Episode 4 is easily the best episode in this series by far. Because from the one-sided skirmish between Valghian army and Atland’s search party to the first look into the proud Kingdom of Atland, there are simply so many things to see in this episode.
However, the most notable thing about episode 4 is the fact that it ended with a cliffhanger.Ririha was captured by the Valghian forces, so Kaina decided to rescue her together with Ririha’s brother. It seems that the story is finally ready to enter its main conflict, so the hype for every new episode will be higher than the last. Let’s see whether episode 5 can deliver the same amount of excitement as the previous episode.
Related:Winter 2023 Preview: Kaina of the Great Snow Sea
Rescue Mission
This episode can be roughly divided into two parts, all center around the fact that Ririha is now captured by the Valghian. As expected, the Valghian use Ririha as a bargaining chip to forcethe King of Atland (Ririha’s father)to agree to surrender their resource, especially their water reserve, to the Valghian. Much to their surprise, the King turns out to be a ruthless man who will never succumb to the demand of an invader, even if it may cost him the life of his daughter. So the king sent an envoy to the Valghian and declared war instead, which infuriated the Valghian commander, and saddened Ririha.
Meanwhile, Kaina andYaona (Ririha’s brother)are currently traveling beneath the snow sea in their attempt to save Ririha. As Kaina suspected, the roots of the great tree are actually connected to each other underneath the snow sea. So they only need to use Kaina’s breathing apparatus and walk on top of the giant roots in order to reach Ririha’s location undetected. Unfortunately for them, they arrive just a tad too late.
Exploration + Infiltration 2.0
Episode 5 is an extension of episode 4, but better. The story still follows the same overall direction, but the thrill and excitement level is way higher than the previous episode. Ririha’s precarious situation, the ruthless mind of the King of Atland and the commander of Valghian, the mind-blowing underwater journey of Kaina and Yaona, we are constantly at the edge of our seat because of the things presented in this episode.
Speaking of Kaina, it’s easy to think that he will find it hard to adapt to an environment and way of life that is entirely foreign to him. It’s not even an exaggeration to say that he will be a dead weight to his new comrades. After all, Kaina was pretty much useless when the Valghian army charged at them with murderous intentback in episode 3.
However, this episode proves that that is not the case at all. Kaina is a specialist who thrives in certain fields. That field ishunting and exploration, which is pretty much what he is doing in this episode. Thanks to his extensive knowledge on those subjects, Kaina manages to track Ririha’s whereabouts and make use of the roots of the great tree, the snow sea, and creatures that live inside it, to his advantage. We certainly can’t wait to see what else he will do in the subsequent episodes.
A Chance For A Little World Building
Episode 5 is already busy with thrills and drama from start to finish. But that doesn’t stop the show runners toflex their world-building muscleonce again. Because this time around, we get to see the strange yet mesmerizing view of the world under the surface of the great snow sea.
Looking at some of the beautiful shots in this episode, the viewers will inevitably be reminded of the view at the canopy of the orbital tree, which is best described as both captivating and terrifying at the same time. The sight of the sunlight reflecting on the surface of the translucent canopy that seems to cover the entire planet is simply enthralling. However, the sheer vastness of it all would send a chill down your spine.
As above, so below. Because those statements are also true for the world hidden within the snow sea. Kaina opens up a whole new world just by traveling from one orbital tree to the next. And knowing the fact that Kaina is a skilled explorer with boundless knowledge about the great tree, who also happens to be bold enough to go where no man has gone before, it’s safe to assume that we may seeKaina truly exploring these wonderful placesin one of the future episodes of this series.
Conclusion
Episode 5 is without a doubt one of the best episodes of this series thus far. It manages to use the great foundation that was laid out in episode 4, and build an even more thrilling and exciting story on top of it. Not to mention we also get to seethe amazing world underneath the surface of the snow seaas well. Hopefully the next episode can be better, or at least as good as this episode.
