;d
That lead-in into OP though.
It's the ending with the lead into the ED that's the real highlight of the episode though. The huge fiery explosion happens, Oda is knocked back, and as the debris flies through the air the huge noise of the explosion fades out to be replaced by the high-pitched ringing you get in your ears when they are overwhelmed by an excessively loud sound. As the ringing gradually increases in intensity, Oda's normal deadpan voice begins to narrate atop the image from behind of him struggling to lift himself up. As he says, "I heard someone screaming," we begin to hear the muffled sounds of his own screams underneath the ringing, as if from a great distance. As he continues to narrate, we cut to his face - and this is a real shock, as Oda has always worn a straight-faced, emotionally reserved expression up to this point, but here his eyes and mouth are forced open into an expression of utter terror, pain, and despair. The thick character outlines that previously designated comedic deformations in the show are here deployed for the exact opposite effect, together with heavy linework and an intense shaking animation loop.
The ringing gets louder and shriller until - suddenly all sound cuts out. Then the old man's voice from the opening scene returns over Oda's still screaming face, and only afterwards does the image cut back to the stark silhouette of that scene explaining Oda's motivation to avoid killing. In response to the old man no longer comes the voice of the younger Oda though, but present-day Oda sorrowfully rejecting his offer. The guitar intro to the ED song begins to play as the camera cuts back to show Oda alone at the table, the old man having disappeared. Sharp cut to black. Oda's painful scream starts fading back in, accompanied by the gradual fade in of the image of his kneeling in front of the fireball. This time there is no ringing or muffling to shield us from the full horror of that raw scream, in which Junichi Suwabe shows himself to be a full master of his craft. The tears well in his eyes, his face becomes more and more racked with pain, the scorched scream continues to well up until it is choked off by the next episode title card, and the vocals come in just as the credit roll on black starts. Mmmm, gives me the chills just thinking about it.
I don't know how much this description means for someone who hasn't watched the scene in question, but man, this perfect coordination of sound and visuals for emotional expression in service of characterization - this is what I want.
