Baccano-Episode-5 Television 

Five Thoughts on Baccano!‘s “Jacuzzi Splot Cries, Gets Scared and Musters Reckless Valor”

By | June 12th, 2017
Posted in Television | % Comments

A lone bootlegger cries and cries and cries as the chaos unfolds around him and his friends. What’s a man with an awful name to do? Let’s find out!

1. Jacuzzi Splot and Why I Do Love Him

As we’ve mentioned, Jacuzzi Splot is one of the worst names ever conceived of by Man and God. Ryogho Narita did his research well for most of this series and there are a good amount of names that work. Firo, Keith, Czeslaw (It’s Polish. Look it up). Then there are some that went “As Long As It Sounds Foreign”. Luck Gandor is not particularly great. But then you got Jacuzzi. Splot. You’re just doomed if you have that name.

That in mind, he’s actually one of my favorite characters and it is because of his anxiety. He’s shown to be very timid and fearful, to the point where he cries. In flashback, we see him surrounded by Russo Family goons and he’s blubbering his eyes out. He’s doing this while still insulting the goons. We learn that Jacuzzi always had a nervous condition, but chose to embrace it. He’d cry all the tears he needed to and damn the people who thought he was weaker for it. So when he really needed to be, he won’t have tears to shed. What helps him is Nice and Donny and the rest of the bootlegger gang that has become his family. As someone who has his own problems with anxiety, having a healthy support system is critical to management.

2. The Hunger of an Immortal

The immortals in Baccano! can die. Kinda. It gets explained further in two episodes time, but it is first demonstrated here that anyone who has drunk the elixir (or in this case with Mr. Barnes, an imperfect version) can be killed by another immortal. It’s kind of Highlander-ey, but it’s a very different method from cutting off the head. One immortal can “devour” another. That’s a loaded term, but in essence one can absorb another. All the knowledge. All the experiences of the devoured immortal becomes the devourer’s. And it’s first displayed here when Szilard puts his hand on Barnes’ head and… well… devours him. Like a smoothie being sucked up through a straw, except instead of delicious fruit, its flesh, blood and bone. And we see that in vivid detail until nothing remains of Barnes except his clothes. Yum Yum!

3. Brief Update on the Missing Dallas Genoard

In 1932, Eve isn’t the only one looking for the missing Dallas. I haven’t talked about him yet, but we have Gustavo, muscle for the Runarota Family, hunting Dallas as well. Don Runorata has Gustavo hunting Dallas because Dallas accused Gustavo of killing his father and older brother. However, as we see here, Don Runorata has some ulterior motivations, with him knowing about the existence of immortals. Here, Gustavo is pointed (by Nick of the Daily Days) in the direction of Eve, which is going to ensure an incoming collision. This is all we get about this plotline, but it does begin the eventually speeding up of the plot, as we’re going to hit the mid-point of the series soon.

4. Firo and Maiza

Another character we have to talk about is Maiza Avaro, a bookkeeper for the Martillo Family and Firo’s mentor/big brother figure. A well meaning, nice figure it seems, that definitely has Firo’s best interests at heart, even as Firo formerly joins the Family in this episode. That includes a knife fight to first blood between the young Firo and the mysterious Maiza. This is where I have to give half and half points to Baccano! animation. Sometimes it’s great, and creates some cool fights and scenes (the aforementioned Barnes Smoothie), sometimes it can be a bit off and this fight did have some disjointed animation. It does leave us with a bit of a hint as to behind Maiza’s affable face though.

5. Oh My God, He Just Got Pulled Through the Train Window!

Once again, we end on the Flying Pussyfoot, with the red shadow up to it’s murderous ways. This is our first real “look” at the Rail Tracer… and it’s pants wetting terrifying. This episode also is starting to give hints as to who the Rail Tracer is. Perhaps it’s this mysterious woman in fatigues who was in the dining car the one moment, then gone the next. The answer to that question is coming very soon, dear reader, one of the biggest moments of the series.


//TAGS | 2017 Summer TV Binge | Baccano!

Ken Godberson III

When he's not at his day job, Ken Godberson III is a guy that will not apologize for being born Post-Crisis. More of his word stuffs can be found on Twitter or Tumblr. Warning: He'll talk your ear off about why Impulse is the greatest superhero ever.

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