©Carlo Zen,PUBLISHED BY KADOKAWA CORPORATION/Saga of Tanya the Evil2 PARTNERS
Back in the second episode of Saga of Tanya the Evil—way back in the prologue before her death in our world—she said the following:
“I’m aware of my deficiencies as a human. My personality is twisted in various ways and I have every complex imaginable. […] As long as I’m being paid for my labor, I’ll do my job and tell people they’re laid off, even if it’s a pain. Obeying company rules is the easiest thing in the world.”
This is Tanya in a nutshell. Saying that she lacks empathy is missing the forest for the trees. The real issue is that she doesn’t feel emotions as other people do. Oh sure, she feels joy at a job well done, anger at the injustices put upon her, and fear when her life is in danger. However, these emotions are either stoked or smothered based on the logical, objective nature of the situation—i.e., by the physical laws of nature and rules of society.
For example, in this episode, she is disappointed at the weak herbal tea she is served and the pitiful meal that accompanies it. Yet, rather than wallow in her feelings, she immediately sees the situation as something normal considering the state of the war and—given that she has no way to end the war herself—simply concludes she has to put up with it. It’s not even worth getting angry over.
It never even occurs to her to lose herself in her emotions and act on them and them alone. She would never even consider something like rebellion or revolution—just like she’d never consider pushing a man in front of a train after losing her job.
All the characters in this episode, from Zettour and Rudersdorf to Rerugen and Ugar are trying to get Tanya to empathize with the common man. However, her ability to empathize can only go as far as how she would feel in their situation—and, as we’ve established, she doesn’t feel things as other people do.
She’s shocked at the idea that the populous isn’t calm—they’re emotionally numb. They’ve gone through anger and sorrow and have come out the other end. But that doesn’t mean the pain is gone. It’s just lingering under the surface about to explode. However, just because Tanya can’t make herself feel that way doesn’t mean she doesn’t believe what the others are telling her—and based off of their words she has a chilling realization.
From the start, Tanya has had one goal: a simple, safe, peaceful life. Before the war turned into a World War, she planned to get a desk job far from the front lines. But now? Now it doesn’t matter if the war ends tomorrow—even if in victory. The government is too brittle and the people too far past their limits. Rather than peace, chaos and death are all that await Tanya. Her goal is even further away than on the day she was reborn into this tragic world.
Rating:
Saga of Tanya the Evil II is currently streaming on
Crunchyroll.
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