Yona of the Dawn

Episode 8

Sorry, Su-won fans – this is another episode of Yona of the Dawn that lacks our beautiful, conflicted antagonist. Luckily it makes up for that by giving us a better idea of who it is that Yona and Hak will be taking along with them on their journey: Yun, the self-professed handsome genius. Last week's episode ended with Ik-su asking Yona to take Yun with her, and this time she makes sure Yun finds out about his guardian's wish, although I can't quite decide if she knew that Yun was following her when she went to talk to the priest; she may just have wanted Ik-su to talk to him. In any event, this makes Yun about as happy as you'd think – not very. Cue the flashback to his childhood in a ruined Fire Tribe village, his scholarly ambitions, and his meeting with an Ik-su clearly recently banned from the Capital.

It's actually very interesting backstory that still leaves plenty of room for Yun to develop as a character. He's clearly the only person in his desolate village, but we don't know why. War? Famine? Disease? It's hard to tell, but the withering crops in the field would seem to rule out the middle option, since someone was clearly farming as long as possible. Yun's loneliness is evident not just in the boy's actions and inner monologue – his surroundings radiate desolation and it's pretty obvious that people avoid walking through his town. He's a bright kid with a real flair for learning and a hunger for knowledge, facts which help to drive home the fact that this is someone starving for human contact. Ik-su's appearance basically saves him, not so much in terms of “from starvation,” but more in his basic humanity and personality. That Ik-su is very attached to his new protégé is also abundantly clear, and one does have to wonder how much of his ineptitude he faked in order to foster Yun's education. (In everything except hair cutting, that is; clearly Ik-su's long bangs are sacrosanct.) His decision to send Yun with Yona and Hak has everything to do with what's best for Yun, making this a very bittersweet story.

Unfortunately it is also a side story that doesn't do much to further Yona's plot, which is why I only gave it a B+. Perhaps the rest of the show will prove me wrong when Yun's past becomes indispensable to Yona in her journey, but right now it feels like it's holding us up when there's a throne to be taken back. We do see Yona continue to be more understanding of those around her and learn that, along with everything else he can do, Hak can also catch a ton of fish, but on the whole this episode just feels a little less important than some of the others.

On the plus side, it really does do some very interesting things with the color palette. There's a distinct contrast between Yun's past and the show's present, with the former giving a sooty, smoky impression. Even Yun and Ik-su's hair seems dulled by the oppressive atmosphere of Yun's home village, with only Ik-su's eyes standing out when we glimpse them. In the present everything is bright and crisp, with Yona's hair only marginally brighter than the blue of the sky and the green of the trees. It works well to show the symbolism of hope that Yona represents, and that Yun's future may be brighter by going with her.

In any event, next week looks like it might introduce us to one of the dragons and that Yona is going to hone some of her new skills again. That's one of the great things about this show: each episode feels satisfying, but the preview always makes you wish that we didn't have to wait a week for more.

Rating: B+

Yona of the Dawn is currently streaming on Crunchyroll and Funimation.com.

Rebecca Silverman specializes in children's literature and folklore and writes manga reviews for ANN.