WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Episode 4 of Joran: The Princess of Snow and Blood, "Confidential File 099, Kuchinawa," now streaming on Crunchyroll.
After spending every episode thus far hyping it up, Joran finally pits Sawa against the object of her revenge in Episode 4. Asahi’s abduction made a confrontation with Janome inevitable, but the encounter with the insidious villain nearly proves to be too much for Sawa to handle.
Realizing that Asahi has been kidnapped and aware of who took her, Sawa heads out to find her young ward. She is almost immediately found and detained by Jin, who is ambushed soon after by Makoto while trying to get Sawa to safety. Sawa regains consciousness at Janome’s base and finds Asahi being held prisoner, guarded by a trio of monstrous snakes under Janome's control. When confronted by her rival, Sawa is forced to suppress her longstanding rage when Janome uses Asahi as a bargaining chip. Janome then reveals that he plans on using Sawa to further his research into her now-extinct clan and the mystery of their blue blood.
With Sawa’s blood at his disposal, Janome is able to stabilize and refine his formula – finally perfecting his changeling experiments. As he explains what’s happened since the day of her village’s slaughter, Janome tells Sawa that some members of the village were kept alive so he could farm blood. With this, he also reveals Sawa’s brother Takeru, originally thought to be dead, in a decrepit state hanging above her. The shock of his state fills Sawa with grief, and her reaction gives Makoto just enough time to turn on Janome and free both Asahi and Sawa – though this comes at the cost of an arm.
With Sawa now free, Janome uses his improved formula to transform into a massive snake-like changeling. The transformation leads to the gradual collapse of the hideout, with Makoto taking notice and apparently swiping some of Janome’s formula in the process. As the roof collapses, Sawa and Janome face off but the two fail to notice that the crumbling building has freed Takeru. Sawa puts up a good fight, but the improved formula gives Janome incredible endurance, leaving Sawa tired and her attacks ineffective.
Too weak and broken to move, Takeru spots a nearby vial of volatile chemicals and throws them at Janome, burning him. The distraction gives Sawa just enough of an opening to gather herself for one last attack, cleaving Janome in half and killing him on the spot. Sawa rushes towards her brother, lamenting his frail state. Blind and barely alive, Takeru consoles his younger sister – who wishes to die beside him. But Takeru points out the still-unconscious Asahi nearby, leaving Sawa with the difficult decision to either leave her brother behind or allow herself and Asahi to die alongside him.
After establishing Janome as the series’ – or perhaps now just Sawa’s – antagonist, Joran took everyone by surprise with his sudden death. Sawa’s revenge comes with the knowledge of her brother’s prolonged suffering, and an incredibly bittersweet family reunion. With Asahi’s life on the line, Sawa will likely press forward without her brother. Despite losing such a big antagonist early on, Makoto’s double betrayal and subsequent escape leave plenty of questions for the series to explore for the rest of its run.
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