「花畑の合格者」 (Hanahata no Goukakusha)
“Successful Candidate in the Flower Garden”
What Kyoukaisen does perhaps better than everything else, is build. That’s not to say that it starts out small by any means, but early on it relentlessly lays the groundwork, plants the seeds which it will reap to devastating effect at the end of the season. So it was with Season 1, so it is here. Last week’s offering was amazing, stellar even. This one was as well! It’s a rare show that can keep the tension so high for so long without it feeling cheap, and while delivering satisfying conclusions the entire time. But then again, Kyoukaisen cheats – it has enough plot for 4+ shows, so it can keep closing down plot threads in the most epic of fashions, confident in the fact that they have three more queued up for the next episode. It’s… *takes a deep breath* it’s truly amazing, and I found myself out of breath from squeeing, laughing, and gaping open-mouthed at the awesome that coated my screen. Fuck yeah!
Explanations:
How did Tenzou get past Walter Raleigh?
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This might not require it, but I’m going to explain how Tenzou got past him anyway. First, Tenzou enlisted the cooperation of the bird Milton, who flew into Walter’s face and distracted him just long enough for Tenzou to get close. That allowed Tenzou to grab Walter’s arm, preventing him from striking him for a crucial few seconds. Tenzou used that time to slip between Walter’s legs, and then he threw his shirt in Walter’s way, obstructing his view. That forced Walter to strike unseen – which only resulted in a small cut on Tenzou’s back. And he was away!
Why did Cecil fall the more Kimi resisted her magic?
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Thanks to my lovely commenters, I now have an answer to this one! Apparently, the reason that Cecil can hover is that her magic forces her weight onto other people / things, but with Kimi resisting said weight, Cecil was forced to take her own weight back upon herself, which, as can quite plainly see, is quite formidable. Welcome back to earth, Cecil.
How did Malga beat Dudley?
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Once again I’m inferring, but here’s what I’ve got. Remember, Malga isn’t just a witch, she’s also affiliated with the manga club (you might remember her talking about doujinshi with Asama in Episode 1). I’m not sure on the details, but it was pretty clear that she was using her magic to redirect Dudley’s bolts along the lines her pen draws. As for that last page, her full magical manga page appears to be a reproduction of the events between her, Margot, and Kimi from Episode 09, so I’m thinking she poured all of her feelings from that scene into the page and used those as a ritual offering to repel the incoming attacks. Something like that!
Why didn’t Tenzou kiss Mary before?
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Because he’s an idiot and chickened out. Seriously! His whole “kissing seals a couple’s engagement” line was total bullshit. Remember, Toori told him to explain to Mary why he didn’t kiss her, even if it was a lie. Tenzou was just taking Toori’s advice.
“Clothunit”
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Masazumi calls Tenzou “Clothunit” a couple of times this episode. Is that some strange nickname? No, it’s just his surname. Remember, his surname (and also last name…despite being a ninja, he uses Western naming order for some reason) is Crossunite. Now recall that the Japanese language plays it fast and easy with L’s and R’s, and we’ve got Clossunite. Now if you listen to it carefully, it sounds like that’s exactly what she’s saying, but I can see how some tired or suitibly busy translator could confuse the ss for th, especially the first time she saw it. So swap those out and we’ve got Clothunite. As for chopping off the e…well, that’s less defensibly in my mind, but it’s really just said translators not being as crazy knowledgeable about Kyoukaisen as I am. Which I cannot fault them for. I love this series so much I get a +6 circumstance bonus to my language checks, bitches! XD
Excalibur Caliburn and Excalibur Collbrande
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This one is a bit tricky, so stay with me. First of all, Collbrande is variant on the spelling of the mythological Caliburn, so that’s where the name comes from. Now I’m going to have to once again admit ignorance here, and just take my best stab at explaining this. As I understand it, Excalibur Caliburn and Excalibur Collbrande were both sealed in the rock together, with Excalibur Caliburn as the outer one that seals the three swords there. In order to draw Excalibur Caliburn, you have to draw Excalibur Collbrande as well, but you can’t do that unless you realize that it’s there first. That’s where Tenzou’s line “We will consider he who realize that worthy to be our king,” comes into play. So Tenzou figured this out and sort of called the sword out on it (or perhaps the fairies associated with it, I’m not sure), which allowed Elizabeth and Mary to each pull out one of the swords (or one set, in Mary’s case). As for why one person couldn’t do this, perhaps they could have if they had known about Excalibur Collbrande, but then again there are still three blades there, so the logistics of pulling them out all at once are a bit awkward.
The only thing I don’t know (aside from whether any of that is correct) is how Tenzou knew there were two (sets of) swords, or even suspected such a thing. Light novel readers? Either that, or I’ll wait until sensei throws out the answer to this question and then update things accordingly. Thanks for your understanding
Did Grace O’Malley die?
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No. Notice the small green dot flying away from the Granuaille? That’s Grace. Also, it doesn’t really look like she’s inside, does it? But all that aside, her survival was obvious simply due to how it was done. That was a heroic act, but it was no heroic death. You’ve got to milk that for a little more drama when you’re dealing with a named character. That’s just the rules.
Impressions
Kimi & Malga VS Dudley & Cecil
I go over the nitty gritty details (as best I’m able) in the Explanations section, so here I’m going to focus all on the feels. Of the two, it was actually Malga’s victory that I enjoyed the most. Malga has been so beat up all season, ever since Dudley herself put her through the ringer back in Episode 01, that is was great to see she who has finally stood back up reward herself (not be rewarded – she worked for this!) with a victory. After this she’ll be well on her way back to standing on equal footing with Margot once again.
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Kimi-nee, on the other hand…well, her winning was almost a foregone conclusion. Which is crazy when you remember that she has no offensive abilities to speak of. She’s basically some twisted version of a tank, a total damage vacuum who you can only beat by not fighting her, but she’s too awesome for anyone to ignore, ever. I cannot blame them.
Tenzou and Mary
Oh gods where do I start. I’ve watched this whole part three times so far, simply because I don’t want to leave behind the luscious feelings on display. First of all, the elephant in the room – Fairy Queen “Mary” is moe!!! *coughs* But yes, I enjoyed how Elizabeth and Mary’s little trick was so deftly thwarted by Tenzou’s perversion. Turns out I was wrong back in Episode 6 – it was her breast size that let him tell them apart! XD But perhaps my favorite part was how no one was either surprised or judgmental about Tenzou’s perverted declaration. Like with Toori, everyone knows Tenzou is a perv (or a guy, depending on how you look at such things), and they don’t care. Best of them all was Mary’s reaction – no surprise, and no fucks given. Wonderful. Watch out Asuna, you have a challenger for best waifu of the season! More on that soon.
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Now I cannot say enough good things about Tenzou here. With the five minutes his perception/perversion won them, he immediately moved to confess…only to screw it up! XD It’s the small things, always the small things that make a story great, and damn if I didn’t love that one! But it was his words that earn him the highest of praise. Tenzou is right – no one need sacrifice themselves if it means giving up the one life they have. They may, and many heroes, true heroes, have done exactly that, but one should never march into danger with plans to die. One should fight to live, and continuing living until your long years have wound inexorably to a close, when the body and mind are old and tired and giving out, and you’re ready at last to rest. And he was right to reject Elizabeth’s claim. Naive? Screw that. If that’s naive, then it’s time to change the world, because that’s a world that needs changing.
Ohhhh, but I’m delaying. Hold on, I have to watch this part again. *Wanders off for a few minutes* …okay, yeah. *takes a deep breath* Still amazing. You know, Tenzou just might be the man every good man wishes he could be. Strong, selfless, giving, and yes, a little bit perverted, here Tenzou says everything right, and he means it. Scars? He doesn’t care. Divorced many times? He doesn’t care. May turn England against Musashi? He does not care! When it all matters, he does exactly what is right. Also, he’s voiced by OnoD. Clearly, he is the perfect man.
Here’s how it went for me: when Mary switched from the serious stuff to asking why Tenzou didn’t kiss her before, I cracked up; when he explained why, I snorted knowingly (check the Explanations section…you can’t fool a bullshitter, Tenzou!); and when he groped Mary’s chest and she muttered naught but the lightest sound of surprise, I nearly lost it! Tenzou, you magnificent bastard, you! But when the flowers bloomed around them as their love was realized, and they came together in a kiss as Mary stroked the scar she left on his back…there, I totally lost it. Without a doubt the best scene of the season so far, and it rivals the best from Season 1. In fact, this is now one of the five scenes of Kyoukaisen I will be rewatching over and over and over again (Neshinbara and Shakespeare-chan’s final scene from last episode numbers among them as well). To me, there’s nothing quite like the realization of a romance so beautiful and so badly wanted. We’ve been waiting for this all season, and there were some formidable hurdles in the way, so this…this is utterly sweet. What Clannad did to me with tears, Kyoukaisen does with romance hard-fought, battles hard-won, and friends that always stick together. Holy shit I cannot talk about this enough, so I better shut up and move on. Fantastic.
Tenzou & Mary vs Elizabeth
I go over the details of the swords (once again, as best as I could) in the Explanations section, so I’m going to comment on something else – I told you so! Back in Episode 8 I said that “Elizabeth doesn’t want to see Mary die.” Here, once all the sword business was concluded and Mary was set to leave forever – to be exiled, in effect – Elizabeth’s pained call of “Nee-san!” said everything that needed to be said. I was right. Whatever else, whatever she will do for her country, Elizabeth never wanted to see her precious big sister die. Yet now that Mary is “dead” (historically speaking), when she has birthed a child who takes Elizabeth’s throne, “killing” her, Elizabeth can join Mary so that they may play again, in their own private Avalon…a world where they can finally be together as sisters again. Guh…please don’t look at me. *wipes away tears*
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Quickly, one other thing on this – though I say that I knew this would happen and I was right, that’s not so say that I didn’t have my doubts. In fact, there were times in the last couple of episodes where I began to suspect that Elizabeth may have hardened her heart enough to kill her own sister and be okay with it. That just shows how well it was all done. I knew, the logical and genre savvy Stilts knew, that Elizabeth didn’t want Mary to die…but she hid it so well, and Sunrise and Kawakami-sensei told the story so adroitly as to make the illogical and emotional Stilts force his doubt on the rest of me. The way I think of it is like this: we always know deep down inside that the good guys are (probably) going to win, so making us doubt for even a second is a resounding success. Well done.
Felipe and Juana
In any sane world, an episode that contained both Kimi-nee and the epic realization of a dearly wanted romance should have hurdled inexorably downhill into mediocre second half, and through no fault of its own, but merely because of the sheer amount of awesome before it. Normally the kiss is the climax, the last thing that happens before the credits roll and the lights come up so you can find your way out of the theatre. This was not the case here. But of course, Kyoukaisen cheated – usually one kiss would be enough for a single episode, but it went ahead and threw out a second one!
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As usual, let me harp on a storytelling reason I felt this was done so well, and another of this series’ strengths. In retrospect, Juana’s actions are completely understandable, and in fact are even perhaps predictable. After coming this far to help Felipe, there was little chance that she would sit back and let him die, so only restraining her would keep her back…but come on, she’s the vice president of Tres España and one of the Eight Great Dragon Kings, an owner of one of the Armaments of Mortal Sins! Fat chance anyone was going to be able to restrain her, much less had the authority to do so.
Yet, in the hustle and bustle of so many other plot threads, I completely forgot about her, so when she showed up on the ship it was a surprise. And then, to go so far as to kiss Felipe…you go, half-elf girl! But seriously, well done – Kawakami-sensei diverted our attention from this plot thread long enough for its reemergence to be a surprise, and Sunrise deftly used the medium of anime to move from the appearance of Juana on the ship to the kiss so quickly (only a minute passed between them!) that there was no time to anticipate it beforehand. They took what with time to think would have been obvious, and made it shocking with a bit of misdirection and pacing. And then spliced in a little recurring comedy courtesy of Gin-san, hahaha!
Musashi vs the San Martin(s)
Once again, any episode that features not one, but two kisses should have gone downhill after they were concluded…but once again, this did not happen. The clash between Musashi and the invisible San Martin tickled the part of me that loves big (space) naval battles. Here I’d like to claim another I told you so – once the shots from the invisible San Martin started coming in from opposite directions, it was clear to me that there wasn’t only one. After all, if you’re going to build one of the things – and are able to go into debt, which means you can fund the thing, and I know for a fact Tres España is quite heavily in debt – then why not build two or three? Yet I feel like this was mentioned by some character before, so I probably shouldn’t take credit. Plus, it’s nothing next to the most awesome part of the battle – Grace O’Malley’s heroic interception of the stealthed third(!) San Martin’s attack, and the subsequent crash of the Granuaille which destroyed said San Martin. I was wondering when England was going to get off their fat asses and help, and I’m glad they finally decided to show. Now, where are the rest of them?
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If I’ve got a qualm about this episode, it had to do with the Gods of War. Once that battle started, with all those ships and Gods of War up against a battered Musashi, I was wondering how on earth they would be able to prevail. Well, either Musashi’s witches have gotten way better, or those Gods of War went down like total bitches. I’m okay with the ones all the minor witches shot down – I mean, if two (Margot and Malga) could take one down in Season 1, then ALL OF THOSE WTCHES ought to be able to overwhelm two – but when Margot just nonchalantly took out the third one on her own, that was hard to take. I’m going to assume it was weakened from the initial barrage, but watch, Sunrise / Kawakami-sensei! You’ve only earned…oh who am I kidding, they’ve earned a practically unlimited amount of slack for everything they’ve shown us this episode. Just don’t abuse it!
Looking Ahead
There is so much to look forward to. Shirojiro has stepped out onto the field, as has Noriki, who wants to take out both of the Valdez siblings. I’m also curious what Charles Howard left with Musashi that Heidi was so sure was good. Then of course there’s Futayo vs Gin (more on that in a sec!), and we may even see that Kiyonari vs Bacon fight that was glossed over amidst the awesome that was this episode (though probably not).
But if there’s anything I’m excited about, it’s that Episode 12’s title, Where the One Scarred by Swords Belongs, would seem to indicate that Mary is going to enter the fray, and probably get some use out of those new swords of hers. I. Cannot. Wait. Seriously. I can’t wait. Who’s up for crashing Sunrise HQ and stealing an advanced copy? Only rule is that nobody is allowed to see my face. I’m hoping to meet a big-busted blonde along the way…
tl;dr: @StiltsOutLoud – Kimi & Malga win the day, Tenzou makes off w/ Mary, & something extra w/ Felipe & Juana. Oh, & then there’s that GIANT BATTLE! #Kyoukaisen
Random thoughts:
- I’ve gotta tell you all, today was a near thing. Kimi-nee, Malga, Mary, Juana, Adele, Grace, Mary (yes, again), Gin, and then top it all off with Futayo? I almost died. Just way, way, way too much amazing HNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNG– *gets massive nosebleed* *staggers* …I’m okay.
- That scene, with the music pumping in the background. Most. Epic. Breast grope. EVARR!!!
- I continue to love their chat screens. You HAVE to pause and read them when they pop up! Especially great was when they were all being pessimistic and taking the piss out of Tenzou right after he kissed a gorgeous woman like Mary. That guy doesn’t get a break, even when he gets the girl! …love it 😀
- Ohhh Gin-san, you’re amazing as well. She can clear a large conclusion in a single bound!
- Did you notice Toori’s bento? It looks like Horizon has been cooking for him again. It’s the little details that make a story great, don’t you agree? XD
- And then there’s Futayo’s mistaken “confession”. OH FUTAYO, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!!! XD XD XD! Poor Gin-san :3 I look forward to this being another running joke!
- In all seriousness all, this. This episode was amazing. I’ve probably put in more effort blogging Kyoukaisen over this past ~4 months than I had at my paying job that whole time (I don’t try hard at work, clearly), but it was totally worth it for the chance to cover episodes like this. I know I ramble on and frankly edit myself poorly in these mammoth posts, but I want to thank you all for sticking with me, and this show, because though these are the kinds of episodes that make my storyteller’s soul sing, it was all of you that have kept me happily writing and researching and writing some more long enough to get here. I guess what I’m saying is, I, I…*sniffles* Please don’t look at me!
Full-length images: 16, 28, 37.
Preview
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TENZO!!! SUCH A BOSS! /salute As expected of a ninja, his deductive skills are just too good!
FUTAYO!!! Lol clearly she isn’t embarrassed about having “sex” with people who are close to her. I can’t wait to see her reaction when she finds out the real meaning of the word..
Gin!! Poor girl always happening to see/hear the wrong things at the wrong time.
Tenzo has the fuck yeah meme face below the scarf.
And I reaffirmed, Futayo is the best.
OMG, Futayo FTW!
I wonder, if I touch my crush’s boobies and say were a match, would she giggle like that? damn TENZOU is a badass and Futayo i wonder if she knew the meaning of what she said really, or was it just to throw off Gin…
FAVORITE SHOW like not in a season but forever, the Novels are extremely addictive also so i hope they keep animating this series!
Futayo scene was just a continuation of episode 4 joke, as she didn’t know what “sex” was and now she thinks it’s some kind of mutual respect fight.
well if you twist how you view sex and fighting… futayo and muneshige definitely did it :p
I just had to go back and watch some of the other times this has come up. Truly one of the most devastating bits of this season. Poor Miriam :3
BTW good job as always stilts! screw the job, kyoukaisen is where the magic really happens and thanks for sharing it with the rest of us.
Im just sad that Shakespeare-chan didnt join musashi as well =(.
Agreed. Need more Shakespeare-tan!
Fingers crossed for season 4
You mean season 3 rite?
Well Shakespeare is MIA if they make season 3
Still crossing my fingers she’ll join Musashi in the last two episodes.
I don’t think anyone didn’t think that they were using 2 invisible ships to fight but damn…. THERE WAS A THIRD. Quite the shocker!
And as for the witches part, I would assume that it is because of the proximity of the God of Wars with Musashi that why the witches could barrage them unlike in Season 1. If I am not wrong, the first season’s fight was in free uncontested grounds(or air for that matter). While this fight, Musashi fought with the defender’s advantage.
Meanwhile. HNNNNNNNNGHH MARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Unless there’s some field spell that lowers the enemy’s defensive attributes when they’re the aggressors (I find this somewhat bullshity and unlikely, though not impossible), there needs to be a reason for the defender’s advantage. Like I said, I can see that with the many witches (because there were a lot of them), but less so when Margot took out the other one so easily.
In season one there was a God of War ace whom Malga and Margot defeated for the first time. He thought highly of them. Perhaps the one that she shot down wasnt an ace.
Thanks for the write up Stilts.
Your enjoyment of this show comes through so clearly and makes it pleasure to read.
Thank you. I’m glad to hear that!
This was already a great episode with Kimi & Malga vs Dudley & Cecil, but damn, they kept adding one awesome moment after another.
And next episode we will finally get Futayo vs Gin. I’ve been waiting for this battle the entire season.
Woah… Kyoukaisen truly ramps things up by many notches.
I’ve gotta agree with the rest on Tenzou. He does it like a boss
Oh and seriously speaking… I can’t help it but to see Mary as Saber in this scene >> https://randomc.net/image/Kyoukai%20Senjou%20no%20Horizon/Kyoukai%20Senjou%20no%20Horizon%20II%20-%2011%20-%20Large%2019.jpg
oh and no regrets for not droppin this show… the 1st season was too confusing
I have been looking for the chibi avatars of the chat, but no luck. If anyone knows were they can be any info is appreciated ^^
What ones have been released are here: http://genesis-horizon.net/special/120729_icon02.html
There are also some ghetto ones here: http://genesis-horizon.net/special/120608_icon01.html
I love you <3
I shed a tear when Elizabeth cried” nee-san”.
Then I laughed soo hard when Futayo dropped more misunderstanding for Gin.
This show is awesome.
Did Futayo just One-hit-KO Gin Σ(ﾟДﾟ;)!?
Poker face woman showdown, first round: Futayo 1 – Gin 0
If its a duel of poker faced women, didn’t Futayo lost the minute she smiled? Now, if it was the battle of the stoic and odd women (personality wise), the. Yes, you’re right.
Shirojiro smiles when someone gives him money and they call him poker face merchant, so your agument is invalid.
Shirojiro smiles when someone gives him money and they call him poker face merchant, so your agrument is invalid.
*argument, sry for the double post, shitty hanging conexion
They call him a poker faced merchant because he doesn’t show any sign of hesitation or flinching in NEGOTIATIONS. Oh, and of course one would smile when your given money. In Shirojito’s case, that’s when he’s won.
Looks like Malga drew a yuri doujinshi of her and Margot.
If you look real closely, it’s a doujin of the start of the previous episode:
1) Moping Malga
2) SLAP!
3) Malga/Margot reconciliation
4) Kimi lecture
5) Resolute Malga
https://randomc.net/image/Kyoukai%20Senjou%20no%20Horizon/Kyoukai%20Senjou%20no%20Horizon%20II%20-%2011%20-%20Large%2006.jpg
…. and it’s been only now that I noticed that Malga’s IRC name is “Maru-ga”, i.e., -ga
Oops, lost the little circle. Malga/Maruga’s IRC name is (circle)-ga
and gacchan ^^
Oooo, good catch. I hadn’t noticed that (that’s what I get for starting a 3,000 word post at 10pm). It might have something to do with her pouring all her feelings from that scene into the page and using those as a ritual offering to repel the incoming attacks. Something like that!
Tenzou is the luckiest man in existence. And well-deserving of that!
One possible explanation for the Gods of War loosing so easily is that the ones in S1 were the Tres Espana elite while these guys were grunts with worse gear/no experience. At least their actions made them seem like rookies, I mean rushing straight into AA fire, tossing a single grenade and just holding still watching whether it hit and then trying to run away and exposing your weak back to the enemy? They deserved that defeat.
You’re not wrong about their tactics, but Gods of War are apparently extremely expensive and powerful (they require expensive technology to duplicate human movement and then the digitizing of a human pilot – not cheap), so there’s no reason to expect that there are “grunts” among them – merely by being a God of War they are the creme of the crop, and their pilots should be as well.
It could be possible for them to be more gruntish than the ones from Season 1 considering that Tres España is supposedly in a financial pinch (correct me if I’m wrong).
It seems that there are various answers. In the novel the fight was a bit longer and the GoWs actually managed to surpass Musashi defense and attack six times, but by the seventh the witches were able to retaliate by sheer numbers and they didn’t need to homing like in S1 due to the GoWs being very close, focusing on high-powered attacks. Also, the pilots in S1 were the best of the best GoW aces to escort the Pope, so there was some difference in skill too.
That makes sense. In which case, it was more just a symptom of Sunrise not having the time to show the fight in full detail. Good to know!
To be honest, this wasn’t such a great episode for me. This episode had a lot of awesome moments, yet a few aspects dragged it down from the greatness I anticipated after the end of the previous episode. First was the pacing, with the first half feeling especially rushed, like they were desperately trying to finish everything of the fights in England so they can get back to the Musashi VS Spanish Armada battle as soon as possible. Maybe I’m guilty of setting my expectations way too high, but I was hoping for much more from Tenzou’s and Kimi-nee’s fights, which were criminally short. They were building up both those matches so much in the last episode, so I’m sure I’m not the only one who felt a little short changed this week.
Second, was Tenzou’s confession to Mary. I have to disagree with you here Stilts, because I was not feeling ‘it’ during this scene. This whole second season was building up to that moment, yet for me it pales in comparison to Toori’s epic confession to Horizon in season 1. I don’t know how to explain why I wasn’t gushing with delight, just that I didn’t like it very much.
Third, was of course how wussy the Gods of Wars were in this episode. After last season established them as very formidable opponents, that Kazuno the ultimate fighting automated doll had to fight tooth and nail against to beat them into submission, that Neito lost her prized broom before she could defeat one with Margot, but in this episode two of them get shot down in the blink of an eye by a group of witches who were firing the equivalent of a rifle at most. All I can hope for is there’s a good explanation for this contradiction in power levels.
Now that the not-so-good stuff is out of the way, I can focus on the awesome moments that this episode did dish up. Even though I thought the first half of the episode was rather lacking, yet there was still one moment that shined like a beacon. As Mary and Tenzou were just about to leave England, when Elizabeth broke down and ceased upholding the image as the Fairy Queen for a moment to call out to her sister in that desperate little voice, I knew the hunch that she didn’t really want to execute her sister was vindicated, and I confess I teared up a bit even as Mary herself did in Tenzou’s arms. That will probably be one of my personal top 5 Horizon moments that I will watch again and again.
Next, is of course the epic ship-to-ship battle of Musashi VS the real Spanish Armada. With Juana disobeying Felipe’s orders to retreat, she brought the entire fleet to duke it out with Musashi in the fourth and final battle, which I think is the Battle of the Gravelines. With Tres Espana having those San Martin class stealth capable ships, Musashi was constantly on the defense, desperately trying to calculate the movements of the hidden ships and deflecting their cannon shots. When Adele finally suspected that there were two ships and managed to force their movements to shoot and disable their stealth capabilities, it looked like Musashi was finally gaining the upper hand. Yet, Juana had a surprise third San Martin class ship who fired from the distance, with only Grace O’Malleys intervention saving Musashi from being sunk and taking down one of the San Martin class ships with her ships sacrifice.
For the next episode, things look very promising with some mouthwatering clashes being set-up. We have Shirojiro against Tres Espana’s Vice Chancellor (I’m so psyched to see what the power of money can do this time!), Noriki against the Valdes brothers (go Noriki, throw some more balls at those two big-headed ‘ace’ pitchers), and of course Tachibana Gin VS Honda Futayo (although might Futayo have inadvertently won the match with a KO after her statement to Gin on her relationship with Muneshige, due to Masazumi’s inadequate explanation on the nature of sex? lol). Hopefully the fights turn out more satisfying than this weeks, and I would love it if Mary joins in the fun when she gets on the Musashi.
P.S. Good explanation on Toori’s bento, Stilts. I was wondering at first why was his bento box a different colour from the others, and why what looked like some metal coils covered in tempura batter was in it. I definitely give him props for eating it, even if he knew he would almost certainly get sick.
P.P.S. Almost forgot about Masazumi’s truce negotiations. I nearly spurted out my drink when she nonchalantly proposed to Elizabeth to let Mary go into exile on the Musashi so Tenzou and her can produce the nephew who’re supposed to succeed her throne. Being able to say such things with a straight face is the hallmark of a good politician, I guess. 😀
I don’t think that Tenzou confession pales in comparision with Toori’s one, it’s just a very different style of declaration. Tenzou and Mary stuff was about traditional courtship, and that’s what we got here (with a preverted spin on Tenzou’s part). The direction and the music in the scene was just superb, the best this season hands down, and I think that the actual kiss was leagues better than the one with Toori, even if for me Toori’s debate with Horizon was the best moment of S1.
About the Gods of War, I think that this were more grunt versions, not the elite ones in S1.
I think Kimi-nee’s fight was just right: it consisted of her being full of herself. Her self-regard is immense (and, it seems, deserved).
Similarly, Tenzou’s fight with Raleigh was just right: he kept his eyes on the prize, and didn’t let himself get distracted by the small stuff.
You’re of course entitled to your opinion (and I welcome it!), but I have to side with yokushi and dm00. Tenzou and Mary’s relationship is a more traditional courtship affair, and the pacing of the earlier fights was perfect because they didn’t drag them out pointlessly and let them get bloated. Sometimes a fight is best if it’s short, because that’s all the fight that needs to be shown.
Thanks for the constructive criticism. Nevertheless, this is just how I personally feel about the episode, and after my 5th rewatch of the episode, my opinion is still unchanged regarding the not-so-good aspects I pointed out. Still, I’m hopeful that the next episode will be better for me personally as a whole.
You make excellent points here. Though regarding Tenzou vs Walter, it was pretty much meant to be short unless Tenzou wanted Mary to die. In episode 10, just before Tenzou left Malga did say he had 3 minutes to save her. Running from that location to Excaliburn Caliburn was probably a close call for Tenzou. Definitely didn’t help that Walter did slow him down for maybe a good 30~ seconds.
Otherwise I can see why you felt it was rushed in the first half.
I can’t imagine the amount of material that was compressed for this episode alone. Especially in that first half. There was probably quite a bit of dialogue exchanged between Elizabeth & Mary after Elizabeth’s “NEE-SAN!” Or at least I feel there was.
I really wouldn’t mind reading the Horizon LN…if only I knew enough japanese ;-;
The whole Tenzou and Mary confession was intact as Toori one was in S1 (leaving only some chat reactions). The problem was on how little they were able to show about how deep Mary and Elizabeth’s bond really is due to time constrictions this season.
“And then there’s Futayo’s mistaken “confession”. OH FUTAYO, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!!! XD XD XD! Poor Gin-san :3 I look forward to this being another running joke!”
And the mountain of Futayo x Muneshige x Gin doujins! Can’t forget about this! XD
Still can’t figure out why Tori is always naked. But it’s hilarious.
I think that’s exactly the reason why – because it’s hilarious. In the Horizonverse that have a very real effects – just like Kimi does offerings for her god by putting make-up, dressing up and, well, just being Kimi – the same is true for Toori. By fooling around naked he makes offerings for the god of comedy and this is quite literally the source of his indestructibility.
Invincibility against damage caused by women. He has no such invulnerability against anything done by a guy.
Yes. But I don’t think it’s specifically tied with this skill only – it’s more like Toori being naked gets him general brownie points with his god – which keeps him being Toori. And being alive, among other things.
So he probably has the best in-universe explanation for his antics ever seen in anime.
YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH TENZOU!!! This week easily tops last week; let’s see if this trend continues. I forget is it 12 or 13 this season? Stilts, your wall of text broke my browser, though that’s probably for other reasons XD I KNEW THAT SEX THING WOULD POP UP AGAIN WITH FUTAYO. SUPER EFFECTIVE AGAINST GIN, poor Gin. Gah this season has all sorts of awesome thrown in it
My bad 😀
Oh, and this season is 13 episodes. Two more to go!
I can’t believe we are up to episode 11. There was so much going on, that could spread to 3 or 4 episodes. Granted it will give the series the “feel” of other shows speed wise. But just thinking that the season is almost over makes me cringe, wondering if or when we get another season. Is like you say the are “cheating” I’ll prefer a 50~100 episode run than these “normal” season runs. There’s nothing that cam fill the void this show will leave once of over.
Futayo!!!! What you did to poor Gin! I was totally in bliss land: Futayo innocence and Gin shyness toward affection thru the season. If the opening is a hint they’ll exchange some blows next time. I’ll love to see Gin one-shot Futayo by clarifying the “sex” defintion! LoL That will make them even.
I think we will get S3 soon as they are setting up it, the official web Sensei Lesson 2 ended with a “look forward to the next lecture” and with the current pacing it’s quite possible than they end this season like the S1, with stuff from the next arc at the end cliffhanger-style.
That and v3 is where the “first part” of Kyoukaisen ends, with all the story set up already.
Usually long run series have subpar quality compared to the only season ones. Probably the only exception I remember is FMA. It’s better this way.
When I said they were cheating, it was because they had as much plot in one show as is usually found in 4+ other shows. That means they can bring conclusions to certain plot threads (or advance them quite a bit) without running out of awesome stories to tell. It has nothing to do with the number of episodes or the pacing – if this season was 2-cour and all this was spread out, that fact would still be true; once Mary and Tenzou kissed, there would still be the Juana and Felipe one to get to, even if they had more time to spend on it.
Ohandbytheway, super long-running series are financially risky, especially for a niche show like Kyoukaisen, and especially animated to the levels they’re doing here. It’s better for us if they animate a season, then give us a couple quarters off before giving us another one. Also, it’s the only way it’s ever going to happen, so there’s that too!
*cries. I guess you guys are right. Sorry for become a Kyoukai addict. I just need my weekly dose and the thought of waiting without warranty when the next season is coming just drives me insane.
As for the cheating I knew what you mean, guess I didn’t rephrase it right. That Juana kiss could last easy three minutes, and we got it in 1 minute. Those scenes deserve more time so we can savor it longer. Is like eating a nice juicy rib eye you can iether chomp and glup it in chunks or just take your sweet time chewing tiny pieces squeezing the flavor of each bite. I’m so hooked on Kyoukai that want every single thing to last forever. I’ll just re-watch both seasons until memorizing every scene and dialogue and wait patiently in a corner for the next season!
You and me both, man
Stilts, a model’s weight is a trade secret and confidential. Therefore Kimi won’t be affected no matter what.
Kimi’s super power is that nothing will keep her from looking good.
Tenzo has the same seiyuu as Ono D?
Oh well, time for rewatch FMP I guess. Some Sousuke bashing is always comforting xD
Same seiyuu? You mean he is Ono D. Or more accurately Ono D voices him.
Ono D is a character from Full Metal Panic. They have the same voice actor, or seiyuu in japanese.
Tenzou’s voice actor= Ono Daisuke or Ono D as some call him, a very well known VA.
Onodera Koutarou (Ono D in dubbed version) from Full Metal Panic is voiced by Takayuki Okada a relatively unknown voice actor with no major roles.
This is what I was hinting towards. but LoL didn’t get it.
Ahm ok, didn’t know. Thx for the info.
@Stitls: Always wondered.
Futayo does not know about sex? Or just the English word Sex?
She must have learned health ed in classes. Or was she brought up in some warrior school that didn’t teach that. Further more in the first season when the school principal (where is that guy? Dead? sleeping? i forgot?) molested her she was embarrassed. So she must have some knowledge…. right??
Home schooled by a battle maniac father and robo maid mother, she wasn’t taught much outside fighting/tactics and she’s fairly simple by nature as well. Health ed apparently was one of the many things she wasn’t taught.
What Dynellen said. She’s naive about a lot of things, sex among them. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t know something ecchi when it grabs her butt (hur hur hur), she just doesn’t know all the more…intricate bits, shall we say.
So… where is the principal guy?
He’s around somewhere. It’s just not important to show him right now.
P.S.
@Stitls:
There is nothing weird about a ninja having a very English sounding name. Especially if said ninja is probably a foreigner. I guess his cap masks it, but he has blonde hair. Its more weird if he had a Japanese name.
Maybe one of his parents is a foreigner. In the novel there are some mentions to his father and he basically is like an older version of his son, to the point when Tenzou brings Mary back as fiancée, Tenzou father goes all jelly and kicks him out of home, so Tenzou and Mary begin to live together alone.
Oh, and I think it’s said that he’s related to another of the Amago Ten Braves survivors.
You’re right that there’s nothing necessarily weird about it, especially since he has blonde hair. It’s no different than Shirojiro or Miriam or damn near anyone from Tres España or…actually quite a lot of characters having a western name orders. It’s just more understandable when you have Adele, the thane from Hexagone Française, rather than Tenzou, the ninja from Musashi.
But yeah, someone (presumably a male ancestor) was a foreigner, and it stuck with him.
you had me ‘Holy shit I cannot talk about this enough, so I better shut up and move on. Fantastic.’
Fantastic indeed. I appreciate your blogging.
Thank you kindly!
Oh Futayo. Why you so awesome?
Anyway, Since Tenzou’s background hasn’t been shown yet. I assume that he is possibly connected to the royal family.
Excaliber Collbrande is one awesome looking sword. I hope we can see Mary in action use it against Tres Espana next episode.
The romantic scene made me feel the warm and fuzzies, I loved it.
Also so much cute Mary, I love her.
Has anyone ever heard if Tenzou’s hat is for sale anywhere?
Cause after this episode, I totally want one. Such a badass, that guy.
Is it just me or is Tenzou’s hat and blonde looks a shout-out to Terry Bogart (KoF)?
Stilts, judging from the slots on the Caliburn and the way the Collbrande’s handle and guard seemingly match, do you think we might see some action from the Fairy Queen and Bloody Mary with a completed Excalibur?
Tenzou would have started an international incident if he did, because his role as first special agent of the chancellor board. He was also under the impression that he could see her again after everything Musashi was done, since Musashi is currently in heaps of trouble. Of course, Mary wasnt about to hear all that. What’s missing among the confession scene is the commentaries on sign frames done by the the members of Musashi on the sideline during it, where everyone incessantly makes fun of Tenzou. Tenzou apparently has the habit of not speaking clearly when he’s nervous, technically, he’s never really said he like Mary.
Spoiler about Tenzou’s surname:
Show Spoiler ▼
As far as the sword business. Tenzou is a special agent specialize in intelligence collection and analysis. He figured out Henry the 8th once pulled out the Exclibur and his research into the compressed dimension, as well as how Horizon keeps her Sin Armaments. Excalibur legend often fuse 2 swords as one in modern retell. There’s the sword in stone in which Author pulls to be recognized as the true king, then there’s the sword later given by the lady of the lake also called Excalibur. He hypothesize that there’s indeed 2 swords. It is not actually just connected to the land, but to the fairy dimension where fairies can fix the one sword that was once broken(Ex.Collbrande), while given another(Ex.Caliburn) to use as key. This provides a conflict point as in who is actually the true king, as Mary and Liz were changlings and the deciding factor between who was queen was who can wield Ex.Caliburn, but Tenzou’s explanation makes it so that that Ex.Collbrande can only be pulled out with Ex.Caliburn as the key. It’s only able to be done when it is toward the king because Ex.Collbrande was meant for the king, ie Mary is the actual king.
I’m assuming your filling the missing gaps the LN mentioned that the anime missed on the 1st paragraph.. 2nd Paragraph should’ve had a spoiler tag. The last part of 3rd paragraph is a bit confusing. So can Collbrande and Caliburn fuse by the true king?
More spoilers on Tenzou’s surname:Show Spoiler ▼
Whether or no the sword can be combined is not clear in the novel. People on forums suspect so since the designs look that way, but from this point on they are part ways. One goes with Mary and one goes with Elizabeth. Speculation is that Caliburn is the sheath to Collbrande, and Mary should really be the king, but unless you have the privilege to read the author’s original settings(which legends to spans acrooss 780 pages of A4 paper), you’ll never know. From a broad definition point of view(which countries in Horizon does often) both of them has the rights to be king as both pulled Excalibur from stone, which is why Mary exiled to avoid the controversy.
Even if it’s a small spoiler that they will probably not cover at all, I think Show Spoiler ▼
That is true. I get my LN and anime confused dependent of which is fresh on my mind. in that case, I’m terribly sorry
Slapped in spoiler tags all over the place. You’re welcome!
Much appreciated
Working on my Japanese. 😛 It’s so frustrating that a Kinokuniya with the first 3 volumes of KyoukaiSen is so close to me and my Japanese is sub-par (kanji wise XD). 本当に悔しだな。
I just hope they keep making it. It misses stuff here and there, and really hypercompresses a lot of scenes(like this episode should’ve contain a quick flashback of Dudley’s meeting of the queen, and not just a picture. Dudley is highly loyal to the Queen because she basically save her life. Dudley, which in history is Elizabeth’s lover and suspected conspirator was suppose to live out her life in jail)
but it’s still a hella funtime
Well, in this season they were forced to cram 2000 pages in 13 episodes. And even so, Sunrise was able to do it rather well.
Agreed. Like the Dudley scene, it was clear to me that she is fiercely loyal to the Queen for something Elizabeth did, and that scene + the chains around her legs make it not a hard leap to what you said. Still, the basic idea got across in a flash…and that’s pretty good, considering how much they have to deal with. I remain impressed!
Epic Shirojiro epicness in the next episode? Yes please!
A lot of the characters in this show have grown on me but Shirojiro is still my favorite, I just love unabashed ultra-capitalist characters.
Tenzou is pretty much a boss now too though.
WHAM! this is the sound of thousands of jaws hitting the floor at the end of episode!
Kimi, sorry but you were out-awesomed by Futayo!
Confessions galore! We have Tenzo X Mary AND Felipe X Juana.
BTW can’t wait to see Mary in action dual-wielding HER Excalibur…
Ewok out!
i want to see Futayo vs Gin this fight will be awesome!!!
Kimi is just great!!!!
Tenzou and Mary , the couple of the year!!!!
I might be wrong on this because it’s something I read earlier in the season but I thought part of the reason Cecil can hover / fly is because her power forces her weight down on other people. So if that’s right then because Kimi wasn’t being affected she herself was forced to take that weight back which made her sink.
That makes sense to me! Splicing it into the post now
That’s pretty much it. Her ability is distribution of her weight, while Kimi’s ability boils downs to “cant touch me”. The more she dances, the harder she is to be touched. So with each and every step counting as a dance move, more and more the Cecil’s ability is negated.
The battle of attrition did happen with Futayo in season one. Futayo increases her speed by dedicating her weapons’m move to the speed ritual, so that she could touch Kimi before her Dance of Summit takes effect and blocks it. Which worked for bit, until Kimi started saying provocative thing while dancing, which becomes additional dedication.
Kimi’s ability is not as limitless as it seems, it does have limits on the amount of ether being used, so it is possible to be overwhelmed by a powerful attack. Such an attack would only come from Divine Armament or Sin Armament’s ability, If Futayo were anymore proficient and clever at using Tonbokiri’s ability like her old man, it would have been possible for her to win, unfortunately Futayo is not the sharpest tool in the toolshed, while Kimi is as sharp as they come.
I would love nothing more than for a Third season to be green lit.
Can I ask anyone here who read the novels, how far has the anime adapted?
I believe each season adapted two of the novels so far, since they’re “conveniently” named Horizon I & II, but I may be mistaken, hence me coming here to ask you guys.
They are ending the volume II, but that’s a bit tricky because volume I and volume II both are split in two novels, so they adapted four novels.
Somehow I had the idea someone would misunderstand my writing…
I suspected the anime so far had adapted each two volumes of Horizon I & II, but thanks for confirming it, really needed it.
Then, they still have Horizon III & IV, 3 volumes each, with Horizon V v01 already out.
There’s no way a third season won’t ever come out, this is GOLD!!!
Hands down best episode for me. So far? It’s been getting better and better each time.
Aside from the boobs (well, can’t deny), lots of love, conclusions, expressions, humor, action (and mecha and sports!)
So much explanation in the comments. I have to go back to read them again later.