[8.3/10] The twist totally got me! I must confess, that will probably boost my score of this one a few points! I obviously got that Ikra was evil (and frankly, Jack seemed a little naive to not suss that out on his own), but I assumed she was just an evil warrior on her own quest for power rather than justice, and that she and Jack might be allies of convenience if not crusaders for a common cause.
Then, when the hints started piling up, especially with her story about her father, I thought that she might turn out to be Aku’s daughter! There would be a certain poetry to that -- Jack fighting to save his father’s land, while Ikra is fighting to preserve her father’s grip on it. (Hell, I even thought that maybe Ikra had used the magic gem to go back in time and revive Aku in the first place!)
But I really like the reveal that Ikra was Aku the whole time. You buy the connection between the two of them as a couple of equally yoked warriors. Some of that comes through in one of the show’s stellar montages. But you can see them having parallel quests, equally prodigious talents, and a shared affinity for the war of the warrior that would, at a minimum, give them some good Batman/Catwoman energy.
The twist that it’s Aku is one that, if you’ll pardon the expression, cuts Jack deep. There’s something emotionally devastating about realizing someone you were growing close to, who seemed to share your values, was in fact your greatest enemy. Losing his chance to go back to the past and facing that betrayal at the same time is a huge blow to Jack, and his reaction to it is appropriately pained and poignant.
The episode’s also just good on a nuts and bolts level. The Yoda-like would-be rug salesman who gives Jack a glimpse of what lies ahead for him and tries to help and warn him adds lore and mysticism and a touch of eccentric mirth to the proceedings. While there’s a bit of uncomfortable Middle Eastern exoticism to the depiction of the land here, there’s still a host of cool designs and great musical choices. And the scenes where Jack and Ikra play with the little squeaky mole creature was adorable.
Overall, this was a great way to twist the knife in our already troubled Samurai and test his mettle. I’m very interested to see how the show depicts him dealing with all of this.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2020-01-20T03:17:04Z
[8.3/10] The twist totally got me! I must confess, that will probably boost my score of this one a few points! I obviously got that Ikra was evil (and frankly, Jack seemed a little naive to not suss that out on his own), but I assumed she was just an evil warrior on her own quest for power rather than justice, and that she and Jack might be allies of convenience if not crusaders for a common cause.
Then, when the hints started piling up, especially with her story about her father, I thought that she might turn out to be Aku’s daughter! There would be a certain poetry to that -- Jack fighting to save his father’s land, while Ikra is fighting to preserve her father’s grip on it. (Hell, I even thought that maybe Ikra had used the magic gem to go back in time and revive Aku in the first place!)
But I really like the reveal that Ikra was Aku the whole time. You buy the connection between the two of them as a couple of equally yoked warriors. Some of that comes through in one of the show’s stellar montages. But you can see them having parallel quests, equally prodigious talents, and a shared affinity for the war of the warrior that would, at a minimum, give them some good Batman/Catwoman energy.
The twist that it’s Aku is one that, if you’ll pardon the expression, cuts Jack deep. There’s something emotionally devastating about realizing someone you were growing close to, who seemed to share your values, was in fact your greatest enemy. Losing his chance to go back to the past and facing that betrayal at the same time is a huge blow to Jack, and his reaction to it is appropriately pained and poignant.
The episode’s also just good on a nuts and bolts level. The Yoda-like would-be rug salesman who gives Jack a glimpse of what lies ahead for him and tries to help and warn him adds lore and mysticism and a touch of eccentric mirth to the proceedings. While there’s a bit of uncomfortable Middle Eastern exoticism to the depiction of the land here, there’s still a host of cool designs and great musical choices. And the scenes where Jack and Ikra play with the little squeaky mole creature was adorable.
Overall, this was a great way to twist the knife in our already troubled Samurai and test his mettle. I’m very interested to see how the show depicts him dealing with all of this.