Annnnnnnd there goes my favorite character. God, I hate this show. Ugh, OK, not really. But you better believe I’m more bitter than a 90% cocoa chocolate bar! The only sweetness balancing this out is the incredible shift in character from Tiger we had the blessing of witnessing.
Ah, I need a minute to cool off. Writing a post immediately after watching the episode is certainly showing its negative sides.
It was the backstory I had been waiting for, and it was well worth the wait. The past encounter previously thought to be a grudge turns out to be the exact opposite. Who knew Ox would be a master psychologist? Within a day of her meeting him, his convictions and words of wisdom completely turned Tiger’s life around. They were so adorable together too! More like parent-child than anything else, but that just adds to the feeling of acknowledgment that Tiger desired from him. Recognition as a warrior and a woman.
If there ever was an embodiment of the difference between being simple and being a simpleton, it’d be Ox. His way of not mincing words, saying exactly how he felt, and his steadfastness in his own beliefs even impressed me and I’ve been known to be pretty stubborn. The simplicity of his words only makes them more powerful. You can end up on the wrong path by doing nothing, and one day you’ll wonder, ‘how the hell did I get here?’ but the path of doing what’s right is something you have to choose to do. There’s literally a lifetime of excuses not to, and that’s fine, as long as you’re aware that you’re choosing not to do it. Once you have it figured out, all you have to do is do it. Ha. I’m gonna go on the road with this stuff; become a motivational anime speaker.
Oh, now I’m thinking about Tiger again…
She turned her life around for him. Realized she had to start facing reality and that the alcohol could only do so much to cover the suffering she was going through. 
To the show’s credit, this was probably the most peaceful passing of a character so far. To reuse the analogy of a chocolate bar, this episode’s potent bittersweet feeling leaves me in a precarious position between sweetness and sadness. And the blend is done so well! Surely if not now, she would’ve died in a much more horrendous way. The fact that she will not turn into a zombie is, in and of itself, a very promising step up from the other contestants. It’s nice to know the creator has some heart left. I mean, not turning a maiden in love into a walking corpse doesn’t really require all that much heart, but hey, that’s all I’m asking for at this point in the game.
When she decided not to tell Ox that they met before I gasped. Completely reflexively. I’ve never really understood the decision to withhold that type of knowledge. If I have information like that, I’m always excited to tell it to the other person as soon as possible. If you know what the thought process is behind that, I’d love to hear it because I really don’t understand it.
This show yet again managed to make a normally well-received concept turn out poorly. It’s not that uncommon for someone with a change of heart to suddenly perish, usually as an atonement of sorts for their past, but Tiger was on the path of righteousness. Her decision to save Ox only solidified that she was indeed choosing to do what she believes in, until the very end. Much like other good themes in the show though, these bouts of positivity are mercilessly nipped in the bud.
Do I have to talk about something other than Tiger this post? Fine. Uh, let’s see, let’s see. Rabbit has been pretty much confirmed to have turned himself into a corpse. We’ll have to see if that’s a one-time thing or if that’s going to become a bigger problem later on. The only other thing that is really worth mentioning is that Rat has been entirely absent from the show for several episodes now.
Where he is and what he’s doing are a complete mystery to me. At this point, I can only assume he’s actually the mastermind pulling the strings. Everything is under his control, even the people betting on the war, and he’ll just become ruler of the world. No, actually, that’s not his style. He’d fade into obscurity before anything else.
This does mean Ox is in the center stage now. After having his duel cut short and being forced to mercy kill the woman who saved him for the first time in his life, one can only hope he exacts rightful justice on that damn stripper-suit wearing rabbit.