Warning: The following contains spoilers for Ninja Kamui, Episode 8, now streaming on Max.

When Ninja Kamui started, it's safe to say that no one expected the anime equivalent of Amazon coercing the U.S. government into singing over its energy infrastructure under the threat of ninjas. But alas, that really happened and, despite being a show marketed on its fight scenes, the sheer extent of the villain's plan alone might be the most enticing hook to carry the show to its conclusion.

Last week, Higan donned his Gusoku Gear and brutally killed Lil, bringing an end to the city-wide manhunt while the organization retreated to assess the damage, and Higan and Emma escaped. With some time to relax, Emma finally came clean about her connection to Mari, the relationship they shared, and how it motivated her to betray the organization to help Higan bring it down.

Related

6 Best Anime To Watch If You Love Ninja Kamui

Episode 1 of Ninja Kamui has taken the anime world by storm. For those who can't wait for more, here are similar anime to watch in the meantime.

Yamaji's Grand Scheme

By this point, the silliest thing about this series is also the coolest thing. Nothing beats taking the dystopian, prescient fear of megacorporations leveraging power over the state to control more and more of society and just asking "Hey, what if they also had ninjas?" The fact that every politician shown is seemingly never surprised by their existence makes it even funnier, implying that either the story skips over their initial disbelief or that they just took that information in stride.

Auza is threatening everyone with influence in the energy sector to agree to let them build factories across the country. Emma explains that this will let them take control of the US from within, but the way she puts it, Yamaji plans to do the same around the world. World domination might be a tad cliché, but the blend of motives between Yamaji and Joseph is fascinating.

Despite his seriousness, Yamaji has thus far been characterized by, for lack of a better term, fear. His gripe with the traditional ways of the ninja organization was the limits of their authority. If their identity is intrinsically tied to Japan, then it will live on only for as long as Japan exists. To him, tradition means the inevitable death of the clan, its secret arts, and its way of life, to which he has dedicated so much of his own, and that was unacceptable.

Where Power Meets Profit

Enter, Auza, which is as stereotypical of an evil organization as one can get but with enough thoughtful application of their influence in daily life sprinkled throughout, such that they feel believable. The result is a mutually beneficial relationship that feels like it shouldn't work as perfectly as it does. Joseph, like any maniacal villain, wants his corporation to control the world, and Yamaji's clan has the skills necessary to threaten anyone into submitting to the takeover.

It's a marriage between capitalism and totalitarianism that doesn't explicitly contradict one another and even accentuates their greatest avenues of control. Auza's friendly public face charms its way into every facet of daily life, catering to every need before people think to question their power, much less the dark cost of such amenities at the hands of Yamaji's ninjas.

Ninja Kamui's Gradual Mutation

The introduction of this piece wasn't just poking fun at the setup of this week's most plot-heavy scenes, it was drawing attention to the elephant in the room. Ninja Kamui is completely different from how it started and this extends, intentionally or otherwise, to how the action of the series has been presented. When it began, everything was hand-drawn martial arts between Higan and swarms of ninjas or one-on-one fights against assassins sent to snuff him out.

There was some advanced technology mixed in, but at its core, it was a very traditional kind of ninja action series. But just as Yamaji abandoned tradition in favor of Auza's advanced technology, Ninja Kamui's entire philosophy on action scenes has warped to accommodate, focusing heavily on the Gusoku Gear, these Tokusatsu-inspired power suits. Thematic ties aside, this isn't to say that this change has been entirely positive.

Related

Ninja Kamui: Yes, Emma Is Still Alive

This week, the show somewhat stumbles its way into avoiding an overused writing trope, and the story is all the better for it.

How the Last Episodes Can Stick the Landing

Now, the point of this section isn't to harp on the CGI like in the past reviews of the series. Enough has been said about how it doesn't quite work as well as what was shown in the early episodes. However, considering the themes, this trend does reinforce what needs to improve before the end of the series. If Yamaji's greatest flaw is his abandonment of ninja values, then the final confrontation has to eschew all the technology that the story has become reliant on.

It should be a no-holds-barred duel between Higan and Yamaji with nothing but fists, blades, and ninjutsu, to see who the true ninja is. Alternatively, Yamaji could be the one to rely on technology, only to be bested by Higan, who might abandon his Gusoku Gear in favor of his secret art. This would be one way to tie up the central conflict while keeping central themes at the forefront.

A Prime Example

In 2018's Batman Ninja, the central conflict enforces a lesson about how Batman has become too reliant on the gadgets that are often attributed to his character. Trapped in Sengoku-era Japan, he is technologically outmatched by his rogue's gallery while his own technology progressively fails him. Through the help of ninjas, a faction the likes of which are already an integral part of Batman's backstory, he finds the tools necessary to strike back.

At the very climax of the film, what helps Batman win isn't any gadget, giant robot, or any of the other nonsense in the third act. It was his embracing the ninja methods inherent to the Batman mythos that are often underplayed in contemporary Batman stories, resulting in supernatural feats that would typically be unthinkable for the character. For some, that's what made this film over-the-top, but it's a feature, not a flaw.

Not only does this film rule but let it be noted that it's also entirely CGI. See, the problem isn't the way E&H Production has chosen to animate this series, but rather the skill with which those methods have been employed. Plus, from a narrative lens, the way the story has shifted its priorities risks undermining what made it appealing to begin with - qualities rooted in themes just as much as aesthetics.

Once again, though, to its credit, Ninja Kamui has some entertaining ideas, and whether they come across as amusing, genuinely fascinating, or both, that has been the show's saving grace. The visuals haven't been as impressive as fans of Sunghoo Park's past work might have liked, but the investment is undeniable, and it has its charms, even if it's starting to feel like a bait-and-switch.

More

Spring 2024 Anime – Episode Reviews, Lore Discussions, & Recommendations

Read previews, reviews, and discussions relating to the anime Spring 2024 season, including sections dedicated to My Hero Academia, Demon Slayer, etc.