In episode 5 of Kaiju No. 8, Kafka continued to struggle. He made some progress but it was minimal. He and the other recruits continued to bond as they learned about each other. At the end of the episode, alarms go off and Soshiro Hoshina informs Kafka that he’s going on his first mission. This episode begins by showing us the hourly preparation when a Kaiju arrives. At 0300 hours there’s a meeting in the operation room where everyone gets updated on the current events. The area is evacuated, they coordinate with the JSDF, while tracking the location of the Kaiju.
According to Hoshina, the Kaiju is in its “breeding phase,” and is surrounded by smaller Kaiju. The goal is to isolated the Kaiju so that it can be killed without too much death and damage. You can see that the world has adapted to Kaiju both with the military strategy but also the expectation of the civilians. Furthermore, the traffic lights feature a fourth light that signals an Kaiju emergency. It’s another red light with a symbol of a Kaiju on it. In addition to that there’s the “Kaiju Exclusive Lane,” so the military can travel quickly.
Mina is a beast
The Kaiju is a cross between a mushroom and a vicious turtle. It continuously replicates small Kaiju. The recruits and the Defense Force are separated into sections. The newer member will be placed furthest away from the Kaiju, becoming the “last line of defense.” The other recruits engage the small Kaiju, Captain Ashiro prepares to snipe the giant Kaiju. Kafka’s squad also has Kikoru but they’re underestimated as one of the more seasoned recruit complains about having to “babysit.” This give Kikoru, now insulted, the opportunity to show off. She slaughters the small Kaiju.
Reno, Furuhashi, and the other compete with each other, impressing their elders. Kafka on the other hand isn’t useful in combat, so he dissects the Kaiju looking for it core that isn’t were it typically is located. He discovers that the core is at the back of it’s neck protected by “hard, fibrous muscles.” He also notices that the Yoju have “reproductive organs” as well. Hoshina is impressed and asks Okonogi to share that information with the rest of the team. Mina gets to show off her skills, armed with a giant shotgun, she unleashes her combat power at 96%. She blows a massive hole into the Kaiju, causing it to explode. She shoots it four times, obliterating it.
While returning to the frontlines, Reno and Furuhashi encounter the other human Kaiju. He’s disappointed that Kafka figured out the biology of the Kaiju, although he doesn’t know who did it. He asks Reno and Furuhashi if they know and begins to transform. This doesn’t look good for Reno and Furuhashi. However, I think Reno will survive. I’m not sure about Furuhashi. What do you think? Does Furuhashi survive this encounter?
