The Promised Neverland Episode 3 Review
Last week it became obvious that Emma wasn’t willing to give up on any of the kids and then The Promised Neverland upped the stakes introducing another infant to the mix and a new adult. Sister Krone certainly leaves an impression this week, though from a characterisation point of view she might be the weakest link in what is otherwise a pretty solid series so far. It could just be me but I felt they went way too quickly into explicitly revealing her unhinged nature as well as her ambitions to usurp the position of mother.
Of course, the sister’s introduction to the mix does give mother, Isabella, someone to talk to without all the lies and so more is revealed about this farm/plant. This episode we learn that Isabella was the youngest to ever be given the position of mother and a line she says to Sister Krone kind of made me think maybe they were once on their own farm given she indicated memorising the information on the kids would be easier than getting perfect test scores everyday. We also learn that this is plant 3 and that some of the other farms haven’t been doing so well so it is vitally important that Isabella’s harvest of her special children goes to plan.
This is most explicit information we’ve been given because previously we had seen things only from Norman, Emma and Ray’s point of view which is missing a lot of information. In that sense Sister Krone’s introduction has really opened up more of the world to the audience.
That doesn’t make the scene of her babbling to a doll about taking Isabella down any easier to swallow or any more nuanced and it feels like a real misfire from a series that has otherwise been tense and dramatic but not over-the-top.
However, Sister Krone is also responsible for the second half of the episode that takes a seriously great turn. The trio decide that too many of the kids are weak physically and mentally and they want to train them before attempting an escape (the issue of finding the tracking devices on hold for now as they know where they are but not what to do about them). Rather than spilling the beans to the kids who may not understand or go along with them, they use ‘tag’, the game established in episode 1, to teach these kids a few tricks.
Things seem to be going well until Krone decides she wants in on the game and hunts them down. Here we see Emma’s weakness, her inability to leave anyone behind, fully exploited as she’s caught after attempting to carry two of the little kids. Norman and Ray though manage to outlast the time limit. It all seems like getting all these kids out of there might be more and more impossible and I love how they continue to manage to raise the stakes without any overt violence or threat.
One thing that Promised Neverland is getting into a habit of doing though is leaving us with one more thought right before the end of an episode. It isn’t quite a cliff-hanger but something that isn’t yet established but is interesting enough to mull over for the week. Episode one was whether Mother knew that Emma and Norman had been at the gate. Episode two introduced Sister Krone. Now Episode three leaves us with the question of whether one of the kids is actually working with Mother because that is going to make it even harder to escape with everyone. I’m not the biggest fan of this tactic but given the nature of this story it kind of works and it certainly does leave you thinking about The Promised Neverland even after the episode has ended.
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The Promised Neverland, Vol. 1
- The Promised Neverland Series Review
- Episode 1: The Promised Neverland’s First Episode Promises Much, Will It Deliver?
- Episode 2: Why Emma’s Lack of Compromise is Both Foolish and Brilliant
- Episode 3: How a Simple game Can Become Ominous
- Episode 4: The Best Way To Catch A Liar…
- Episode 5: The Friend of My Enemy Is… Maybe a Useful Information Source
- Episode 6: The Promise of a Traitor Times 2
- Episode 7: Playing With Fire (Or Trying to Deal With Sister Krone)
- Episode 8: After Making Us Wait, The Promised Neverland Is Going To Deliver
- Episode 9: The Promised Neverland Promises Yet More Pain
- Episode 10: Where to Without The Promise of Tomorrow?
- Episode 11: Someone Tell Ray That Self-Immolation Is Not A Plan
- Episode 12: The Great Escape
- Images from: The Promised Neverland. Dir. M Kanbe. CloverWorks. 2019.
Have to agree, the way they introduced Krone was incredibly ham-fisted. They could have let her “secret” fester a bit before revealing it, not to mention tone down the madness. Have her behave “normally” in front of the others first then tease us with subtle hints of her real personality ahead of a fully fledged flip out later on.
It was just a little too much and didn’t really fit the tone that’s been so far established. It isn’t enough to take the shine away from the anime given I’ve really enjoyed it so far, but it is the first real moment where I think I started to worry about whether they’ll maintain for a season.
That was my first feeling too – “What the hell have they done?” 😛
I’m glad you spotted the line about easier than acing tests everyday too. It was dropped in so casually but obviously had some weight behind it.
And Krone really could have been toned down a little bit. She can be crazy but that was not handled well.
Any thoughts on the demon tea party?
Like Krone, it was a scene that kind of lacked subtlety and wasn’t as well delivered as many others. While it did reinforce the idea of a demon society so what are the kids running to, it also kind of took a lot of the mystery and fear of the demons away as you watch them just kind of chilling around a table. The episode probably could have done without that scene.
Yeah, that was my take too. We could have got the same information from Isabella talking to Grandmother.
“No one left behind” is the mantra in the US military. It enhances the esprit de corp in a military unit but these aren’t soldiers. OTOH, knowingly leaving friends behind might just kill you in a different way – killing your humanity.