Dr. Stone - Chapter 158 Review by Seraph
Chapter Title: Who's the Scientist?
This Week's Chapter of Dr. Stone comes with a beautifully drawn and colored cover page of Dr. Xeno and Stanley Snyder along with a popular quote of Aristotle: "What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies." The Chapter starts with Ryusui and Senku talking about the Mentor-Menteeship between Dr. Xeno and Senku, while Xeno creates tools and weapons meant to hurt and force people into submission Senku uses his science to help and easen the lives of the people around him. A strong contrast between 2 more or less equal minds of modern times. The scene cuts to another flashback,this time when Stanley and his fellow soldiers, Elite Scientists and Journalists broke free from the petrification. As the group expresses pride in themselves and their mental capabilities to stay "awake" for 3,700 years we can see Xeno taking notice of the Platinum Ring that had been swallowed by Carlos before the petrification, he is visibly happy about this found as he and his friends will be able to rule the world through Military Might from here on out. As long as the Americans have Xeno's Science and Stanley's Skill with Firearms there is noone that can threaten them anymore,the World is there just for them to rule it. However, the actual motivation or ideology behind this ambition remains a mystery for now,i do believe it lies back in his NASA days though since that is when his attitude and attire first changed.
The flashback ends while Senku and Co. continue their discussion about Xeno and the American Group, Luna looks on as she can't really understand what her enemies may be talking about but suddenly spots Taiju in the crowd on deck and quickly decides to walk over and point Stanley to his target. As Luna lifts her right finger in order to point at Taiju we see Stanley sharpen his gaze and getting ready to fire, meanwhile Senku informs the group that he will try to use the Medusa as their ace in the hole since "Doc. Xeno" is their enemy. Taiju and the others wonder how the weapon is of any use to them now with the battery being empty but Senku explains that it is not the actual ability of the weapon he wants to use but the unknown technology behind it, Xeno knows better than anyone how useful Scientific Weapons can be. In the background Luna continues to struggle pointing at Taiju and ends up putting it into her nose instead, due to her conscience kicking in. Taiju helped and welcomed her earlier so she can't see him die now. Unfortunately her struggle ends up being in vain as Stanley has already figured out who Taiju is and is taking aim at him immediatly, Luna begins to "send" a message to her comrades as she moves her lips in a way that spells "Senku,possible friend of Xeno". Carlos and Max immediatly take notice of this and inform Xeno back at their HQ who is shocked to hear this. Back at the Perseus Ryusui has noticed Luna's shady behaviour and is now watching her closely while Senkuu talks with Minami about their jammed communications.
While the Youngster Scientist further analyzes his enemies knowledge and equipment Ryusui has concluded that the enemy must be nearby as the communications began to be jammed once she gazed into the opposite direction meaning that something is up. Stanley is about to take the shot on Taiju but he is stopped by Xeno who explains that "Dr.Taiju" is a decoy meant to distract from the real genius "Senku Ishigami",and as he clarifies that he is visibly happy about this revelation. However, Stanley's aim remains on Taiju and it appears like his bloodlust has taken over, just as he is about to pull the trigger we see Ryusui share his observations with everyone. The enemy is nearby and they brought a Sniper with them!...
Personal Thought's
I rate this Chapter an 8 out of 10.
Good Chapter of Dr. Stone this week again! Interesting to have confirmation on Xeno and Stanley being childhood friends,now we have a proper contrast between them to Senku and Taiju. Also very intriguing is that Xeno has already taken hold of the Platinum Ring from Carlos.
I liked that just after i made a guess about it we got confirmation for it in this Chapter, Xeno does indeed have all the Specialists,Journalists and Elites from NASA,the Military and the Media in his ranks. It's interesting to hear that Xeno wants to rule over the World, i really wonder why he wants to do so. Something must've triggered all this during his NASA Days for sure,since that's when he changed attire and attitude.Not sure if continuing with this Assassination Plot is smart from Xeno right now though,if he does continue, after all leaving Senku alive could be of benefit for him i feel like. Especially with the knowledge on how to create Revival Fluid, useful Information and the Medusa in his bag. Perhaps Xeno can figure out how the machine works,smart of Senku to try and use that to his advantage. Really liked how Ryusui kept monitoring Luna in all this, gets better and better every appearance he makes for me.Now let's see if Xeno stops the attack and tries to use Senku or if they continue and the Science Crew can somehow prevent getting shot. Ryusui made the shout so it'll be a matter of moments from here on out. Lets see...Till next time everybody!!!To discuss and share your thoughts on the manga, you can visit our Dr. Stone section.