The Big Man takes the stage. The audience is not interested.
Isolated in darkness, the assassin Black☆Star stalks gang boss Al Capone, but there's one problem: the loudmouth ninja's desire for the spotlight undermines his efforts to be covert, as he jumps out of the shadows, lands atop Capone's dinner table, and announces his name to all present. As his Demon Shadow Weapon, Tsubaki Nakatsukasa, criticizes his showboating, Capone and his gang fire shots at the duo, requiring Black Star to deploy Tsubaki's Smoke Bomb mode to make an escape.
The Docks
That evening, Tsubaki uses her Shinigami Smoke Bomb to summon Death to submit their mission report. Death expresses surprise that she and Black Star failed yet another mission but gives them an alternative. He tells them that a soul exists that's worth 99 human souls. He goes on to say that the soul in question is guarding the witch Angela Leon.
Classified as a "Strong Soul", Mifune the samurai is confronted by Alcapone and his mob.
Cliffs
Tsubaki and Black☆Star partake in a rather 'steamy' situation, as the meister spies upon his weapon bathing. His peep session practice ends with Tsubaki impaling Black☆Star with a shuriken thanks to his peeping session, at which point Black☆Star achieves perfect disappearance as an assassin—by playing dead from the shuriken-caused blood loss.
Demon Cinder Castle
The dark duo run through the forest leading to Demon Cinder Castle and run into stray souls: they discover that the entire Capone family has been executed, and the killer responsible is Mifune himself. After introductions, the ninja and the samurai battle. Although powerful, Black☆Star's desire for the spotlight brings harm, albeit non-lethal, from Mifune. Black☆Star is furious that Mifune, fighting with the back of his blade, is going easy on him. After Mifune refers to Black☆Star as an untalented "small-fry," Tsubaki verbally defends her meister. As Mifune explains he will protect the witch, Black☆Star says that is not his concern: he is more upset that this samurai is hogging his spotlight.
Black☆Star stands again, ordering Tsubaki to turn into his Ninja Sword mode. Mifune realizes the look in Black☆Star's eyes has changed, promising a more serious battle—until Mifune sees through the distraction: Tsubaki had assumed Mode: Dummy Star to imitate Black Star, while the real meister leaps from behind Mifune to land the ultimate move in the ninja's arsenal, Finishing Strike: Black☆Star Big Wave, nearly incapacitating Mifune.
After Black Star reminds Mifune he is a god who will now execute Mifune, a call comes from above: "Stop!!" Landing on her broomstick, the witch, Angela, arrives—and she is just a child. As her magic is weak and she is so young, Mifune was guarding this seemingly defenseless witch. Black☆Star now recognizes Mifune's drive to protect the innocent child, hence deciding that he will not claim Mifune's and Angela's souls. As he departs with his pleased weapon, Black☆Star promises Tsubaki that they will begin soul collecting the next day.
Bathhouse
Later, Black☆Star tries to peep at Tsubaki in the girls' outside bath one more time only to achieve the same result as before: a shuriken to the forehead.
Manga and Anime Differences
Episode 2 begins with a flashback of Black*Star and Tsubaki's first meeting, which is revealed in more detail in Episode 11. This meeting does not appear in Chapter 0.2.
At Capone's meeting at the beginning of Chapter 0.2, some of his lackeys are not wearing masks. In Episode 2, all of his lackeys are wearing masks.
The bad joke Black*Star tells is different in Chapter 0.2. He says, "Stop with the weird joke, you bloke."
In this chapter, at the docks at night following their retreat from Capone, Tsubaki removes from her arsenal what appears like a smoke bomb with a skull. Tsubaki uses this device to summon the image of Lord Death (or, as he is able to Reaper Chop Black Star, the actual Lord Death) to give their progress report. In Episode 2, however, Black Star and Tsubaki leave the docks at night to arrive at the DWMA during daytime to meet with Lord Death in the Death Room, at which point they give their progress report (and Lord Death chops Black Star).
As well, in Episode 2, because Black Star and Tsubaki return to the DWMA after their meeting at the docks, they spend some time reviewing additional mission before running into Soul Eater and Maka Albarn, who are hesitant to discuss the events of Episode 1 and their failure to Soul into a Death Scythe. These events do not take place at any point in the manga.
In Chapter 0.2, it is mentioned that Mifune has a strong soul equivalent to 99 souls. This is never mentioned in the anime.
In Episode 2, after Black Star and Tsubaki depart the Death Room, Tsubaki prevents him from leaving the DWMA balcony so she may chastise him to take missions more seriously. While she does so, Maka watches her friends from the Crescent Room Classroom's window while speaking with Soul. These events also do not take place in this chapter.
In this chapter, Black Star seems to speak directly to readers, telling them he is about to peep on Tsubaki bathing, at which point he impersonates the voices of admirers, including whom he imagines would propose marriage to him. In Episode 2, Black Star does not seem to realize he is approaching the location where Tsubaki is bathing, intending only to practice his covert skills to spy on her regardless what she is doing. As such, in this episode, he does not speak to viewers nor does he impersonate anyone praising him or proposing marriage to him.
The bathhouse includes violent images of the pandas, the writing on the Sun's forehead, and the star on Tsubaki's towel
In this chapter, when Tsubaki attacks the peeping Black Star with a shuriken on two separate occasions, her towel includes, appropriately enough, stars. In the anime, no star appears on her towel.
In this chapter, the Sun has the phrases "Sun" or "Rising Sun" written upon it. The anime, and later chapters of the manga, do not include this word.
In this chapter, the corpse of Capone is visible, whereas in Episode 2, the bodies of the Mafia members dissolve, leaving behind only their kishin eggs.
In Episode 2, Lord Death is seen watching Black Star's departure from Demon Cinder Castle, impressed that Black Star refused to claim their souls. He then meets with Black Star and Tsubaki who have arrived with the kishin eggs of Al Capone and his mob—to turn them in, not to claim them, as Black Star thinks it is not right for him to take credit for souls he himself did not reap—despite Lord Death's encouragement that Black Star really could use some freebies. These scenes do not take place in this chapter, especially when kishin eggs appear in the anime, not the manga.
In this chapter, the bathhouse includes arrows sticking into the panda statues, with blood dripping, and a set of drowning or hanged pandas. These images are lacking in Episode 2.
The mountains where Black Star spies upon Tsubaki and other bathers at the bathhouse have faces. While in Episode 2 the trees on the way between Tsubaki's mountain bath and Demon Castle Cinder have faces, no other objects have such faces.
Trivia
In the Yen Press English translation, Tsubaki in this and other early chapters refers to Black Star as "Sir."
According to Black Star, there are rules for the Way of Peeping:
Rule #1: "Don't get too impatient: sneak in slowly!!"
Rule #2: "Stay still and quietly enjoy the show!"
The Way of the Assassination include the following rules:
Rule #1: "Blend into the shadows, control your breathing, and wait for your target to let down his guard."
Rule #2: Tune in to your target; predict his thoughts and actions."
Rule #3: "Strike your target before he notices you."
The word "alcohol" is written on Capone's hat, likely alluding to the real Al Capone's role in bootlegging during Prohibition in the 1920s, when alcohol production and sale were outlawed.[1]
In the Yen Press translation, Tsubaki says, "I'm going to start jumping at shadows instead of blending into them." In the original Japanese, Tsubaki's joke is in the form of the pun "gishinanki," which means being suspicious, as if jumping at shadows. "Gishinanki" contains within it "anki," Japanese for "dark tool," which is Tsubaki's own weapon form.[2]
In the original Japanese, Black Star tells Tsubaki "Hen na share wa yamen shai." The direct translation is "Stop with the weird jokes." But with Black Star's pronunciation, he makes a corny joke as well, and a rhyming pun at that: he pronounces "yamenasai" ("please stop") as "yamen shai," such that "shai" sounds like "share" (Japanese for "joke").[3]
References
↑Soul Eater Volume 1: Yen Press English translation, page 202
↑Soul Eater Volume 1: Yen Press English translation, page 202
↑Soul Eater Volume 1: Yen Press English translation, page 202
