Final Impressions / First Impressions / Hitsugi no Chaika

「機杖(ガンド)担う少女」 (Ki Tsue (Gando) Ninau Shoujo)
“The Girl Who Carries the Gundo”

Chaika is going to give Emperor Gaz a funeral, even if she has to kill him first. No matter the cost.

Tooru the Dragoon Cavalier

Next in our list of mind-blowingly obvious Chaika plot turs, Tooru finally accepts Fredrica’s deal and becomes Tooru, the Dragoon Cavalier. Which was cool, don’t get me wrong, it was just so obvious and overdue that all I really felt was “Finally!”

It did give us probably the best fight of the episode. Dragoon Cavalier Tooru vs Shin-nii is one of the rare Hitsugi no Chaika fights that was actually improved because it was quick, because it was in the audience’s knowledge of the coming reversal that we found the tension, but that could only last for a minute tops before we’d all be screaming “Just shapechange and beat him already!” Shin-nii’s final words do reveal that him trying to push Tooru out of being a saboteur has less to do with skill and more to do with Tooru’s temperament, which mostly makes me wish we got to spend more time with Shin-nii. Shame the rush took that from us.

On the other hand, Fredrica got taken out first in an important battle again. Granted, if they were ever going to use the Worf Effect (trope!) with Fredrica, this was the time to do it, it’s just that it happened so many times before this that when it happened, I rolled my eyes. The legitimate use was ruined by all the necessary but overly common times she got taken out beforehand. In the end, she was really only good for aerial transport, powering up Tooru, and being kawaii as fuck.

“So what?”

I liked Red Chaika’s answer to Black Chaika right before she kicked her skull in. For some people, anger makes them bitter, but Red Chaika’s anger makes her strong. Where our Chaika despaired (albeit briefly, to her credit), Red Chaika shrugged off the news of losing the race. Her character was always a bit confused, which matches the vague reasons for collecting the remains she was given. Once again, I wish we could have spent more time really feeling her character arc, but at least it was there, abbreviated though it was.

Niva’s Decision, & Chaika’s Price

The rush takes another casualty in failing to justify Niva’s refusal to blast Chaika, and her decision to defect. The thing is, I can easily see it—we were shown the beginnings of a bond between Niva and our Chaika, and I can absolutely see how that could have grown to the point where she would refuse to kill Chaika. Yet we weren’t shown it. Hitsugi no Chaika showed us what it intended to do, and it even made the opening moves, but it didn’t do the rest of the dance, so we’re left understanding even if we don’t feel.

The rest of Gaz’s death is filled with a whole lot of bad decisions, Chaika pissing away all her ammo chief among them. Here’s what I would have done, if I were writing this: Chaika takes a few shots, certainly, enough to see that shooting the floating fortress is futile. Then she runs around looking for another way to get past the fortress’ barriers. The door opens, she shields Tooru, and Niva defects—that’s all fine. Then, when she’s blasting Emperor Gaz with the final spell, he puts up more of the fight, and she has to keep loading shells into her gundo to keep it going. (I don’t know if that’s possible in-universe, but it’s a story, so it can be!) She’s loading shell after shell, and it’s still not enough—and that’s when she runs out. Oh shit! Niva asks if she wants to switch to memory consumption mode, and, after Tooru’s face flashes through her mind, Chaika says yes. The extra boost is enough to destroy Gaz, the good guys still win, and Chaika still pays a price for it.

Is this a good time to mention that my book is coming out next week? Though if Bones wants to call me about writing a Hitsugi no Chaika spin-off, I’m totally in. I’m thinking a romcom where Tooru and Chaika are coming to terms with their feelings for each others while collecting all the Chaikas to form a Chaika Empire. Meanwhile, Akari will be trying to build her Anii-sama a harem so she can bang him in the confusion and write a Fifty Shades of Grey fanfic about their love. Fredrica will continue being kawaii. Sort of Tamako Love Story crossed with To LOVE-ru and Dragonball, only with thicker eyebrows. I’m available anytime, Bones. Call me.

As for Emperor Gaz, he could have dodged Chaika’s blast, or not gone down like a total bitch. Oh, and designing a weapon that can think for itself wasn’t terribly wise. Of course, the series was almost out of time at that point, so there wasn’t much to be done. Damn the rush, it’s a bigger monster than Gaz!

At The End Of It All

I’m glad that they ended by giving us a peek into where the characters ended up. I would have liked to see a kiss between Gillette and Vivi, and what Red Chaika’s pals David and Selma are up to, and most of all I would have liked to see how much Chaika remembers, and maybe in a few years, whether their love will grow to something different than it is now. But at least we got to see Little Red Riding Chaika, and Akari writing a Anii-sama x Self fanfiction, and our Chaika, no matter how much she remembers, is at least smiling. Good enough for me.

tl;dr: @StiltsOutLoud – Tooru finally becomes a Dragoon Cavalier & Chaika buries her father, after killing him herself. A happy end? Yes, but qualified #chaika END

Random thoughts:

  • Good news, Akari. If you’re no longer brother and sister, maybe Tooru will marry you now! Alternate spin-off idea: A horror-thriller about Akari trying to kill Chaika so she can have raunchy, yandere sex with her Anii-sama. (In this version, Red Chaika would be like the Kool-Aid Man. Nothing can stop her!) So Mirai Nikki with more zany hijinks and a twist of abject terror. I can do this all day Bones, you know where to find me.
  • I hope Niva is in a coma or dead, because otherwise she’s locked up in some kind of hellacious screaming torture-agony, trapped forever as an inanimate object. *shivers*

I wrote a book! My first book, Wage Slave Rebellion, is available on Amazon now! (More information) You can also check out my personal site at stephenwgee.com. The last four posts: Sneak Peek: Wage Slave Rebellion prologue, Action Politics—a FREE short story, Wage Slave Rebellion is available NOW!, and Welcome.

Epilogue:

 

Final Impressions

I think it was Guardian Enzo (on an old podcast) who first told me that Hitsugi no Chaika was like old-school Dungeons & Dragons. This series harkens back to the kind of fantasy where heroes (or villains) travel around, get into adventures, and fight monsters for sick loot. Which, for a lot of the series, has been a lot of fun. There were the central questions—why are they collecting the remains? Who are all these girls who think they’re the emperor’s daughter? What will happen when the remains are collected?—to tie the whole thing together, and in the meantime we were adventuring with a kawaii girl and her thick eyebrows.

If Hitsgui no Chaika did anything wrong, it was all in the pacing and adaptation speed. I’ll repeat something I’ve said before: it’s usually best to allot four episodes per light novel volume being adapted. There have been some exceptions to this, with Date A Live usually managing well with three episodes per volume, and Hitsugi no Chaika doing admirably well with two episodes per. (And of course, Kyoukaisen barely making do with a full season for one.) But like Date A Live, the first season of Chaika went better than the second, and here it was because they sped things up. A lot.

We got the CliffsNotes version of the second half of Hitsugi no Chaika, and while it never got bad, the rush was clear. That, combined with some truly obvious plot turns at the end—Emperor Gaz’s resurrection, Tooru becoming a Dragoon Cavalier—kept the series from ascending into something truly great.

But it was fun. It was an adventure! I wish more anime took up the old school-style adventuring fantasy, like Slayers and such series of yore. It may not have sold well and it may have been rushed, but it was fun more often than not, and we got our happy ending. That’s nothing to be ashamed of.

73 Comments

    2. Looks like the lol-est hypothesis were spot on last week: Kudos to Karis and Half Demon Inuyasha for hitting the nail on the head.

      Thank God, Chuck Norris didn’t show up too, at least…

      Solaris
      Reply

    1. And in the universe of the anime or any media – never create weapons with personalities (especially if you’re an antagonist as, chances are, they will always betray you) or, if you’re some kind of super-powered being, never create weapons that are FAR more powerful than yourself without some infallible fail-safes. Again, chances are that that weapon will somehow betray you and/or end up in the hands of protagonists and used against you.

      HalfDemonInuyasha
      Reply

    1. Oui, Chaika I got the impression was rest with her memories although sad that she has forgotten her time with the siblings I’m hoping she can now be the girl she was robbed of before Gaz.

      Ani_BEE
      Reply

  6. Agreed. The ending was understandable but lacked proper setup. After all the talk about his master plan, Gaz didn’t even show any emotion when he was hit by Chaika’s final attack. Surely he’d know the beam is strong, I cannot believe he didn’t expect it to pierce his shields.

    I found the series well-paced until this final episode. Overall, this show would join in part of my favs. I’ll miss the broken lingo.

    flCer
    Reply

  8. I liked Chaika from beginning to end, but I agree that the rushing impacted on the ending here, specifically in areas such as the Dragoon contract, Niva’s defection, Shin’s fight and talk with Tooru, and the denoument/epilogue. These are places where an episode or two more IMO would have helped to flesh these parts out and give a sense of impact/depth that they lacked in these final 24 minutes.

    Nevertheless though it’s pretty damn amazing how well Chaika stayed consistent and coherent throughout the blistering pace; it never once reached that point all too common among adaptations where the pace becomes so fast that inertia takes over and prevents the establishment of a single, stable storyline.

    Chaika was in no way perfect, but I’ll be damned if it wasn’t a fun bit of fantasy. Oh and red Chaika in that dress now best Chaika, shame on you Stilts for not capturing more screenshots 😛

    Pancakes
    Reply

  10. Toru’s dragoon armour was VERY different in the LN designs; functional with elaborate metalwork.
    http://prtimes.jp/i/7006/1097/resize/d7006-1097-153149-0.jpg
    http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost.php?p=5366119&postcount=1393

    Maybe the staff wanted to be original; or cut down the detail for simpler animation,or maybe a bit of both.

    Reborn Gaz also had a different LN design; a revealing bodysuit. He was also beardless and looked younger.(4th picture scrolling down)
    https://bamotaku.wordpress.com/2014/10/27/revisando-raw-de-hitsugi-no-chaika-vol-10/

    zztop
    Reply

  11. Could have done with a few more episodes, certainly, but overall I still enjoyed the series.

    Niva’s defection? When Chaika releases Niva from her bonds in episode 5, she cuts her finger and Niva licks the blood. I always suspected this would mean Niva was bound to Chaika in some way because of that (and maybe why Chaika was able to use Niva in weapon form?)

    Dop
    Reply

  12. Can LN readers share any details from the later novels? I’m curious what details were excised in the Gaz rebirth and showdown.

    PS. Vol 11, the final plot-related volume, comes out on the 20-22 December.
    Vol 12 is a sidestory collection.

    zztop
    Reply

  13. Chaika is in my opinion best anime this year.

    It’s unique, it has interesting characters, more than interesting plot and the world they created… so full of awesome.

    Yeah, it was rushed as hell. But at least we have LN and manga ( who will eventually catch up and who covers everything from LN’s ).

    This anime deserves solid 9/10.

    Brother Coa
    Reply

  14. As others have stated, the ending was definitely rushed. I felt it would’ve been an awesome ending if it were given 2 to 3 more episodes.

    Overall, Chaika was an enjoyable watch from beginning to the end. Here’s to hoping the OVA fills in the gaps left by the finale.

    bakakubi
    Reply

  15. Over all, I enjoyed the series. I remember looking at this episode and going “only episode 10? I feel like its almost over and they are going to drag this out” I think I might have preferred it being dragged out a bit.

    I would have really liked if Frederica got some awesome battle time while she was Alicia. A cooler end fight, more time with shin. There was definitely enough awesome that could have gone into giving us another episode. I haven’t read the LN so maybe they wanted to stick closer to that or I don’t know. But this episode just felt incredibly rushed. We basically went from the point both seasons built up to, to “issue resolved” in like 10 minutes.

    Bijyu
    Reply

  16. Frederica was easily one of my favorite characters in the last few seasons, it was really disappointing that the anime writers were not able to come up with better ways to keep her out of fights than just having her be a jobber.

    Longhaul
    Reply

  17. Chaika is an example of the form of rushing that doesn’t really make the execution itself bad, but the middle of the performance beforehand.

    We’re able to nod our heads and understand the general gist of what is going on at the end because they do manage to at least give us some form of setup to prepare us for it, so things like Niva’s sudden betrayal doesn’t feel pulled out the ass just to conveniently let the protagonists win. You just wish there was more substance to the event.

    Like I said last week, I expected there to be more time and Niva herself, after being used to attack Chaika for a while, would have flashbacks to her (short) time with Chaika and she’d develop the personality on her own and then betray Gaz at the end when he would’ve otherwise finished Chaika off, much to his surprise. Instead, it just…happens…just like that (and absolutely no reaction from Gaz at all). We figured it would happen because they gave us the setup when they first got Niva and because of that, we’re certainly not surprised or shaking our heads going “WTF?!?!” when it happens, there’s just…not much. We just go “knew it” and keep watching. Not really positive or negative or anything, just…not much.

    If I had one small complaint, it would be the lack of explanation behind Vivi and things that could connect. Like how did she end up being “dormant” as a Chaika thus looking the way she did before she half-awoke at the end of season one? Was her Chaika self sealed by someone? Was it another thing by Gaz? And depending on how that happened, could that mean other Chaikas, if not perhaps all of them in the beginning (shortly after Gaz’s first death), have been “dormant” and looked like any common girl and only “awoke” due to some sort of huge trauma or something thus changing their appearances to the white hair and purple eyes we know like it did with Vivi?

    Still, overall, I still enjoyed both seasons of Chaika despite the rushing. They could’ve had a few more episodes to allow more substance build up, but otherwise, it didn’t necessarily ruin the results or the ending. If a series really has to rush for some reason, they should do it this way and not other ways that leave you wondering what’s going on half the time. Best of all, though, is to try not to rush at all.

    HalfDemonInuyasha
    Reply

  18. This episode looks like it could have been at least 3 episodes long…you know just to let things sink in. Or you know, let the anime end at 12 episodes instead. Now reading this I would like to ask you do you feel: “Finally! It’s finished!” or “Damn shame, it could have been so much better…”

    gawrshness
    Reply

  19. mixed feelings about the ending. if you look at it, it is definitely rushed, but overall , it is still somewhat satisfying. i hoped that the anime dig a bit deeper to the gaz resurrection though since its kinda awkward that you got an OP last boss then seeing him get served his ass in one shot. but oh well, it all happens already.

    PS: looks like white chaika’s talking is no longer choppy eh after her memory got wiped? no more kansha and is now using arigatou…

    The Last Idiot
    Reply

  21. I’m assuming the author’s intention with Tooru’s choice to become Dragoon Cavalier was something like he couldn’t let go of his past, but with realization that he couldn’t do anything as a saboteur, he made the decision (finally). But since we never saw Tooru’s thoughts on that, that’s nothing but a good guess at best.

    Red Chaika got some of the best scenes this episode, including seeing her in normal clothes.
    Also, Frederica for the most underutilized character of the year?

    Erimaki
    Reply

  23. That… was kind of anticlimactic for a final battle, and frankly a little disappointing as well. As Stilts and others noted, no surprises in Ep. 10. While events were foreshadowed to one extent or another, I can’t say it was always done well. For example, I agree with Stilts that the issue of Toru becoming a Dragoon Cavalier hung in the air far too long. “About time/finally” shouldn’t be viewer’s first and foremost reaction.

    Other things came across to me as too cliche and even deus ex author (or script writer if anime deviation). For example, Niva defects because… “she has personality” = Power of Friendship. Okaaay… Gaz meticulously planned his death and resurrection – a whole chain of events which go exactly according to plan over a period of years, and the entire resolution for the “final boss” fight comes down to “Oops, I shouldn’t have created this Gundo with a personality and/or at least ensured she would be completely loyal.” That’s… not a small oversight, obvious hints/foreshadowing notwithstanding. I had hoped for something better. :/

    As I’ve stated before, IMO the ultra-fast pacing hurt – both seasons, though more so for season 2. Sure the story made sense, but then again, so do CliffsNotes. Company wouldn’t stay in business otherwise. Even so, people tend to prefer the actual books over a highly summarized, compressed version of the original story. I think there’s more to a good story and good storytelling than just conveying the “gist of it”.

    Overall, I thought Chaika anime ranged from “pretty good” (first season) to “above average” (second season). It had its moments (again more so in season one). I liked the three main characters as well as some of the side characters (e.g. Red Chaika), though all IMO suffered from lack of depth to some degree. Then there’s Fredericka. The anime might as well have replaced her with a flying magic carpet and set of magic Dragoon Knight Armor for Toru to wear in the final episode. Wouldn’t have made an appreciable difference. :< The source materials straightforward plot did help to offset the ultra-fast pacing, but not entirely IMO. So while the adaptation was sufficiently cohesive and entertaining to keep me watching, I can't help but think "this could (really should) have been better."

    @Stilts: “’So what?’…I liked Red Chaika’s answer to Black Chaika…”

    I did as well. Shows Red Chaika moved past all that body collecting nonsense. Frankly, “so what?” was my internal reply whenever Black Chaika went into her little rant about her “winning”. Congrats, you brought the evil dead guy back to life, and now he couldn’t care less about you. Good job. >_>

    “As for Emperor Gaz, he could have dodged Chaika’s blast, or not gone down like a total bitch…”

    Agree/see above. You’d think given that (a) the guy designed Niva (i.e. he should completely understand Niva’s capabilities) and (b) is THE greatest mage in the world (greatest ever IIRC), he’d know that lazily putting up some half-ass magic shields wasn’t going to cut it against Niva’s death ray. He just rolled over and died for the sake of “we’re running out of air time.” Meh.

    —“I’m thinking a romcom…”

    That reminded me of something. Another casualty IMO this season was the comedy. Although I think the comedy came across better in the LN/manga, there were some good comedic moments in season one. Season two – not so much. Of course humor is subjective so JMO on that.

    daikama
    Reply

  24. Rather than Niva developing a bond with Chaika I could have believed it if she couldn’t target Chaika but she gave her blood to activate. And geez good job Gaz, making a weapon stronger than yourself and failing to realize that and trying to shield instead of run!

    SnooSnoo (@ShinJiwon)
    Reply

    1. Wait a moment. Niva is indeed powerful, but notice how Chaika’s last shot being powered by her good memories itself turns out a new and different powerful spell. I think’s its made on purpose to show the superiority in Chaika’s good feelings versus hate and evil. (AKA the power of friendship)

      Solaris
      Reply

      1. Totally agree with Solaris, we have been told through all of the episodes that the most powerfull magic fuel were memories (even all of Gaz’s plan points to the objective of harnessing the power of feelings for his magic), though they were also the most dangerous for users. That last shot at the ending, although badly explained, was IMO fully powered by all of Chaika’s memories and feelings for Toru. The result was a Giga blast that even Gaz couldn’t stop. Also notice that he allways thought of himself better than all of the Chaika’s, and that includes our beloved #357 who proved to be an over achiever 🙂
        That’s why she ends being so different in the end, she lost a lot of herself in the process, but as Akari said, this was not the finish this was just the prologue of a long love story 🙂

        Kiritsugu
        Reply

    2. Actually, that is how it goes in the novel. Niva has a fail-safe mechanism which prevents her to shoot at her first owner. Originally, this was meant to be Gaz, but as Chaika accidentally spilled her blood on Niva she became the first user. So Niva saying she has her own personality and freely choosing not to shoot was anime-original.

      dan87
      Reply

  25. Can’t help but agree with you on every point, Stilts. Because boy oh boy, this episode (and second season in general) was rushed. I mean, I’m glad we got a conclusive ending, but still. Like you said, you get the how’s and the why’s, but it’s hard to feel invested in any way. It’s entertaining, but it doesn’t engage. And that’s too bad, because the show does have a lot of stuff going for it.

    I mean, let’s list it, shall we? Tooru becoming a cavalier was long overdue, and Akari’s lack of reaction to it was strange. Shin-ni’s death lacked impact. Chaika’s tactics were terrible. Gaz, after having such a good scheme running, dies like a dumbass. Not to mention, given how many tropes this show embraces, why can’t we even get a reaction out of him when he dies? No ‘this cannot be’ or anything? He just goes like ‘Imma gonna shield that…boom’. Oh. Well, that was anti-climactic.

    And c’mon, Frederica got killed again? It’s pretty much a running joke at this point (granted, I do like the internet’s Dark Souls gifs of her deaths). Her entire character in general felt a bit wasted, and she was generally nothing more than a walking deus ex machina. Much like Niva, really, thinking about it. Gaz’s living weapon really wasn’t established well enough to really care about her. And that’s some nasty fate they gave her.

    Also, word of God says that the memories Chaika lost were all the memories Gaz implanted in her. Meaning she lost her entire past and truly stopped being a Chaika – only memories of her journey remain. Which I suppose is rather fitting, in a way. Too bad the show didn’t convey that properly.

    Still, for as much shit I’m guiving the show now, I still enjoyed it in the end. While the show had too many issues to truly excel at what it was (I also feel the author’s other works had better adaptations, like Outbreak Company and Scrapped Princess) it was still an above average fantasy series that was generally pleasant to watch. The characters still kind of grew on me, the journey was fun to follow and there were some stand-out moments here and there. For old-school fantasy, you could certainly do a lot worse. I’ll miss watching this every week, in any case.

    Dvalinn
    Reply

    1. So she kept her memories of Tooru and the others? I assumed they had to start all over, and had found happiness anyway. Man, she almost did herself a favor there, if not for how it also apparently weakened her body.

      Stilts
      Reply

  26. I think the problem with these adaptions that fall into this, is that the animators focus on the plot points and build the episodes on those. Which lets the characterization of the people/world be compromised, leaves out details that are necessary for understanding of the story/plot, missing key subplots that improve the story/plot/characters/world, or the worst offender, all of those.

    You miss or screw up any of that and you can make the show frustrating to watch. You’ll notice those mistakes even if you have no experience with the source material it is adapted from.

    Thankfully Stilts, as you said, Chaika is still a good enough experience that you just wish it was done better, not a wonder why you bothered watching it like Madan *sigh* or this is totally doing it wrong like Mahouka *shudders*. I could and will at least be able to recommend Chaika to someone. It won’t be a recommend to a new person to anime, but if that person has a taste for fantasy, this is a nice fill for it.

    @Dvalinn Wow the author who gave us Outbreak Company is the same as Chaika? How in the bloody Hades do they get so vastly different qualities of anime? I mean, that just seems really odd.

    Dorian
    Reply

    1. No. The main problem is the overall lacking in needed episodes. The rushing would never had happen otherwise…

      https://randomc.net/image/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika%20Avenging%20Battle%20-%2010%20-%20Large%2006.jpg

      https://randomc.net/image/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika%20Avenging%20Battle%20-%2010%20-%20Large%2015.jpg

      https://randomc.net/image/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika%20Avenging%20Battle%20-%2010%20-%20Large%2027.jpg

      https://randomc.net/image/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika%20Avenging%20Battle%20-%2010%20-%20Large%2029.jpg

      KF
      Reply

  27. I really liked the series a lot overall. It did end up being very predictable and light on depth (such as, no romance for our main characters at ALL). I suppose Toru was our typical male teenage star that has girls into him and yet- he didn’t respond to their advances.

    Series would have been better if it were less predictable. I wanted to see Gaz get rezzed but would have been surprising to see it happen earlier. It didn’t really make sense for him to get smacked down soon as he rezzed. Plus he tried to sit there and tank Chaika’s spell like a Boss and lost. Guess his arrogance was his undoing

    I did enjoy the episode. I felt that we could’ve used at least 2 more episodes.

    Rick Anime
    Reply

    1. The lack of romance doesn’t bother me. Who was he going to go with? His sister? He’s not that kind of protagonist. The dragoon? Terribly unwise. Red Chaika? She might be game, but she was never around him enough for that. White Chaika was the only option, and there’s a definite note there, but she’s also his employer and much younger than him.

      What romantic vibes they gave were good, and could have been developed in time—they just didn’t have the time. Having romantic subplots isn’t mandatory IMO, and this time, it worked fine as they did it. More or less.

      Stilts
      Reply

  29. And so, Gaz and the power of war and hate are defeated by the powers of love and friendship found in Chaika’s memories. Stilts is pretty spot on; all the elements were there, but they really could have used another few episodes to fill out the plot instead of skipping from one plot point to the next. Despite the pacing, Chaika was a fun show that I’ll definitely miss now that it’s over.

    Hochmeister
    Reply

  30. I think summarized would perhaps be a better term than rushed. Nothing feels really off, or out of the blue, except perhaps Tooru getting so pissed that he forgoes any tactical sense. Seriously, shield drops, door opens and he just flies straight into the enemy stronghold from an oblique, concealing angle? And then his “fight” against Gaz consists of him rushing the emperor (repeatedly, even)? I get that he’s angry, but still…

    As for Niva’s sudden but inevitable betrayal, I really only needed Niva to go:
    “… Target is Primary User. Invalid Target,” for me to feel that it was justified. Less play on Niva being emotionally attached to Chaika and simply refer back to Chaika being the one to activate her.

    Chaika wasting her ammo was only annoying due to the later blatant set up for the unnecessary memory consumption (unnecessary, unless 3:rd season is in the works, nothing wrong with a no clouds on the horizon-happy ending), not because it seemed irrational or stupid. After all you can’t really know that the next round won’t be the one to break the shield if it’s a matter of overloading it/accumulate damage. Then add in her being highly stressed, distressed and desperate to help Tooru and it seems entirely believable and rational.

    Of course, fictional characters have to be held to higher standards; their actions are judged by people with greater knowledge/awareness under calm and collected circumstances, to whom actions logical in the heat of the moment will seem rash and ill-thought-out.

    I do think Chaika would have been better had it been given a two cour run, allowing more time to everything, but it is still a show of unusually even quality that I’m likely to rewatch and recommend.

    tutiluren
    Reply

      1. Thank you! One does one’s best 🙂 Yeah, nothing is really missing, which is why I feel calling it rushed is a bit uncharitable, but at the same time there certainly is a sense that there should/could have been more.

        tutiluren
        Reply

  31. LN elaborations:
    – Zita(the glasses girl)also had a crush on Gillette. The anime removed this to emphasise the Vivi-Gillette relationship more.

    – Simon Scania (the mad wizard) is long dead in the LNs. The gang finds his remains next to his despair-bringing dream machine. The LNs also elaborate on Simon’s past; that he killed his cheating wife and friend, and that he was given a choice between execution and army conscription. He was quite mad during the war.

    – Kirill (the island demihuman) is the 47th clone of the original Kirill.

    – Ricardo Gavarni (the psycho from Season 1) mutates into a white spider creature while fighting Toru (the same creature that stabbed Fredrica). It is implied he was volunteering himself for Grad Lancia’s experiments.

    – Gillette loses his hand fighting the commander from Season 1’s finale. Leo brings back the hand as proof of Gillette’s death; the shock causes Vivi’s half-transformation.

    zztop
    Reply

  32. I’d like not to dwell too much into how bad and rushed was this. Everybody else here said enough already. It was a fun watch overall, and the chars were likeable too. White Chaika is a cutipie, Tooru is a great hero, far more than any other so called hero we met during the ride. Damn even the useless dragon was lovable too.

    But this anime was presented like a kind of treasure hunt with big mysteries being hinted at first that were revealed as boring and clichéd at last. The fact every volume was summarized in two episodes at best and still there was no plot hole is a bit surprising but a hint that we were not presented with the bulk of the story experience at all. A lot of pages were left out of this adaptation. What was left behind?
    Maybe the treasure hunt was not the bulk of the story but all of the stories of the people our Trio met and fought during the journey. What was their story really? We don’t know. And what about Gillette’s squad? I felt they were left a little in the dark for most of the anime development, save gaining a little spotlight just after Vivi’s Chaikafication and being there in the final fight for little reason other from finding and saving their once lost for good beloved captain.

    Solaris
    Reply

  34. https://randomc.net/image/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika%20Avenging%20Battle%20-%2010%20-%20Large%2040.jpg
    Shocking truth! Red Chaika brings gift!

    https://randomc.net/image/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika%20Avenging%20Battle%20-%2010%20-%20Large%2041.jpg
    https://randomc.net/image/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika%20Avenging%20Battle%20-%2010%20-%20Large%2043.jpg
    https://randomc.net/image/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika/Hitsugi%20no%20Chaika%20Avenging%20Battle%20-%2001%20-%20Large%2011.jpg
    Grapes! Chaika Grateful!

    Impel Down Hippo
    Reply

  36. In the same boat with you, Stilts. The rushed season really hurt this season, but the way they went about this show is something I’d like future anime to emulate. Shows like Chaika and Argevollen have gained my respect and appreciation, not because they were anything new and mindblowing, but they did so well with simple, tried and true methods of story.

    J_the_Man
    Reply

  37. Enjoyable show overall but like most people claimed, it could’ve really used 2-3 extra episodes or heck, even 1 more would’ve helped a bit.

    On Tooru finally becoming a Dragoon Cavalier: Well, I can actually see why it didn’t happen sooner because it would’ve probably made a lot of the entertaining battles we got so far rather boring as he’d steamroll over his foes. This is probably the same reason why Frederika didn’t participate in fights as much. The fight scenes have been one of the most enjoyable aspects in this show for me because our protagonists always struggled to defeat their usually superior foes and always had to work together & to do so. The very introduction of something as OP as Frederika had me worried to be honest,but luckily my worries were for naught. That being said,Tooru becoming a Dragoon Cavalier was indeed rushed and it could’ve came one ep earlier or at the beginning(or if the series had at least 1 more ep).

    As for other things, I kind of regret that Heartgen didn’t play a bigger role. In a way, I actually wished him to be the big baddie instead of that wannabe God Emperor of manking Emprah Gaz. I would’ve liked to see a more interesting debate between him & Tooru seeing as Tooru initially wanted the same thing as him. And of course, Gaz loosing due to an oversight which was not realizing “The power of friendship, huehuehue!” had me rolling my eyes but whatever.

    I’m still glad we actually got an ending(rushed and unsurprising as it was) and didn’t get the usual “go read the light novel” treatment. Little Red Riding Chaika was a treat 😛 Her & Akari were prolly’ my favorite characters.

    MgMaster
    Reply

  38. Shocking Truths:
    White Chaika gave Emperor his funeral.
    Rest in Pieces.
    …actually this time not even pieces remained…
    Lada Niva -I want one. Santa?
    Tooru indeed is far better as Dragoon Cavalier than Saboteur.
    Akari writes fanfics.

    ewok40k
    Reply

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