Posted by  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
「チャリオット・オブ・ファイア」 (Chariotto obu Faia)
“Chariot of Fire”
Trigger really put the pedal to the metal this time. They did a great job at building the tension as Ursula races to make sure Akko is safe from Croix’s experimentation. It was ballsy for Croix to move this quickly in trying to emotionally manipulate Akko into letting her see the Shiny Rod, but it does allow the narrative to move more quickly towards getting back into finding the words to restore Yggdrasil. My jaw hung low during the episode’s big action sequence where Ursula briefly sheds her disguise to fully reveal her true identity as Chariot. Even with some art hiccups, like Chariot gaining tights once she takes off her professor dress, it’s still awesome to see Chariot taking names as she face Croix’s guards and confronts her about aiming to experiment on Akko and use the world reconstruction magic for her own gain.
This episode continues the efforts of the last one to finally expand on the world-building of show’s first half. Although they recap previously known information like Chariot’s standing in the wizarding world, how witches are able to gain access to magic through leylines nowadays, and the goal of gathering the seven words, many of these aspects are explained in fuller detail in this episode. We learned that the seven words would unlock Grand Triskelion to help restore Yggdrasil, allowing witches to use magic freely, and making magic a little more relevant to society once more. The Shiny Rod is also given attention as Akko is told what exactly it entails in restoring magic and why it is compelled to let Akko be the one to help find the remaining words. We also know that it only answers to Chariot and Akko, and that Chariot was unable to find the last word because of reasons.
The highlight of this episode is in how the characters are interacting now that magitech has provided a conflict. A duality between Chariot and Akko is elaborated on with their bond to the Shiny Rod as well as why the professors find Akko to be the same kind of student that Chariot was. Their mentor/pupil dynamic is very nice, and it’s great to see Ursula open up to Akko about wanting her to be able to finish what she started.
It is frustrating how Akko is still left in the dark about Ursula being Chariot because it could provide more conflict if they let it linger for too long. After Diana is seen trying to research Ursula’s identity and Croix knocked Akko out to probe her mind for useful information, it’s more crucial than ever for her not to be further prone to manipulation. At the same time, I also understand that Chariot might be doing it to protect Akko from losing her yay, allowing her to fuel Yggdrasil’s restoration without being discouraged by Chariot’s failings the first time around.
I won’t say Akko was dumb for being enamored enough by Croix to go to her evil dungeon because, like people said last week in the comments, Croix just seems like a cool, new professor who happens to reminisce fondly of Chariot from Akko’s perspective. What I will be nitpicky about, however, is the fact that the school let Croix operate in a giant laboratory with stone guardians without any supervision so they wouldn’t know they’d have to admonish her for experimenting on a student she lured in. I understand the professors/administration aren’t the brightest bulbs at the academy, but it seems like Croix’s evil mastermind qualities will be on the down-low throughout the next couple episodes because they don’t want to keep tabs on what Croix is doing. Hopefully the impression that Akko got from Croix wasn’t as trusting as it was this time all because she was thought it was all a dream.
I agree that it is really frustrating to watch as Akko is continuously being kept in the dark. Especially if Ursula/Chariot is perfectly fine with the passing of the torch to Akko, it seems a bit dumb/irresponsible in a way. If she came out a told her (especially since it’d be coming from her idol), Akko might be more willing to act a little smarter/get a bit more serious about the things she wants to do/will end up doing. Y’know what I mean?
It was nice to see Chariot kick some butt this week, though the surprise that Ursula is Chariot in disguise isn’t really surprise; given that there were a lot of hints toward it. Though I do wonder if Diana’s gonna get mixed into Croix schemes?
All in all a pretty enjoyable episode ^^
i think the reason ursula dont tell akko her identify is becouse She probably sees herself as a failure who gave up her dream. That’s why she always looks a bit sad whenever Akko talks about Chariot.
That could be a reason ^^
I think our frustration lies with the fact that we had to wait a week for Ursula to tell Akko “her secrets” since the beginning of Episode 14, which was conveniently put on hold so every in the plan would change…. and now it turns out what Ursula wasn’t tell Akko was NOT that she is Chariot, but that she just wants her to carry out a task she never finished. Our predictions were WRONG.
When you put it that way, Ursula is dragging her feet hard by opening up to Akko as slowly as possible with only nuggets of information to go off of. It took this much time for her to tell her fully what the circumstances of the words were, so it’d probably take something even more drastic for her to reveal she’s Chariot.
https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Witch%20Academia/Little%20Witch%20Academia%20-%2015%20-%20Large%2010.jpg
Chariot is quite hot
https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Witch%20Academia/Little%20Witch%20Academia%20-%2015%20-%20Large%2025.jpg
Here’s she’s a sexy badass
https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Witch%20Academia/Little%20Witch%20Academia%20-%2015%20-%20Large%2026.jpg
https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Witch%20Academia/Little%20Witch%20Academia%20-%2015%20-%20Large%2027.jpg
https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Witch%20Academia/Little%20Witch%20Academia%20-%2015%20-%20Large%2028.jpg
And just became more badass after this
https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Witch%20Academia/Little%20Witch%20Academia%20-%2015%20-%20Large%2029.jpg
I so want to see a Chariot vs Croix fight
https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Witch%20Academia/Little%20Witch%20Academia%20-%2015%20-%20Large%2032.jpg
Preserving the legacy like…
Third hokage: “The will of fire”
All Might: “Young Midoriya, you can become a hero”
Ursula :” those who try to achieve their dreams must go through hardship. there may come times when you fail and lose sight of that dream. but you must never let the flame in your chest go out. burn that flame bright, and strive for your ideal place.” _Chariot
Chariot: Akko, You Can Become A Witch!!!
I getting a Cutie Honey vibe from Chariot during that fight scene.
Ursula Chariot for life!
Chariot-sensei channeling her inner Yomako-sensei.
Episode 15 Analysis
– First off, the relationship between Little Witch Academia and the World Tree has finally been proven correct. The first scene after the opening clearly foreshadows Yggdrasil’s role in the overall plot. Noticed on the Ipad that Amanda is bitterly tapping, it shows an array of symbols or map of sort and compared it to a certain map regarding worlds of Norse cosmology, it show to us the seven of the nine realms. It is unknown where the remaining two are but it might be related to the overall plot. If you look into the history of the worlds more, you could see that each realm has an overall theme that matches the characters.
Constanze: Svartalfheim – The realm is home to Dwarves who are master craftsman and since Constanze builds machines as a hobby, she fits right in.
Diana: Vanaheim- The realm is home to the oldest of Gods, the Vanir who are masters of sorcery and able to predict the future. Recalling Diana’s lineage and her ability to predict the future, diana’s role would be this one.
Sucy: Jotunheim – While there isn’t a lot to talk about but one important thing to note is that Loki lived in Jotunheim. Seeing as Loki was a trickster, it would related to Sucy own tendencies to play pranks on Akko.
Lotte: Alfheim – Alfheim is home to the Light Elves who are regarded as guardian angels and the ones that inspired art and music. This fits well with Lotte who has a passion for her Night Fall novels and the song she possessed in the Enchanted Parade.
Akko and Andrew: Midgard – Midgard is obviously the world where Akko and Andrew live in. One important thing to learn that there is a path called the Rainbow Bridge which connect Midgard and Asgard. Although Akko would be a likely candidate, on the other hand Andrew’s time with the rookie witch allowed him to open his eyes and see the magical world beyond just the arts.
– Moving on as Akko ascend the tower, we could see pictures of creatures that reflect Croix’s character.
Manticore – One trait the could be seen is the chimeric nature of the Manticore reflecting Croix’s goal in combining magic and science into one power.
Cobra – Cobra represents the deceitful nature which Croix used in tricking everyone to believe in the teachers’ incompetence and the heroic image she placed herself but since the Cobra has several species known for spitting, it represents how she much loathed the old traditions of magic or those who usurped her.
Spider – Spider meant the patient and tactical nature. Croix had a long time to develop her technology and was been in touch with Luna Nova’s current woes she used to her advantage in discrediting the teachers and be the hero that Akko needed to advance. Her plan was quite ingenius if it weren’t so despicable. She provided the workers the means to demand more of the magical energy and outed several Witches as bad people in order to get them mad and stepped in to change the course. It worked and the Witches who i severely dislike are discredited of their competence. After getting her hands on Akko, she intentionally lured Chariot not only to test her abilities but also undermine her confidence that she failed to save her student from harm.
Stag – Stag is a sign of power which matched her goal in seeking the Grand Triskellion.
– Amongst the episode is the overall themes of tradition vs advancement and nature vs modern. Both sides have shown that while they do have points in defending their cases, it doesn’t change that they took it to downright lethal extremes. Eventhough Finnelan is suspicious on Croix but her reasons for them is wrong in many ways as that by solely obsessing on tradition, she and the other teachers lost face when they are unable to develop a compromise in the strike and their only defense was to defend tradition.
– Lastly, the relationship between Akko and Ursula. What started off as a simple master and student blossomed into a beautiful bond of kindred spirits with the full celestial love between parent and child. Akko’s dream has and will always become Shiny Chariot and whatever the case, Akko viewed Shiny Chariot as her Godmother. The one who tell her to stand up even when things were at the bleakest. While she won’t know about Ursula’s real identity, it’s perfectly clear that the girl sees the teacher not a substitute but family. Ursula viewed Akko more than just her successor. While teaching her to activate the Seven Words was the sole goal but overtime the one thing she couldn’t expect was that she would have grown to love Akko like her own daughter. The entire Witch community viewed her as a pariah and this young girl, without any background of magic at all praised her with high regards and shown in many ways similar to her own. They bonded with their love for magic and the time spent together was ever most nostalgic for Ursula. With knowledge that Akko might be in danger, she went in like a force of nature tearing down Croix’s defences like paper. Had Ursula actually be Akko’s real mother, she would have left no evidence of a body of Croix to be found. In the end, the bond between young girls from generations was a sight to behold. Akko is more optimistic with knowledge that she’ll meet Chariot again and Ursula proud of Akko and the role as a champion among witches.
To tribute the release of Episode 15, here’s a link to a video I recently made: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3OrQ_pYwzY
Nine realms, and nine olde witches?
Someone brought up that perhaps the endgame would be the rising of nine young witches as successors to the old nine, perhaps each of these nine would have a role to play in the final episodes, with each tied to one of the nine realms.
Perhaps even Chariot and Croix (after a heel-face turn) will be part of the nine, though they aren’t as young.
In honor to Akko and Ursula, I made a video centering on Episode 15. Hope you view it and leave a comment.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQA2erJJsnY
Look at the Name beside Croix. Salem Saberhagen? Black Cat? Nice shout out.
Salem Saberhagen, Black Cat, Sabrina…
I’m trying to figure out if the Jennifer award is alluding to the movie “I Married a Witch” or something else
The moment Ursula went into fighting mode, everything else was a blur…
Ursula Chariot continues to be waifu material.
Anyone get the vibes that Chariot/Ursula’s skills made her kind of appear like a magical Black Widow this episode?
Theres a limit to how much Akko is easily swayed and bedazzled by Croix. I mean, i cant believe how easy it was for Akko to idolize Croix in a snap! It like, show her some razzle-dazzle sparkling fireworks and Akko will def in your bidding (even Amanda has her doubt in this matter). Really makes me question the depth her admiration towards Chariot :/ and after all the commotions, after how flimsy her love is in magic, shes the chosen one. Luffy did a better job if thats the case. Sigh…
No matter. Ursula Chariot is the highlight of this week. Man, the moment she threw her cape and turned into red-haired babe, Akko is forgiven. Oh god Chariot in that tight suit <3
Okay now we have another Shinny Rod's new exposition, Chariot's badass moment,…now can we have a Diana episode please? 😀 or else imma go crazy with how blind and deaf Akko again with Croix…X(
According to the director. Yoh Yoshinari, this show is an allegory to the animation industry, with Akko representing the young and idealistic animator who is just starting. In one of the latest interviews, they aren’t subtle about Croix’s technology representing the introduction of CG graphics into the anime industry.
Croix herself might be an asshole, but her technology is useful and the only argument of those opposed to it (Amanda, Finneran) is resistance to change.
The fact that Akko is open to change is not a bad thing. She might be a little overenthusiastic about it, but CG came to stay, and the anime industry have to accept that and learn to adapt. Likewise, I’m sure Croix’s technology isn’t gonna go away even if she’s defeated at the end or something like that. The witches have to adapt to the times. Their refusal to change is exactly why normal humans see witches and magic as useless and outdated.
Akko being so open-mined might be one of the reasons she’s the chosen one. When Chariot was a student, she used magic to entertain the masses as a performer, and that too was something unorthodox for her time. It’s all about innovating.
Akko is more prone to emotional responses than Diana, and thus loses focus. She sees Croix’s magical technique as “neat”, so she’s fascinated by it. Diana analyzes it like everything else and is thus more likely to pick out flaws and worrisome details. Akko embraces change, possibly even for the sake of itself sometimes, while Diana only changes when her experiences convince her to. This is probably why she’s so constantly upset with Akko, because every time Akko does something that works, and shows Diana a new way that things can be done, she follows it up with more idiocy. This undermines both Diana’s respect for Akko and Diana’s faith in her own decision making skills.
One reason Chariot cannot tell Akko who she is is plot related. If Chariot tells Akko, Akko will want to know all the further steps in the process and why Chariot failed thus taking away a lot of surprise for the view. Plus their must be a secret best discovered by the person unlocking component to the magic that discourages active help.
Despite what her behaviour might suggest, Akko doesn’t have a lot of self-confidence. She just cover for it with a lot of determination. But deep down she sees herself as inferior to most people. Ursula, being the closest to her, probably already know this, and if she told her that she’s Chariot, and she failed to get the last word, Akko will lose all her remaining confidence. Akko would never think she can do something Chariot herself wasn’t able to.
Akko has to develop further first, and get to the point when she can stop idolizing Chariot as something far above herself. When she can see her more as an equal. Then Ursula will be able to tell her.
Or it may very well be that if Ursula shares with Akko any of the information regarding her failures as Chariot, Akko might make the same mistakes and ruin her own chances. She may believe that Chariot’s failure was in execution rather than method and fail in the same way. Akko is more likely to succeed where Chariot failed if she does things her own way with no direct input from Ursula.