Somali and the Forest Spirit (Episode 12) – Bonded Father and Child

The Golem loses control and chases after the hunters who tried to take Somali from him. What will this massive expense of energy do to his already dwindling life force and will he be able to find himself again?

What happened?

The Golem unleashed some sort of terrifying energy attack that sent the human hunters scattering, but he wasn’t done. He lumbered after them, turning them from hunters to prey. When he had finally tracked down Aunt Rosa and was about to put an end to her, Yabashira arrived and attempt to stop the Golem, but was swatted away with ease. Then, bizarrely, Somali rushed between the Golem and Aunt Rosa and managed to calm him down. Days later, the Golem awoke and found himself in the forest with Somali, Shizuno, and Yabashira. However, he had done the calculations and his life span was uncertain. Then, in a village that was celebrating a harvest festival, he saw his chance to slip away, but Somali found him and reminded him that he too has emotions and desires.

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What was your favourite element?

Firstly, I need to say that I am not all right with the Aunt Rosa situation. She needed to die. There’s nothing more to it. Anyone that would willingly and gleefully butcher a sentient child has no place in any civilisation and Somali saving her was not the way I wanted this to go and I honestly, feel a little cheated by it after the way the last episode ended. It all felt a little anticlimactic. So, other than that annoyance, the scene at the end where Somali convinces the Golem to stay with her was sweet and it had some very nice visuals with the floating glowing flowers. I was expecting a much more impactful ending, but I’ll take this.

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What have you learnt?

When I first saw the synopsis for this series, I was pretty keen to add it to my list of shows I was going to cover. Then as it got closer to the start, I was a little unsure as it started to look more like a cute show than a dark show about a golem protecting a human in a world where they are hunted and eaten. In the end, I did enjoy the show and mostly for the world-building and visuals. The story was fine, but it’s not necessarily a type of show I will be looking for in the future unless it too promises impressive visuals and fantasy settings. There were a number of dark elements in this series and I would have loved for it to explore that more, but then this was more about the relationship between the Golem and Somali. It does give me lots of dark ideas for stories though, so that’s always nice too.

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Other reviews in the series

• Season One
  • Episode 1 – Journeying Parent and Child
  • Episode 2 – Edible Herbs and the Oni’s Dwelling
  • Episode 3 – The Sea at the Bottom of the Cave
  • Episode 4 – The Wishing Flower and the Promise Request
  • Episode 5 – The Wandering Birds
  • Episode 6 – Dying Flowers Look Up at the Birds
  • Episode 7 – The Footsteps That Stalk the Witches
  • Episode 8 – Meetings and Bonds Prayed For
  • Episode 9 – Memories of Minor Days
  • Episode 10 – The Infant Child and the Green Fortress
  • Episode 11 – Those Who Protect and Those Who Threaten
  • Episode 12 – Bonded Father and Child
• Bonus Posts
  • Saturday Spin-off – Hunted to the Ends!

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