WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Episode 6 of SAKUGAN, "JUSTICE FOR VILLAINS," now streaming on Crunchyroll.
Within every colony in Sakugan, there appears to be an issue plaguing the citizens, either consciously or unconsciously. In Pinyin, this was poverty and difficulty climbing the economic and societal ladder. In Jolly-Jolly, mafia-style lawlessness and a preserved natural environment on the verge of destruction warred with modern wealth and prosperity of the known parts of the colony. In AreYaar, the highly educated and 'respectable' members of society are at odds with those who this same society has cast away, and who are deemed as stupid and troublesome individuals.
To work off his debt with Zackletu, Gagumber and Memempu are forced to work for the Yuri team, a gang of orphans, to both perform domestic duties and pull off heists in the underground living space of the societal castaways, helping the team’s mission of bettering the quality of life. The team sheds light on AreYaar’s “equality,” but their almost Robin Hood-style heists became too elementary for their leader Yuri when it's announced that all orphanages will be closed. In an act of recklessness, Yuri decides to try and single-handedly take control of the colony through terrorism. Gagumber, Memempu and Yuri’s second-in-command make him see the bigger picture of justice that he was trying to achieve, but without violent means.
The meanings of “justice” and “equality” within the colony appear black and white, but within itself, the execution shows a lot of gray area. One can do something for the sake of equality like trying to educate orphans, but in reality, if the orphans are forced into it, it simply becomes a method of disciplining them to fit into a rigid society that will not accept them otherwise. One can do something out of justice like trying to take physical control of a colony for the good of all, but what if innocent bystanders are killed in the process? Yuri’s second-in-command brings some humility to the situation with his memory of how it all started: just making sure everyone was fed. Similarly, Gagumber has a memory of a friend who died because of his own reckless actions, while for her part, Memempu takes it all in with a very logical perspective.
Justice and equality are entirely subjective, and this episode shows that. The methods to execute equality this time were done without physical harm, and Yuri appears to want to continue to do the same in other colonies as he joins Memempu, Gagumber and Zackletu going forward. However, the same cannot be said about certain other people in the show. Yuri’s form of justice is about economics and exposing people in power for their misdeeds. Conversely, the episode warns of the potential for more drastic individuals who are willing to kill in the colonies for the betterment of life of its citizens.
This episode also confirms that one of the most common problems within the colonies as a whole is the inability to climb the economic and societal ladder. The bottlenecks that make this difficult vary, but the issue is the same. However, as long as there are individuals willing to fight for justice and equality to unblock the bottlenecks, there may be hope for the future wherever people go in the Underworld.
