It makes sense now why Soshiro took such a liking to Kafka. The situation with Kafka reflected his own in a way. Just as how Soshiro wanted to push himself in a direction others saw as a futile struggle with an inevitable end, Kafka now seeks to accomplish something he doesn’t appear to be suited for. There is the obvious difference of Kafka possessing a Kaiju within him but from Soshiro’s perspective, Kafka is someone seemingly unfit for the Defense Force yet an individual possessing an immense amount of passion to exceed their limitations. Soshiro resonated with the struggle Kafka was going through and sought to be the support for Kafka which he didn’t have until he met Mina. Soshiro understands there is merit behind that which isn’t noticeably apparent at first glance and if given the chance, anyone can begin to substantiate their value. And Soshiro wasn’t wrong, thanks to Kakfa’s experience as a Kaiju dismantler, he brings a very unique perspective to the Defense Force which has displayed utility in the previous Kaiju attacks they were in. Likewise, Soshiro’s efforts in this current battle against the Humanoid Kaiju (Kaiju #10?) has carved the path out for Mina to unleash. And with the Battle Princess now at the scene, the Humanoid Kaiju can get the fight it so intensely craves.
With Soshiro being revealed to specialise in swordplay to the point he is considered a genius and the emergence of the Humanoid Kaiju, the skills he has honed is set to become an essential asset to the Defense Force. Prior to the Humanoid Kaiju appearing, the Defense Force administration may have been correct in concluding that a high affinity with firearms was the most useful attribute for those on the front-lines but now with the arrival of new types of Kaiju, a reevaluation of what skills are effective against the “enemy” is needed. Soshiro and Kafka (base form) both illustrate how the current disposition of the Defense Force administration is flawed. Without either of them on the front-lines, the damage inflicted by the Kaiju attacks would have been much worse.
Mina was correct in appreciating the value Soshiro possessed. She was exposed to the Kaiju on the front-line and subconsciously realised that not all Kaiju that appear going forward would be massive. She suspected there would be powerful Kaiju that were small and unfavourable to her attack style. Such an expectation substantiated Soshiro’s presence. Soshiro helped fill a weakness in Mina’s team and thanks to that, they are now able to handle both large and small Kaiju.
In the current battle against this Humanoid Kaiju, Soshiro was at a disadvantage due to the Kaiju’s massive size but that is where Mina, who specialises in dealing with massive Kaiju, comes in. In the future, there may be a smaller Humanoid Kaiju that Mina can’t handle on her own and thanks to Soshiro’s attack style, he would be able to take over and combat such a Kaiju. In a similar manner, Kikoru and Leno were operating like this current battle. Kikoru was handling the enemies from the front with her brute force and Leno was crowd controlling the enemies with his firearms in order to set to them up for Kikoru to finish. The Defense Force as a whole may not realise the complimentary nature of the different type of attack styles yet fortunately the soldiers in the Third Division are aware of such utility.
Curious to see what happens with the Humanoid Kaiju now. Will it retreat or unleash everything it had against the Defense Force? Mina is now at the scene but does this mean that Kafka doesn’t have to transform into his Kaiju form? Could a situation arise that necessitates him having to transform into his Kaiju form to fight? Would this be the appearance of a second Humanoid Kaiju or could the current Humanoid Kaiju evolve further to the point where Mina and Soshiro aren’t able to handle it on their own? Potentially. With Kafka now at the scene, if such a situation arises, there may be a way for him to avoid the drone camera’s around the base and find a blindspot where he can transform into his Kaiju form. Most likely though, the current situation will be handled by Mina through either destroying the current Humanoid Kaiju or forcing it to withdraw (which would seem out of character for the current Kaiju). Very much looking forward to the next chapter.
12Dimension 