From the wacky to the absurd, Tomodachi Game Episode 7 tries to provide an even higher amount of shocks than the previous episode did, which is already a tall order. Let’s see if it succeeded in this review!
Tomodachi Game Episode 7 Overview
Tomodachi Game, or Friends Game in English, is a psychological strategy anime belonging to the Death Game genre, a kind of anime that pits several characters against each other in a bid to make one of them outlast them all. It is based on a manga written by Mikoto Yamaguchi and illustrated by Yuuki Satou. This episode of the show is also referred to as Friends Game Episode 7.
The anime adaptation is developed by Studio Okuroto Noboru, a studio with only two full-length anime adaptations in its catalogue, Special Training in the Secret Dungeon and the second season of How Not To Summon A Demon Lord. The show is directed by Hirofumi Ogura, the director behind several well-known shows such as Black Butler and Cells At Work. You can read our review of the previous episode here!
– Friends Game Episode 7 Review does not contain any spoilers –
Tomodachi Game Episode 7 Review- Why Would I Believe You?
This was a polarising episode for the show for one reason alone- it took back a lot of what we gathered from the last episodes in favour of replacing it with new information. That may have been a good thing for the show’s earlier episodes, where not much happened. However, The show replaced the good parts with something that might not even be true a few episodes later. It was taking a gamble on the show’s new direction, and whether it worked remains to be seen.
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However, things may still not be as simple as they look in the show. We left the last episode with Tenji following Yuichi into the third game because he didn’t want to stay with the rest of the people he betrayed. The method he chose to do so was highly unorthodox but effective, something that you would think would get addressed in the next episode. However, a throwaway line was all we got, as the moment turned out to be nothing but a bust and a means to an end.
The dynamic between Yuichi and Tenji is an intriguing one, as Tenji tries to explain away his crimes to anyone willing to listen. The events that he recounted were intense and believable if they were true. After what we have seen him do, nothing he says or does has even a shred of credibility in the eyes of the viewers. Hence, Yuichi taking him at his word, for the most part, was a weird plot progression that doesn’t make sense. However, this could just be the both of them trying to play each other again, which will be fun.
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The next game the show has chosen for the players looks to be the most interesting one so far. These games are all twisted versions of Japanese school games, which means the current game was inevitable to maintain realism. There is no issue with that, as it introduced a whole other group of characters to play the game alongside Yuichi and Tenji. The administration has also been put on notice by Yuichi’s goal to destroy the game from the inside, so it is natural to assume that they would be playing a part in this game to stop Yuichi from completing his goal.
The animators over at Okuroto Noboru sure do love their flat, featureless surfaces, for we have had three so far. They are easier to animate than moving panels but aren’t very appealing to stare at for multiple episodes. Good thing that the latest one lasted for just this episode because it would have grown very old very quickly. This isn’t the show with the best and highest production quality, but it doesn’t really need it. It is able to tell its story perfectly fine with the setup that it has.
Verdict
Tomodachi Game Episode 7 was a great follow-up to a bombshell of an episode. The premise of the next few episodes is very interesting, so let’s hope that the show can do it justice.
Click here to read the review of the next episode!