Somali and the Forest Spirit Episode 4

Somali and the Forest Spirit Episode 4

The Wishing Flower and the Promise Request

I’m glad we got to see a bit more of the cavern beneath Anthole City in this episode. I really thought Somali and Kikila were going to be taken back up to the surface immediately based on the end of last week’s episode. But, it turns out that master Muthrica just can’t say no to someone with an adventurer’s heart.

And in case you’re reading this review without watching episode 4 of Somali and the Forest Spirit, master Muthrica is the scary, crossbow-wielding wolf man we saw last week.

So, according to master Muthrica, the caverns are much larger than the city which rests above them — and they’re filled with a bunch of dangerous creatures and terrain. As I said last week, it’s basically the abyss from Made in Abyss, except not literally Hell.

On their adventure to find a yozame flower strong enough to survive the journey back to the surface, Somali, Kikila, and Muthrica traverse ravines, ascend cliffs, jump across rivers, and more. They even get to bounce down some branching mushroom spore puffs — and land face first on the ground.

Although this exploration of the cave only lasted for about half of this episode, we got to see quite a lot of the terrain the cave has to offer. And combined with the information we got in the previous episode, I think that gives us enough content from this cave system. Of course I’d like to see more of it, especially the wildlife, but we do need to move on.

I’m looking forward to when Somali and Golem cross the desert, because I think we’ll get to see some interesting creatures there. Caves are cool and all, but this cave is basically just a bioluminescent forest.

Master Muthrica

Master Muthrica is a pretty interesting character. Last week I predicted that he was actually going to be a good guy, he was going to be someone who fights to take down the slave trade, and that he was going to know Somali is a human. It seems like only the first part of that prediction was right.

At no point in the episode was it hinted that master Muthrica knows Somali is a human. And while he is a good guy, he has nothing to do with the slave trade. Instead, he’s a member of the Tsuchinoko Team — a team of experienced adventurers who serve as guides for those traveling into the cave.

From what we’re shown, there seem to be seven members of the Tsuchinoko Team, and master Muthrica is likely their leader. We also know that the entirety of the cave system has not been explored by the team, which lends credibility to the idea that it’s a small group.

Master Muthrica from the anime series Somali and the Forest Spirit
Master Muthrica

As for master Muthrica himself, we don’t really know all that much about him. We know he used to be a soldier, and because of that he’s seen all kinds of plants, animals, places, and people. It’s very possible that he’s even run across humans before, and this might be revealed in the next episode.

After all, from what we see, this continent doesn’t seem to be one at war. All of the various clans — yes, it’s been confirmed that the Oni clan isn’t the only clan — live in harmony and peace. So what military was master Muthrica a member of?

Well, we know that the war between humans and monsters was recent enough for many of the adult monsters to remember what humans taste like. So master Muthrica probably once fought against humans.

The Tsuchilizard

The only new creature we get to see in this episode is the tsuchilizard. Aside from its appearance — four, green eyes; six horns; and a spiky back — we know very little about this creature. Nothing is explicitly stated about it, and we don’t even get to see it do anything.

But even so, there are a few things we can infer about it.

The first thing we know is its name. It’s a tsuchilizard, which literally just means earth lizard. We also know it doesn’t eat rocks or dirt, and it doesn’t appear to be made of rock. So we can assume the name either alludes to the color of its body or the fact that it dwells within the cave.

A Tsuchilizard from the anime series Somali and the Forest Spirit
A Tsuchilizard

The next thing we know about it is that it’s dangerous. It’s not quite an ambush predator, but it is able to sneak around the cave while avoiding detection by its prey. Also, master Muthrica recognizes how dangerous it is, which should be a red flag.

Additionally, because he doesn’t know what to do to make it go away, we can assume the hide of the tsuchilizard is hard enough to block crossbow bolts.

Finally, it’s shown that tsuchilizards are protective of their young — at least for a period of time. We see that there are two baby tsuchilizards riding on the back of the adult. But that’s not the only reason we know they’re protective of their young.

Perhaps Somali learned this from Golem, but she can apparently speak to animals. She can’t understand them, but they can understand her. When she says she wishes to be with her dad forever, the tsuchilizard seems to understand how she feels and leaves her alone. This could also imply this was a male tsuchilizard caring for its young.

Golem’s Promise

At the end of the episode we get a scene where Somali becomes sick due to her constant traveling, and Golem nurses her back to health. During this scene Golem also promises to stay with Somali forever — which we, and master Muthrica, know isn’t possible.

Master Muthrica has met a golem who was close to death before, and so recognizes that Golem doesn’t have much time left. He then tells Golem that he had better not break his promise with Somali, which I took as a more sinister comment than was probably intended.

In all likelihood, master Muthrica was probably trying to say that Golem needs to figure out a way to prevent himself from dying. It could even have meant that Golem needs to prepare Somali for his eventual death and her life without him.

But there was just something about that scene, and how it showed a weakened, sick Somali in bed, that made me think there was an ulterior meaning to his words.

What if he was saying that the best thing for Somali might be to die before Golem does? And by that, I don’t mean Golem lives longer than his allotted time, I mean Somali dies before Golem’s allotted time is up.

Are we going to see Golem commit murder-suicide by the end of the series? Probably not.

However, since Golem is a self-proclaimed logical thinker, that might be something he considers at some point. Perhaps he and Somali get stuck in a bad situation and he sees no way out. Would he consider it then? Surely he could give Somali a better death than say, being eaten by monsters who find out she’s a human.

Conclusion

What did you think of Somali and the Forest Spirit episode 4? Do you think master Muthrica fought against humans in the past? Will we see Somali speak to other animals besides the tsuchilizard in the future? And, what did you think of master Muthrica’s comment to Golem at the end of the episode? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

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My review of the next episode is available here.

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