Shonen Beam

[scanlation by CXC Scans]

I’m interested to see how the moral dilemma the characters were presented with last chapter will be altered by Matsurigi’s shadow-induced selfishness.

In defiance of almost all precedent, this sudden and abrupt shift in Matusrigi’s tone does not go unnoticed. Not only is Haiba immediately suspicious, but the hooded guy also quickly notices the flecks of black on Matsurigi’s hand and keeps the door from being unlocked. My respect for our protagonists is being earned yard-for-yard.

The delay in opening the door gives Matsurigi time to reassert himself and regain control of his body. While it would have been interesting to have him remain as a shadow for the duration of the third password test, this particular action makes up for how abruptly he was cut off last chapter; he’s actually getting to dispense the information now.

Testimony about the shadow shows that it at least has human hands. In some ways, the bad guy is a bit scarier that way than as a formless mass; we now know just enough to prompt speculation, but not enough to formulate anything solid. That uncertainty is what creates effective fear.

Plus, those are hardly ordinary hands

Matsurigi’s reassertion doesn’t mean that he’s going to remain himself forever. Even if he gets out, there’s not any guarantee he won’t become a shadow before the e-test finishes. That’s one plotline that could go any number of ways.

Interesting line of reasoning coming from the hooded guy. I understand his hating Enigma, but another thing gleaned from his speech is that, apparently, even he is concerned about group unity at this point. I guess somewhere along the line he observed that this group of people can function effectively together. In any event, nice subtle attitude shift.

Youthfully rebelling into camaraderie

So, we go for that standard third option: choose both and save everything. That is a tad disappointing, but it does give us the opportunity to see a new power demonstrated.

Apparently, Sumio can do something like telepathic communication now. Weird. Now that we’ve seen him do this, I’d kind of like to see an explanation for his new powers sooner rather than later. As it is, I’m a tad confused about what all he can actually do.

They open the password door, and Matsurigi is now ready to free himself through his new power, something called “Cubic Subtraction.” A little surprised they opted to show his power rather than the hooded guy’s; this makes me all the more curious what his will eventually be.

Final Flash: This chapter produced unpredictability on a page-by-page basis. Not in the sense of inconsistency, but in the sense that the next step is never boringly clear. Mystery series can thrive on this balancing of suspense and surprise.