WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Episode 8 of SSSS.Dynazenon, "What Is This Wavering Emotion?" now streaming on Funimation.
Yomogi is overwhelmed by a moral dilemma in Episode 8 of SSSS.Dynazenon, in what's possibly the anime's weirdest episode yet. A strange encounter with a seemingly benign kaiju prompts Yomogi to question his teams’ philosophy. When the kaiju starts to wreak havoc, he is forced to make a difficult choice. His encounter suggests that kaiju aren’t entirely dangerous. It also hints at a deeper connection between Yomogi and kaiju.
When Gauma is attacked by a kaiju in his sleep, he sends the team on a hunting mission. However, the attack in question was totally harmless, changing the color of his face and nothing more. When the team finds the small, underdeveloped kaiju, Yomogi argues that Gauma shouldn't kill it, raising a whole slew of ethical questions.
Gauma, a former Kaiju User, tries to control the kaiju instead and fails due to his recent lack of training. All the other Dynazenon members jokingly attempt to control the kaiju to add insult to injury. Yomogi reluctantly joins them, and the kaiju appears to respond for a brief moment. After a bit of joking, Yomogi feels a strange sensation within him.
Gridknight appears and warns them to put the kaiju down immediately. Kaiju are born from human emotions. Keeping it around humans will only help it grow. Regardless, the team decides Gauma will watch the kaiju to make sure it doesn’t develop.
The plan absolutely fails. The kaiju is soon running amok leading the team on a wild goose chase for it yet again. Now that the kaiju is fully developed, it is capable of large-scale destruction. However. the Kaiju Eugenicists are still not controlling the kaiju as they're apparently on vacation.
The conversation earlier comes to head when Yomogi and Gridknight find the kaiju terrorizing a mall where Yume is trapped inside. Yomogi still hesitates to kill the kaiju. He even wonders if they have emotions themselves, though this particular kaiju is aimless. Yomogi perceives the kaiju clearly doesn’t have an intent to cause destruction, despite the result of its actions.
He clearly had a connection with the kaiju earlier, so tries to control it again. This time he gives an earnest effort, but the connection is too strong for him. Shortly after, the kaiju grows a large human eye from its mouth to look directly at Yomogi.
Yomogi takes the shot and kills the kaiju anyway. He relieves a massive amount of stress but still feels awful in the aftermath. The moral conundrum presents multiple avenues for the rest of the series to explore. Yomogi wants answers and confirmation of his newfound ability. The nature of kaiju suggests the Kaiju Eugenicists may not be completely in the wrong. Yomogi’s strange relationship with Sizumu lingers in the background. There’s a good chance he’ll seek more from his enemy. The central conflict of SSSS.Dynazenon continues to deviate from its battle of good versus evil.
