ahh, I was about to post a response for this thread a couple days ago but got logged out and lost all that I had written....so sorry I'm a little late here!
anyway - love this episode! I know I'm echoing a lot of you (I have read and enjoyed all your posts) but I guess I'll throw all my thoughts out there anyway:
Jasiri is a great character and I love her design and her voice. as I've said before, I was super disappointed at RotR's lack of female hyenas, so I'm really happy they resolved that issue so early on in the show. it's also great to see a hyena who isn't evil. the similarities btwn Kopa & Asante and Kion & Jasiri are soooo cool but I rly, rly doubt that was intentional....if it was, then I'm impressed. haha.
really enjoyed how Jasiri's "males are foolish" comment served to reinforce the fact that female hyenas are the dominant ones. i'm also really glad that comment wasn't made into a lesson. i half-expected Jasiri to say something to the effect of "I guess I was wrong about males!" after Kion helped her chase off Janja's clan, but I am relieved that her comment was just a standalone one, rather than something that was intended to truly be taken seriously or addressed as being problematic or w/e
also I jst really like Jasiri's personality. she's kind of tough and sassy, but had no problem showing her appreciation for Kion. her reaction to Kion calling her a friend was very sweet and genuine.
the song was very cute, sweet, and catchy. maybe my favorite one thus far (tho I gotta admit I find zuka zama to be rly appealing)
it was cool to see how the Guard functions without Kion. as lelizwe pointed out, all the members of the Guard are very capable and have extremely useful strengths, but it's Kion who is most able to maintain balance and act as a leader. the way this put the spotlight on Kion's leadership abilities made me appreciate him more as a character.
I think all the Guard members really got to shine here. Beshte is so cute and sociable (even if it gets him distracted), Fuli is proud and confident but was still able to acknowledge her mistake and apologize when she left the others behind, Bunga got to be on the 'sidelines' of the episode a little more and thus come off as less annoying while his personality was still kept intact, and Ono is very humble even though he is clearly the most intelligent of the group (and possibly the best stand-in leader in Kion's absence).
I agree that the roar should be featured less frequently. but I liked that Kion had a chance to use the roar to help Jasiri. would really like to see an episode where the roar is ineffective and Kion has to save the day thru other means.
overall very pleased....and wishing I didn't have things to do so I could go start on some Jasiri fanart ASAP