The daring rescue goes about like daring rescues do… and look at that! Answers.
So, last week I mentioned that Kurokawa (the thug governor) needed a better explanation, in order to have a strong rivalry to carry the next act of the show, floating the idea that he was some kind of fallen Mushroom Keeper (among other thoughts, but that was my first). This episode, we find out that he is, in fact, a former Mushroom Keeper, who developed and used abominable techniques and was thus despised by his peers, at least until he turned to a life of graft and contributed to the demonization of the Mushroom Keepers.
This is the good answer I was looking for, and when it’s pulled out also helps him be a more threatening foe, since he can use fancy mushroom techniques just like Milo and Jabi and tank damage just like Bisco. He might not be quite on the same level as the specialists, but he’s absolutely competitive.
The majority of the episode is a confrontation between Milo and Kurokawa. Milo subdues his mushroom-zombie guards and wounds him, but gets afflicted by one of Kurokawa’s mushroom types, allowing Kurokawa to forcibly control his body. Bisco arrives and makes a good show of trying to save the day, but forced shots from the controlled Milo bring him low, causing Milo to spill the beans on what activates the Rust Eater in order to convince Kurokawa to spare them. Of course, Kurokawa immediately reneges on the deal, but Bisco manages to catch the would-be-fatal arrow with his teeth and hurl it at Kurokawa, putting out his eye.
At this point, Jabi (who has escaped on his own and freed Pawoo on his way out) appears, helps beat down Kurokawa’s forces, and then flees with the wounded Bisco and Milo. However, on their way out, he once again ends having to play rear guard, since Bisco’s knees are injured and he can’t fight like that. Milo takes Bisco and run, but the zombie guards are in hot pursuit and shoot several Rust arrows into his back, eventually causing him to collapse in the snow, at death’s door, after everybody’s favorite crab appears to disperse the pursuit. This is where the episode ends.
The point of the episode, in my mind, is to get some real threat out of our villain. We now know who he is, where he came from, and even what he plans to do – use a limited supply of the Rust Eater to establish a hydraulic despotism, placing himself as more powerful than the central government because he’s the only one who would be able to cure the Rusted. Of course, while this theoretically ends with people getting cured, we know enough about Kurokawa’s rule and his demeanor that it wouldn’t be a net good to let him have it.
However, he is now in possession of the component parts – the Rust Eater and the knowledge of what to do with it. He even, in theory, has the captured Jabi to provide a supply of blood for synthesizing injections. He’s also been torn to shreds and his enemies, including Pawoo, are still free and active, so the villain win isn’t free.
At this point, there are (presumably) four more episodes in Sabikui Bisco. That is actually quite a lot, leaving us plenty of room for a final act that can be more wild and creative now that the necessary beats to transition into it are done. We need to keep Milo alive and get him and Bisco fighting-fit, and probably need to keep up with Pawoo and catch up with Tirol (Jellyfish) as well, before challenging an at least somewhat repaired Kurokawa for a final battle.