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Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 4 – Quick Summary
In Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead episode 4, “Flight Attendant of the Dead,” Akira and Kencho lived the good life. Kencho turned out to be an excellent cook. Akira finally got to play video games without interruption. But something was missing. Something fundamental! So Akira convinced Kencho they had to go out and get a bigger TV! Turns out that wasn’t the best decision they could have made…
Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.
Favorite Quote from Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 4
Akira’s words struck a chord in Yukari. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
Have you read George Orwell’s book Animal Farm? Remember Boxer, the horse? After working in the corporate world for these many decades, I understand Boxer. I understand why he did what he did. I understand his last words.
Akira understands, too. He even articulated it perfectly to the poor, doomed Yukari, in my favorite quote. He started out hoping to be physically intimate with her, but her she made it clear she still hoped to find her boyfriend alive.
But that didn’t stop him from talking to her, or her from talking to him. She shared her experience working for the airline. He shared how he started working for the production company. Now, he spoke from the wisdom that only the fall of civilization at the hands of zombies can bring:
“But now that I think of it, the things I aspired to do were just things someone else wanted,” he said (18:18). “It was just a borrowed dream.”
Akira learned the lesson that killed Boxer, and Akira’s still alive! So he’s got that going for him. Yukari, on the other hand…
Favorite Moment from Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 4
That’s life, in a single frame. Sometimes you merely feel the wind of the zombie’s passage. Other times… Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
Setup: An Unexpected Journey
Circumstance conspired to make this episode drive a dagger into my heart. To be sure, it used superb technique. Knowing that the Suited Man Zombie roamed the floor added a sense of menace and dread as Akira and and Yukari spoke. Seeing Akira close his eyes as he uttered my favorite quote made me terrified that Yukari would be dead when he opened his eyes. And worst of all: I knew Akira and her friends were not in the ED. I knew they would have to die by the end of this episode to preserve the ED’s version of future events.
But this morning, in real life, at 3:00AM, a family member woke me up with chest pains. Have you ever followed an ambulance carrying a loved one to the emergency room? I don’t recommend it. That said, I want to give a shout out to all of the medics, doctors, nurses, and anyone working in the fire and hospital systems. Life-savers all, in the truest sense of the word.
Even in death, this fireman remained at his station. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
You should know: all’s well. Again, I want to praise the wonder of modern medicine. My family’s home and in good condition. That experience, coming as it did hours before I watched this episode, put me in a mindset receptive for this episode’s theme.
Remember how Suited Man Zombie bit Yukari? And how she knew she was done for? Akira tried to convince himself it could be otherwise, but they both knew the score. As I watched Suited Man Zombie pull himself together and come after her again, it struck me.
Delivery: There Are No Guarantees
That’s life, in a nutshell.
She knew she was going to die. She knew death in the form of Suited Man Zombie flew through the air towards her. Clutching the wound on her neck, she knew that even if that zombie missed, she would die, and turn, and become a menace to the living.
And yet, what did she do? She did what we all do. She smiled in the face of death. Yukari tried to put Akira, and herself, at ease by saying (20:36), “You know, today felt like a real party. It was fun, wasn’t it?”
Just before the zombie crashed into her.
I’m being overly dramatic, aren’t I? That’s what I’d like to tell myself. But you know what? As I sat in the ER at 3:30AM, I realized all of the things my family member couldn’t do today: go out to lunch, check e-mail, edit a video, all of the mundane and routine and comforting things we all do every day. It’s overly dramatic, right up until the point where it’s reality.
What else can you do? Laugh with your buddy, celebrate the zombie passing you by, and try to help each other get through the day. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
Even without my experience today, this episode would have struck home. Its emotions and its themes are honest and authentic and expertly presented. There are times, though, when reality conspires to drive a meaning home in particularly painful ways. I’ll say this: I loved the experience of watching this episode. But I really, really hope the world doesn’t make me especially susceptible to its themes in the future. I’m just not ready for that.
What did you think of Kencho finding a big screen TV despite everything? What were your favorite moments? Feel free to let me know in the comments!
Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 4: Other Posts
Other Anime Sites
- Reddit: Zom 100: Zombie ni Naru made ni Shitai 100 no Koto • Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead – Episode 4 discussion
- DOUBLESAMA: ZOM 100: BUCKET LIST OF THE DEAD EPISODE 4 REVIEW
- I Drink and Watch Anime: ZOM 100 – Episode 4
This Site (Crow’s World of Anime!)
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 01: Akira of the Dead
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 02: Bucket List of the Dead
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 03: Best Friend of the Dead
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 04: Flight Attendant of the Dead
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 05: Hero of the Dead
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 06: RV of the Dead
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 07: Truck Stop of the Dead
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 08: Sushi & Hot Springs of the Dead
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 09: Treehouse of the Dead
That sounds like quite the experience. I’m glad everyone is fine, but that would have taken it out of you, I’m sure.
I love this episode even though it’s a real downer. I like the idea that Akira needed to see what unlimited freedom might lead to. There are so many great messages in every episode (and will be in future ones too).
Yeah, it’s been a long week… that’s not even counting the surgery on Thursday…
But, we’re all home and in one piece.
This was a wake-up call for Akira, that’s for sure. Maybe he’ll be better able to listen to Shizuka now — and be better able to articulate his position to her. And yes, I’m trying to think of ways to get her into more episodes.
The story is about doing some actual living before we die, but this episode points out that there’s a difference between doing that and merely descending into drunken revelry. Akira and Kencho might be doing well for themselves, but the zombie apocalypse is still a matter of life and death. It may only be a new face for the daily struggle which has always defined humanity’s existence, but still! Life and death are things to take seriously. It’s good to seize the moment and live more happily, but go too far in that direction, and you end up weakening yourself. Two of the girls here stood no chance because they were drunk, and one of them one in a haze of pleasure as well. Had they not been, they would have stood a much better chance at seeing the next day. Had Akira and Kencho not indulged so much as well, they might have been able to protect all three of the girls better. We saw what happened instead, and it breaks the heart.
On a completely different note, it’s interesting to me that the zombies seem to keep trying to do what they did when they were alive. The fireman, the truck drive and his dog, and the lady who kept trying to drink even after she was dead. It reminds me of something about how automatic routines are handled by a particular part of the brain, which may keep trying to perform those routines even after the rest of the brain has been severely damaged. Like the body of a fish still squirming or a chicken running around without its head.
That was part of the tragedy. Eat, drink, and be merry – but also watch out for the %$#@ zombies, for Christ’s sake! I’m also wondering why they haven’t even speculated on a means of protecting themselves. Weapons? Armor? Secure area? Lookouts? Who needs those? No particular effort to search for other survivors, either.
I think everyone assumes death is inevitable and that the zombies would get them soon, so have a blast and don’t ruin the fun by getting serious because the end will be the same regardless. Like, if a planet-cracking meteor were on the way. There’s no thought for long-term survival, just frat-boy (and frat-girl) fun.
Contrast that with Shizuka, who is all business and no fun. She’d probably be a superstar in “Walking Dead.”
That’s a very good point about Shizuka. She might be going a little too hard in her own way, not even enjoying a single sweet treat, but at the moment I’d say she was right not to trust Akira when they first met, as irresponsible as he was then and has been since.
I would have expected they would have given some thought to self-defense. Maybe they’re just relying on speed and evasion? Or maybe they haven’t been thinking at all.
I wonder how many people think in terms like you just described? I’d fortify my position, or get to a position I could fortify. But, do most people think like that? I don’t know. I’m so used to it that it’s second nature.
Shizuka would be an over-achiever in Walking Dead — at least, in the first few seasons/books. Not sure about latter works; they didn’t keep my interest, sad to say.
I hope we get to see more of Shizuka soon. I think she has something to teach Akira and vice versa. Though, in her defense, it’s a lot easier to learn to have fun if you’re still alive! Akira and Kencho have been cutting it pretty fine!
The show’s giving a nuanced view on the apocalypse. I like it!
In terms of how Akira and Kenchou are reacting, it seems to me like they’re intoxicated on their freedom after years to soul-crushing exploitation. The events in this episode forced them to think about it a little more.
Over indulgence is a dangerous thing. I didn’t see Yukari drinking very much; certainly not as much as her friend. Still, it was heart-breaking.
I wonder if the show will further develop the idea of the fireman, etc.? Could be a very interesting twist within the zombie genre. I’m always looking for new idea in that space!
I’m really still trying to figure out how power is still running.
Your post runs close to poetry.
Animal Farm is one of the great dystopias. Here, the dystopia was already there before the apocalypse. Our heroes were already zombies and ironically, the end of the world freed them.
Wasted life, acquired wisdom, acceptance of death. This show is really deep.
That’s a good question about the power. Turns out National Geographic has an answer!
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/preparing-for-the-zombie-apocalypse-are-microgrids-our-only-chance
Their answer? 24 hours in most cases. So, yeah, the power should be off.
Thanks for your comment!