Hozuki No Reitetsu
Episode 9 – The Ultimate Example Of Ruin Through Wine And Women/Awash With Drunks Who Came Home
Another week, another episode and I’m so glad because I cannot get enough of Hozuki No Reitetsu. Welcome back to another installment of Hozuki No Reitetsu Anime Impressions, I hope you’ve all been as excited about this new episode as I have! This week marks the release of Hozuki No Reitetsu episode nine: An episode revolving solely around drinking and the effects it can have on certain people. As Hakutaku tries his hand at out-drinking Hozuki and certain residents of hell start an alcohol-fueled uprising against a mythical monster the audience comes to the realisation that maybe too much of a good thing can actually be pretty bad, even if that good thing is sweet, sweet booze.
The Ultimate Example Of Ruin Through Wine And Women:
You know…sometimes it’s hard being a sex-crazed, conscience-ignoring, party fiend…not that I’d know anything about that. This half of this weeks episode shows us that medicine men like to have a good time too; babes, booze and everything in between, Hakutaku loves it and he’s not going to bring his rock and roll lifestyle to a halt just because he can’t hold his liquor…though it does bug him that Hozuki can drink like a fish.
After one hell of a sex-fuelled night with one of the most beautiful “ladies of the night” working in hell, Hakutaku wakes up to a headache and the same thoughs every occasional overindulger has when waking up from a night on the grog; “I’m never drinking again”. That thought is short-lived though, especially after Momotaro mentions Hozuki and his intolerance the alcohol. “He drinks like a serpent!” Hakutaku says as he makes a mental decision to go and drink with the citizens of hell at a chilled nightspot.
Momotaro, being the kind-hearted worker he is, agrees to tag along with another one of Hakutaku’s silly ventures into hell, luckily “Tao-Taro” (as he’s referred to by Hakutaku) gets along with Hozuki and the gang…though you can’t really say the same about Hakutaku. The rest of the episode has Hozuki and the other-worldly pharmacist go head-to-head verbally as each one tries to outdo the other in some way shape or form. Though I’m not necessarily a fan of Hakutaku , I do actually enjoy the episodes that he’s present in simply because of the way Hozuki acts when he’s around.
It’s like the two characters revert back to children, constantly in competition, constantly butting heads and constantly being told how similar they both are to each other. It’s funny, I’m actually grinning slightly at the simple thought these particular scenes. What’s good is that the series shows all the different sides to its main character; he’s a fairly stoic lead but we’ve practically seen every die of him whether it be his sleepy side, his silly side or his jealous side, we’ve seen it all and some thanks goes to the involvement of Hakutaku who forces him into the more”adolescent Hozuki” situations.
Awash With Drunks Who Came Home:
This half of the episode, though under a different title, continues directly off of the first half. Everyone that was previously drinking in the bar seems to have had their fill, including old King Enma who’s another bourbon and cola away from a non-stop storytelling session regarding his uninteresting grandchildren…King Enma has kids? Who knew! Hozuki is brought news about a somewhat rebellion that has sparked in one of the alcohol-based hells. This one just so happens to be a place where the souls of those who have done wrong while under the influence of alcohol (that’s essentially all of us) are sent and tortured for the rest of infinity.
It’s not that bad of a hell to be honest, they kind of just can’t have alcohol…there’s no physical torture of any kinds. If it was me, I’d just sit back and take it, at least I’m not the guy locked in the iron maiden for eternity. It seems like the caretaker for this particular hell Orochi, an eight-headed snake monster from Japanese mythology, felt like a bit of sake…the only problem is that there’s no alcohol allowed in this part of hell so once the souls of the dead booze-hounds found out…well, let’s just say this particular portion of hell quickly became party central. Hozuki turn up to a horrifying sight; hundreds of drunk people! All in one place! It was like a damn music festival and Hozuki is here to pull the plug and shut it all down.
Once he finishes giving Orochi a lecture about not having alcohol in the area, Hozuki does his best to come up with a plan to teach these souls a lesson they’ll never forget but unfortunately he comes up dry. Hakutaku, who’s slithered in like the nosey snake that he is, makes a deal with Hozuki: He’ll let him in on the plan he’s concocted to torture these euphoric souls but only after Hozuki cuts him a “phat” check that’ll pay for the bill he racked up ordering hookers and buying alcohol. Hozuki accepts and the plan is set in motion: Gives these souls as much booze as they can handle. No! Give them more booze then they can handle! Force them into hating the thing they used to love, it’s a nice throwback to the cliche line a father would say to his son after he finds out he’s been smoking; “You like to smoke? Well here, smoke the whole packet!”, classic!
Hozuki No Reitetsu does one thing so well above all else that it does; it finds a way to take these epic mythological legends and turn them into silly characters that act entirely opposite to their stories. Orochi, a scourge in the world of Japanese mythology, is nothing but a groundskeepers in Hozuki No Reitetsu! One that can’t even do his job right. No one fears him, they simply…”know” him like you would know your neighbour. That’s not just for that particular character either, Hozuki No Reitetsu seems to be able to turn anything into a quirky and super silly version of whatever it used to be. I find it funny considering anime usually does the opposite. Over exaggeration is always present in anime but under exaggeration is something that Hozuki No Reitetsu has over all the rest and, my God, does it do it well!
Check out more Hozuki No Reitetsu impressions HERE.
