Dragon Quest Dai episode 7 review: Maam joins the party

Episode 7 of Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai, the 2020 anime series, is mostly a setup episode. It gives us Maam's backstory, brings her into the party and introduces a new villain. There's a little action, but most of it lays groundwork for what comes next. It wasn't a bad episode, and I was fine with the slower pace.

The episode moves between the heroes, who are more or less at peace, and the villains, where Zaboera is introduced alongside his conversation with Crocodine. Here's how it plays out.

Maam's spell on Dai turns out to be Tingle, which cures paralysis

The previous episode ended in the middle of a battle in the forest. Dai was down, and then Maam, the new character, blasted him with a spell. I thought it was going to be a healing spell.

This episode reveals it was Tingle, the spell that cures paralysis. So if you get paralyzed, use Tingle. It's a very funny name for a spell, but what can you do.

Maam's Magic Bullet Gun lets people use magic without knowing magic

Maam wants Popp to cast the ice spell, and she teaches them how to use her gadget. You cast the spell into it and then fire it at whatever the target is. The episode names it the Magic Bullet Gun.

The little gun is effective because it lets people use magic without knowing how to use magic. If you have magic, you can put it in the gun. If you don't, you can buy capsules that have magic in them.

At the time, there were some new Dai games coming, and I believed one of them was going to feature this weapon. That would be cool, because you could probably use it if you don't have any spells or you're in a jam. I was interested to see how that would connect to the series. I don't remember a main Dragon Quest game with a gun like this. There could be one, but I doubt it. It seems to be something just for Maam.

Maam got the Magic Bullet Gun from Avan

Maam got the gun from Avan, which is cool. Avan was the hero, so he has access to all this cool stuff, and I guess he gave her the weapon.

It looks like Avan's students are going to come together to become the new heroes. It makes sense, and you can't overthink it.

Zaboera breaks through Avan's force field on the island

Things get creepy over on the island. We see the appearance of a legion commander, Zaboera, the Mystic Bishop of the Mystic Legion, who works for the Dark Lord. He was able to break through even Avan's force field on the island.

Maam's backstory reveals a warrior priest trained by Avan

This episode mostly centers on Maam's backstory. We meet her mother and learn that her parents were a warrior and a priest. She's a warrior priest, and Avan taught her healing and support spells along with some martial arts.

We also see flashbacks of Avan with some character development, as he helps her out and acts as her mentor. Avan is the connective tissue between these characters, even though Dai knew him for less than a day, maybe a little more. Dai would be the heir to him, and that's where the story is taking us.

Dai, Popp and Maam make a balanced Dragon Quest party

With Maam, we're getting a real party. Dai is going to be the main legendary hero fighter, and like in the games, he'll have access to some spells. Popp's class, I guess, would be something like a mage, since he knows attack spells.

Then there's the support, which is Maam, with her healing and support spells. So she does know how to use magic without the gun. That makes for a pretty balanced party. They might be missing some other classes like thieves and martial artists, but the story's not over yet, so we'll see who joins as it progresses.

Zaboera tries to push Crocodine toward cruel tactics against Dai

Back at the Dark Lord's lair, Crocodine, who escaped earlier, complains about being beaten by a bunch of kids. Zaboera appears and offers to help him. The legion commanders are going to get together and try to kill Dai. That's the point.

Zaboera tries to seduce Crocodine into using cruel tactics to win. Crocodine seems to have some dignity and respect, and he seems more of a hardened warrior. He wants to beat Dai fair and square, one on one. He has some honor.

Zaboera tells him that if he loses to Dai, he'll be humiliated in front of everybody, including the other legion commanders. You can tell this guy's a real slime ball.

Why a slower episode of Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai still works

Not every episode can be action. This is a serialized show, so you have to slow things down before you build back up again. I know some folks don't understand that, especially younger people who are only now learning how these shonen shows work.

You have to have some slowdowns, and this is one of the episodes where things slowed down. It was effective, and I was fine with it.

Maam's parents let her join Dai and Popp to avenge Avan

The episode's climax comes when Maam's mom and dad both accept that she wants to help Dai and Popp avenge Master Avan, and she decides to do it. They share an emotional moment where they tell her not to worry about the village, because they'll take care of it. They know she wants to help, so she might as well go.

She joins the group, so there are now three heroes on the quest to beat the Dark Lord. The episode also set up what was coming next: a rematch between Crocodine and Dai, with Crocodine back for revenge and bringing an army of monsters.

I liked Maam's backstory, how she joined the party and the introduction of a new villain. It was a fairly chill episode, but the show's still cool. It's building up, it's adding new characters, and it's getting good.