Scum of the Brave 1×08 and 1×09 Review: “A Brave’s Sins” and “A Brave’s Legacy”

Scum of the Brave anime season 1 episode 8, titled ‘A Brave’s Sins’, and episode 9, titled ‘A Brave’s Legacy’, were about Yashiro trying to uncover the mystery behind Ishino’s death.

Even though I had my doubts about Ishino actually being dead when it happened in the previous episode, I think there’s no denying it now. Ishino was confirmed dead in the latest chapter, complete with his body’s autopsy revealing he had the blood of a couple of other people on him. Sigh!

I don’t know how to feel about this particular development. I was expecting a lot more from Ishino as a character. He looked so cool. Even though his presence was a part of the two episodes I’m reviewing, including a flashback to an injured Ishino leaving a message for Yashiro, having him taken off the board in such a manner did feel like a waste of an intriguing character.

‘A Brave’s Sins’ had Yashiro and Joe sharing some important information to help avenge their friend. Turns out, the badge Yashiro noticed on the duo he recently fought at the Academy belonged to the Half Dragon gang. Relatively new, this particular gang was responsible for the distribution of E4. Ishino had been tracking down and killing people linked to E4. However, betrayal from a fellow Brave led to Ishino being attacked by a bunch of enemies, resulting in his untimely death.

The fact that Ishino was jumped made Yashiro theorize that Twin Pincers was somehow involved because overwhelming a target was that criminal’s MO. So, of course, Yashiro and Mole decided to visit the Twin Pincers’ warehouse. However, their objective got complicated due to a lucrative offer from a local politician wanting Yashiro to retrieve his son, named Yoshi, from under Twin Pincer’s control.

I liked how the narrative kept Jogamine, Indo, and Sara off-screen (they were busy taking their sword skill test at the Academy) to allow Yashiro and Mole to dive deeper into the story’s darker themes. The politician’s daughter was also working for Twin Pincers, but he had no use for her. He only needed Yoshi back. According to the politician, his daughter was a lost cause.

From what I could understand, the siblings had grown up in an abusive household, leading them to run away. In their opinion, working for Twin Pincers was better than coming back home to their abusive father. I mean, it wouldn’t be the first time certain kinds of parents portrayed a friendly image to the public and blamed their children’s bad behavior on them being influenced by outside forces (usually social media) instead of addressing their own role in creating a toxic household for their offspring.

Twin Pincers had made a name for himself in the area because he extended aid to those in need, including orphans, runaways, and the like. His gang also had young kids fight and run errands for him. While problematic to an outsider, Twin Pincers accepted it as a normal part of the found family his gang members were now a part of. He kept them protected from any trauma they had experienced.

Twin Pincers was so determined to look after his people that he was willing to take drastic measures to keep his promise to them. He had promised Yoshi his father would never force him back. And with Yashiro not stepping down, Twin Pincers took matters into his own hands and proceeded to kill the young man in front of Yashiro. For Twin Pincers and Yoshi, death was a better option than being sent back to live with such a vile father.

The death of the siblings (Yashiro was forced to kill Yoshi’s sister during battle) really took me by surprise. It’s easy to forget how dangerous such a world was for Braves, especially because the narrative took on a lighter tone (mostly through visual gags) whenever Jogamine and her friends were around Yashiro.

Even though the mission to rescue Yoshi was a failure and Twin Pincers escaped, Yashiro did learn that the Coffin Court of Storms wasn’t behind dealing the dangerous E4 drug. Apparently, Half Dragon was enemies with the Coffin Court of Storms as well as with the other Demon Lords. Half Dragon’s goal was to sow seeds of mistrust between the various Demon Lords to escalate territorial tensions and increase sales of E4.

I’m not sure if the appearance of monstrous limbs was a side effect of using too much E4. But I think we will find out soon enough.

‘A Brave’s Legacy’ returned the girls to Yashiro’s social circle and, as expected, switched back to a more comedic tone. The mystery behind Ishino’s death continued, but the overall vibe wasn’t as intense as ‘A Brave’s Sins’.

Turns out, Indo and Sara managed to pass their test. The two had incorporated Yashiro’s training in their 1v1 battles. However, Jogamine’s test resulted in a draw because, as Yashiro had warned her, she was too concerned with blocking and evading instead of actually hurting her opponent. Her style was okay during regulated exams. But hesitating in such a manner during an actual fight could get her killed.

With the trio of girls wanting another lesson from Yashiro, and him needing some backup during the next stage in the mystery, our lead character decided to take the girls with him to a party being thrown by the Coffin Court of Storms, the strongest Dark Overlord in Western Tokyo. Throwing such parties in public was a way for Demon Overlord to exhibit their riches and power.

I liked how the scene where Yashiro asked Sara to select outfits for her friends played into him testing his students. Sara and Indo had more clothes on because Yashiro wanted them to experience fighting with a bit of a handicap. On the other hand, Jogamine’s outfight allowed for more movement. Yashiro wanted her to be free enough to focus on damaging her opponent instead of blaming her attire for a lack of mobility.

Episode 9’s title came from the “legacy” left behind by Ishino. He had left his possessions to Yashiro and Joe to do what they pleased, including a bunch of women’s clothes that Yashiro asked Sara to browse through. There was no explanation about why Ishino collected women’s clothing. I’m just glad the story didn’t make a crass crossdressing joke.

Yashiro making a scene at the party because he wanted to learn more about who was dealing E4 as part of the Half Dragon gang reminded me of Xylo causing a scene inside the Adventurers’ Guild in Sentenced to Be a Hero. It’s interesting how certain ccreatives (Rocket Shōkai, in this case) tend to use similar story beats even when writing two distinctly different stories.

I’m excited to see how Yashiro and the girls will fare fighting a bunch of Demon Overlords and their minions. It was a dangerous move to make from Yashiro’s part, but he’s smart. So, he’s likely working toward accomplishing something without any of the girls getting hurt in the process.

Talking about the voice recording that Ishino left for Yashiro, the deceased Brave wanted Yashiro to keep an eye on his students. Yashiro wasn’t what the Half Dragon might want with the girls, but it’s clear they were involved somehow. Sara was King Arthur’s daughter. Jogamine was the daughter of Yashiro’s master. And Indo was a girl who was more than okay with killing people. There was a reason they operated as a team and found themselves in Yashiro’s orbit. Somebody’s likely pulling strings in the background.

Before I finish my review, I have to mention how much I enjoyed the moment where Jogamine and Indo realized Yashiro and Sara had exchanged numbers. Not only that, but the two also texted each other when necessary. For someone like Jogamine, that was unacceptable, especially because she was technically Yashiro’s first student and still didn’t know his number. Even Indo wanted Yashiro’s contact information, regardless of her not always carrying a cellphone.

Yashiro being hesitant to give Jogamine his number made sense to me. Jogamine’s the type of person who will text you Good Morning and Goodnight along with a constant stream of memes and video clips.

Did you watch Scum of the Brave anime season 1 episodes 8 and 9? What did you think of them?

Let us know.

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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