English Dub Season Review: Dr. Stone Season Three

One of these days…bang! Zoom! Straight to the moon!

The journey of modern humans reclaiming their civilization continues in the third season of Dr. Stone, subtitled “New World”. Last time, Ishigami Senku and his Kingdom of Science conquered the forces of Shishio Tsukasa, who threatened to rule over the reforming world with might making right. With that enemy neutralized, the team’s gaze turns towards finding materials left behind by Senku’s astronaut adopted father and his own group, which leads to them finding a whole island of living humans, one of whom has a device that causes the exact petrification inflicted on the world thousands of years ago. Now the Kingdom of Science must both face off against fearsomely strong strength, but also wicked cunning as they search for the next stage in their quest.

Dr. Stone has always pushed a prevailing theme of knowledge being a guiding light that brings all of humanity together. The first arcs reflected this by showing that Senku’s ability to educate those he met is how he wins people over. The formation of the Kingdom of Science comes from enlightening those who had little knowledge of how the world worked into a knowledgeable and educated fighting force, while their victory over the Tsukasa Empire came from the latter relying only on their strength in all ways, including their ethics. With that in mind, the strength of knowledge comes greatly in handy when facing their next major antagonist, Minister Ibara, who rules over the Kingdom of Petrification with superstition. The threat of being petrified does start out feeling like lethal spell or the wrath of an angry god, even more so if someone is shattered afterwards, but once Senku and the rest learn how the device is used (in addition to already knowing how to unpetrify someone), it soon becomes clear it’s just a tool like everything else. In a later scene, the group re-invent firearms, which gives everyone pause for obvious reasons, but just like the petrification device, it is only a tool, with no more power than the one using it. It can be used to harm and kill, but it can also preserve and heal. Well…maybe not firearms specifically, but you hopefully see my point.

You may notice that I haven’t really mentioned anyone else in the main group, but that’s mainly because this season is mainly about them acting as a unit. They do all have standout moments, like Ginro infiltrating Ibara’s quarters and finding out how he’s held power, Kohaku getting herself petrified with him for the chance he might heal a fatal wound, Taiju helping retrieve everyone’s bodies after being petrified, and newcomer ship captain Ryusui getting revived and re-petrified three separate times over the course of the entire season (which apparently won’t be the last times either). Everyone gets to be a part of this infiltration and attack, they just don’t really get to have much character development through it, which is fine since that isn’t really the time for it. At most, everyone just gets to show their further dedication to the cause. It basically becomes the Kingdom of Science vs the Kingdom of Petrification, with the battle coming down to how strong their teamwork is. Senku’s kingdom are an unbreakable unit that are all loyal to each other, while Ibara’s is full of weak points, in no small part due to him ruling through deception and misdirection, with many under him fearing him, doubting him, or eager to overthrow him. Ultimately, Senku is fighting for everyone and Ibara is only fighting for himself, which is why he is taken down in the end.

The third season of Dr. Stone really is a whole new world in terms of the show’s scale and ability to ramp itself up on all levels. In addition to the neat real life science stuff that has always done, we get to see more of what each character is capable of, as well as testing their resolve and teamwork against a new kind of threat. While it’s only brought up a bit at the beginning and at the end, the final boss of the story does come into view this season: a mysterious entity called Why-man who wishes to petrify the whole world. The next major goal for the Kingdom of Science is heading to the Moon where it lies, but there’s obviously a lot they’ll have to accomplish before they can do that. It’s been announced that the next season will be the show’s last, which is concerning when you consider there is still SO MUCH story left, but the last three seasons haven’t let me down yet, so I am all in on whatever they have left to throw at me. Based on how it’s released so far, we probably won’t get it for awhile, so I’ll sit here like a stone statue until then.