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Episode 2 “Life In The Fast Lane” Details

• Available On: Max
• Public Release Date: April 13, 2025
• Director(s): Tsuyoshi Tobita
• Writer(s): Tsukasa Kondo

Episode 2 “Life In The Fast Lane” Recap (With Spoilers)

Less Avengers, Potentially More Suicide Squad: Axel, Doug, Christine, Leland, Eleina, Herch

With a bracelet that cannot be removed, Axel being able to escape as he is used to doing doesn’t seem like an option. But, on a positive side, with being tasked to find Dr. Skinner, there is this push that they are superheroes like The Avengers. Granted, Lazarus airs on a DC-affiliated network, so it is an odd choice, never mind between Hersch and everyone having a rap sheet, this is more like The Suicide Squad, but everyone has their favorites, right?

As for what everyone did? That isn’t specified. We know Axel originally only had a three-year sentence for doing what isn’t said, but it ended up with 888 years due to him escaping and being captured so many times, and his sentence doubling each time he escaped. Leland got in trouble for petty theft, Doug a misdemeanor, Eleina apparently for hacking on a global scale, and Christine? Well, she is paired with Axel when we’re learning about who did what, and he doesn’t ask what led to her being forced onto this team.

The Ballad Of Deniz Skinner

So, who is Dr. Deniz Skinner? At one time, he was considered the next Einstein. He was born and raised in Istanbul, primarily by his grandmother, after local unrest took his parents when he was 12. He first went to ETZ Zurich at 16, majoring in applied mathematics and chemical physics, then moved to the UK to study quantum biology at Cambridge when he was 20, then moved to Stanford by 2018, where he was an assistant professor, and later became a full professor by 2024.

He is a three-time Nobel Prize winner, winning the award in 2031 for Physics, 2036 for Chemistry, and in 2040 for Physiology or Medicine. At this point, he is 56, born June 11, 1996, and he doesn’t have a wife, kids, or any known relations. The only thing he has seemingly ever committed himself to personally is work, advocating for peace, and environmental justice. In fact, it seems the reason he disappeared is that he became disheartened after a speech at the UN three years ago about climate change, which led to countries like the US and China leaving the assembly – maybe breaking his heart about the future.

This Isn’t Going To Be A Simple Task: Axel, Doug, Christine, Leland, Eleina, Herch

After learning that Dr. Skinner purchased a bunker before disappearing, Christine and Axel are sent to the bunker, and Leland and Doug head to the shop where Dr. Skinner purchased the bunker. He isn’t found at either. Instead, Axel and Christine find themselves encountering the Russians, some kind of Mexican mob, the FBI, and the DEA.

As for Doug and Leland, they find bounty hunters looking for a completely different person. To make matters worse, Eleina is able to get a hit on Dr. Skinner, but there are thousands of him. This makes it clear that Dr. Skinner doesn’t want this task to be easy and may try to drive his point that the end of the world is coming soon and humanity is running out of time.

“Lazarus” Character Guide

Review and Commentary

Highlights

Getting Dr. Skinner’s Background [82/100]

While I wouldn’t say Dr. Skinner is an antagonist, with his almost Thanos-like way of thinking, he is painted as the villain, and getting some background on him allows for some nuance and layers. Is he willing to wipe out humanity for the environment and peace? Maybe. When it comes to a cure, will it not be without additional conditions?

It’s always best when you learn new things, and this leads to additional questions. With Dr. Skinner, I feel that they can extend the mystery of where he is and whether his motivation all along was to give humanity a death sentence for quite a few episodes.

Doesn’t Need To Be Flashy To Be Interesting [83/100]

Despite Axel not jumping from buildings and scaffolding, giving viewers second-hand anxiety, the show didn’t falter. This feels major since when things start off grandeur, it can sometimes seem as a show settles in after that initial pop, it can falter. Thankfully, that may not be the case here.

Now, is learning a lot about Dr. Skinner and not all that much about the members of Lazarus a tad frustrating? Yes. But, we’re going to see them in the flesh and also in action, likely every episode. Dr. Skinner needs a cloak of mystery to stay interesting and to be someone you have questions about. The members of Lazarus? I imagine us getting to the point of having episodes focused on one at a time coming up eventually. So, it is just about waiting.

On The Fence

Question Of If There Will Be Pacing Issues [77/100]

With that said, and maybe this comes from feeling spoiled by Sword Of The Demon Hunter, I feel like this foundation-level information should have all been in the first episode. Granted, there are 13 episodes to the first season of Lazarus, so it isn’t like there still isn’t a notable amount of time. However, I would submit there is going to be an issue of moving the story forward, getting to know the characters, and presenting enough action, in balance, for a few more episodes.

This stinks because this will definitely be one of the top anime of the season, and second seasons take years, if they ever happen. So with that, time is an expensive resource, and with the show having 30 days, 28 at the end of this episode, to find Dr. Skinner and expand on the world and characters? I get that there is a level of trust that should be here, due to Shinichiro Watanabe being behind this, but I’m increasingly finding the legends of the 90s slowly but surely seeming to be resting on their laurels a bit.

Overall

Our Overall Rating [80/100]

Lazarus continues to be entertaining, but the pacing can lead to questions of how this show will handle character development, story progression, world building, and quality action going forward. It is trying to do the best it can now, and surely many can make the claim it is doing far better than most—but they don’t have Watanabe’s career to set a precedent and far higher expectations.

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