#okay there's definitely a big enough following on tumblr so guess i'm crossposting my other thing

[kujoestars]

Counterpoint: We actually hear a casual version right in the first episode when Kafka was first introduced and well before the Mysterious Larva fused with him. I wish I could pull up the exact track, but I haven't been able to find it listed just yet. But I can tell you it starts at about the 4 minute mark in the first episode on Crunchyroll.

So it's incorrect that it's "Kaiju No. 8's theme". Or rather, not the way you think, LOL.

Furthermore, there's a lot of evidence in both the anime and manga pointing to Kafka and the Larva being two halves of a whole forming No. 8. It's not a case of "Kaiju No. 8 jacked Kafka's body and Kafka is on borrowed power!" No, Kafka is literally No. 8. Or specifically, he is the mind of No. 8 because the Larva was perfectly content to let him do whatever except for that ONE time their lives were in danger because Kafka was in actual danger but refusing to fight back against what the Larva perceived as another kaiju.

A common misinterpretation of what the larva was telling Kafka (that's often affected by what translation people are using) is that it's calling him a kaiju and urging him to kill everyone. But that actually makes no sense even within the context given as Kafka noted that his body was reacting to Isao like he's another kaiju. Something that happened only after Isao started using No. 2.

It's also worth noting that while Kafka does refer to his kaiju side as No. 8, the Larva itself never appeared as anything besides how it appeared prior to fusion. In fact, it is Kafka's mental avatar who starts taking on No. 8's appearance when the Larva started assimilating him mentally:

This is what tells me that No. 8 is both of them. The Larva in many ways parallels the Numbers weapons in that it does not appear to have an actual will of its own and instead functions as an extension of its host. Though, unlike with the Numbers weapons, it still has its core (that it's now sharing with Kafka) and therefore isn't basically lobotomized like they are, hence why it's still able to assert itself.

Although, given how mentally sync'ing with the Numbers causes their users to be consumed by their deepest desires, I wouldn't be surprised if the Larva was acting partially based off Kafka's desire to kill off kaiju. But that's a whole 'nother analysis.

Anyways, the tl;dr of all this is that where Kafka is the mind and will of No. 8, the Larva forms the instincts. The theme and its variations simply reflect Kafka's different states with the version for Berserk No. 8 embodying the sheer horror of that out of control rage state he's trapped in. They lyrics of the song don't make sense otherwise if they're for the Larva!

I have a separate theory that Kafka will need to eventually integrate willingly in a balanced way with the Larva to be able to function as he should, but I'll save that for another post.

It was such a fantastic move for them to bring in the kaiju no. 8 leitmotif here - it's a tune that we're usually thrilled to hear as it gets us pumped, oh so excited to see what badassery the transformed Kafka's about to pull off...

But the tone is so much darker now, because Kafka desperately didn't want to transform this time. Even worse, it's not even Kafka we're seeing anymore. In this scene, it's made it painfully clear...

This is not Hibino Kafka's theme. It has never been his theme.

This is kaiju no. 8's theme.