Suicide Squad Isekai Episode 9 Review 

Suicide Squad Isekai starts drawing to a close in episode 9, with the big bad finally revealing themselves, and an army of zombies to tussle with. 

The Undead King has been masquerading as the Queen, and who knows for how long. This means that the war, violence, and other bloodshed that’s been going on is all down to them, having been in control of both sides. You might be wondering why, and it’s apparently because the more surrounded by death the Undead King is, the stronger their magical powers. Pretty bleak. 

If you’re also thinking that that all sounds very fantasy, then not only are you thinking a similar thought to one of my own, but you perhaps ought to know that the episode carries on in that way for a little while.

Another thought that I had whilst watching Suicide Squad Isekai episode 9, and it’s likely a rather obvious thought, but I’ll share it all the same (for the sake of transparency, or something else vague like that), is that these isekai narratives have quite a lot to balance. There’s the magical land – its characters, and the story that’s already underway when our protagonists appear. Then there are the protagonists themselves – the stories that were interrupted when isekaied, and their involvement in the ongoing drama of the magical land once isekaied. 

It struck me here, whilst watching the Undead King threaten Princess Fione, then whilst watching Princess Fione deliver some whispered monologue, and then whilst watching Cecil (Jun Fukushima) running around being a hero, that if someone were to not get on with one aspect of this show, they probably wouldn’t get on with the rest of it.

Forgive the comparison, but take “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” for example. If somebody was indifferent to the story of four siblings being evacuated during The Blitz, they probably wouldn’t be much interested when three of those same siblings then try to save their brother from a witch. And if somebody was indifferent to a world of talking animals waiting to be freed from an oppressive force, they probably wouldn’t be much interested in the four ordinary kids that appear to liberate the world from that force. Hypothetically speaking, of course. I’m not necessarily writing about my own experience with Suicide Squad Isekai here. If I was to do that, I’d probably save it for the end, in the hopes that the promise of that honesty kept you reading. 

Anyway, where was I? Ah, yes. A few more things happen in episode 9 before our suicide squad eventually arrive. Fione adopts Harley’s make-up – it turns out that Quinn (Anna Nagase) has been quite an influence on her, which I am definitely petty enough to remind you I predicted back in my review of episode 4. I’ll hold for applause. Princess Fione and the Undead King take turns at magically projecting their faces into the sky to say things like: “I’ll never give up!”, and, “prepare to die!”, respectively. And then there’s suddenly no need to rescue King Shark (Subaru Kimura) from being executed, for he just sort of… shows up, and just in time to fight Killer Croc (Tarou Kiuchi) too, who also just sort of… shows up.

Next, in-between periods of floating in the air, but after summoning an army of zombies, the Undead King returns to threatening Princess Fione. Which, even only halfway through the episode, there’s been quite an amount of. And that’s the moment our suicide squad finally turn up. I’m sure you’ll never guess what happens next. The squad stand around talking for a bit, as is their habit, in what I think is supposed to be the funny bit of the episode. Jaunty music is suddenly playing, Clayface (Jun Fukuyama) is being meta about the upcoming tropes, and Harley is suddenly more interested in how her hair looks than anything else. Hilarious. And then there’s a bunch of fighting, as is the show’s regular pattern.  

Brought into this fight by the Undead King like Pokémon, the remaining members of the first suicide squad make their appearance too: Enchantress (Shizuka Itou) and Katana (Chika Anzai) – with Killer Croc already being present. The Undead King then says to Enchantress: “you know what will happen if you fail to obey me”. Which, after this episode, is really the only mystery left in Suicide Squad Isekai. For no, no I don’t know what will happen if she doesn’t obey you, oh Undead King. But credit to the show, I’m still quite curious to know what’s going on there. 

So there’s a lot of fighting, which is typical, but the music that’s playing throughout is great. It’s almost a medley of everything we’ve heard so far. And I think all the characters are here too. All the characters that are still alive and in this particular world, I mean. It’s starting to feel like a series finale. The show even puts that magical enhancement thread to rest as well, explaining that Harley glowed pink that one time, back in the series premiere, because she’s been carrying around a magic gem. And no, I couldn’t tell you where she got it. 

Realising that this gem she picked up from somewhere I don’t remember is magic, Harley puts it on her gun, turning it into a magic gun of course, which means she can now shoot Enchantress with it, who, after taking a few bullets, drops out of the sky. Yes, Enchantress was floating in the air as well. A lot of that going on in this episode. Even Nanaue and Killer Croc manage to jump into the air and hang there for a bit whilst trading punches. I’ve no idea how. Perhaps a clear blue background is just easier to animate against? 

Suicide Squad Isekai episode 9 then ends partway through all of this fighting, and on a cliffhanger that might just reveal how the Undead King has been holding sway over the members of the first squad. So I suppose it kind of is the final episode, but just the first part of it. 

Honestly, I wasn’t much moved by the unveiling of the magical land’s big bad, and the first ten minutes of this episode felt to me as being a bit like ten minutes from an anime I probably wouldn’t watch. That kind of fantasy just not being something I’ve a taste for at the moment. 

And, to return to my Narnia comparison (do forgive me), when a group of characters’ stories are interrupted by being isekaied, but their stories are: being in prison, there’s not really much to interrupt. And when the story they’re entering is so familiar that one of the main characters can tell you exactly what’s happening, there’s not really much for the characters to get involved in. Perhaps if the squaddies were already on a mission when isekaied, and perhaps if the world they entered was one less recognisable… Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps. 

You know, I’ve recently been wondering if even a Suicide Squad anime is something I’ve a taste for at the moment. Have I been bamboozled into watching an entire series by the combined efforts of brand awareness and an attractive concept? I mean, I saw all of Marvel’s What If…? too and I’m still unsure as to whether I actually enjoyed it. Gratefully, Suicide Squad Isekai comes to an end next week. Hopefully before all this wondering develops into a crisis. I couldn’t face an “oh my gosh, I’m not a mainstream sheep, am I?” type of crisis right now, I don’t have the energy for it. Maybe when I’m rich and have nothing to do. Maybe then I’ll have a crisis.

Episode 9 of Suicide Squad Isekai is now available to watch on Max and Hulu.

Suicide Squad Isekai Episode 10 Review  – Loud And Clear Reviews

The DC villains fight on until the very end in Suicide Squad Isekai episode 10, continuing the boss battle that began previously.

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