You Only Kawaii Twice – ‘Release The Spyce’ Episode 11 Review

What’s the show? Release The Spyce, Episode 11.

So how’s this episode? I thought I’d be disappointed with this episode’s reveal. I mean I kinda guessed it was coming so maybe I was prepared for it but even so the whole “oh no she’s dead/no wait she’s fine” reveal didn’t feel as obnoxious as it could have. But yeah, Yuki isn’t dead, she was just faking it in order to survive the ambush. Maybe I’m okay with this reveal because Momo is my favourite character and i didn’t want to see her sad at the death of her mentor.

Uh-huh… what?

“I thought you were dead”, “Nope!” #simpsonsreference

Well it kind of negates any potential drama, doesn’t it? The previous episode was and is still a satisfying, action packed and tense episode of anime. Besides, Yuki is a more than capable spy so it’s not like it comes out of nowhere that she managed to find a way to survive the attack.

Fair enough. So what about the other one who “died” in the previous episode? That’d be Hatsume and she’s still missing in action as of this episode. As too are Katrina, the owner of the curry shop that’s used as Tsukikage’s front and aggressive ex-Moryo member Byakko.

Yeah… seems less and less likely that Mei is legit traitor at this point.

And what do you think of their fate? I honestly couldn’t say, like as much as this show has a dark streak from time to time I don’t know that they’d go as far as to kill off all 3 of these other characters but at the same time if all of them managed to make it out of this alive that’d probably be a harder pill to swallow.

So what exactly happens in this episode? Well after Momo, Fu and Goe escape from Moryo’s evil clutches, they emotionally regroup and decide to stop Moryo from initiating their plan to use brainwashing gas to enslave the city. And the infiltration sequence is action packed and filled with character, I especially liked Goe facing off against Theresia, Goe resolutely defeats her but still offers an olive branch of friendship like her mentor would. Only Tendo has other ideas about her ~switching sides~ and slices her Theresia’s wrist open as she’s lying defeated on the floor. Seems like we will be adding Theresia to the list of the “not sure if dead” too!

As stubborn as she is I do hope she’s okay… I mean, no! We have to kill off *someone*.

And does Tsukikage (or what’s left of ‘em) stop Moryo’s plan? In classic James Bond style there’s a countdown to the gas being dispersed, except it’s not being dispersed from Kyuten Science’s headquarters like they assumed but rather a massive lotus flower shaped dispersal device that emerges from a warehouse near the docks. Yuki’s who’s been coordinating their efforts from a support role (due to recovering from her injuries) tells them to withdraw from Kyuten Science just as the countdown’s about to hit zero. End credits!

Ah, another cliffhanger, huh? Yep, but it’s well earned. That is to say I don’t think they could have wrapped this up sooner, this is a definite two-parter and it’s made me eager to see the finale, not just for how they’re going to stop this crazy plan from unfolding but also who’s actually live and who’s dead!

So overall thoughts on the episode? Given that this episode played with our expectations towards the fate of Yuki you could be forgiven for being annoyed. I wasn’t though, for reasons mentioned above but also because it was another solid, action-packed and generally exciting adventure that left me wanting more (in a good way), and that’s about all I could have asked for. Let’s just hope the finale next week doesn’t disappoint!