Killing Bites

Episode 12

The Destroyal ended last episode, but there's still some clean-up duty to be done, involving much more than just the end of the fighting and dealing with the Chameleon Brutes. Destroyals are meant to be pivotal decision-making events, and the stakes are nothing less than a cataclysmic shift in control of business. So the series wraps with a bevy of big plot twists – some reasonably anticipated, but at least one that definitely wasn't.

One more standard turn involves quickly dealing with the Chameleon Brutes as they try to take out all the downed combatants. Hitomi still has some fight in her, but it isn't enough. So who saves the day? Announcer Girl! We know from Shidoh's flashback that she can be quite handy in a fight, and the Chameleons quickly prove to be no match for her. Another expected moment involves a changing of the guard at the top. Killing Bites has always been a fairly ruthless series, so it comes as little surprise that the older zaibatsu masters would be killed off to get them out of the way for Shidoh's planned reforms. It helps that he has an ally in Leo, who does the dirty work. Yoko's fate is a little more surprising, as Leo opts to treat her like a lion would treat the lioness of a pride he's just conquered and makes her his sex slave.

This whole sequence also reveals the full extent of Shidoh's master plan: to take Therianthrope genetic tech public. That's interesting, though I have a tough time believing that it would be so easily accepted. That doesn't hold a candle to the jaw-dropping twist about Yuya's ultimate fate, though. The idea of disposing of him because he knew too much had been floated before, but I am still shocked that they Hitomi did the deed herself on Shidoh's orders, especially since she and Yuya seemed to be having a pleasant moment. Hitomi's tears afterward were a nice touch to show that the connection between her and Yuya wasn't one-sided, but ending things like that also leaves me with mixed feelings.

The one benefit of handling both Yuya and Yoko so decisively is that the door is firmly closed on this chapter of the overall story. The final scenes imply that there could be a new story arc focusing on a new trio of characters, but any future arc would be hard-pressed to recapture the peculiar charm of Hitomi, Eruza, and Ui. This is one case where I hope this actually is the last we see of the anime, but not because it was bad. This series was plenty of trashy fun all the way to the end.

Rating: B+

Killing Bites is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.