When I saw little Kiyui deathly ill, I was like “Darn it! I already have to worry about Riko and Reg. Now there’s a death flag on the toddler?”. But to be serious, there is something peculiar about how quickly Kiyui recovers the moment he’s brought to a nursery far away from the Abyss. I think that nurse was right on the money when she speculates the Curse of the Abyss has something to do with it. That’s certainly ominous if the Abyss’s effects are now seeping into the surface. I’m not sure if this mystery will be solved in time since there’s only one episode left in anime. Maybe, now is a good time to read the manga.
Anyway, in case no one realized it by now, Made in Abyss makes it really obvious in this episode that Nanachi’s help is invaluable. Even if the ED didn’t flat out spoil that Nanachi eventually joins the team, these past few episodes have made a very convincing cases Riko and Reg need her if they are to make it to the bottom of the Abyss. Within the same episode, Nanachi gives a more accurate description of the Curse to Reg and even helps him outsmart the Orbed Splitter (rematch of the century right there). Honestly, if Nanachi wasn’t afraid of getting captured by Cave Raiders, I’d expect her to make a business out of all the assistance she can provide.
I have to say, a lot of the information Nanachi reveals really reinforces how dangerous the Abyss is. I find the revelation that the Curse is actually this force field that traps you in and punishes you for trying to escape rather interesting. This place is so dangerous and yet it is seemingly designed to keep you trapped in there. Another detail that stood out to me is that the Orbed Splitter isn’t actually intelligent but rather it has the ability to predict the future and therefore can outsmart you unless you know exactly how to counter it. I don’t know, it feels so systematically; as if the Abyss’s wildlife are so keen on making sure you die. I’ve read discussions comparing the Abyss to a living organism and I’m starting to see it now. It’s like people are its food and it has many countermeasures to ensure that escape is not possible and death is guarantee.
Naturally, we need to get to a point where Nanachi is on board with accompanying Riko and Reg though the catch is quite a somber one: kill Mitty for her. I can’t really picture Reg killing Mitty but at the same time he really needs Nanachi’s help. That said, I do think Nanachi has wanted to kill Mitty for a while now. It just doesn’t seem like living as a Hollow (especially a warped on) is a happy existence. There was also a weird scene where Riko seemingly dreams seeing Mitty in pain (is Riko telepathic or something?). It would seem that Mitty also thinks she should die. I suppose Nanachi simply hasn’t committed the act of murder because Mitty is her friend and she can’t bring herself to do it. Thus, the matter rests entirely in Reg’s hands.
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