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"It's like... it's the same place, but only we are in a different world." |
| The information below contains information exclusive to The World Ends with You The Animation and may be non-canonical to the original game. |
"Erased" (消滅) is the third episode in The World Ends with You: The Animation.
Plot[]
Neku wakes up on the sixth day. He looks at the news on Q Front, seeing a young pair have been seriously injured in a car crash. Neku wonders about what Shiki told him the day before: the Reapers' Game screens dead people who wish to be resurrected, and how he died. Shiki tells him about Entry Fees, what the Player values the most. She states her entry fee was her body, and speculates the reason why Beat got so upset when Neku pessimistically talked to Rhyme about dreams was because it was her entry fee. Neku thinks about how he can't remember anything.
Megumi Kitaniji speaks to his proxy GM, Yodai Higashizawa. He compliments Higashizawa on how well he is doing, and says he'll receive a promotion after the game.
Beat and Rhyme meet up with Neku and Shiki. Their phones buzz with the mission - it says to reach Tower Records with no time limit, a 10 minute walk. Beat challenges Neku and Shiki to a race, and he and Rhyme skateboard off. On the rooftops, Uzuki gripes about the easiness of the mission. Just before Tower Records, Beat taunts Neku and Shiki about their slowness - Neku says the race isn't done yet because he's still waiting outside Tower Records. Rhyme says Beat wanted to wait for him, and he gets embarrassed over Rhyme telling. Kariya explains to Uzuki the point of the Game Master assigning such an easy mission on Day 6. Uzuki understands and summons Noise.
Rhyme falls into Uzuki's trap.
Beat calls Rhyme over when they reach Tower Records. She stops and sees a Noise symbol at Beat's feet and pushes him away so the Swing Shark eats her, not him. Shiki attacks the shark with Mr. Mew, but is thrown off. Rhyme is erased, leaving her bell pendant at Beat's feat. Uzuki and Kariya fly in, caustic about Rhyme's death. Beat is furious and tries to attack the Reapers, but they dodge and retaliate. Since Reapers aren't allowed to physically attack Players, they leave the Noise to erase Neku, Shiki, and Beat. They notice when the Shark eats the Fish Noise surrounding it, it gets bigger. Beat tries to attack the shark, but Hanekoma stops him and orders Beat to come with him if he doesn't want to be erased.
On the last day, Hanekoma calls Neku and Shiki to report Beat has gone missing. Since Reapers can attack Players at will on Day 7, and the Game Master Higashizawa will be about, Hanekoma asks them to end the Game as soon as they can for Beat. Kariya and Uzuki eat at Mexican Dog. Uzuki playfully squirts a large amount of mustard on his hot dog before they are interrupted by a furious Beat, yelling at them for chit-chatting after taking away his Partner.
Beat confronts Kariya and Uzuki.
At the Station Underpass, Shiki thanks Neku for their time together and promises to meet up with him when they come back to life - since Shiki will look different, she says she'll bring along Mr Mew. At the freeway, Higashizawa transforms into Ovis Cantus. After struggling with Higashizawa's powerful attacks, they begin a Fusion Attack. Neku is thrown into the sky by Ovis Cantus, but a large Mr. Mew cushions him, letting him bounce off him and reach Ovis Cantus. Using Sweet Talk Tether, he chains Ovis Cantus, jumps in the air, and makes the finishing blow using Flames Afar, Foes Aflame. Higashizawa is erased, and a battered Neku and Shiki celebrate their victory before they fade to white.
Neku and Shiki find themselves in a white void. They are greeted by Megumi Kitaniji, and reveals that only one person will be revived, being Shiki. She begs for Neku to come back rather than her, but he says he doesn't know about himself or if he wants to be alive and says she needs to be resurrected. As Kitaniji explains Neku can play the Game for a second time, Shiki falls to the ground in pain, turning into static, crying out to Neku for help. Neku asks Kitaniji if this is what he calls rebirth, and he announces that she's being taken as his entry fee for the second week. She dives into Neku's arms and dissolves.
Shiki being taken as Neku's entry fee.
Joshua, his face almost completely covered in darkness, stands alone in a secluded area. He giggles.
Cast (English, Japanese)[]
- Neku Sakuraba - Ben Balmaceda, Kōki Uchiyama
- Shiki Misaki - Morgan Garrett, Anna Hachimine
- Sota Honjo (no lines)
- Nao (no lines)
- Megumi Kitaniji - Christopher Wehkamp, Hiroshi Shirokuma
- Yodai Higashizawa - Anthony DiMascio, Kenji Takahashi
- Daisukenojo "Beat" Bito - Van Barr Jr., Subaru Kimura
- Raimu "Rhyme" Bito - Dani Chambers, Ayana Taketatsu
- Uzuki Yashiro - Jessica Peterson, Satomi Arai
- Koki Kariya - Andrew Kishino, Anri Katsu
- Sanae Hanekoma - Brandon Potter, Kenjirō Tsuda
Noise[]
- Swing Shark
- Unnamed fish Noise
- Ovis Cantus
Differences from the Game[]
- Following the change from the previous episode, the anime's Day 6's mission is Day 4 in the game.
- In the anime, Shiki and Neku deduce Neku's memories must have been his entry fee, whereas in the game he learns after Kitaniji restores them. Neku only explicitly recognizes his entry fee was his memories in the next episode, Reapers.
- Sota Honjo and Nao are revealed to be in their late teens, as well being caught in a car accident. They were noted to be "unconscious", meaning they died in the hospital. The game does not clarify their ages or how they died.
- In the game, Neku and Shiki enter the 104 Building and come across the Prince. In a conversation, when Neku says he does not care about being wearing trendy clothing and will wear what he wants, she bossily tells him, "Ugh, no, you can't do that!" This was removed in the anime, likely so viewers could empathize with Shiki more. This also means one of the game's more humorous lines is missing, in which Shiki tells Neku how he dresses sends a message, and Neku thinks, "Then I wish I had more zippers... so I could tell you to ZIP IT."
The game's infamous pants scene.
- On the way to Beat and Rhyme, in the game, Shiki orders Neku to remove his shorts so she can fix a loose button on his shorts (it is revealed Shiki carries a sewing kit with her). It is never actually revealed if Shiki actually stripped Neku herself or if Neku caved into her pressure and did it himself. Regardless, the scene was meant to show how bossy Shiki can be and how she can trivialize Neku's feelings. Before the anime's release, there was a lot of wonder whether or not the anime would include this infamous scene, as it has the potential to portray Shiki in a negative light. Because of instances like this being removed, players who play the game often feel like "anime Shiki" and "game Shiki" have different characterizations.
- In the anime, the Swing Shark noise is accompanied by a school of fish noise, which it eats to get bigger. The Swing Shark is accompanied with Dixiefrogs, Bigbanfrogs, and Bigbansprogs in the game which it eats to increase its stats.
Shiki and Neku have an argument after Rhyme dies.
- In the game, after the unfortunate incident with Rhyme, Neku and Shiki had an emotional argument where Shiki expressed frustration at Neku's reserved behavior, asking him if Rhyme's death even makes him sad. Neku then angrily said friends only drag him down, saying he's not Shiki's friend and no one is. This argument ended with Shiki calling Neku no better than a Reaper. This scene does not occur in the anime, likely to try build up Neku and Shiki's friendship so her being taken away at the end feels more impactful.
- In the game, Beat is taken to Hanekoma's café. There are scenes in the game, such as the ending of Shiki, Day 6 where Beat is in WildKat, including his escape, but these are cut from the anime. While Hanekoma was mentioned to be a café owner from his introduction in the game, the anime does not acknowledge this by the time he shelters Beat, and is only revealed two episodes later in CAT.
- Beat meets up with Kariya and Uzuki in Mexican Dog, rather than on a roof.
- Higashizawa's speech to Shiki after his defeat is replaced with an apology to Megumi for failing.
- In the game, after winning the Reapers' Game, Neku finally says Shiki's name for the first time, instead of "you" or "stalker". Shiki is rather touched by this and points it out. However, in the anime, Neku already says her name during the Swing Shark attack, so this moment was removed.
- The scene where the winning players meet with Kitaniji is moved to after Higashizawa's defeat, rather than being a flashback during Week 2.
- Beat also does not ask to become a Reaper in this scene - in fact, he is absent.
Shiki smiles as she says goodbye in the game.
- Shiki's disappearance is significantly changed; in the game, she bittersweetly floats upwards and fades away believing she'll be revived before Kitaniji announces she is Neku's entry fee. In the anime Shiki being "collected" as Neku's entry fee is dramatic and painful, with her turning into static and crying out to Neku for help and diving into his arms before she dissipates.
- Kitaniji doesn't tell Neku he's returning Neku's memories before he collects Shiki.
- A post-credits scene with Joshua is added. In the game, Joshua first formally appears when he pacts with Neku on Joshua, Day 1.
Trivia[]
- The episode shares its name with Shiki, Day 4.
Gallery[]
| The Animation episodes |
|---|
| The Reapers' Game • Shiki • Erased • Reapers • CAT • Turf (Episode) • Joshua (Episode) • Emergency Call • Rhyme and Beat • The Countless Wrongs of Our Day • The Hour of Reckoning • It's a Wonderful World |