On balance, I’d say that was the most cohesive episode of Tokyo Revengers for a good while.  Easing back on the pacing helped a lot, and there were none of the stock head-scratcher moments (though some interesting questions were raised).  In short it was a good one, and though not technically the cour finale it certainly played out like a transition episode between arcs.  This would usually be the point where adaptations end these days, just at the start of the actual story and signing off with a “read the manga” message in all but name.  But fortunately Tokyo Revengers is a major hit, so that’s not anything we need to worry about here.

The seeds for that next arc were clearly planted when Honma warned Mikey that Toman would never know peace again thanks to “Valhalla”, the new gang he says he’s the first vice-commander of.  Of Valhalla we don’t learn much here, though it seems likely that Kisaki (who up to this point has been the dark matter of Tokyo Revengers) is involved in some capacity.  Now that we know Takemitchy succeeded in changing the future, it begs the question of whether Valhalla (a name we hadn’t heard before) would have risen to prominence anyway, or whether this was Takemitchy and Naoto robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Doraken does survive – which I’m rather glad of for the simple practical reason that I find him the most engaging member of the cast.  But it’s touch and go, to the point where he actually goes into cardiac arrest on the ambulance.  I was surprised they didn’t use a defibrillator on him, but somehow or another he manages to not be brain dead by the time they get to the hospital and the classic anime “surgery in progress” scene plays out.

Mikey puts on a brave front, but we see him at his most vulnerable yet (as does Takemitchy – for his own sake I’m glad he didn’t say anything) as he weeps over the possible loss of Doraken.  He’s also figured out something weird is up with Takemitchy, but given that the latter has just saved his best friend, he doesn’t push the matter too far.  My takeaway from this is that if Mikey figured it out. it’s not a stretch to imagine other people doing so too – or even Mikey mentioning his suspicions to someone he trusts but actually shouldn’t.

Takemitchy really should have immediately headed back to the future, given that his body would effectively be in stasis.  Plus, you’d think his curiosity over whether he’d accomplished what he set out to would be pretty strong.  But for a guy who’s lived a lifetime of failures, I guess it’s understandable that he’d want to bask in his success for a few days.  Plus going back means saying goodbye to Hina – and even if he’s saved her, the Hina he returns to will be a very different person.  And the hard truth of it is they’d very likely have broken up by that point.

It seems as if when Takemichi actually changes the future, he returns to a different point than when he left – as in, he’s at his job instead of at Naoto’s apartment (how depressing is it that he still has the same job?).  Akkun appears to be alive, Naoto’s call suggests Hina is too, and Takemichi’s hand bears a scar,.  The part here that I’m struggling with is why Naoto still remembers everything from the original timeline, when Takemichi was the only one actually travelling in time.  Maybe we’ll get an explanation for that or maybe it’s just because of reasons, but it’s the nail that sticks up where this scenario is concerned.