God Eater

Episode 5

Never have I been so frustrated to learn that I'd have to wait two weeks for the next episode than I am with this installment of God Eater. This episode concludes in one cruel cliffhanger. This week crushes every shred of hope you might have been holding out for the characters' survival, leaving us only to wonder if and how we'll ever see them again.

The curtain opens on Lenka's continued anxiety over the civilians he saved only for them to be abandoned outside the walls at the mercy of the Aragami. A heavy rain begins falling as a backdrop to his distress and continues for the entire half hour, depriving us of the show's trademark gorgeous skyscapes. This is an afterthought though—with this episode's nail-biting tension and penchant for making characters suffer, I only just noticed how gloomy the visuals were.

Instead, I was focusing on the misadventure of Lenka and co.'s routine hunting trip gone south. The God Eaters have decided to hunt down some Vajras, which shouldn't be concerning. Even though a Vajra nearly killed Lenka in episode 2, the unwritten law of storytelling assures us that every subsequent Vajra fight should be easy. And they are, for a while. That's when the black Vajra appears. It's some sort of mutant, practically emanating arcane evil while medieval-sounding music plays at his entrance. I've previously stated that I don't find the Aragami to be compelling enemies because they “know not what they do”; they're just dumb animals. Not so with this black Vajra, which seems to grin with enjoyment as it splatters the blood of the innocent.

Be prepared to suffer alongside your favorite characters this episode. It's infuriating to watch the black Vajra always be one step ahead of Lenka. It's clear that he evolves greatly over the course of this episode, but his every overture seems to be crushed instantly. This week was an exercise in emotional stamina—who will break first, Lenka or the viewer? I'm guessing the viewer, since Lenka is wearing some fantastic plot armor in the form of his God Eater technology.

The kiss of death is the credit roll, white text on a simple black background, as empty as my hope for these characters. The soundtrack here seems to eulogize the show. I'm frustrated, but that's a good thing. This show has succeeded beyond my early hopes at engaging me in the characters' lives, which is why potentially dashing them off is such a low, effective blow. God Eater is great at creating a mood. I just wish the mood of the week hadn't been utter despair.

This episode went by at lightning speed, leaving me with nothing for the next two weeks but to rewatch the after-credits scene for more clues as to where the light at the end of the tunnel may lie. Good luck playing the games for relief, as the show doesn't seem to follow the game storyline at all. A show that toys with your emotions like this might qualify as a rage quit for some people, but I dare you not to be tempted to see how it all turns out.

Rating: A-

God Eater is currently streaming on Daisuki.

Lauren writes about anime and journalism at Otaku Journalist.