SPOILERS - SHENMUE THE ANIMATION EPISODE 13 "SHENMUE" THREAD


I hope there isn't a lot of focus on the Lan Di vs. Ryo fight here, and that this all occurs after Dou Niu is defeated. I know they need to give casuals some sort of closure in case there won't be a second season, but I don't want a possible showing of the Old Castle fight to be downplayed either, as that was an awesome moment.
 
Oh no...I know some people will be very disappointed in moving this fight to S2. I just think we need to remember the anime may never get a second season, so the ending of this run NEEDS to give new viewers some sort of pay off. I think we should look at the anime as an abridged version of the story with its own focuses and not let changes ruin the experience too much, cause it's been an amazing journey overall.
 
Awesome they put the fight here. It gives good closure to the series should there not be a season 2 and it satisfys casual fans.

The fight is only lasting a minute then he's leaving for the dou niu fight to take place if im reading the rotten tomatoes description correctly.

I hope we don't get any constant whining /moaning from shenmue fans about this, like we always do with every single little change that occurs. Its for the greater good and helps the series massively. Not to mention, im pretty sure the original soundtrack in shenmue 2 on the rooftop was called "encounter with lan di" or something.
 
Awesome they put the fight here. It gives good closure to the series should there not be a season 2 and it satisfys casual fans.

The fight is only lasting a minute then he's leaving for the dou niu fight to take place if im reading the rotten tomatoes description correctly.

I hope we don't get any constant whining /moaning from shenmue fans about this, like we always do with every single little change that occurs. Its for the greater good and helps the series massively. Not to mention, im pretty sure the original soundtrack in shenmue 2 on the rooftop was called "encounter with lan di" or something.
Those soundtracks are engraved in my head on the rooftop I thought it was "Lan Di's departure"? *Edit* no you were correct it was "encounter with Lan Di". I got them mixed up for a second.
 
Awesome they put the fight here. It gives good closure to the series should there not be a season 2 and it satisfys casual fans.

The fight is only lasting a minute then he's leaving for the dou niu fight to take place if im reading the rotten tomatoes description correctly.

I hope we don't get any constant whining /moaning from shenmue fans about this, like we always do with every single little change that occurs. Its for the greater good and helps the series massively. Not to mention, im pretty sure the original soundtrack in shenmue 2 on the rooftop was called "encounter with lan di" or something.

Yeah I think that little encounter with Lan Di won't last long before Dou Niu comes barrelling into the picture.

Still, kind of fun hearing the "so you've improved a little" line here in this promo.
 
Ryo's voice actor is really good. You can hear Ryo's anger, pain and lust for revenge. The red eyes make it even more epic. All that nonsense about wanting to prove his father's innocence is shown here. That man wants lan di's blood first and foremost
 
I kind of expected a Lan Di / Ryo fight to happen here due to the key art and am genuinely curious to see how they make it work. With Lan Di disembarking the helicopter, I can’t see how Ryo could possibly save Zhu Yuanda without first defeating Lan Di. That seems unlikely given that we know that Ryo still ends up heading to Guilin / Bailu. With that in mind, part of me wonders whether Lan Di might actually succeed in capturing Zhu in the anime, with Ryo heading to Bailu to rescue him.
 
I kind of expected a Lan Di / Ryo fight to happen here due to the key art and am genuinely curious to see how they make it work. With Lan Di disembarking the helicopter, I can’t see how Ryo could possibly save Zhu Yuanda without first defeating Lan Di. That seems unlikely given that we know that Ryo still ends up heading to Guilin / Bailu. With that in mind, part of me wonders whether Lan Di might actually succeed in capturing Zhu in the anime, with Ryo heading to Bailu to rescue him.

Interesting point...

In Shenmue 2 it's not actually clear why Lan Di just flies off anyway is it? He basically observes the Don Niu fight and kind of acknowledges that Ryo has improved silently but then leaves... Don Niu is nowhere near Lan Di's own level so if he wanted Yuanda Zhu so badly as to personally retrieve him he should've always landed, when you think about, even in the game. He needs him to unlock the secrets of the mirror after all.
My guess is that Yu felt making the Don Niu fight epic enough and leaving the Lan Di confrontation dangling worked better overall, which actually I agree with. But it definitely doesn't when you consider Lan Di's motivation at that moment and all the effort that's gone into capturing Yuanda Zhu up to that point.

So maybe the anime will be how that rooftop scene was actually meant to go originally...?

My guess: Lan Di watches the Don Niu fight, jumps down after and then we get this preview scene, he whoops Ryo's ass but then Xiuying arrives just in time and actually hinders Lan Di to the point he gives up and Ryo and Xiuying share their farewell scene on the rooftop.
She's still way above Ryo's level after all so could pose Lan Di some issues... That would be an awesome way for the anime to resolve the rooftop scene as Xiuying Vs Lan Di would be a great exclusive for the fans and would actually work storywise, ties in the farewell with Xiuying without Ryo going back to Wan Chai.
 
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In Shenmue 2 is not actually clear why Lan Di just flies off anyway is it? He basically observes the Don Niu fight and kind of acknowledges that Ryo has improved silently but then leaves... Don Niu is nowhere near Lan Di's own level so if he wanted Yuanda Zhu so badly as to personally retrieve him he should've always landed, even in the games when you think about.

My guess was that Yu wanted to hold that back as didn't have time/budget for there to be a confrontation and not have Yuanda Zhu still ultimately taken... Or just couldn't make it work.

So maybe the anime will be how that rooftop scene was meant to go originally...?

My guess: Lan Di watches the Don Niu fight, jumps down after and then we get this preview scene, whoops Ryo but then Xiuying arrives and actually hinders Lan Di to the point he gives up and Ryo and Xiuying share their farewell scene on the rooftop.
She's still way above Ryo's level after all so could pose Lan Di some issues... That would be an awesome way for the anime to resolve the rooftop scene as Xiuying Vs Lan Di would be a great exclusive for the fans and would actually work storywise, ties in the farewell with Xiuying without Ryo going back to Wan Chai.
Now the xiuying being the spoke in the wheel during the rooftop battle would definitely reek of awesomeness just imagine the back and forth combat but Lan Di just feels on a total different level even to xiuying who's a badass in her right. But i very much like that idea you've played out here and it could very well be what will actually happen. I think the anime has already been greenlit for a second season just for the simple fact shenhua will have such little time in the final. This week better go fast, countdown to the final is on ⏳👀
 
Interesting point...

In Shenmue 2 it's not actually clear why Lan Di just flies off anyway is it? He basically observes the Don Niu fight and kind of acknowledges that Ryo has improved silently but then leaves... Don Niu is nowhere near Lan Di's own level so if he wanted Yuanda Zhu so badly as to personally retrieve him he should've always landed, when you think about, even in the game. He needs him to unlock the secrets of the mirror after all.
My guess is that Yu felt making the Don Niu fight epic enough and leaving the Lan Di confrontation dangling worked better overall, which actually I agree with. But it definitely doesn't when you consider Lan Di's motivation at that moment and all the effort that's gone into capturing Yuanda Zhu up to that point.

So maybe the anime will be how that rooftop scene was actually meant to go originally...?

My guess: Lan Di watches the Don Niu fight, jumps down after and then we get this preview scene, he whoops Ryo's ass but then Xiuying arrives just in time and actually hinders Lan Di to the point he gives up and Ryo and Xiuying share their farewell scene on the rooftop.
She's still way above Ryo's level after all so could pose Lan Di some issues... That would be an awesome way for the anime to resolve the rooftop scene as Xiuying Vs Lan Di would be a great exclusive for the fans and would actually work storywise, ties in the farewell with Xiuying without Ryo going back to Wan Chai.
Yeah. It never really made sense to me why he just flew away when Zhu was there for the taking. I always figured it was down to him being outnumbered, but that always felt like a bit of a stretch due to how op he is when compared to Ryo, Ren and Zhu. In that sense, Lan Di actually taking Zhu would probably make more sense.

I do like your idea of Xiuying turning up (after all, she’s shadowed Ryo everywhere he’s visited in Hong Kong thus far), though I never imagined her being anywhere near Lan Di’s level and so would find it hard to believe that she’d be able to put up enough of a fight for Lan Di to flee. Xiuying, Ryo and Ren all working together though? That I could probably buy. Bonus points to the show’s creators if they kill her off during the fight.
 
Yeah. It never really made sense to me why he just flew away when Zhu was there for the taking. I always figured it was down to him being outnumbered, but that always felt like a bit of a stretch due to how op he is when compared to Ryo, Ren and Zhu. In that sense, Lan Di actually taking Zhu would probably make more sense.

I do like your idea of Xiuying turning up (after all, she’s shadowed Ryo everywhere he’s visited in Hong Kong thus far), though I never imagined her being anywhere near Lan Di’s level and so would find it hard to believe that she’d be able to put up enough of a fight for Lan Di to flee. Xiuying, Ryo and Ren all working together though? That I could probably buy. Bonus points to the show’s creators if they kill her off during the fight.
Oh wow, you're bonus point system is cruel lol.

I don't see how Ryo can be directed to Guilin in a satisfactory way without the mirror secret map being revealed by Zhu. It's his key role... Maybe he quickly tells Ryo a clue to unlocking it himself before being taken, or he's passed the message to Wong already?
That way Zhu is captured, no need for Xiuying intervention means Ryo's on a rescue mission still come close of the anime which is kinda cool.
I don't think Zhu knows Ryo has a mirror currently though right? Hmm... Probably wouldn't work but I do like the idea of Ryo heading to Guilin to find Lan Di and rescue Zhu.

I definitely prefer Xiuying getting involved though :D And I'm not saying Xiuying is Lan Di level but he's arrogant enough to underestimate her and she's bad ass, she whips that Demon Triangle out on Lan Di and gets him fleeing and then teaches Ryo and they say farewell would be pretty sweet :)
 
Oh wow, you're bonus point system is cruel lol.

I don't see how Ryo directed to Guilin in a satisfactory way without the mirror secret map being revealed by Zhu. It's his key role... Maybe he quickly tells Ryo a clue to unlocking it himself before being taken, or he's given the message to Wong already?
That way Zhu is captured, no need for Xiuying intervention means Ryo's on a rescue mission.
I don't think he knows Ryo has a mirror currently though right? Hmm...

I definitely prefer Xiuying getting involved :D And I'm not saying Xiuying is Lan Di level but he's arrogant enough to underestimate her and she's bad ass, she whips that Demon Triangle out on Lan Di and gets him fleeing and then teaches Ryo and they say farewell would be pretty sweet :)
Haha. Perhaps, but I’d rather it be her than Ren. At this point her role in the story is kind of done anyway. In death, however, she can help Ryo to realize just how woefully unprepared he really is to face somebody like Lan Di. Perhaps learning of her death will be enough to help Zimming to return to an honest path too, especially as it’s one of his fellow CYM leaders that will have done it. I’d be very surprised if they end up going down this route though.

Zhu could have absolutely passed a message on to Wong, but even if he hasn’t, knowing that the mirrors serve as a map isn’t entirely necessary at this point in the story. Zang could look at the mirror and mention that it’s made of Phantom River Stone and direct Ryo to Bailu as a result. Heck, Zhu could just shout “Bailu Village” from the chopper as it’s flying away if need be.

Zhu’s abduction would also help to clear up another issue with Shenmue 2’s narrative; namely that Zhu provides very little information about Iwao and Sunming and how the mirrors came to be in Japan (Iirc, anime Chen confirms that it was Zhu who arranged for Iwao to take the mirrors to Japan while VG Zhu fails to mention that he knew Iwao despite having one of his Gis in the Ghost Hall Building office). I know there’s the whole Zhu = Tentei angle and Yu has commented about Zhu being dishonest in the past, but Zhu not having a chance to actually speak with Ryo would better explain away these omissions (especially if Zhu isn’t actually Tentei).
 
By the way, if the Shenmue tree shows up in this episode I'm calling the episode

'Shenmue The Animation: Episode Shenmue featuring the Shenmue tree"
 
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