Made In Abyss – Season 2 Episode 4 “Friend” Recap & Review

Friend

Episode 4 of Made In Abyss Season 2 starts with Reg encountering Faputa in her domain as the other Hollows watch from behind the green invisible-like portal. As Reg gazes at her, Faputa rushes from behind Reg and forcefully slams him to the ground. Reg doesn’t attack her. He examines Faputa’s body and realizes she is a Hollow like Nanachi.

During his examination, Faputa asks Reg about his robotic arms. Upon closer inspection, Reg recalls Faputa calling out to him in the past. He asks her if they had met before, but Faputa responds with more irrelevant questions before her hulking armored buddy informs her that the other Hollows are attempting to break into her lair.

Faputa becomes enraged because she doesn’t like how the Hollows are interrupting her time with Reg. She responds by forming a sphere of hair while grabs Reg in the process. Afterward, she soars into the air and lands atop the hulking armored individual’s shoulder. The individual takes Reg and Faputa away to Faputa’s secret hideout.

Meanwhile, Nanachi and Majikaja traverse the marketplace as she begins to worry about Reg. This is because the communication device she uses to contact him isn’t picking up his signal. While she’s tinkering with it, Majikaja informs her that she may have trouble getting food or water because she doesn’t have anything of value. Nanachi agrees and starts looking around for ideas to get her some value.

While looking around, Nanachi asks Majikaja about the “balancing” process and how the village knew of Meiyna’s value. The village understands people’s deepest desires through their soul signals, according to Majikaja. This signal or connection between the person and that item determines its value.

Majikaja asks Nanachi what is of value to herself. She tells him that she values Riko, Reg, and her deceased friend Mitty. Majikaja informs Nanachi that Mitty is alive and under the watchful eye of Belaf, one of the Three Sages of the village. He also says a masked man left her in the village, and this triggers Nanachi because she believes this is all Bondrewd’s doing.

We cut back to Reg and Faputa, who are secluded in Faputa’s lair. Faputa rushes over to Reg and asks him if he had forgotten about the place. Reg fires back with more questions. He informs Faputa that he recalls meeting her in the past, but he had lost his memory along the way.

He asks Faputa to fill him in on the details regarding their past friendship. Faputa doesn’t answer his question and grabs his arm. Then, she tells Reg that she’ll give him an answer after she inspects his body and equipment. She wants to make sure he is the same Reg of her memories. Reg accepts Faputa’s offer, and she starts searching through his helmet and neck brace.

Faputa notices an injury on Reg’s stomach and pierces it. This causes Reg immense pain and blood to spurt out of his wound. Faputa takes a sample of Reg’s blood and tastes it. She finds out that Reg is who he says he is. She informs him that the last time she’d seen him, he was looking for something called Haku. She tells Reg that Haku was something of high-value Reg used to have in his possession.

Before Faputa would try something crude, Reg knocks her away and denies having met her. He tells her that he can’t be the same Reg because that was a name Riko gave to him when they first met. Faputa argues with Reg for a while before he leaves her behind and heads back to the marketplace to be with Riko and Nanachi.

As he walks away, Reg ponders about his experience with Faputa. He wonders what his old self would’ve done in the situation. Suddenly, petals start falling from the sky as Reg notices a few nameplates scattered around the floor. These are Eternal Fortunes, which are nameplates scattered across the floor during celebrations and funerals. He questions if people had died here before.

We shift to Riko back at the Inn., who notices that Reg and Nanachi are no longer there. She drinks some water to calm her stomach issues but worries about her friends in the process. She asks the Inn worker where they had gone, but she isn’t much help. She goes outside and sees some random Hollows standing around. They scare her, and she decides to head back inside the Inn.

She hands the Inn worker a note and payment for their time in the Inn. Riko tells the Inn worker to show Nanachi and Reg the note when they return. She and Meiyna explore the village with a map in hand, asking any Hollows if they know where Majikaja is. They aren’t much help and Riko decides to go to the Marketplace.

As she’s walking, the same Hollows follow her. She realizes they weren’t around when the robber Hollow had taken Meiyna. She worries and tries to ask them to help her find the marketplace. One of them points to an opened cave-like area, and Riko believes it will lead her to the marketplace.

Unfortunately, she learns it was a trap as menacing Hollows forcefully drag her and Meiyna inside. Riko warns them they shouldn’t harm Meiyna because the village’s protection will harm them. The Hollows show no care and begin torturing Riko and Meiyna.

Just when it seems like Meiyna’s life would end there, the robber Hollow from before swoops in and takes Meiyna away from the evil Hollows. The balancing begins as the village’s black goop henchmen appear and torture the evil Hollow one by one. Riko, Meiyna, and the robber Hollow leave the cave. Leaving, she thanks the robber Hollow for saving her and Meiyna.

Suddenly, the robber Hollow cries out to her, suggesting he wants to tag along with her. Riko accepts its offer. The two leave in search of Nanachi and Reg, and during this time, Riko finds out that the robber Hollow’s name is Maaa. Maaa promises to protect Riko in case any other evil Hollow tries to harm her or Meiyna again. We get a brief scene with Majikaja and Nanachi, who are on their way to Belaf’s household before transitioning back to Riko.

As Riko and Maaa search the crowded Marketplace, Riko smells food nearby and heads in that direction with Maaa. She finds it’s coming from a restaurant and decides to visit the place. Although the place is a bit packed, Riko notices a human-like Hollow eating a meal that looks like it’s made for human consumption. The sight of that Hollow eating the food calms her nerves, as she imagines the food here won’t give her food poisoning like the food at the Inn.

She asks the chef to prepare the same meal the Hollow is eating and something different for Maaa. The chef complies and hands her the dish. Riko eats it, and to her joy, it tastes wonderful. She begins chowing down like a wild animal. The chef takes note and speaks to her in Riko’s language, shocking Riko. The chef confirms that she, Majikaja, and others can speak and understand Riko’s language. The chef introduces Riko to Wazukyan, one of the village’s Three Sages like Belaf.

Meanwhile, Majikaja and Nanachi arrive at Belaf’s domain. Belaf, who is a large snake-like plant Hollow, approaches Nanachi gracefully. Nanachi walks around Belaf and stops. Tears form in Nanachi’s eyes as she gazes upon Mitty. On a wooden pedestal, Mitty rests calmly. The episode closes with a brief scene of Vueko petting one of the village’s black goop henchmen while being kept under their control.

The Episode Review

Episode four of Made In Abyss shows how little we know about the anime’s overall setting and protagonists. It begins with an intense and heartwarming confrontation between Reg and Faputa. The anime’s interpretation of Faputa’s character from her movements, mannerisms, and design was flawless. Knowing that Reg and Faputa have met before also opens the door to receiving answers about Reg’s past life.

Vueko being alive all this time wasn’t too much of a shocker if you’re a fan of watching anime openings. However, seeing her bound by the village’s dark organisms with none of her Ganja friends or child companion by her side is a depressing sight. The anime provides viewers with some hints to what happened to the others through its dialogue and imagery. Yet it’s important to remember that Made In Abyss likes to throw curveballs.

The protagonists’ designs in this episode were a step above what they were like in the previous episode. None of the protagonists looked off-putting or out of place, like in episode 3. They traverse through beautiful environments, while areas like Faputa’s lair are drawn with an engaging palette of colors. This episode’s music tracks and sound effects were beautifully executed and perfectly matched the tone presented in each segment.

The issues I had with this episode stem from its innuendo content and how Belaf appeared near the end of the episode. I could let the scene involving Riko and Meiyna pass since it’s done more so for shock value. It also serves as a reminder that the abyss is not a beautiful playground full of smiling flowers and happy rainbows.

Moreover, Faputa’s touchy scenes with Reg are a bit overwhelming and uncomfortable. I wasn’t a fan of the episode’s brief attempts at raunchy humor either. I feel the episode could’ve given us more glimpses into Reg’s connection to Faputa. I also argue we could’ve gotten more information about the three sages if they had cut those scenes out too.

On that note, I didn’t adore Belaf’s appearance here either. Majikaja’s design initially confused me, but his movements feel natural and better in motion. As for Belaf, he felt like he was moving at 4-frames per second most of the time. The computer-generated approach to his Hollow design doesn’t look great in a darkened setting either. Maybe it will grow on me when we see him outside his domain.

Overall, this episode offers a lot of juicy details regarding Reg’s past and the origins of the abyss’s sixth layer. Hopefully, the next few episodes will give us more information about the other Ganja member’s whereabouts, Mitty’s revival, and the story surrounding Vueko and the village itself.