Dr. STONE SCIENCE FUTURE

Episode 4

If last week was a teaser, this episode is the first true introduction to our new villains of the season—and what they are capable of.

The story of Dr. Stone so far can be broken down into three parts. The first was science versus physical power. The second was science versus “magic” (as any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic). Now, with this new arc, we get science versus science. While you'd think that this would put Senku on a truly level playing field with his enemies for the first time, that's not quite what we get.

While Senku and Dr. X are portrayed as similar scientific geniuses, two points beyond intellect put Senku decidedly behind Dr. X. The first is a matter of resources. Senku was revived in a land with few rare natural resources needed for technological advancement. This left him at a disadvantage in terms of the kinds of things he could make—or, at the very least, how quickly he could make them. Meanwhile, Dr. X has all the resources of America—including an endless supply of corn, which is why Senku and the others cross the Pacific in the first place.

But it's not just raw materials that separate the two; people also count as resources in this case. While Senku has assembled quite a crew of physically gifted warriors, there's not a true soldier among them—well, except for Ukyo, who was a sonar man on a submarine. Meanwhile, Dr. X has a fully trained American soldier proficient in modern weapons. Heck, he can even fly an airplane.

The second issue facing Senku that makes the conflict unfavorable is a matter of ethics. Many of Senku's strongest supporters have opposed the advancement of weapon technology. Even their one gun was developed only in the most dire circumstances—and only one person is even slightly competent in shooting it.

Dr. X clearly doesn't share the same feelings as Senku and his companions. He has made everything from fully automatic machine guns to armored airplanes. And more than that, he's not afraid to strike first and attack people (who have not yet been identified as friend or foe) without warning.

But the biggest challenge facing our heroes isn't one of technology but rather information. At this point, all that Senku and the others know is that Dr. X has planes, guns, and corn. They know nothing of his plans or motives—they don't even know whether peace with him and his people is possible. This is why Senku sends Gen in the pursuit party. He has no doubt that Chrome and Kohaku can find the enemy base. However, he also knows that both are far too pure to carry out any kind of meaningful negotiation—much less an undercover infiltration mission.

What comes from this is a tense episode where Gen comes up against the closest thing to an evil version of Senku possible—a person who can be tricked but one who is always looking at all the angles. The two probe each other for information, trying to measure each other while pretending not to. However, this is far from the first time Gen has been a sheep surrounded by wolves to gather information for Senku. But whether or not he'll manage to escape this situation unscathed is still very much up in the air.

Rating:

Random Thoughts:

• What possible reason could Dr. X have to wear a glove with spikes on the fingers like that? They'd make precision work harder, not easier!

• Knowing that Dr. X will likely target the enemy scientist first, Gen chooses the most resilient of the expedition to fill that role. Of course, no matter what Gen says, it's pretty obvious the guy with E=MC² on his chest is almost certainly the scientist of the group.

• Surely Kohaku, with her incredible eyesight and history growing up in the stone world, is a better tracker than Gen, right?

• I'm kind of blown away by the fact that the airplane was made of metal rather than cloth and wood. This implies that Dr. X has a supply of aluminum and/or the ability to refine it. Having a lightweight, strong material on hand comes with countless advantages that Senku may not be ready for.

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Dr. Stone: Science Future is currently streaming on Crunchyroll on Thursdays.