The Herald Anime Club Meeting 11: Drifters, Episode 11

Meeting Date: 12/22/2016

Disclaimer: The Herald Anime Club discusses shows as they’re airing. Naturally, there will be spoilers for a given episode. You have been warned!

Mike Ferreira: Good evening everyone, and welcome to the Herald Anime Club. I’m Mike Ferreira, and I’m joined by L.B. Bryant and Anthony Simpson.
L.B. Bryant: Hello!
Anthony Simpson: Evening.
Mike Ferreira: Tonight, we’ll be discussing Drifters Episode 11 – “The Adventure of the Pistol Daimyō ~Bullet Counting Song~”, aka “It’s almost time for the final battle!”
L.B. Bryant: Actually, I don’t think we’re going to get a “final” battle. We’re going to get a climatic battle but I suspect this series will end on a cliffhanger.
Mike Ferreira: Likewise. I’m using “Final” in the sense that this is just gonna end.
L.B. Bryant: Gotcha.
Anthony Simpson: I’m hoping they give us at least a good ending.

Mike Ferreira: I hope they at least stick the landing and give us a satisfying conclusion of sorts. The series is ongoing in Japan and it’s been super slow to progress, so…
L.B. Bryant: My spidey sense is telling me that it’s going to be a frustrating open ending but I also suspect this series will get a second season.
Mike Ferreira: I’d do awful things for a second season.
Mike Ferreira: Not gonna lie
Anthony Simpson: I will happy dance if we get a second season.
L.B. Bryant: At this point, I think I can honestly say that I doubt I would watch a second season of this series. My interest in the happenings of this show has waned quite badly over the course of the second half.
Anthony Simpson: That said, I don’t know if there is enough manga content to do a proper second season.
Mike Ferreira: Yeah… they’re on track to have one chapter left after the finale if we’re going by titles.
Mike Ferreira: Which is a shame – there’s a lot on the table now.
Mike Ferreira: The Ends manipulating nobles
Mike Ferreira: The encroaching enemies
Mike Ferreira: The conquest of Orte territory
Mike Ferreira: Those amazing shirtless warriors

Anthony Simpson: So either we would get a completely anime original second season that ends being different from what would end up being done with the manga when it gets to those parts or they could go the route of Tokyo Ghoul Root A and have the manga-ka end writing the second season.
Mike Ferreira: I’d be okay with Kouta Hirano writing the second season
Anthony Simpson: Speaking of the shirtless warriors, I wasn’t completely crazy about the homophobia. I could have done with out that.
Mike Ferreira: The homophobia bothers me. I’m finding it pretty unsettling to hear Nobunaga calling gay people “Twinkies” every five seconds.
Mike Ferreira: I know he’s from a different era, but Christ. Could they make it more blatant that he didn’t care for gay folks?
Anthony Simpson: I can get people from the past not being fine with homosexuality given the time period they are from, but that was least favorite part of the episode.
Mike Ferreira: Likewise.
Anthony Simpson: Speaking of Nobunaga, I was glad to see him call Olminu by her name this episode the whole time.
Mike Ferreira: Indeed. That stood out – like, she’s earning his respect as a capable person on the battlefield now.
Mike Ferreira: And to be honest, she had a hell of a job – coordinating between all the units.

Anthony Simpson: I think he tends to use the nicknames is less serious moments.
Mike Ferreira: Yeah. He knows when to joke around – which kind of hits that theme of humanity.
Mike Ferreira: Speaking of… Saint Germi’s been around a LONG time.
Anthony Simpson: Yes he has been.
Mike Ferreira: And he looks about the same… it’s an interesting thing to note – the Drifters will be around for a while after this is over.
Anthony Simpson: Same as the real Count of St Germain claimed to have done.
Mike Ferreira: Yeah. He claimed to be immortal, having found the Elixir of Life
Anthony Simpson: Speaking of St. Germi, I enjoyed his speech he gave stating the empire was over.
Mike Ferreira: Likewise. Saint-Germi’s getting some great lines in these later episodes. Very chilling, very freaking sly.

Anthony Simpson: I was curious to what he meant that Orte was an experimental empire.
Mike Ferreira: Likewise.
Mike Ferreira: There’s a lot that could imply, really.
Anthony Simpson: Other than we know of Hilter founding it.
Anthony Simpson: My guess it was a “human first” empire.
Mike Ferreira: Well, yeah.
Mike Ferreira: That’s a good guess, actually
Mike Ferreira: I’d also probably expand a bit to say “ethnically stratified” empire
Mike Ferreira: Human first, but also different specific uses for each race
Anthony Simpson: The reason I believe that is we see how demi-humans are treated and we all know how the Nazi treated the Jews, the Gypsies, those who were gay.
Mike Ferreira: It makes sense.
Anthony Simpson: So, to me, it makes sense that he try again here in this world to do the same thing as he did in the real world.
Mike Ferreira: Makes sense. I mean… he did try the Beer Hall Putsch again, so…
Anthony Simpson: And he was successful this time.
Mike Ferreira: Yeah… which laid the groundwork for the Fourth Reich.

Anthony Simpson: That does interest me as to what kind of government Orte was before Hitler arrived, or what it would have been called it wasn’t Orte.
Mike Ferreira: I’m curious, myself. They didn’t really elaborate on that.
Anthony Simpson: There is a lot I am wishing they would elaborate on.
Mike Ferreira: Likewise
Mike Ferreira: But that’s the mark of a good title – it paints the picture of a far bigger world to explore.
Mike Ferreira: And it invites the viewer to look further.
Anthony Simpson: Speaking of which, Orte is a real life place. It’s a town in Italy.
Mike Ferreira: Hunh. That’s very interesting.
Anthony Simpson: One thing I will say I’m disappointed in is that we didn’t get to see more of the other Drifters in recent episodes.
Mike Ferreira: That bugs me – they all just dropped off the planet.
Anthony Simpson: Its dragging down my overall final grade of the show.
Mike Ferreira: It’s a shame – they were all such huge personalities.
Mike Ferreira: Like… Naoshi Kanno was just amazing.
Anthony Simpson: I wanted to see more of Scipio and Naoshi [Kanno].
Mike Ferreira: He fought freaking DRAGONS with his plane. That’s badass.
Anthony Simpson: That is badass.
Anthony Simpson: I think we could have seen more of the characters if the show was 24 episodes instead of 12.
Mike Ferreira: Indeed. It felt like they were rushing near the end.
Mike Ferreira: It’s a shame.
Anthony Simpson: I don’t know if this is simply a case of having 12 episodes, or if it with the source material.
Mike Ferreira: Why not both?
Anthony Simpson: Not having read the source material I don’t make a case that it is the source material.
Anthony Simpson: It could be both, but I don’t want to make statements and not be able to back it up.

Mike Ferreira: My guess is it’s a combination of the two – they blazed through five collected volumes. 59 chapters
Mike Ferreira: But we also got a fairly complete picture of what happened across all 59 chapters
Anthony Simpson: True.
Mike Ferreira: If they do go with “To be continued…” I fear we’ll be waiting a hell of a long time for a new season.
L.B. Bryant: Agreed.
Anthony Simpson: I really don’t read manga anymore so I’m probably not going to be tracking down the manga to read.
Anthony Simpson: If we do get a second season.
Mike Ferreira: I’m in the same boat
Anthony Simpson: I would be fine it they did a few OVAs to finish the story..Like do a few hour long OVA’s and wrap things up.
Mike Ferreira: That’d be perfectly fine, too… so long as we can actually watch them
Mike Ferreira: And don’t have to do the “yo ho yo ho” route
Mike Ferreira: Hrm… with the finale coming next week, though, what are you hoping to see?
Anthony Simpson: A damn good final battle and at least a good ending.A good ending the sense that the story at least stops somewhere good.
L.B. Bryant: I’m honestly not sure what I’m hoping to see.
Mike Ferreira: I’m hoping we get a satisfying battle, and at least some mild closure. Like “Yeah, we won now onward to the next challenge”
Mike Ferreira: Anyway, that’s all the time we have for this week. Thanks as always for joining the fun! Have a great night, everybody!
Anthony Simpson: Night, everyone.