[Review] The Dead Lands Episode 3 is All About Trust

Episode three, “The Kingdom at the Edge of the World,” picks up immediately where we left off with Waka learning there may be a way to fix the world. There’s a boy who knows the name of whoever broke the whole system of the dead actually entering the afterlife. The only wrinkle is boy is in the hands of three witches in some dangerous location that’s near impossible to find.

While the series has focused on throwing problems at Waka and Mehe, there’s now a mission to put it all back in order which feels like a great narrative progression.

There’s plenty for our heroes to overcome – like sexy witches, unstable warriors, and snatching shadow monsters – but the real obstacle is trust. Mehe’s friend gives her a single use protection from the witches, which could leave Waka vulnerable. Meanwhile, Waka’s dead mother gives him a magical protection from the witches. This creates a situation in which both Waka and Mehe are protected but are testing the other one to see how they’ll react.

I want them to trust each other, they want to be able to trust each other, but they just can’t. It feels like when you have two friends who don’t get along. You like both of them, and you just want to be able to hang out as a group, but there’s this awkward bitterness that you can’t crack. It usually boils down to misunderstanding or a general failure to see where the other person is coming from.

We follow both Waka and Mehe’s stories equally, so their actions and mistrust all make perfect sense. And honestly, if I were in their shoes, I might react the same way (though I wouldn’t have sex with that witch, obviously).

There’s a lot to love in episode three. The witches aren’t the clichéd Weird Sisters I was expecting, the dangers feel real, and I appreciate the forward momentum of the story. Even before the cliffhanger, I was excited for episode four. Three episodes in, and I have nothing but confidence that the series will continue to impress.