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Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22: Favorites

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Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22 – Quick Summary

In Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22, “Parents,” Rudy had found the portal to the next stratum. Paul led the party through the teleporter, and they found the level guardian, just as they’d hoped. Things went downhill rapidly from there. Their realized it was a hydra at the same time they saw that, perched on its back, entombed in crystal, was the unconscious form of Zenith. Paul lost his cool and attacked. Do they have any chance against that hydra? Why does does this hydra have scales? And is there anything Rudy can do to keep Paul from killing himself?

Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.

Favorite Quote from Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22

Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22: Roxy could not find the words to comfort Rudy

Roxy wanted to comfort Rudy, but she didn’t have the words. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Sometimes, I pick a quote that’s silent. A deliberate choice not to speak is a way of communicating (albeit non-verbally), so I think it qualifies as a favorite quote.

It’s hard to communicate an intimate emotion when the event is too big. The death of a father is tough, but the event of a driving force behind a lot of the narrative, and a lot of Rudy’s personal story, is even bigger. Both my favorite quote and my favorite moment are examples of how to convey a poignant emotion in the fact of such enormity.

Paul had just fallen – victim of Rudy’s lapse in concentration and his own desire to protect his son. The survivors trudged back through the dungeon. Talhand carried the unconscious Zenith. Rudy walked, head bowed, eyes staring ahead.

Roxy walked alongside Rudy, on his left. She tried to speak (20:05) but couldn’t find any words. Then she tried again; again words failed her. She resumed her silent trek.

This is moment when I began to feel the loss of Paul.

Favorite Moment from Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22

Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22: Lilya told Rudy she would take care of things

She began to engage her grief in the best way she knew how. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Setup: Jobless Reincarnation Gets Under My Skin – in a Good Way

The animation in this episode was so effective that I didn’t see it as animation. I reacted not to the artistic achievement of the hydra’s fire breath attack and Rudy’s defense; I reacted as if I was simply watching Rudy protect the party. I consider any work of fiction to be “quality” to the extent it immerses me in the moment. This episode pull it off.

Before I get to my favorite moment, I want to call out the scene just after their first encounter with what Roxy called the “manatite hydra” (08:28). This series has gotten into my head several times, like when it made me relive the experience of learning my son had been born deaf. This episode did it yet again.

Remember when Paul thought he had himself back under control? When Rudy asked “Do you think Mom is still alive in that state?” (06:15)? Paul lost his temper. He was furious that Rudy had remained calm. It was as if Rudy’s calm was an affront.

Paul could not understand Rudy’s reaction. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Rudy, his face set, simply answered (06:39), “What will losing my temper solve?” As you can imagine, that did not give Paul a reason to back down.

Do you know how many times I was in Rudy’s shoes? Honestly, I’ve lost track. I remember driving my wife and kids to visit my side of the family one Sunday afternoon. As we came up over a hill on a country road, a truck veered left of center. I had to practically ditch my minivan to get out of the way.

I immediately began to analyze what had just happened. To this day, I remember clearly I was looking for ways to improve my reaction. My wife gave me quite the talking to for being so calm about it. I get she was scared; I should have been. Her reaction was more human-typical than mine. But for as long as I can remember, I’m pretty much useless, until there’s a crisis. Then I go stone cold and overthink my way through it.

Delivery: Emotionally Intelligent Writing

Maybe it’s why I am so comfortable talking to first responders or ex-military folks. Their perspective makes sense to me. 

Anyway, on to my favorite moment. In my favorite quote, I mentioned that Paul’s death was such a huge emotional event that I couldn’t get my feelings around it. It was too big. Its scope felt too broad. I first began feeling his death when Roxy failed to find words to comfort Rudy. But I think I most felt Paul’s death later.

The party made it back to town. They found Lilya Greyrat, Shierra, and Vierra, who were at first happy to see them. The end credits rolled; the soundtrack, heavy with strings, kept playing, but we could not hear what they were saying. We didn’t need to. You could from Lilya’s reaction exactly when Geese and Elinalise broke the news. Shierra fell to her knees, sobbing. 

Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22: Roxy and the rest of the party felt devastated

Paul’s death hit the whole party very hard. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

That was effective, from my point of view. I began to feel the weight that Paul’s departure dropped on them. Then Lilya stepped forward and drew Rudy into an embrace.

“You must be tired,” she told him (21:14). “Please take your rest and let me see to things.”

Knowing Rudy has to blame himself for what happened; knowing how much Lilya loved Paul; knowing know much she loved Rudy. Those things finally gave my emotions a handle to grasp what had just happened. Paul’s dead, and that’s sad. Paul left behind many people who cared about him in their own way – people who now have to figure out how to live without him. And that’s sad, too.

What did you think of Rudy’s insight into how to kill the hydra? What were your favorite moments? Feel free to share in the comments!

Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22: Other Posts

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8 thoughts on “Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 Episode 22: Favorites

    1. It doesn’t happen very often! thinking back over the last several years, this series, maybe Made in Abyss, and The Ancient Magus’ Bride have hit me this hard. But it’s rare!

      That’s probably good for my heart.

  1. The man-god told Rudy not to go. But his mother was gone. So we went.

    He went from an emotionally crushed father and no mother to a mentally disabled mother and no father. That mother might yet recover. That’s an even trade, though the process of getting there was terrifically painful. Nietzsche would approve because Rudy will mature and would get stronger because of it.

    Sometimes I think the man-god tells Rudy not to do things because he knows that’s the perfect bait.

    I’m also the guy who gets all analytical in an emergency. I’ve been in emergencies where that came in very handy. People were emoting all over the place and not accomplishing anything. I analyzed the situation and stepped in and rescued the victim. And once when people did not take me seriously and a big catastrophe almost happened. (A little one happened instead.)

    I think my wife understands to not interfere when I’m in computer mode. She was a nurse for 40 years and that doesn’t lead to overemotional reactions either.

    1. “Sometimes I think the man-god tells Rudy not to do things because he knows that’s the perfect bait.”

      You know, I can see that! I just can’t trust that twerking god.

      You’re lucky your wife understands! That’s huge.

  2. For me, the scene that hit the hardest was the very last one, with Zenith waking up. Up untill then, there were possibilities for rationalisations like “we made a great sacrifice, but at least we achieved our goal”. And then the final seconds slapped all over it with a giant “for what?”. Sure, on a calm mind it’s obvious for what, but in the moment it’s much less obvious. Also, props to Zenith’s voice actor for the delivery of those sounds.

    1. Good selection! That hit hard, didn’t it? The writing in this show continues to impress me. The writing doesn’t call attention to itself; it just presents the characters and lets them go. Really powerful stuff!

Please let me know what you think!

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