91 Days Episode 2 [ The Family ]

This is probably the perfect gangster anime. If you have ever seen Baccano it definitely carried the gangster attitude, given that many characters in that show don’t really die it doesn’t have the same levity of 91 Days. 91 Days continues its run by introducing the conflict between three ‘families’ – the Orco family, the Vanetti family, and the Galassia family. The Orco family is the family that produced the antagonistic fellow last episode and the Vanetti’s are the family we’re focused on: but the Galassia’s are the big name family in the story and they manipulate both the Vanettis and the Orcos. This is important already as we see one of the Vanettis marrying one of the Galassias and the anger it causes one of the more important members of the family, Vanno Clemente.

The music really sets the pace of this episode in more ways than one: TK from Ling Tosite Sigure (the singer who performed Tokyo Ghoul’s opening) sings the opening song for 91 Days and while the visuals in it seem like they might be from episode themselves, they still manage to stay stark. I have to take points off whenever the animation in an opening is low, but how can I not give it points with such a haunting song as its’ opening? The opening rather fits this episode in some ways but, well, gives the implication that Angelo will be showing doubt and mercy towards his family’s murderers.

Make no mistake, this episode shows just what kind of person Angelo has become in all of his haunted nightmares. It’s rather refreshing to see the opening express symptoms of PTSD that we might not otherwise see, because Angelo is otherwise rather cold. He is still roping his friend into his personal revenge in order to make himself important, and I feel bad for his friend due to this. The episode comes to the point where they go behind Nero’s Father’s back and decide to kill the person they were dealing with last episode. What do they do? They hire Angelo to do it, while Corteo watches in horror that this is happening to his life. While I am rooting for Angelo (Avilio, rather) I feel bad for his friend who will probably die a horrible death at this rate.

The episode ends yet again with the guy escaping near death, but Vanno finds that the man’s bodyguard is actually a man who killed his youngest recruit in the beginning of the episode. He takes him to his subordinates grave to bury him and shoots him dead, but not before we finally see Angelo revealing to Corteo what the letter said: Vanno was one of the people who murdered his family. So in this type of anime what would you expect? That Angelo reveals this so he can explain how he’s going to bide his time, get into the family, and kill them all? Why no, you see that would leave us doubt that he might be able to carry out his plan! Instead Angelo shoots Vanno, who then asks him who he is. He reveals who he is and then shoots the astonished Vanno in the head.

Well, hey, he got to the point! If anything the abrupt nature of this makes me wonder: how he is going to lie about this to the Vanettis(well, the ending more or less solved it but is it REALLY legit?) and who his mystery writer is. I have a feeling it might be the head of the Orcos or something because it seems almost too good to be true. That being said, I believe you Angelo. Plz stop. People don’t have to die. Okay people have to die but not the entire cast! Stop Angelo, this isn’t a mob an. . . nevermind, next week we continue to watch people die because Angelo fucking means this shit.

Oki