Apparitions hum the requiem 

Nomad Megalo Box season 2 follows a lost Joe. Having changed his name to “Nomad,” Joe takes part in underground fights with basic Megalo gear. He’s developed a painkiller addiction and the ghost of Nanbu haunts him. His dominance in the ring makes him unpopular with the crowd. They want to be entertained. The fight’s fixer doesn’t mind avoiding fixed matches, but he wants to sell the fight and Joe’s not cooperating. If he wants a better fight, then get him a better opponent, Joe demands. At a bar he encounters a mysterious guitar player, who offers Joe some advice on combining alcohol and pills. Basically, don’t. This seems to trigger a fleeing moment of reflection for Joe. He tosses his bottle of pills on the bathroom floor. Unfortunately, he’s not strong enough yet, and he picks up each pill.

A lone wolf

Speeding down a highway, Joe encounters a stubborn wolf. He crashes to avoid it. When we see the wolf close up, it has several old scars. It’s clearly a metaphor for Joe. Anyway, Joe finally gets his fight with a high-ranking boxer, Chief. As the match begins, Chief turns out to be the mystery man from the bar. Joe is serious. He barrels at Chief, as the fighter evades, blocks, and counters Joe. Who quickly realises that Chief is good. The crowd switches their bets to Chief winning. The meds wear off and the dynamic turns in Chiefs favor. He secretly bets on Joe to “win” and takes a dive, cashing in. Joe instantly knows what’s going on. He confronts Chief in the parking lot. They fight, briefly. Chief claims Joe’s addiction is the reason he lost. On his way out-of-town Joe encounters the same wolf. This time it’s dead. He buries the corpses, giving it a proper burial. I think this symbolising Joe deciding to live.

Nomad Megalo isn’t particularly exciting with its mule color pallet and miserable principal character. However, this series is about more that just bloody bouts. Joe’s alias is telling about his current predicament. A “Nomad” is a “member of a community without fixed habitation which regularly moves to and from the same areas.” It’s appropriate. Besides not knowing where he’s going, Joe is suffering from withdrawal while withdrawing from his old life. He’s fighting on multiple fronts. Joe battles in the ring, against his regrets from the past, and his current addiction. Nomad Megalo is going to follow Joe through his many battles, and I want to watch him triumph.

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