"Reapers" (死神) is the fourth episode in The World Ends with You: The Animation.
Plot[]
Neku stands at Hachiko on the first day of his second week, thinking about Shiki. He remembers how they promised to meet up after the game, and hears two women in the RG talking about clothes shopping. Neku feels guilty over when Shiki was taken as his entry fee, and thinks if he survives seven days Shiki will come back.
Neku's phone buzzes with the mission, but before he can check, a loud voice over a speaker orders Players to calculate the square root of 10,216 in 60 minutes or be erased. When Carcinofolk start appearing, Neku is about to attack when he realizes he can't use psychs without a partner. When a Carcinofolk flings him into the air, a boy catches him and forms a Pact. His Partner compliments him on his fighting and says he'd been watching him for a long time; he introduces himself as Joshua. Neku wonders if he was from the first week, but knows he wasn't one of the survivors. When Neku grabs Joshua's shoulder, he sees a tag mural, briefly hears his own voice, and sees himself - even if Players can't scan other Players. Neku decides to team up with him, and Joshua says the square root of 10,216 is 104.
Atop Q-Front, Uzuki asks if there's been a Game that ran for two weeks. Kariya said a long time ago and a rookie like her wouldn't know; Uzuki protests she's been a Reaper for two years. She says she dislikes working under the Game Master because she can never get any points. Kariya says its probably part of one of his esoteric plans like his artwork, a scrap heap at 104. RG people are admiring it when Joshua and Neku arrive and notice there's someone at the top. It's Sho Minamimoto, the new Game Master, who speaks in cryptic mathematical terms and recognizes Joshua and Neku, calling them a happy miscalculation that will bring him closer to his desired solution. Kariya and Uzuki check in with a Support Reaper and find Route 1, 2, 5, and 6 are sealed, but 3 and 4 are open. Uzuki complains that Minamimoto doesn't care about Reapers on the ground, but Kariya says they should watch it unfold.
Now most Players are gathered at 104, upset that Minamimoto is issuing more missions. Neku looks around and sees the young couple he saw on the news two days ago as being unconscious after a car crash, and realizes they didn't survive. Minamimoto orders the Players to fight their partners, winners being spared. Neku fights off Carcinofolk and says that they need to trust their partners instead of trusting Minamimoto's lies. Minamimoto then tells the Players he'll save whoever defeats Kariya, who uses this to erase a large amount with House Rhinos. Neku and Joshua erase all the Noise in a powerful Fusion. Joshua is proud, but Neku is still suspicious of Joshua.
At the beginning of the second day, Joshua is on the phone to someone speaking about Routes. Neku thinks that if Joshua wants to go through Route 3 and go through Miyashita Park he must be going to Cat Street. Neku realizes he knows Shibuya and it was his entry fee from last Game, and the mural he saw himself at in Joshua's thoughts the day before was at Udagawa Back Streets. Joshua, now off his phone, apologizes to Neku for what happened to Shiki, but doesn't explain how he knows. They get the mission telling them to find √3, which Joshua mentioned on his phone call.
Joshua explains as they walk that the Reapers describe paths of Shibuya as "Routes", and shows Neku the Reaper decal: on shops marked with them, Players are made corporeal. He demonstrates this by going into the store and buying ice cream. He shows Route 3 cuts through Modi to Parco. They find Minamimoto's trash heap blocking the path, and strange black Noise appearing. They struggle, Neku only saving Joshua from an attack by tackling Joshua out of the way. They erase them with a Fusion attack. Resting at the phone booth, Joshua says they're named Taboo Noise and defeating them cleared the mission. Neku notices Eri at a florist buying lilies. She mentions she leaves offerings of Shiki's favorite flower at her grave every day. The clerk gives her some freshly-bloomed flowers. When Eri passes through Neku, he sees Shiki. Neku retraces his memories but realizes it stops at his death. Seeing Joshua outside makes him furious, and runs towards him - when grabbing his shoulder he sees himself falling to the ground, bleeding.
Beat appears. As a Reaper, he received special orders from Kitaniji. He punches Neku to the ground, then flies off, ignoring Neku begging him not to fight him.
Characters (English, Japanese)[]
- Neku Sakuraba - Ben Balmaceda, Kōki Uchiyama
- Shiki Misaki - Morgan Garrett, Anna Hachimine
- Sho Minamimoto - Brent Mukai, Takayuki Fujimoto
- Yoshiya "Joshua" Kiryu - Clifford Chapin, Ryōhei Kimura
- Sota Honjo (no lines)
- Nao (no lines)
- Uzuki Yashiro - Jessica Peterson, Satomi Arai
- Koki Kariya - Andrew Kishino, Anri Katsu
- Eri - Macy Anne Johnson, Kana Okazaki
- Daisukenojo "Beat" Bito - Van Barr Jr., Subaru Kimura
Noise[]
Differences from the Game[]
- Minamimoto announces the first mission via his megaphone as well as via a mission mail.
- The mission mail in the game was a simple algebraic "x = 30 + 74". In the anime, it's a tougher and more dangerous "calculate the square root of 10,816". Players would need to know what a square root is, think of the numbers of various Shibuya locales, then multiply the number by itself under the mental stress of 60 minutes ticking away, and it is unclear if their phones have calculators. Joshua is able to figure the answer is 104, showing his intelligence.
- Joshua doesn't pretend to ask what Neku's name is, instead mentioning he's been monitoring Neku for a while.
- RG people are seen noticing Minamimoto's artwork at 104. In the game it is implied that his artworks could only be seen in the UG.
- The first confrontation with Minamimoto is vastly different from the game.
- Reapers, like Kariya and Uzuki, are seen watching his announcement.
- In the game, Minamimoto only summons one Dub Rhino, while in the anime he summons multiple.
- Other players, including Sota and Nao, are also present, who Minamimoto tells to attack each other before ordering them to attack the Reapers watching him.
- Since Kitaniji didn't tell Neku he was restoring his memories, Neku realizes it on his own when he notices he suddenly remembers Shibuya.
- Joshua explains shopping in the Game to Neku on Day 2, buying both of them ice cream. In the game, this is done by Shiki on Week 1, Day 4, and she takes Neku clothes shopping at 104.
- Week 2 Day 2's mission is changed from winning the Tin Pin Golem in Tin Pin Slammer to just defeating two Eurobeat Boomers on Route 3
- Minamimoto is seen watching Neku and Joshua.
- A scene of Neku watching Eri buy flowers for Shiki's grave is added.
- Blood is added to Neku's death scene. It was omitted in the game.
- Beat reveals that he has become a Reaper on Day 2 rather than Day 3.
Trivia[]
- The episode shares its name with Joshua, Day 2.
- This episode marks the first time in the franchise blood has been shown.
- To demonstrate the Reaper decals, Joshua buys himself and Neku ice cream. However the food mechanic in the game shows that Neku is neutral and Joshua dislikes both ice cream food items in the original game, the Vanilla Soft Serve and the Soft Serve Swirl.
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 |