REVIEW: ‘Dead Mount Death Play,’ Episode 8 — “The Assassin”

With Polka’s father accepting the current situation surrounding his son and the Corpse God, Dead Mount Death Play Episode 8 sees life returning to normal for Polka, Misaki, and Takumi. Or, at least it seemed like it would until Polka’s niece, Sayo, and her attendant Xiaoyu arrive announcing their intention to stay with the trio for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, Tsubaki and Arase continue to investigate the recent incidents at the Shinoyama Estate, as well as the escape of Phantom Solitare.

This latest entry in the bizarre world-hopping story can be summed up with two simple words: set up. The vast majority of the episode is dedicated to settling Sayo and Xiaoyu into their new home in the slaughterhouse, as well as establishing who Xiaoyu really is, beyond a simple attendant for the Shinoyama Clan. I appreciate what Dead Mount Death Play Episode 8 does with Xiaoyu’s backstory, particularly how it portrays the events that have made the character so fiercely loyal to Polka’s father. While it is established as no act of kindness, Xiaoyu cannot help but view it through such a lens. Given what would’ve happened otherwise, why the character dons rose-colored glasses when viewing the event makes a lot of sense. It’s always interesting when fiction uses an individual’s perspective to highlight how differently we view reality and the actual reality of an event can be.

While things get settled with the core group of characters, Tsubaki and Arase show up at the Shinoyama Estate to explore the possibility that it was the infamous Fire-Breathing Bug that attacked the property. At least that is the pretext. While the Bug is always of interest to the two lawmen, it is clear that Tsibaki is also still trying to piece together the situation with Polka. Tsubaki continues to be a wonderfully handled character whose balance of tenacity and sensibility when it comes to his investigations is refreshing. It is often hard for fiction to present a member of law enforcement that is determined, without having them cross the line to over-zealous. So, far, Tsubaki is managing to tread the line surprisingly well.

While most of Dead Mount Death Play Episode 8 flows smoothly from moment to moment, there is one scene that is poorly placed. Out of the blue, the episode jumps to Clarissa for a brief moment, as she continues her behind-the-scenes monitoring of the evolving situation surrounding Polka. This scene takes place in a jacuzzi with a couple of her female employees, clothing not permitted. As Clarissa shares her thoughts with her aides, and by extension the viewer, she begins to have her way with one of her companions.

This feels like one of those weird moments where sex is interposed into a scene because the show is worried that fans will be bored with the exposition taking place, so they shift the focus to something they think the audience may enjoy more. While the moment does a great job of driving elements of Clarissa’s character to the forefront thanks to a skillful combination of cinematography, music, and voice acting, the inclusion of sex here is forced rather than genuinely narrative building.

Dead Mount Death Play Episode 8 does a good job of setting up things to come while also establishing new characters and motives. While not the most exciting episode, it utilizes the cast well to keep this lull in the story from dragging the episode down too much.

Dead Mount Death Play Episode 8 is streaming on Crunchyroll.