For weeks, viewers have amassed a growing collection of questions regarding the inner workings of the mysterious Tower, and this week’s episode comes out swinging, giving readers a deeper look into the title of ‘Princess of Zahard.’
The Princesses of Zahard are revealed to have been hand chosen by Zahard, the first person to ever conquer the Tower and current King of the Zahard Empire within the Tower, as vessels to receive a share of his power.
Upon receiving his power, the Princesses are granted increased strength, durability, and combat skills, along with the chance to wield one of the 13th Month Series (such as Zahar’s Green April or Bam’s Black March).
However, this power comes with a cost, as Princesses are forbidden from entering into relationships with men, marrying, and even bearing children.
With this knowledge in mind, Androssi deduces Zahar’s secret while atop the floating platforms of their Fisherman combat test: Zahar is not an actual Princess, but instead the daughter of the real Princess Zahar, who was killed by her fellow Princesses after her relationship and child were discovered.
An enraged Zahar knocks Androssi off the platforms, but not before Androssi grabs hold of her clothes and drags them both into the abyss below.
In the aftermath, as Zahar and Androssi are restricted to bed rest following their sustained injuries, the other Regulars continue both their training in their specialized roles and their intragroup bonding.
Leading the charge in building friendships are Bam and Khun, who offer their assistance to the others with some of their more troubling tasks, such as Bam offering to wash Laure’s ‘tainted’ pillow after Serena drools on it and Khun developing a script for Ship and Hatsu to follow in order to complete their previously assigned task of making friends. This script is specifically used to extend a bridge to both Androssi and Zahar, offering to continually bring them meals during their recovery if they agree to become their friend.
However, the group is divided once again as Test Administrator Yu Han-Sung begins the next test: a game of tag between two randomized teams.
Han-Sung picks a member to be “it,” requiring them to hold a badge during the duration of the game. Each team must attempt to grab the other’s respective badge, all the while defending their badge from being touched by either the other team or an Examiner ‘It,’ a wild card team made up of only a single Test Examiner. To both Leero and the examinee’s surprise, Quant is chosen by Han-Sung to play the role.
As the competition begins, ‘Team A’ begins by luring Quant into a trap, almost succeeding in touching his badge. Much to Leero’s dismay, this deception introduces an unexpected element to the test: Quant’s uncontrollable temper. Quant’s rage begins to explode just in time for a hard cut to black as the episode ends.
Setting the stage for quality is the opening fight scene between Androssi and Zahar, featuring Androssi’s signature legwork and a flowing Shinsu-based fighting style from Zahar, a fluid and fast paced clash accentuated by Zahar’s rage.
At the end of the episode, Team A delivers an expertly coordinated attack on Quant, attacking him from all angles and guiding him through the twisting hallways of the test room. The Tower of God team continues to impress with their fight choreography, once again ensuring that the viewers are never lost amidst the whirlwind clashes.
These fight scenes are nicely balanced out by the continued moments of personal interaction between the characters. The more time spent with the core cast of Regulars, the more each individual personality is allowed to flourish and distinguish itself.
Khun’s pretentiousness, Hatsu’s stoic annoyance, and Bam’s caring nature shine through in particular. Androssi herself receives a notable amount of screen time, with interactions between her, Zahar, Bam, and Rachel hinting that she may have more of a tender side than her hyperactive demeanor lets on.
In case anyone forgot about the series’ beautiful art direction, this episode delivers a reminder in spades. The opening recap of the legend of Zahard is animated in a distinctly different style, emulating a sketchy-textured, storybook style.
Zahar’s Shinsu attacks show off an almost seamless blend of CG and traditional animation to deliver liquid movements. Tower of God remains one of the best-looking series currently in production.
The Verdict
Without a doubt, ‘Lunch and Tag’ is easily one of the best in the season thus far. Beautiful animation combined with interesting character writing and plot thickening is sure to keep audiences enticed, eager to come back for next weeks episode. After all, there can only be more action and more Androssi to come.