Here we are once again with season 3 of Dr. Stone: New World. We are already at the halfway mark of the season! Crazy right, it feels like it just started. I have to assume it’s going to be a split cour.
What do you think Crow, isn’t it going by in the blink of an eye? Do you know anything about future seasons? Also how was your week?
Hi! Glad to help, but I’m sure our readers missed you as much as I did! Also, it’s just plain fun to talk
It’s funny you mention that – in my notes, when I typed “episode 6,” I did a double-take. I mean, I’m used to seasons going by quickly. But this one seems a little faster than most!
The only thing I think I know is that you’re right – it’ll be a split cour, according to this Wikipedia article. So it must be true!
As far as my week… Hey, I see you’ve typed more below! Let’s go read!
stuff!
When I started the episode, I suddenly realized that I had been looking forward to it since last week. A notable part of the village had just gotten on the ship and they are setting out to find the island the Soyuz first crashed on and what is for all intents and purposes, the cradle of this new civilization!
This episode starts out with a flashback within a flashback. We first see a bit of Byakuya’s time and I don’t know about you guys, or you Crow, but I always tear up at this part of the story. And I did again. I think the space station arc of Dr Stone is just masterful!
And then we caught back up with what must have been shortly before they departed on the ship as Senku is trying to learn the hundred tales. A task that proved to be way easier said than done. I think this is the first time we’ve seen Senku so utterly defeated.
What did you think of this scene Crow?
First, yes. I’m 6 feet two inches tall. I grew up on a farm. I lift heavy things. And I tear up every single time we see Byakuya. Every. Single. Time. That is some profoundly effective writing there!
I enjoyed Senku learning the tales. You know my favorite part? Ruri’s sense of presence. It was like she was born for that role – which kinda she was. She had a kindly regal manner, and she took her job seriously. That was cool.
From this point on, we catch up with the events of the last episode. The boat is actually quite impressive. At one point Yuzuhira gets a complete tour of it (so we got to see it as well) and it’s really a very large, very well decked out ship. Not those claustrophobic and generally empty boats I have seen in movies and video games that are essentially just one large cargo hold.
They have spots for animals and agriculture, plenty of rooms for diverse activities for the crew and even a moving lab. I know that logically, most ships must have been that way for the crew to survive the long voyages, but we don’t see it that often, wouldn’t you say, Crow?
Yep! I design spaceships and starships for the novels I write (okay, try to write, but let’s stay positive here, shall we?). I have a strong appreciation for ship design when it goes well, and I have very high standards. This ship checked all the boxes. It felt like a ship I could visit.
And I loved that Yuzuhira was the one who was super excited about it! That attitude goes well with her dedication to craftsmanship.
The meatiest part of the episode was Soyuz’s reveal though. And it was a very nice bit of world building that of course makes perfect sense.
The really sum up the story, one of the members of the Crew was a very buff villager with no name. Turns out he actually has a name but it’s Soyuz. All the villagers are named after minerals so that name immediately identifies hiom as an outsider.
As a very young child (baby even) Soyuz washed up on the shore where he was found by one of the villagers and raised as her own. They feared that he might not be accepted if the rest of the village learned that he was from somewhere else so they hid the truth.
However, with all he has been hearing lately, he has come to realize that he is probably from the island they are looking for, originally.
After hearing his story, Senku quickly puts together the fact that the first generations of the new wave of humanity must have started on the island where the astronauts crashed. That makes perfect sense. But because of Byakuya’s wish that they return to what had once been Japan, some day, a number of them had left that island attempting to get to Japan by sea. Most probably died on the journey but those that survived became the ancestors of the current villagers.
As such, the island tribe and the villagers are in fact distant relatives.
And this description of historical drift is super logical. Of course that’s how it happened. For some reason though, I really liked it. It just gives such a tangible sense of history to the world of Dr. Stone. What did you think about it, Crow?
How it weaves Byakuya and his team with the present added yet another layer of poignancy. So that’s cool. The only hesitancy I had is I began to wonder what the minimum sustainable population would be on an island. As in, could four or six people found a nation? I’m not sure how the genetics would work.
Still, if I grant Dr. Stone artistic license (and I think it’s more than earned that respect!), it was an emotionally sound way to tie past and present together.
Senku and company now know that the island is most likely populated. But they do not know what type of reception they are likely to get. I’m not sure why they would assume that the islanders could be aggressive. I mean the villagers were suspicious but generally peaceful and even welcoming. I imagine the islanders will be the same. What do you think Crow?
I wondered the same thing. I also wondered why they would think Why Man would be there. Why Man was associated with the petrification event, so I don’t think there’s any way he would have been with Byakuya. Though I suppose I really don’t know anything about him – his life expectancy, his race (is he even human?), or his method of locomotion.
Boy, that’s a long way of saying, “Yep! I agree!”
In all this, we still have no new info about the WhyMan. They tried to float the idea that he could be from the island but even the characters in the show were quick to dismiss that. Then again, he could be on the island and not be an islander. Just like Senku isn’t a villager. But I guess we’ll have to wait to find out.
For now, the most important thing is to find Byakuya’s treasure box and the platinum within that could unlock the power to reverse the petrification en mass.
So what did you think of this episode Crow? Any part you want to talk about??
I want to call out Kokuyo for showing maturity and restraint under fire. Well, under stress, anyway. Remember when he yelled at Soyuz and demanded why he had deceived them? But Kokuyo thought about it, and finally he said (14:54), “No… I’m grateful that you confessed to us now.” I thought that was a stand up thing to do.
Agreed! that was a pretty cool scene! Let’s hope the crew is just as mature when they meet the islanders!
First off, here’s a link to Perry’s YouTube video about the science of this episode …
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=icm9WRDJLJs
From context, the flashback to Ruri beginning to tell Senku the 100 tales probably takes place almost immediately after Ruri has been cured of her pneumonia with the sulfa drug, and after Kokuyo has approved the official transfer of power, which is also the point at which Senku first hears the name “Ishigami Village.”
We’re also treated to a brief montage of numerous generations passing the 100 tales down across the millennia from Mother to Daughter, in a vast, sprawling game of telephone.
(Pretty sure Ishigami Village lacks a written language, so that was the most sensible way to accomplish the goal.)
Crow, you’re right about the genetic sustainability issue, even Dr. Stone author Riichiro Inagaki has said that in real life a community built upon such a small sampling would probably collapse, though he also noted that we really couldn’t be 100% certain without actually spending 3,700 years to conduct the experiment.
Moving on to a bit which I’d managed to accidentally spoil for myself years ago …
Soyuz had been glimpsed occasionally, probably as far back as when the village was first introduced: There’s an early reference chart of the villagers which included him, listing his name as “?”
Hadn’t realized that he (… along with numerous others from the former ‘Empire of Might’) were among the Power Team.
I agree, the episodes this season are going by quickly, we’re already at the midpoint of the first cour of Season Three, hopefully the production team is already thinking ahead to Season Four and beyond as well.
Wow, cool video. Thanks for that 😊
He’s done videos for nearly every episode – plus the Ryusui special episode – and for the most part the science tends to be pretty much spot on.
When I was becoming more invested in Dr. Stone, I ran searches for reviews and such, which led me to his YouTube channel and your blog.
You, Crow and I are pretty much on the same page about the charm and appeal of the series, I think.
Just got done watching Episode 7, very much looking forward to hearing what you & Crow (… and Perry) think about it.
Perry (… whose name I might not be spelling right, really should check that) always geeks out at correctly presented science, but as of the past few videos he’s clearly been getting more and more drawn into the story as well.