Big Order

Episode 8

Big Order continues its losing streak this week, and it's becoming more and more apparent that the series' capacity to be enjoyable, even ironically, is long gone. Big Order's two brightest spots were episodes 3 and 6, only because the latter managed to land in "So Bad Its Good" territory. Those two episodes also have one other thing in common: they're more or less completely removed from the larger plot. They both provide one-off slices of action and comedy, and in dropping most of the show's baggage, they wind up being genuinely entertaining. Being so close to the end, Big Order can no longer afford the luxury of standalone storytelling. Now, as it barrels toward the finish line, the show is putting all of its focus on The Plot, forcing all of its worst qualities front and center.

At this point, the grand story of Big Order is essentially nonsense. Twists and turns are thrown at the audience with such wanton abandon, it's almost impossible to figure out why anyone is doing anything. This week, we find out that Gennai isn't actually Sena's father, but an impostor, though Sena herself questions the validity of her own memories. Since it's also revealed that Gennai can alter people's thoughts and feelings, there's no real way to know what to believe. In a superior show, this would produce suspense, tension, and a sense of dramatic urgency. In Big Order, it just comes across as trite showboating, using flashy faux-drama to disguise the fact that the story has no direction whatsoever.

Even individual scenes are tone-deaf enough to make you scratch your head. The opening scene of Rin and Sena scheming and bonding over lunch begins as a simple conversation, detailing how Sena plans to work her meeting with Gennai in her older brother's favor. The conversation then stops dead in its tracks for a comedy bit about how delicious the hotel food is. Then the scene whiplashes again, so Sena can have another one of her "Eiji Is All I Have" moments, before dovetailing right back into more comedy. It's a small-scale example of Big Order's biggest issue: the show has no idea what it wants to be. Is it a comedy? A science-fiction drama? A harem comedy/romance/tragedy? Big Order wants to be everything, when it is barely capable of being one thing, and the results are not good.

Eiji himself does get something to do this time, which is a step up from the last episode, but his mission to rescue Sena from Gennai's clutches predictably ends in failure. His foolhardy assault on the castle does result in the one funny moment of the week though, which saves it from being an F-worthy snooze-fest like last week. His slow-motion leap towards Sena, complete with the exaggerated screaming of each other's names, was already pretty funny in and of itself. When Eiji's arm and leg are unceremoniously sliced off, it became ironic comedy gold. I get the feeling the show was going for something edgy and shocking, pulling off a move Attack on Titan might make, so I doubt laughter is what the scene was going for. Nevertheless, I appreciated the chuckle, though it wasn't enough to make up for everything else that didn't work in the episode.

This brings me to the ending. Big Order is no stranger to creepy sexual politics, but I was distraught to discover the Worst Person medal being awarded to Iyo this week. It's a real shame, since she's the closest thing this show had to a likable character. Given the campfire shenanigans from episode 6, her affection for Eiji has already proven to be worrisome, but her naivety and cheery disposition has managed to keep her relatively likable. So watching her straddle a handcuffed Eiji and demand that they "make their baby" was a little too much for me. The scene cuts away before any clear-cut assault can be confirmed, but the implications are clear, and no amount of naivety or cheerfulness can keep that from being pretty much the worst move.

There are only a couple of episodes left in Big Order's run, and to be honest, I don't see how the show can salvage itself at this point. Over eight episodes, it has proven to be all sound and fury signifying nothing, the kind of unmitigated mess that even Future Diary didn't devolve into. I will grant the series its right to surprise us in its final stretch, but I wouldn't get my hopes up.

Rating: D-

Big Order is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

James is an English teacher who has loved anime his entire life, and he spends way too much time on Twitter.