RJ Writing Ink

SAO Dub Returns to Toonami

So with Edens Zero delayed this week, I’ve been looking for other topics to write about until The Owl House premieres tomorrow night. Then this afternoon, I found this post by fellow blogger Lesley Aeischliman. According to her, the dub for Sword Art Online: Alicization- War of Underworld is coming to Toonami on January 18th. Facebook and other posts confirmed it.

This was an unexpected announcement for me. Since the dub for the first half did not air until the sub was almost complete, I assumed they’d be doing the same thing with the second half of the season. Instead, they’re going ahead and airing it while the anime’s on break until April.

I did the math in my head. Currently, there’s twelve episodes in War of Underworld. If they air each week on Toonami uninteruppted, they’ll catch up to the sub by the start of April. That’s when the second half of War of Underworld will air.

Right now, I’m going with the theory that they’re going to try and simuldub SAO: Alicization–War of Underworld. It’s the only explanation that I could come up as to why Toonami would start airing the dub for War of Underworld when its only half done. Personally, I find this prospect to be very exciting. It will help to maximize the hype for such a popular anime. In addition, this would be the best way to let the anime that kickstarted the Isekai craze go out with a bang. Only time will tell if I’m right, though.

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Sword Art Online: Alicization Part 1 Review

Well, people, after 24 episodes, we have reached the end of disc one of SAO. Sword Art Online: Alicization has finished its first half on Toonami. Rest assured, I plan on only doing my reviews of the new episodes when they come out subbed. I don’t want to wait who knows how long for Aniplex to dub the lines. I like Bryce Papenbrook and Cherami Leigh, but I can’t remain forever.

I came into this season having high hopes that this would be what would recapture the spark that launched SAO to international fame/infamy. After all, it’s the most extended story that Reki Kawahara wrote for SAO, covering almost ten light novels altogether. Then it turned into a dungeon crawl halfway through. With part one over, I want to review Sword Art Online: Alicization.

Cons

I could make this longer, but for fairness sake, I think I want to focus on three of the big gripes I had with this season: wasting Eugeo, techno-babble, and exposition, and worst of all, the music. Let’s start with the least obvious choice.

I’ve enjoyed the soundtrack to Sword Art Online. I have at least half a dozen songs used on the show or SAO: Ordinal Scale on my phone. I count “Swordland” among my all-time favorite battle songs. So what problem did I have with the music this season? They kept using “Swordland” for several fight sequences.

I noticed it as early as the goblin fight: they were using a remix of “Swordland” in the battles. At first, I loved it, was happy to hear it some more. Then, I noticed that they started using it over and over, for almost every big fight. I felt that it devalued the song and made it less special. For some reason, that became a pet peeve.

Too Much Talking

My next gripe is techno-babble and exposition. Thanks to knowing about this beforehand, I understood the concepts behind. RATH somehow copied human souls, created a virtual world for them to live in, and all the magic’s them using the computer commands. It’s an easy enough concept to understand, but the way they teach it to was, at times, pure nonsense. I still don’t know what “release recollection” means. I bet SomethingWittyEntertainment could explain it better. By the end of the season, I stopped trying to understand everything.

In hindsight, I think this kind of lengthy exposition’s better suited for the Light Novels the anime’s based on. There you need to describe everything through words instead of visuals, so it makes sense. In Alicization, though, it didn’t translate well.

Wasting Eugeo

Then, my biggest complaint of the season: wasting Eugeo. I read the Light Novels, so I knew that Eugeo would die, but I still couldn’t help but be upset. Eugeo had potential as a character.

The way I see it, Kawahara created Eugeo to be a foil to Kirito. Whereas Kirito’s confident in himself and his skills, Eugeo’s more insecure and unsure. With Kirito as his best friend, we saw Eugeo steadily develop himself as a swordsman and as a better, to the point where Eugeo openly broke the Taboo Index to save his apprentice. Given time, Eugeo could have rivalved Kirito as a swordsman. His death felt like a massive waste of potential. Worst of all, though, is the fact that Kirito lost the only guy friend in his age group. Klein and Agil are both adults, so I don’t count them.

Pros

Despite what some people may think, I don’t think this season was a total loss, as it did have a few good things going for it. Chief among them, the fights, which have always been the big draw to SAO for me, were on point. Kirito didn’t get as much time to fight this season as he usually does, but when he did, it was a blast to watch. The bloody fight against the goblins in the cave at the start to the battle of wills between him and that guy from the sword academy, Kirito was as cool as ever while fighting.

Good Fights. At Times

If I haven’t said it before, then I think his fight against Fanatio was the highlight of the season. It was a fast-paced duel between two swordmasters and was bursting with energy and excitement. In my review of the episode, I said that both were enjoying themselves fighting. I only wish the other fights this season were as impressive.

Eugeo had some excellent moments to show off his skills, too. The big one, though, was battling the leader of the Integrity Knights, Bercouli, to a draw. Bercouli was someone not even Alice or Fanatio could defeat, so that’s a testament to how good Eugeo’s became under Kirito’s tutelage. That just made watching his death all the harder, though.

Bring On the War

As of right now, this was my second least-favorite arc in SAO. If it weren’t for Sugou being the worst, it would take the bottom rung. Even after all this, though, I refuse to give up hope on Sword Art Online.

In October, the second half of Alicization begins, and it’s going to be the biggest story SAO’s ever seen. After centuries of waiting, the Dark Territory is about to start its invasion of the Human Empire, as Cardinal warned Kirito. If they succeed, RATH will destroy Underworld. At least, that’s how it would have gone originally.

RATH’s under attack by an outside enemy that’s after Underworld and what it has to offer. They’ll use any means necessary to get what they came for, even manipulating events in Underworld to do so. War’s happening, and if done right, we could get fights that will make Game of Thrones green with envy. The best part, though, is that all of Kirito’s friends and allies will be making a return and will have a role to play; especially Asuna.

Alicization: War of the Underworld will either be what brings some measure of greatness back to SAO or will kill it forever. Either way, though, I’m looking forward to it this fall, and you can bet I’ll be covering it when it comes out.

Until then, I have two words: LINK START!

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Check out my friend, Karandi, and their review of the series at 100WordAnime. Click this link to see it.

Sword Art Online: Alicization, Episode 24 Review/Recap

They said that I was mad, doing this series for SAO: Alicization. Here I stand, having done what I set out to do. We’re at the mid-season finale of SAO: Alicization, and this will be my last review/recap until the show resumes in October; not waiting for the dub. Now, let’s get this mid-game boss fight started. Kirito vs. Quinella!

LINK START

Recap

The battle between Kirito and the evil Quinella begins, and for some reason, Kirito changes into his SAO look. Because, why not? Despite not being a fighter, Quinella knows all there is about Underworld’s system, giving her the upper hand. With Kirito on the ropes, Eugeo uses the last of his strength to give him a pep-talk, remind him of their childhood in Rulid village, and reform his sword out of his blood. In the brief clash that follows, Kirito sacrifices his left arm but deals a fatal blow to Quinella. Desperate, Quinella tries to escape to the real world. Thankfully, the still-living Chudelkin intervenes and ends up destroying them both.

The battle’s over, but sadly, Eugeo’s still dying. Eugeo says it for the best, though, because they would have fought over Alice’s fate: Eugeo to save the Alice he knew, and Kirito to save Alice as she is now. Despite Kirito’s best efforts, Eugeo passes away, and the original Alice joins him in going to the afterlife. Kirito then drags himself to the terminal that Quinella used, and manages to contact Kikouka in the real world, only to learn the Island Turtle’s under attack. An unknown force’s attempting to seize control of Underworld’s server. Kikouka gives Kirito one order: bring Alice to the World’s End Server. Right before they can do anything, though, the enemy cuts the power to Kirito’s life-support, causing a power surge that sends Kirito into a coma as the first half of the season comes to an end.

Review

Finally, it’s over! My second least favorite arc in SAO’s over! Don’t get me wrong. I enjoy the idea of a virtual world filled with sentient AI, but this season was handled so poorly. The pacing was all over the place, there was a lot more exposition than I wanted to deal with, and they kept using “Swordland” in almost every action sequence. I love that song, but if they use it over and over, it loses its meaning.

On top of that, Eugeo, the only guy friend Kirito’s age, is now dead after being built up for 24 episodes. I don’t want to tell Reki Kawahara how to write his story, but I think letting Eugeo die was a waste of a character. I’m more upset about that than the fact that Kirito’s going to be in a coma for the foreseeable future.

On top of that, the Underworld equivalent of Armageddon is coming, and if the Human Empire loses, RATH will erase it. At least, that was the initial plan, but since they’re under attack by an unknown group, that changes things. I just hope this war will be as epic as I think it will be.

The only silver lining I could find here was Quinella getting what she deserves. Even then, though, I couldn’t take any satisfaction in it because of the loss of Cardinal and Eugeo. It doesn’t matter, though. She’s dead.

Overall, I think this was a disappointing end to the first half of the season. It’s like if Square Enix donked up Aerith’s death in the first half of Final Fantasy VII. It has the potential to be emotional, but then it falls flat on it. Here’s hoping that the second half of Alicization is better

I Give “My Hero” a 2/5. I’m being generous.

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Sword Art Online: Alicization Episode 23 Review/Recap

Having been drawn out of hiding to save Kirito and Alice, Cardinal comes face to face with her nemesis, Quinella. The battle for the fate of Underworld begins, and admittedly, it’s better than last episode.

LINK START!

Recap

To stop Cardinal for good, Quinella splits the 100th floor off from the rest of Underworld. To break Cardinal’s will to fight, she then reveals a gut-wrenching revelation: she made the Sword Golem from the humans of Underworld. Specifically, the memories of the Integrity Knights. Worse, Quinella’s plan to beat the Dark Territory is sacrificing half of the Human Empire to create more Sword Golems. Unable to fight against the people she must protect, Cardinal offers her life for the three. Quinella accepts, and kills Cardinal.

However, with her dying breath, Eugeo asks Cardinal to do one last thing: turn him into a sword that can defeat the Sword Golem. He fuses with Alice’s memory crystal and the Blue Rose Sword, to become an ultimate Sword.

In his Sword form, Eugeo effortlessly destroys the Sword Golem before turning his attention to Quinella. Despite his best efforts, all he can do is chop her arm off before being shattered, leaving him dying. All that’s left to defeat Quinella is Kirito.

Review

What have we learned today? That Quinella’s the worst, and that everyone except for the main character can be cannon fodder. Seriously, we knew that no one else was going to beat Quinella, so why did Cardinal and Eugeo bother? They should have let Kirito handle it like he always does.

I already know what’s going to happen next, and this may be my least favorite boss-fight in SAO. I’m bummed, though, because Eugeo’s dying. Kirito finally had another guy to hang with, and this happens! Next week’s the last episode before the break, so let’s see how this ends

I give “Administrator” a 2.5/5. I’m generous because we got to see Quinella squirm.

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Sword Art Online: Alicization Episode 22 Review/Recap

Karandi, my friend, we have reached the point where Sword Art Online: Abridged could do Alicization better. Instead of an epic boss fight against Chudelkin, we get a Hercule Satan one-shot.

LINK START!

Recap

Fueled by the flames of his lust for Quinella, Chudelkin transforms into a fire genie 🧞‍♂️! Kirito responds to this threat by doing what Kirito does: pull stuff out of his butt that defies the rules of VR. In this case, he turns into his Aincrad and one-shots KO’s the clown.

That leads Quinella to realize that Kirito is from the real world, not that she cares. She then brings out her trump card, a massive entity she calls a ‘Sword Golem’. The Golem then one-shots Kirito and Alice, leaving only Eugeo behind. Desperate, Charlotte reveals herself by transforming into a giant spider. The spider sacrifices herself to buy Eugeo time to summon their own trump card: Cardinal herself.

Review of one-shot letdown

This was by far the most disappointing episode of SAO: Alicization. First, the fire genie gets one-shot for the sake of an Easter egg. Then that ugly golem thing one-shot Kirito and Alice. Lame as heck.

Though to be fair, it wasn’t that exciting in the light novel, either. The main thing I remember was seeing Kirito become the Black Swordsman again. That, and Quinella validates my fears. If she got into the real world, she’d probably conquer it for herself. She must be stopped for the good of Earth and Underworld.

I give “Titan of the Sword” a 2/5. Two one-shots, one letdown

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By the way, I’m sorry I didn’t put this up a week ago. I got so distracted by all the other work that I’m doing that I didn’t have the time.

Sword Art Online: Alicization Episode 21 Review/Recap

Twenty-one episodes in, and we finally get the fight that no one asked for, least of all me. Kirito’s forced to fight a brainwashed Eugeo, now the latest Integrity Knight. I stand by my assertion about the time it will take for Kirito to kick Eugeo’s butt.

LINK START!

Recap

The clash between the two friends continues as Kirito does his best to undo Quinella’s brainwashing. Try as he might, though, nothing seems to get through to him. At least, not until Kirito mentions the name of Alice. Then just like that, all his memories come flooding back to him. Quinella was in such a rush to turn him into an Integrity Knight that she didn’t seal off his memories. Instead of teaming up with his friends, though, he freezes them in place and goes to confront Quinella alone.

We all know how that ends, though. Eugeo tries to kill Quinella, only to fail miserably. Fortunately, Eugeo had already set Kirito and Alice free, and they bust in right behind a terrified Chudelkin. Face to face with the fake Pontifex, Alice declares that she will never serve Quinella; she serves the people. Rather than sully herself in battle, the hag commands Chudelkin to dispose of the three. In exchange, she “swears by the Goddess Stacia” that he may spend one night alone with her. Chudelkin then unleashes his most powerful fire magic, summoning a massive Genie to fight.

Review

What kind of fight did we watch? It’s bad enough that there was little to no build up of tension to it, but then have it end so quickly is pathetic. I knew that Kirito was going to snap Eugeo out of it with the magic of friendship, but I wanted to see them duke it out. It was a buzzkill in the end.

I also had some issues with how Eugeo and Alice acted during the episode. I fail to understand why Alice didn’t jump in and help Kirito fight Eugeo; that doesn’t make sense. Second, if Eugeo snapped out of his brainwashing, then why didn’t he come up with a plan with Kirito and Alice? They could’ve ganged up on Quinella and taken her out in one fell swoop. Instead, Eugeo went to fight someone he knew he couldn’t beat alone. If the Abridged Series ever gets to this, I hope they bring it up.

I Hate Quinella

Another problem I have is, once again, with Quinella. I hate how the anime is going out of its way to use her for fanservice shots. Seeing her naked’s This bad enough, but the close-ups on her boobs and legs are irritating. It veers into shameless fanservice.

The worst part of it is that we know that Quinella has no intention of keeping her promise to that groveling coward, Chudelkin. I could tell by the haughty laugh she gives: she expects him to die for her.

While this episode was my least favorite of the season, but it did have one saving grace: Eugeo calling Quinella out on her idea of what love is. I had done it before in a previous post, but hearing her repeat herself made me realize how pitiful she is. If that’s her idea of love, then I don’t think anyone ever loved her before, because she knows nothing about it. She’s hollower than any machine could ever be.

I look forward to seeing her get her comeuppance.

I Give “The 32nd Knight” a 2/5. Worst “Fight Btwn Best Friends” Ever.

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Sword Art Online: Alicization, Episode 20 Review/Recap

The last episode, we saw Alice renounce the Axiom Church but then deal with the Seal in her right eye as Kirito looked on. Meanwhile, Quinella was able to gain access to Eugeo’s fluctlight and began the process of turning him into her newest slave. In this episode, we get a look at how the Synthesis Ritual’s done, plus what happened to Alice before she was turned into an Integrity Knight.

LINK START!

Recap

Somehow, Kirito was able to stop Alice’s bleeding eye and then pull them both to the 94th floor. How he did it is beyond me, but it must have been a workout. Alice shows her appreciation by slamming him into the floor for getting her uniform all sweaty.

Using magic, they head down to Bercouli’s floor to retrace Eugeo’s steps, only to find the whole room frozen. As for Bercouli, he’s still trapped in that statue, to Alice’s horror. All she can do is watch as Bercouli, through sheer willpower, congratulates her for being the only person to ever break free of the Taboo Index. As a last piece of advice, he tells them that Chudelkin took Euegeo to Quinella.

The Deadly Web of Quinella

Alice remembers her first memory of meeting Quinella after the Synthesis Ritual, how terrified she was of her. She wouldn’t let that fear stop her now, even if she has to go through Chudelkin. As Prime Senator, Chudelkin oversees the Senators who watch over all in the Underworld and let Quinella know.

When they find the room of the Senator’s, its a sickening sight: pods filled with white, featureless puppets that watch everyone. They only stop to feed. The one behind them all is that worthless Chudelkin.

Chudelkin’s Confession

When Alice has Chudelkin cornered, the monster sadistically reveals what happened to Alice. After being arrested, Alice was trained to be a priest under the guise that she could return home. When she refused to undergo the Synthesis Ritual, he forced the process upon here.

While Alice processes everything, the pig flees with her and Kirito in pursuit. Before they can catch him, they’re confronted by a new foe: Eugeo Synthesis Knight Thirty-Two. Quinella turned him into an Integrity Knight. Thus, the only way to snap him out of it is by beating Quinella’s hasty brainwashing out of him.

Review

Wow, I knew that Chudelkin was evil, but after this episode, seeing him makes my skin crawl. He’s like a sociopathic, sadistic manchild who enjoys seeing others suffer. When I hear him talking about Alice as a kid, he reminded me of some sick pervert who gets off on this stuff. I know I can’t be the only one who got that vibe. Right?

With that out of the way, let’s talk about the big highlight: Eugeo got turned into an Integrity Knight. I have to give my fellow blogger, Karandi, points: Eugeo looks fantastic in his new armor. Do I think he stands a chance against Kirito? Heck no! I give it about 2 minutes, tops. Even if he didn’t have plot-armor, we all know Kirito would kick Eugeo’s ass.

So, next week’s the fans- I mean a fight between best friends. I stand by my two-minute remark!

I Give “Synthesis” a 3.5/5. Suitable for Exposition, but lacking in the fighting.

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Sword Art Online: Alicization, Episode 18 Review/Recap

We’ve seen how far the so-called “Pontifex” Quinella is willing to go to maintain her power. She created the Taboo Index to shackle the humans of Underworld to her oppressive rules. It’s only in this episode of SAO: Alicization that we see the depths of her wickedness. At this point, she’s number two on my list of most hated women in anime. Guess who’s number one.

LINK START!

Recap

The episode opens back with Kirito and Alice on the ledge, where Kirito tells Alice the truth. The truth that Quinella lied to the Integrity Knights about summoning them from heaven. That she wiped their memories and stole their identities. Above all, that she doesn’t care about the humans of Underworld; only herself.

Once Alice hears everything, it doesn’t take long for her to realize he’s telling the truth. She already knows from Bercouli that there aren’t enough Integrity Knights to stop the Dark Territory from invading. Yet Quinella won’t do anything, and refuses to arm and train the people. She just lets scumbag nobles get away with whatever they want.

Now convinced of the Axiom Church’s corruption and that her memories are a lie, Alice agrees to help Kirito and Eugeo. When she tries to renounce the Axiom Church, the Taboo Index kicks in and tries to stop her. Through sheer force of will, though, Alice breaks free, even though it costs her her eye.

At the top of the Cathedral, Eugeo awakens in Quinella’s bedroom, with a voice telling him to run. Before he can, Quinella awakens, and its too late. The immortal Pontifex draws Eugeo in with her sweet words and comforting promises. As the episode ends, she uses Eugeo to give her access to his fluctlight,and then she begins her work.

Review

First, I want to give credit where credit is due, and Alice deserves credit. I don’t know why, but I love seeing people rebel against tyrannical regimes. One of my biggest buttons is the notion of a group robbing people of free will; it angers me so much! So I liked seeing Alice say what is, for all intents and purposes, “there are no strings on me”.

I was going to say something else, but then I thought that verse was better.

As for Quinella, my loathing of her has only grown. Seeing her use both her words and beauty to ensare Eugeo in a honeypot of lies made me so mad, not just at her, but at myself. Quinella’s VA did a great job with her lines, knowing how to say them in a way that calms the heart. Even I was almost taken in by what she said.

What I hated, though, was all that “love” nonsense that she was spewing. We know that that’s not love, but she tried to use a memory Eugeo had of Kirito and Alice hanging out together to manipulate him. Even if that actually happened, I doubt that’s the whole story. Plus, using jealousy over the fact that Alice may have liked Kirito seems like a lame tactic. Especially since none of them should remember that yet.

In short, I got super happy to see Alice tell Quinella to stick it, and super mad that Quinella seduced Eugeo so fast. It was a good episode, though, and that’s saying something since a lot of the episodes this season have been hit or miss. Only five left before the first half is over, but I already know what’s gonna happen. Let’s hope its worth watching, though.
Especially since none of them should remember that yet.

In short, I got super happy to see Alice tell Quinella to stick it, and super mad that Quinella seduced Eugeo so fast. It was a good episode, though, and that’s saying something since a lot of the episodes this season have been hit or miss. Only five left before the first half is over, but I already know what’s gonna happen. Let’s hope its worth watching, though.

I Give “Legendary Hero” A 3.5/5

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Sword Art Online: Alicization, Episode 17 Review/Recap

Let’s go through this one more time. After getting arrested by the Axiom Church, Kirito and Eugeo escape and vow to take down the corrupt Axiom Church. After fighting through the Integrity Knights, the pair finally face their childhood friend, Alice, who the Church turned into their weapon. After a brief fight, Kirito and Alice are thrown from the Church to the outside. And that’s when we pick back up; should be interesting.

LINK START!

Recap

Kirito manages to save Alice and himself by digging his sword into the side of the Cathedral, even though Alice insists on letting her fall. After arguing for several minutes and calling each other idiots, Kirito convinces her to call a truce until they get back inside. Working together, they begin to climb up to the 95th, where they can get back in.

Back in the real world, Asuna and Rinko are eating breakfast when they notice that one of the Ocean Turtle’s escort ships is moving away. Something’s not right, but the SDF is not telling them.

In the Underworld, Kirito and Alice have made progess, but with the sun setting, they won’t be able to make it up any higher. That’s when they’re attacked by monsters. Somehow, winged creatures made with dark magic from the Dark Territory were able to roost on the Cathedral’s walls. It takes some teamwork (and more arguing) but Alice and Kirito beat them. Kirito even mildly impresses Alice with his sword skills.

As all this is going down, Eugeo continues up to the top of the Cathedral on his own, where he comes across a massive bath, and the one inside is the commander of the Integrity Knights, Bercouli.

Review

It may be because I watch too many slice-of-life anime, but I found the sight of Kirito and Alice yelling at each other funny. Those two are as stubborn as they come, and Kirito has a way of getting under a girl’s skin. And yet, they somehow end up falling for him; one of life’s mysteries, I guess.

At the same time, it’s weird to see the normally stoic Alice lose her cool because of Kirito’s antics. She’s acting like a classic tsundere.

While it may seem like it’s beating a dead horse, too, I enjoyed seeing Kirito break down Alice’s arguments about the Axiom Church. It may be because I’ve read a lot about this stuff in history books, but I have a deep hatred of people who abuse their power like this. And my opinion on religious groups who do that is even lower.

No matter what Alice may say, I’m going to say that what Kirito and Eugeo did was justified. Those two pieces of trash would have hurt their friends. It was unfortunate one of them had to die, but I didn’t mourn for them. Plenty of people would have done the same to protect their friends. I would have.

If the next episode ends up being as awesome as I have heard, then I think I will be in for a treat.

I Give “Truce” a 4/5

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Sword Art Online: Alicization Episode 15 Review/Recap

When we last left off, Eugeo and Kirito had just gotten back their swords and had a mission: to get to the top of the Central Cathedral, rescue Alice, and beat the stuffing out of Quinella. But they have a hundred floors to climb before they can do that. Then they ran into these two little girls.

LINK. START!

Recap

Those two little girls say that they are Linel and Fizel, two sisters-in-training in the Axiom Church. They were supposed to stay inside their rooms while the Integrity Knights fought, but they snuck out. Also, they stab and paralyze Kirito and Eugeo because they’re actually Integrity Knights.

Several years ago, Quinella was experimenting with bringing the dead back. So she had a bunch of kids kill each other and then brought them back. Yeah. In the end, Linel and Fizel were the only ones who survived that experiment, so Quinella pulled the plug and let the girls become Integrity Knights in training. They captured Kirito and Eugeo to prove they could become full-fledged Knights and bring them all the way up to Floor 50.

That’s when Kirito reveals he was just faking being paralyzed. He pulled a Jotaro and realized right away that the girls were the enemy, so he cast a spell nullifying their blades.

While Eugeo waits for the paralysis to wear off, Kirito engages in an epic clash with the Vice Commander of the Integrity, Fanatio. There’s a lot of epic effects and sword fighting. Fanatio proves to be a dangerous opponent, wielding a sword forged from a thousand mirrors that can reflect energy. Through a bit of trickery, Kirito manages to knock Fanatio’s helmet off, revealing that she’s actually a woman.

Fanatio keeps her gender a secret because she’s insecure about her gender. No swordsman will take her seriously because she’s a woman, which she despises. Yet, as Kirito points out, she makes an effort to look after her appearance because she’s in love with the Commander of the Integrity Knights.

Having fought against and alongside tough girls like Asuna, Leafa, and Sinon for years, Kirito knows that gender has nothing to do with one’s skill, and refuses to hold back, actually earning Fanatio’s. Just when Fanatio has Kirito on the ropes, though, Eugeo’s able to move again and uses the Blue Rose Sword to freeze Fanatio in place. Even after all that, Fanatio stubbornly refuses to go down. It all comes down to a clash of wills: Fanatio’s will to fulfill her duty, and Kirito and Eugeo’s will to to protect Underworld. As the final clash begins, the episode fades to white and the credits play.

Review

This episode had one of the better fights of the season. While short, I could tell that Kirito and Fanatio were fighting with everything they had. They even started grinning in the middle of their fight. When I see that happen in anime, that means that a characters enjoying the challenge.

I have to give props to Kirito for being the first person Fanatio’s ever met who didn’t hold back because of her gender. Given how half his friends are women who can kick ass, that’s not surprising. Heck, Asuna’s as good a swordsmen as Kirito!

As for the two little girls, while I knew that they were going to end up being small fry, I found their backstory to be interesting. The fact that Quinella was willing to resort to using kids for her twisted experiments only cements her spot on my “Anime Women I Loathe”. I’m looking forward to seeing how this ends next week.

I Give “The Relentless Knight” a 4/5

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