Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7: Leaving for a Distant Journey

Quick Summary of Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7

In Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7, “Maimai Revolution SAGA,” Maimai Yuzuriha, a big fan of Franchouchou, skipped towards the bath house. Managing somehow to trip on a small twig, she broke her glasses, but that didn’t slow her down! Saying it made her lens look as pretty as a kaleidoscope, she continued her journey. Unfortunately, she could read the signage and ended up walking into the men’s bath. Koutarou Tatsumi chose that moment to lose control of his bar of soap. Unerringly, Maimai’s foot found it, and she slammed head first into the tile floor. What will Koutarou do with the apparently dead young woman lying before him? Did Franchouchou just get its newest member? Or will its members have to visit their manager in jail?

Welcome to Our Review of Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7

Welcome to our collaboration review of Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 6! Irina from I Drink and Watch Anime and I have teamed up to give you our reactions to the adventures of our favorite undead idols.

Wait, I watched episode 7! 

Obviously, by “6”, I mean 7. And now you see the kind of week I had!

This week at work has been, shall we say, challenging? I’m just glad I have the time I would have spent driving pre-COVID to work. Though a little more sleep might be sensible, purely from a health perspective. How has your week been, Irina?

Can’t complain. Lot’s of work is better than not working at all. I suspect I might have to have a root canal next week and that’s a little intimidating but what are you gonna do! 

Good luck!

Opening Thoughts on Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7

This episode introduced us to Maimai, who reminded me a lot of Sakura. Intentionally so, I think, though Maimai’s decisions surprised me — in a good way. We got a glimpse into Yuugiri’s darker side, and though it was only for an instance, dang. I do not want to get on her bad side. We also saw just how much Maimai respects Sakura — to the point where Sakura’s words unintentionally sent Maimai in a direction that I certainly didn’t expect at the beginning — but that made perfect melancholy sense at the end.

Irina, do you have any thoughts you’d like to share before we plunge into the review?

I think I have a general feel for what you tend to enjoy in character’s and I do believe Maimai fit the bill. At least on one level. I guess I’m at least a little bit right since you don’t seem to be as unhappy about the fact that you have to wait yet another week for a Yugiri episode as you usually do!

Man, that’s scary. I feel like I should start randomizing my reactions or something…

Review of Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7

Maimai Follows in Sakura’s Footprints

As soon as the episode opened and we saw a bright and optimistic Maimai prevailing over the trials and tribulations all of us go through every day, I could only thinking of one thing: She’s gonna die. I got the same vibe from season 1’s first episode, when Sakura oh-so-cheerfully skipped out of her house and into the street. Just in time for truck-kun to kill her.

So it was with no surprise that I watched as Koutarou lost control of his bar of soap. Maimai, having broken her glasses and being a sometimes absent-minded young woman, wandered into the men’s bath and slipped on that bar of soap.

He has a strange way of scouting for new talent… And of course he wears his sunglasses even in the bath! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

The episode even played the same music it did as it showed Sakura falling to the pavement. Nice touch, that.

I have to say, seeing Koutarou dump what he thought was Maimai’s corpse, wrapped in towels, on the floor in front of the idols during their morning meeting was surrealistically hilarious. I put it that way because I wasn’t sure I should be laughing. Maimai had only made it to her second year of high school. She was way too young to die! And certainly not humorously. Yet, that’s exactly what had already happened to all of the members of Franchouchou. So even as I wrestled with whether I should laugh or not, the show reminded me that this show is heavier than it seems. 

Koutarou, Master Criminal

Does that make any sense, Irina? You talked about something like that back in the first season’s sixth episode. Maybe you can say it better than I can.

I think Koutarou is handled a bit off this season so the scene didn’t quite work for me. Although later in the episode he does have a few genuinely nice moments that remind us the character isn’t just a gimmick. Maybe that’s why it never crossed my mind that she could be dead. I was even a bit confused.

Turns out Koutarou would make a terrible criminal. Also turned out that, fortunately, the fall hadn’t killed Maimai. Ai showed understandable anger at her manager when she asked, “Why exactly didn’t you double check?” Good question! 

Now, to show you the extent of Maimai’s optimism, her first conversation with Sakura started as Maimai held the idol’s detached head. As if it were the most natural thing in the world. Seriously, nothing seems to get this girl down! When Franchouchou had to admit they were all zombies, even that didn’t phase Maimai. 

You know, for a young woman who just regained consciousness, is wearing only a towel, and who caught a talking undead head, Maimai shows remarkable poise. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

I guess there are fans, and then there are fans. 

Yuugiri Gives a Glimpse of Her Dark Side in Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7

This is where Yuugiri showed she has a practical view of the world. As the group debated what to do — no one, after all, wanted their secret out! — Yuugiri said, “The way I see it, she’ll have to die.” Everyone looked at her, agast. They only seemed to relax when she added, her expression still serious, “But that’s probably not the best idea.”

I think she was serious! What do you think, Irina?

I really loved how Maimai caught Sakura’s head. The characterisation was a bit uneven, she was shown as such a huge clutz in the opening scenes that I was sure she was going to drop it but then the clumsy side of her kind of disappeared and she learned iol choreographies without too much problem.

As for Yugiri again, I thought she was serious. 

I would ask you to remind me not to piss off Yuugiri, but after this episode, I’ll remember quite well on my own, thanks! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Well, long story short, Maimai wanted to join Franchouchou. Not as a condition to keep quiet about them being zombies. No, Maimai really seems to be as optimistic and kind as she acts. She just wanted to sing with her favorite idols.

Yuugiri, Star of Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7 (Well, One of Them)

We got a brief training montage that showed the poor girl couldn’t dance to save her life. What I liked about the sequence is that it was never unkind to Maimai. The rest of Franchouchou rallied to help her train. She even improved steadily!

Though I honestly did laugh when Yuugiri said, “You managed to stay upright this time!”

You may not have complained about the Yugiri backstory but she sure seems to be the one you were paying attention to. 

I think it’s like a Yuugiri fix. This was a good Yuugiri episode, even if she wasn’t front and center!

It made sense, then, that Maimai pitched the idea of Franchouchou to be her class’s contribution to her school festival. They all agreed, and all of Franchouchou said they wanted a tour. They all either barely remembered their high school lives, or, like Yuugiri, never had the experience and wanted to see how the young kids lived nowadays.

cough…yugiri… cough

Ai and Junko looked in on the band class. And notice how I subtly proved that yes, I do know that there are more characters in this episode than just Yuugiri! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Tae remained silent on the topic. She kept her thoughts to herself, which is good because they were likely legendary thoughts that I would not have understood. So I appreciated her consideration.

Franchouchou and Auditing Classes

That sequence was funny and touching and sad, all at once. It served as another reminder that these girls were all dead, and that there were some experiences they could no longer share. Maybe it’s just how my week’s gone, but by this point in this show, I felt down. Not a depressed down; not sad, exactly. Melancholy is as close as I can come to it.

Irina, does that make sense?

Perfect sense!

(Guys, don’t tell Crow I forgot this scene. I’m gonna seem heartless)

Seriously, my week has warped my perceptions. 

After their school visit, as late afternoon sun saturated the classroom, Sakura and Maimai stood talking. It was almost disorientating seeing Sakura in classroom, because honestly, she looked so at home there! That idea of her forever frozen at that age struck me.

What struck Maimai was Sakura’s casual mention that Franchouchou intended to extract their revenge on the stadium that nearly destroyed them. Maimai couldn’t believe her ears. “Why wander back into hell like that?”

The art in this episode is as good as the series has given us. Sakura’s smile contained a hint of the sadness I’d been feeling all episode. She answered “That’s just how Franchouchou is.” She went on to say that as a group, they were all much more terrified of giving up “and becoming regular old walking dead” than anything else.

What must it be like to be a zombie idol? How does it change one’s perspective? Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

A Swing and a… Miss? Base Hit?

In that moment, Maimai realized the gulf between them. Before, she’d suggested they all go bathing, forgetting entirely that there’s no way zombies could be seen in a public bath. She’d felt so close to them that the difference hadn’t mattered.

Now, faced with the resolve that had carried Sakura past her own death, Maimai realized she didn’t belong in Franchouchou. 

What did you think of that scene, Irina?

I thought it was a bit on the nose. It was cute and all, Zombie Land usually is, but this time they laid it on a bit too thick for my tastes. The series has done this exact message before, in fact they’ve done it relentlessly and much better. I think this was the worst execution of it.

A nice message and a cute scene but as far as I’m concerned, Zombie Land is a show that is capable of much more nuance and complexity and certainly more subtlety. 

And I do agree that Maimai is a bit redundant in personality now that you mention it. Maybe that’s why it didn’t resonate with me as much. It was superfluous.

Sakura had forgotten herself, but Maimai had listened intently. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Kinda like a Sakura Take II? Only this time, she didn’t die? That’s an interesting thought.

Closing Thoughts on Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7

The last performance looked on par with the others this season. Smooth animation, graceful and captivating choreography, and a lovely song made Maimai’s debut a triumph. Which made her immediate withdrawal such a shock! But after her talk with Sakura, she realized he had to live first. She wasn’t ready for the level of commitment that Franchouchou required; or maybe she just realized how much she really wanted to live.

By the way, the costumes they’ve designed for this season’s performance are wonderful! Koutarou must know someone who can do costumes.

Irina, any closing thoughts on the episode?

For me this was a weak episode. And that’s pretty good because I did enjoy it and I thought it passed by quickly but it felt like filler. A random non consequential adventure to throw in before we can get back to developing the characters and main story. 

That might be also why there was so much more time dedicated to performances this week as well. 

It really was a lovely performance this week! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

What did you think, Crow?

I keep saying my week has changed my perception of space/time, so I probably enjoyed this episode more than I rationally should have. But it struck a tone that resonated with me.

And you saw after the credits, right? We get a Yuugiri backstory episode next week! She even apologized for making us wait! Is she gracious or what?

Other Posts about Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7

Other Anime Sites

• Reddit: Zombieland Saga Revenge – Episode 7 discussion
• RABUJOI: Zombieland Saga: Revenge – 07 – We’ve Got a Live One
• Random Curiosity: Zombie Land Saga Revenge – 07

This Collaboration (I Drink and Watch Anime and Crow’s World of Anime!)

• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 1: Good Morning Returns SAGA
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 2: The SAGA of an Almost-Broken Radio
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 3: The Acoustic SAGA of Love and Youth
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 4: Pure-Hearted Electric SAGA
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 5: Little Bodda Bope SAGA
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 6: Walking Bet SAGA
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 7: Maimai Revolution SAGA
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 8: The Saga Incident, Part I
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 9: The Saga Incident, Part II
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 10: The SAGA of How These Zombies Will Get Their Revenge
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 11: All It Takes Is For You To Be There SAGA
• Zombie Land Saga Revenge Episode 12: The Greatest SAGA in History