Zero no Tsukaima F – 12 (END)

「ゼロの使い魔」 (Zero no Tsukaima)
“The Familiar Of Zero”

After 50 episodes spread out over 4 seasons, the Zero no Tsukaima anime series has come to a close. There was a bit of a bang, and a bit of a whimper, but the most important thing got a resolution in the end. And no, it wasn’t that whole silly Ancient Dragon thing. Gotta resolve that harem!

Zero no Tsukaima F – 11

「ルイズの選択」 (Ruizu no Sentaku)
“Louise’s Choice”

I sometimes get the feeling that this anime isn’t doing the source material justice. That’s pure conjecture since I haven’t read the light novels, but there are occasional flashes of high-quality fiction that hint at deeper stories not told. This episode was one of those flashes. Oh Louise, whyyy~!!

Zero no Tsukaima F – 10

「災厄の目覚め」 (Saiyaku no Mezeme)
“Awakening of a Natural Disaster”

There was something very poignant about Siesta saying how she wants all of them to eat delicious food together, fight over the bed together, and age together. For a show that can be so juvenile, bringing up the image of everyone growing old together showed potential for great depth and maturity. It also made me very, very worried. I had good reason to be.

Zero no Tsukaima F – 05

「ドオルニエルの乙女たち」 (Doorunieru no Otome Tachi)
“De Ornielle’s Maidens”

Ahhh Zero no Tsukaima F, you were doing so well. I know you’ve got a lot of source material to churn through in not enough time, but was this episode really necessary? It reeked of filler. Filler that was in the light novels perhaps, but filler nonetheless.

Zero no Tsukaima F – 04

「女王陛下の恩賞」 (Jououheika no Onshou)
“Her Majesty’s Reward”

While the harem hijinks were on full display this episode, there were actually some important developments going on with Tabitha back in Gallia. There was a hilarious A-plot bolstered by a more serious B-plot, which began to intertwine as the episode went on. I’ll take each in turn.