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「誓いの言葉」 (Chikai no Kotoba)
“Oath”
It’s only half way through the season but with two huge fights occurring concurrently with a third one between Shana and Yuuji just about to start, it almost felt like the end was near. Luckily, there’s still a whole season left for things to get even crazier than they already have!
After the huge fight between Sabrac and Wilhelmina from last season, it looks like things are going to be even more heated this second time around. Unlike the first battle where I had this feeling of suspense since it felt like Sabrac was this immortal being that just couldn’t die, I was ready for Wilhelmina, Rebecca, and Khamsin to obliterate him this second time. And even though the real Sabrac wasn’t caught in this huge explosion, I can’t wait to see the attack that’ll actually get him.
While there may be a war raging outside of the God Gate, it pales in comparison to what just happened inside. First and foremost, I had expected that unsealing a Crimson Lord that hundreds of Flame Hazes had sacrificed their lives for would take a little more effort than taking off an eyepatch and shaking a staff. Sure, it may be an over-simplification but it just felt a little too easy.
That said, I’m sure Shana is going to give everyone a good run for their money. Reinforced with the confidence to express her feelings for Yuuji, both her words and actions seem to have a new found strength behind them. Besides finally flustering Yuuji and throwing his game off a little, I honestly think that Shana might actually have a shot at beating him.
But with a whole season still left for the plot to develop and mature, I’m weary about what might happen to Shana right now. Without a main antagonist for Shana to fight against, I can’t imagine that the writers would let Shana take everything right now — which means that she’s going to be either inevitably defeated or have the battle cut short. Judging from what the preview focused on, Shana’s battle is probably going to take the backseat while Team Wilhemina fight against the nearly invincible Sabrac.
Preview
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I wonder if this episode raised a death flag for Khamsin. I don’t want to see him die….
I fully expect a large portion of the cast to be dead by the end of the show.
I’m more worried about Rebecca, personally.
I also feel that someone is going to die. After all they have to balance things since they have already killed Decarabia.
I see lots of death flags on the horizon. Most notably Sophie the leader of the flame haze’s (and the other dude with the small cup/trophy) and most of those other Flame Haze’s before its all said and done. Probably at least one of Wilhemina’s team as well.
Oh, what I really do not understand about this episode is why Shana wanted to be separated from the rest of the group. I felt that she has advantages over Sabrac; but more importantly, I am a little confused about why she wanted to see Yuuji so quickly, knowing that the encounter will cause a battle – a battle she simply cannot win because there is no way she can win against Yuuji + Trinity.
Anyways, if it wasn’t for Yuuji wanting to 1-on-1 with Shana and Trinity having no interests in butting in, Shana probably would have been in serious trouble.
Wilhelmina’s probably the only one with what could plausibly be called an “advantage” over Sabrac, given her years of experience fighting against him and her (now ineffective) countermeasures to Stigma. They also had a plan using just the three other flame haze that would have worked, had Khamsin been able to create his golem, Sabrac not devised a countermeasure against being separated from his body, and Bel Peol not created the clone Rinne. Since none of those three events could have been foreseen, there was no way to guess beforehand that the plan would not work. Her getting hit with Stigma would also be a very bad thing, so getting her away from him is also protecting her in a roundabout way.
Second, they all already know that Yuuji/Sairei no Hebi is going far out of his way to keep her alive and “safe”, so despite everything, being close to him is probably one of the best places she could be. The Trinity wouldn’t attack her, and the couple denizens with them wouldn’t make a difference.
The bigger thing to question is why they took Sabrac into the Gate at all. All things considered, he’d have been far more useful defending Seireiden. Stigma would have been close to a one-hit kill on the entire flame haze army, or at the very least, been able to take out Khamsin and Rebecca right off the bat.
It took me a while to figure it out since it’s been so long since we last saw her, but did the anime deal at all with the connection between Sabrac and Mare? I certainly can’t remember it doing so, and unless they intend to give him a flashback segment at some point, throwing her in here feels a little too random.
On the other hand, I think this was the most emotion we’ve seen on what passes for his face so far, and for some reason I find it absolutely hilarious. Khamsin’s really something if he can make the completely stoic Sabrac break out the O.o face.
I think that Show Spoiler ▼
was overlooked. It was a good week for “you’ve gotta be shittin’ me” villain faces.
I’ve always liked how Sabrac should look completely ridiculous (like most Tomogara do), but instead looks completely badass.
Also that expression was gold.
Mare was supposed to be an original character for the PS2 game, but series author Takahashi Yashirou liked her enough to incorporate her into the novel canon by giving her a special role in Sabrac’s philosophical pursuits.
Unlike most Denizens, Sabrac doesn’t pursuit any particular desire, he merely decided to come to our world simply because “it is there”. He believes that the reason why he has lasted so long was because he was strong enough to survive, that was all. So when an utter weakling like Mare decided to venture into our world and into certain doom, all for the “pursuit of one’s desires”, he becomes baffled.
Soon he will come to understand why Mare did what she did. Show Spoiler ▼
Chiara! Sale!
At last…
With still one more season to go I do wonder would JC Staff spend some time to explore Chiara and Sale’s backstories, as they’ve been quite interesting as protagonists of their own side-story.
I guess that the most surpricing thing about this epsiode is that Sabrac had a love interest. Kind of strange since, when he appeared last season I though that he might be Yuuji’s father. lol
I think I missed something. What is everyone fighting for again?
From what I thought I got out of this episode was Shana fighting to stop the Serpent of Ritual from returning to the world because it has the power to reshape the world, which she finds too dangerous. And because she doesn’t trust the God of Creation, and thinks it might consume Yuji once it’s out of the God Gate?
Yuji/Serpent of Ritual is fighting to reshape the world where there do not have to be any flame haze to free Shana, by creating a world where no one has to fear or loose any love one’s to Tomogara. A world where both can exist in peace.
And the rest of the flame haze are just fighting because of tradition, of that the Tomogara are the bad guys??? And because of a story they heard about the God of Creation trying to change the world but they never even knew how he was trying to change it and consider him to be evil for this?
I think I must have missed something (which could be easy cuz I can’t remember season 1 or 2 really) but right now Yuji/Serpent of ritual seems to have the only noble reason really worth fighting for. While I could see it being a risk I don’t really understand why Shana feels so justified in fighting Yuji, when nothing he has said seems to go against her set of morals, it’s just a bit of a risk. Which I would think since she loves him she might have a little faith in following supporting him in creating a world that could be peace to what was though to be an eternal struggle.
In any case it just seems like the flame haze fight because of what they’ve been told throughout time, not what they think is really best or right. Am I wrong?
At the moment, I believe that Yuuji hasn’t revealed his true plan about wanting to stop the never ending battles between the Flame Haze and the Tomogara. Meaning in the eyes of everyone else, it’s just a huge battle that the Bel Masque instigated.
That’s at least how I took it.
I’m supporting your ideals Shana!!
WOW, just, WOW… Shana gets “power of love power up” of over 9000 – just enogh to have a shot at defeating GODMODE Yuuji 😛
Oh and Sabrac steals show for himself, making him my fave Tomogara right now. He is calm, logical, reasonable and ruthlessly effective in combat. That 3 of the most powerful FH are hard pressed just to keep him at bay is incredible.
And then there is epic battle at the gates of Mordor, erm, Seireiden, with all the grand strategy, reinforcements, and hundreds of warriors in action.
Hey hey, the Power of Love can be very powerful, just listen to JAM Project’s [GONG]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQrlAly8l9E
Jump to 1:12 if you need to.
Here’s another alternative.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsF53mkuZlU
Go to 2:22
impressive band! thanks for link 🙂
i dropped this final season half way. should i continue?
Given that this final season is all about the war, I would say yes — especially since you sat through the first two seasons.
I want a new season, I root for Shana, Yuji he no hero, give Yuji reason your suck speech anime and new season reboot.
Not wanting to trail behind Satou last week, at last Shana has confessed her love as well. 🙂
No Shana this week BTW as it’s that time of year again, the series will resume the following Thursday. Hopefully with new OP (as KOTOKO did the second and now second last OP, so too will Kawada Mami return to perform the last OP, coming full circle as she did the first Shana OP all those years ago; ALTIMA will once again do the ED)
I though it gonna end in few more episodes…
It is, going to end in 12-14 episodes.
I kinda felt that this is one big metaphorical lovers’ tiff. Yuji has his man’s way of thinking and Shana has her woman’s way of thinking and it led them to this conflict.
And dammit Yoshida, just become a Flame Haze already!
Ack spoiler!
ouch, a big one… really didn’t expect that things will go this way…
took her long enough to finally confess. And it have to be AFTER the man left her, like always.
Well, that’s one way to convince an evil dude to stop doing bad things.
After watching this episode, I’ve finally realized that Shana changed so much when I first saw her. o w o Go Shana~!
Really looking forward to the new OP & ED and how this series closes out. Its been 6+ years since the first season started, so this final season BETTER go out with a bang. I have high hopes that J.C. Staff will come through.