laugh. Akira had some one-on-one time that he desperately wanted with his dad. And Beatrix…well, Beatrix just continues to be excited about seeing more of Japan and its people and we love her for that too.
Episode 11
Episode 11 is where the rising action ahead of the climax really begins to take off. The fight between Higurashi’s group and the village ended up being the most threatening moment to Akira and the group’s life up until this point. Having a bucket list compete against a bucket list is a one-of-a-kind perspective on something such as the zombie apocalypse genre in any kind of entertainment medium and that’s why Zom 100 itself is such a unique series and enjoyable series.
It goes without saying that different people with different backgrounds will take a different course of action during a time like they’re experiencing in Zom 100. But what I found humorous is how each of the main characters had a proper and rational rebuttal to everyone’s outlandish beliefs regarding freedom in Higurashi’s group. The great Stan Lee once said that the strongest character in comics is the one the author wants to win and it felt sort of similar here. There was never a moment where Shizuka, Kencho, or Beatrix was wrong in any way and each of them overcame their fights after being pushed to the edge as if what they believe in is what helped them survive.
What I also loved about this episode is how animated Shizuka was. For someone more reserved the entire season, seeing her cry tears of happiness and even have comedic moments really gave a nice pathway to her character progression. At the start of the season, she wanted nothing to do with anyone but herself and always take the most logical route possible every day. Yet, in this one, she sacrificed herself to free the elderly people in the village—something she absolutely wouldn’t have done when we first met her.
Defeating everyone and leaving Higurashi versus Akira for the final episode was a perfect tone-setter and would’ve had me begging in front of my TV for the final episode. So as I said, releasing all of these episodes at the same time was a perfect decision by the production staff.
Episode 12
Episode 12 was the cream of the crop. It was undoubtedly the best episode from both a writing standpoint and an animation production one as well. The directing and storyboard work in this episode by Jun Shinohara was marvelous and only made Higurashi’s downfall that much more impactful. Unlike the others, having Higurashi have a tie to Akira in the past made everything emotional backed by a wonderful performance by voice actor Nobuhiko Okamoto (Bakugo – My Hero Academia).
I’m not necessarily saying it’s easy to feel sorry or have much sympathy for Higurashi but looking at him through Akira’s eyes for a brief moment in the middle of the episode hits a little different. Akira claiming he could’ve easily been just like Higurashi but the path he chose is simply that—a choice. Akira proved once again to be the better path. A little detail I loved is that Higurashi’s list left off at #38 while Akira crossed #38 off of his list by the end of the episode and then added more with everyone else pitching in. The care that was taken in this episode on every level was extremely noticeable and is what gave the Zom 100 season finale a perfect send-off until (hopefully) a new season is announced.
But, of course, what’s Zom 100 without a little humor? The end of this season made it seem like there was going to be a dramatic build-up to the death of Akira’s dad for a while and at one point it was extremely believable. So if you’re an anime-only fan who truly thought he was going to die, I couldn’t blame you. Akira’s mom describing his “growth” almost like he has a tumor only to have Akira cry over him after learning how much he truly cares about just to learn that he has hemorrhoids was comedic genius. I couldn’t see Zom 100 ending such a serious arc any other way. However, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get emotional when Akira’s father said how proud he was of him.
Also read:
Interview: Zeno Robinson Talks Zom 100, Voice Acting and More
Zom 100 Season Finale Wrap-Up
Zom 100 finally got its finale and it was well worth the unfortunate wait. One could say receiving all three final episodes in one was a Christmas miracle. That being said, Zom 100 couldn’t have ended on a better note than with this arc. The production was great. The voice acting was stellar as always. And the end of episode 12 left us to be hyped for the group’s next journey.
Episode 10 rating: 8/10
Episode 11 rating: 8/10
Episode 12 rating: 10/10
Make sure to vote for Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead in our Anime of the Fall 2023 Season poll and the rest of the categories the series is up for!
© Haro Aso, Kotaro Takata, Shogakukan / Zom100 Project
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