Hell’s Paradise – Season 1 Episode 7 Recap & Review

Flowers and Offerings

Episode 7 of Hell’s Paradise begins with two folks making out, planning to fight Choubei and Touma. Meanwhile, Gabimaru overhears someone running away and learns it’s a girl and before he knows it, a tree monster attacks. He leaves Sagiri and his allies with the creature to find the girl.

He believes she may have intel about the village up ahead so Sagiri chases after him, leaving Senta and Yuzuriha with the monster.

Gabimaru and Sagiri reach the child, but she attacks Gabimaru with a powerful attack. Gabimaru captures the girl with some vines, resulting in her crying. Sagiri asks him to let her go. Sagiri comforts the girl, and they reunite with Yuzuriha and Senta.

The tree creature asks the group to return her to him, and he’ll take them to the village and share information about the Elixir of Life. Arriving at the creature’s home in the village, Yuzuriha and Sagiri rest in the bathhouse. Afterward, Gabimaru and the others eat some of the tree creature’s food. While they eat, the tree creature shares info about the village and the Elixir of Life.

He explains they call Shinsekyo “Kotaku.” The creature says the Elixir exists, and they refer to it as “Tan”, while the island is separated into three regions. The shore and forest are in “Eishu,” the village is a part of “Hojo,” and the Elixir is in “Horai,” within the mists at the center of the island. Once they meet the Tensen, they’ll know he’s not making any of this up.

We also learn that Touma and Choubei are fighting Tensen. They never die or age, and remain eternally beautiful and on a whole new level of strength.

The tree creature knows they doubted his kindness, but he also knows they won’t last on Shinsenkyo because all humans who arrive here perish eventually.

We receive a shot of what appears to be Choubei and Touma’s weakened bodies on the floor, with the blonde Tensen towering over them. The tree creature says the Tensen are the most important beings on the island, who command the Soshin (the beings our crew has fought), punish the guilty, and don’t adore people who come to the island. They don’t kill their victims; they only transform them into beautiful flowers.

The blonde Tensen drops Choubei and Touma into a pit, so they can become flowers, which will fuel the Elixir’s power. The tree creature confirms he’s been blessed with the Elixir’s power. Sagiri follows Gabimaru to the bathhouse so he can heal his wounds.

In a flashback, the tree creature introduces himself as Hoko, while his female childhood friend is Mei. Hoko explains they were born and raised on the island for centuries and asks them to allow the pair to live on the island quietly.

Sagiri and Gabimaru spot Mei in the bathhouse, where Sagiri plans to recreate the Edo-style bathhouse experience to help Mei and Gabimaru bathe without awkwardness. Sagiri hands Gabimaru some bath supplies to clean himself up with and after Sagiri helps Mei get cleaned up, she thanks Sagiri with a hug.

The whole scenario reminds Gabimaru of his wife and her advice on why it’s important to rest and enjoy life. Gabimaru tells Mei that she shouldn’t be embarrassed about her scar and that he knows someone with one who is extremely beautiful. The episode concludes with Gabimaru pondering his goal.

The Episode Review

This week’s episode of Hell’s Paradise was informational with a dash of fanservice and compelling interactions toward the end. We received more intel on Shinsenkyo and the ones who are seemingly in control of everything. Based on Choubei and Touma’s bout with the Tensen, it appears they won’t be relinquishing the Elixir of Life without a brutal bout.

Although it’d be a shame to see those two die off swiftly, the anime’s demonstrated that killing off characters is its foray concerning Eizen, Genji, and Rokurota. Nevertheless, it’d be a bummer to see them exit this soon since they have the potential to grow into more memorable characters. At the same time, many may wonder what other creatures lie within Shinsenkyo.

While Hoko shared some insightful knowledge for our cast, he didn’t go into much depth. There could be another civilization or more monsters lurking within one of Shinsenkyo’s regions. This allows the island to still hold some substantial mysteries that will help viewers to grow attached to this world and contemplate what else could be out there.

Overall, this was a nice follow-up to the action-centric chapter we received last week. It gives viewers time to relax like Sagiri and his friends, and learn more about the island they’re currently traversing through. I’m curious to see what else lies ahead for our remaining characters before they find the Elixir of Life and confront the Tensen overlords.