Dr. STONE SCIENCE FUTURE – Episode 3

This episode of Dr. Stone is an interesting one. Unlike most episodes where the theme and plot go hand-in-hand, driving towards a single resolution, this episode sees them pull in different directions.

Thematically, this episode is about hope, specifically what happens when what you hope for doesn't pan out. Since the beginning of the series, there's been the, albeit faint, hope that perhaps the entire world isn't like Japan.

In Search of Hope

The idea that somewhere, a group of people escaped petrification and have been keeping human society alive ever since, that the world isn't gone, has been a quiet comfort in the back of everyone in the Old World's minds. So when they reach the shores of America and see the same mass of petrified people, it hits our heroes much harder than they would have expected, especially Gen.

Back during the fight against Tsukasa, Gen sold people the lie that America was still out there, and even had people from their time like Lillian Weinberg still alive. But even if Gen is such a skilled manipulator, that doesn't mean he's immune to hope and deception.

Ultimately, he's a person with wants and needs like anyone else. Even he can fall into the trap of his own flattering words.

A good portion of the episode is spent with the characters coming to terms with the fact that America is just as civilization-less as Japan. Some, like Taiju, focus on the next step toward their end goal: finding corn. Others, mainly the natives, cope by reveling in the natural wonders they come across.

America is Civilization-less

And just about everyone enjoys the new/nostalgic taste of the "modern world" they get from some alligator burgers. Even if they haven't found a modern city, they can still cling to the hope that they can make the world what it once was.

The plot, on the other hand, moves in the opposite direction. Well before the big, bullet-riddled reveal, there are hints sprinkled throughout that America isn't as devoid of human life as it initially seems.

The alligator attack seems almost too sudden and random. As if they were stirred up and driven downriver toward Senku's expedition. Likewise, both the corn in the alligator's stomach and the kernels drifting down the river are the perfect bait to drive our heroes upstream. Right into the path of a convenient ambush.

So in the end, we get an episode where our heroes are forced to accept that they really are the last of humanity, only to find out that's most definitely not the case.

Whether these are surviving humans who managed to exist under the Why-Man's radar or those like Senku who were coincidentally depetrified and have a scientist of equal caliber… well, that remains to be seen.

Conclusion

At first, I thought it was weird that Nikki wasn't on the expedition team. Then I realized she's probably staying behind to keep an eye on Magma.

Moz and Hyoga seem pretty onboard with following Senku's lead for the moment. Though it's obvious that the "hamburger" helped more than a little in Hyoga's case.

Man, that dude in the back of the boat doesn't have meat or Francois. It sucks to be him.

The technological level we see from our new foes is astounding. Both the pistol and combat knife look like they were made from machined parts, which has all sorts of implications.