Arslan Senki 05-06
Dark days for saturnine Pars…
Strategy is the name of the game this time, and it’s quite fitting that just after we were introduced to the new strategist of the group, in less than a day’s time, he proves ten times over that he’s worth his weight in gold. Narsus turns out to be an excellent teacher for our young prince, teaching him things that any good king and war leader should know, but that the boy never saw demonstrated by his warmonger father.
However, as much as Arslan learns that day, that lesson is nothing compared to the one that Pars itself has been condemned to learning in recent past. In a two-part set, we see the tragic tale of the fall of the royal capital of Ecbatana fold out. Lusitania has wasted no time after defeating King Andragoras’ armies on the Fields of Atropatene, and heads to the capital of the nation, pillaging and killing innocents as they go. They quickly lay siege to the city, who, while having a greatly diminished fighting force than usual, has enough men to defend it from the invaders. Yes, despite the great slaughter we witnessed a couple episodes ago, Andragoras was not completely foolish enough to have all his eggs in one basket. Several of his cavalry captains and soldiers under their command have been stationed around the country. Some of them at other citadels and bases of operation, and several hundred men and two captains have been left behind at the capital city. Word quickly spreads far and wide in regards to the armies’ defeat and the movement of the Lusitanians. However, it’s plain to see that while Pars does have reserve resources, they are spread to wide and thinly to make a difference for the main city, and like what Narsus tries to explain to his new pupil while they are hiding out, Ecbatana is all but doomed from the start. And there are several reasons as to why that is, but we’ll get into that a little later.
Firstly, I want to look at some of the stand out moments of the two-parter, this being the martyrdom of Shapur, the introduction of Gieve, and the final fall of the royal capital. Now, it’s all nice and everything that Lusitania thinks that all men are equal, but they undermine their own faith by saying that anyone who is not under their god (basically everyone but them) are not worthy to draw breath. It’s hard for people to be treated equally if they’re dead. There’s a reason why “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” are in that order. If you don’t have “life”, than any kind of societally grated “liberty” is worthless. And on top of their “interesting”, yet a tad backwards ideals, their cruel tactics definitely do little to endear anyone to their cause or their god.
In an effort to demoralize and intimidate the Pars capital guard, the Lusitanians and their sadistic, so-a-one-dimensional-villain-caricature-that-he-even-has-a-mustache-he-can-twirl high priest, present the captured and mortally wounded Captain Shapur who we haven’t seen since he and his men charged the enemy on that doomed battlefield, and threaten to slowly and excruciatingly torture him for all to see. The scene is heartrending, and I personally am not one who can stomach even mild torture scenes, so simply hearing what they were going to do to the man, made me turn away. However, while some might disagree on Andragoras’ leadership skills, the man knew (for the most part), what kind of men he was appointing as the leaders of his army. Thus far, no man we have seen thus far (though Daryun and Vahriz come darn close) shows as much loyalty, bravery and spirit as Shapur in these few powerful moments of screentime. Despite being horribly beaten and tormented, and constantly bleeding out, he is unwilling to concede to his enemy and instead continues with his defiance, even though he knows what is coming. He warns them all that their cruelty will end up being the cause of their own destruction, and this is something that I find myself in total agreement with.
Shapur, knowing that he’s going to die either way, ignores the pain they afflict him with, and asks his countrymen on the wall that rather than allowing the enemy to use him as a tool for their destruction, to instead kill him and make him a martyr for the Parsian warriors to aspire to. He’d rather die by the hand of a friend, then be used against them by the enemy. His people hesitate at first, but then tearfully attempt to do as he asks, however, no one’s arrow can seem to reach at that distance…save one.
Shapur is felled by a single arrow to the head, and his last sight is of the blue sky as he dies with a smile on his lips. The Lusitanian armies knowing they have failed with this tactic, turn to doing a full on storming of the gates of the city as they attempt to conquer Ecbatana’s mighty walls. But spurred by the death of the great warrior, the Pars forces mount a stalwart defense. But who was it that was actually able to fire the merciful arrow? Well, no, his name is not Legolas, Hawkeye, Katniss, or even Robin Hood (though those are all good guesses) but instead, it was actually the second to last member of the main character group that we’ve been assembling all this time.
And thus we are introduced to Gieve, the resident jack-of-all-trades, philanderer, and all around scoundrel. Basically, the “Han Solo” of the group. By his own words, he’s above average with the bow, sword, and spear, and he is also a singer, dancer, minstrel, and musician. One can quickly tell that Gieve is the type that his loyalty is only for himself, and he can easily be bought by whoever has the most coin. He also seems to have a little bit of a chip on his shoulders when it comes to royalty (it’s not as large as the boulder-sized chip that Silvermask seems to have lodged on his shoulder, but it’s there). However, despite his questionable mindset and less than honorable actions, this rogue does have a moral code of a sort, as we can see from his actions to free Shapur, and later his defense of killing an unarmed woman. I don’t think it will be long before he meets Arslan and company, but he just needs a little bit of a push in the right direction, both physically and mentally. Every “Han Solo”, will eventually meet his “Princess Leia”, and I have a feeling that Gieve might meet his sooner rather than later.
However, before than can happen, both he and we lay witness to the fall of the great city. When their tactics of demoralization and brute force don’t work, the Lusitanians decide to employ their most destructive card, and use a different type of subversive warfare. Ignoring the Parsian citizens and soldiers, they call out to the slaves of the city, offering them freedom and riches if they join them and help them from the inside. It’s a rather simple but effective maneuver that has been employed many a time over the centuries. The seeds have been sown, and thus a festering infection begins to move throughout the city.
Some will say that Pars’ utilization of slavery, is what caused the downfall of the city. And Narsus has preached ad nauseam that the king should have freed the slaves long ago. However, while the issue of slavery and Pars treatment of their slaves is certainly a factor that led to the ultimate conclusion, I can’t very well call it the linchpin of the entire operation. I honestly can’t really blame Pars for having slaves. As Arslan says in the very first episode, many times having slaves, especially at this time period and in this region of the world, was considered a sign of your nation’s prosperity and wealth. Of course we know that slavery is fundamentally wrong now, but our common ideals today, are actually rather contemporary as far as human civilization is concerned. Narsus and even Lusitania’s ideas were not the norm and were ahead of their time, I can see Pars’ rulers, even ones more moderate than Andragoras, being pretty skeptical.
However, where I can blame the Parsians, is on how they handled the situation. By trying to beat any rebellious slaves into submission, they only fanned the flames even brighter. By imprisoning and killing them, they caused an inferno. Also, over the years they weren’t observant enough to notice the large-scale discontent among the slaves, and that self-absorption will end up costing them dearly.
Yes, the rebellion of the slaves, incited by the Lusitanians is one of the largest factors in Ecbatana’s destruction. Ultimately however, it is the betrayal of Kharlan and the vicious strategic mind of Silvermask that has made all this possible. The Lusitanians would have never been able to get anywhere near as far as they did if it wasn’t for these two. The two dastardly men use the underground aqueduct tunnels of the city (guided once again by the traitorous Kharlan) to make their way into the city, release the imprisoned slaves, stir up a mob, and open the gates of the city. And that’s it, game over, the great city of Ecbatana, has fallen to its enemies.
Gieve gets away during a failed attempt to escort a double for the queen out of the city (it’s unknown the location of the real Queen Tahamenay), but he does get in a confrontation with Silvermask in the underground tunnels. He actually is able to hold his own for a minute or two against him in combat, before being overpowered. But not one to give up, he tosses a torch at the masked man, and interestingly, this is enough to send the man into a frenzy. I think we can conclude the man has an adverse fear of fire, probably in connection with what scars lie behind his mask? And is it just because of the scars, or does his pyrophobia stem from some even deeper source?
Kharlan is there for the taking of the city, and tries to convince its captains to give up and join him. They of course do no such thing and brand him a cursed traitor with their every dying breath. He continuously claims that he is no traitor and that he’s doing this for Pars, but in listening to him repeat these same lines over and over again, I have to think that the one Kharlan is trying to convince here, isn’t just his once-fellow soldiers, but himself as well. Is he really doing this for Pars? Because, if so, I highly doubt whatever ends he has in mind, are justified by the means. Because of his actions, the people of Pars are being tortured and killed, their homes destroyed and their livelihoods and culture taken away. Pars is more than a name and bunch of land beneath your feet. It is the people that make up the nation, and you sir, are killing that nation. How exactly is that saving Pars?
Arslan and company spend most of this time in hiding while Kharlan’s men attempt to sniff them out. They figure out that they are too late to save Ecbatana, but they do have the beginnings of a plan for the next step in mind. Strangely, Arslan hasn’t been missed by either his mother or father all this time, and I’m really beginning to wonder what’s going on here? What secrets do Pars’ royal halls keep? What is Silvermask’s ultimate plan, and what are Kharlan’s reasons for his betrayal? Who is the mysterious woman, the last of our main band, and where is she riding to? Well, there seem to be a lot of questions, but not enough answers to go around. The story has been unfolding amazingly thus far, with only a couple of pacing and animation issues here and there. Hopefully, they can maintain the story at this level as we start the other half of the season.
About IreneSharda
A Chicagoan biochemist, teacher, and an aspiring virologist, with a love for science only rivaled by my love for movies, animation, and anime. Both a lover of action/adventure and romance, I'm a girl who walks the entire spectrum. Mecha, Sci-Fi, Psychological Thriller, Romantic Period Piece, if it's has a good story, I'm there.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
I find it interesting that so many fantasy series running today are interested in the idea of slavery as a background. This and Game of Thrones comes to mind. I kinda wish they went a bit more into the “anti” mindset, other than it’s fundamental wrongness. There are many reasons to oppose such a thing, the basics of freedom need not even enter into it; just google “Bleeding Kansas”.
And I like a series that doesn’t give us a Big Good Guy Kingdom vs. a Big Bad Guy Kingdom, as both sides of the conflict have equal ick factor that you hope they just wipe each other out, more or less.
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
As of right now, with Pars and Lusitania, it’s more of a very dark gray vs very light gray situation for me. Yes we see the story from their point of view, but I think even without it, I would still be more on the side of Pars.
It’s really hard not to see Lusitania as anything but the bad guys, and I actually KNOW what Kharlan and Silvermask’s reasons are.
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Could you give any hints to what Kharlan’s reasons are, other than “because reasons”?
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
Well, my comment got lost some place but whatever. 😛
Anyway, hmm, well I can tell you that Kharlan and Silvermask’s reasons are linked. And Kharlan is right in that his loyalty isn’t with Lusitania. Notice in episode 6, when Silvermask is crippled by his pyrophobia, that Kharlan is quick to defend him? Well, that’s because he is loyal to the man for the same reasons that Silvermask is doing what he’s doing.
And why is Silvermask doing what he’s doing? Well, I’ll let you see that for yourself. I’ll just say that there are more Game of Thrones-esque plot threads involved here than you would think. And before he’s done, Silvermask will douse Pars in both fire and blood.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Grrr!!! How does it feel to know the details that are potential spoilers for everyone else? Feels good, doesn’t it? No fair, I tell you! 😛
POWUH: Meta Resident with 1692 comments
When slavery first emerged, probably during late Neolithic times, it wasn’t wrong; it was actually humane. It gave the victors in a conflict a reason NOT to kill the losers. And that held true for most of history. But then inevitably came the times when a major object of wars and raids was to gain slaves, so the humane reason for its origin was lost.
Yes, slavery is wrong, but we must remember that is a fairly recent idea. During most of history even slaves didn’t think the institution of slavery was wrong, though most would have wished they weren’t its victims.
But you are right that there are reasons other than the morality of slavery (which is firmly that slavery is wrong) to oppose it. Slave rebellions are one. Another big one is that slavery isn’t as economically feasible as it might seem. Few slaves will work any harder than they must. Even a serf will work harder if he sees a chance to better himself even a little or to pass on a better life for his children.
POWUH: Meta Team and Meta-Analyst with 3844 comments
The Discworld model of slavery: Slaves are property. Therefore property must be treated well. Slaves get a roof over their heads and 3 meals, one of which has a named meat in it. Meanwhile the owner has to be content to with scraps. That’s as far as I remember without directly pulling out the Discworld companion.
In essence slaves are property. And if you cannot take care of your own property well… well you don’t deserve it.
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Ep 6’s endcard is by mangaka Satou Fumiya (aka Satou Ayako), who draws mystery manga series “Young Kindaichi’s Casefiles(Kindaichi Shounen no Jikenbou)”.
http://i.imgur.com/HTF0kUU.png
The text says,”For starters I tried drawing Arslan and a rosy-faced lovebird to hype things up.”
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I wonder if there’s any symbolism behind introducing the lovebird. Anime does tend to be morally deep with even the simplest of things.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
And so the future becomes history. Empires crumble, there are no exceptions…
Psychological warfare can be tens, maybe even hundreds of times more effective than physical warfare and in those days, whichever army has the biggest number of combatants are most likely to win the battle. “If you can’t beat them,
join themcall upon sympathizers from the inside. A shrewd, ingenious tactic that rivals what we’ve seen Narsus employ which gave him such high status. In battle, it’s not always the strongest who wins but the smartest and the Lusitanians are showcasing frightening intelligence.Gieve shows he’s a cool and charismatic character but also gives off Jack Sparrow type vibes: Self-centered and only will agree to things provided there is something to benefit from including being a shameless womanizer. That’s someone best not to turn your back to.
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
Honestly, I don’t know if I would contribute this to the Lusitanians. They pretty much admit all their plans are coming from Silvermask with the help of Kharlan’s inside knowledge, without it, they all admit that the Parsians would have easily won.
And from this latest episode, I don’t think there is much to the Lusitanians other than cruel conquerors who use their faith as an excuse to murder and bully others.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Well, I’ll say they’re good at following orders.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
@IreneSharda: In case you’re interested:
[IEgg] Arslan Senki ED Single – Lapis Lazuli (Aoi Eir) (320K+BK)
[IEgg] Owari no Seraph OP&ED Single – X.U.&scaPEGoat (SawanoHiroyuki[nZk]) (320K+BK)
The Arslan Senki OP isn’t available yet.
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
Thanks BB!
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
No problem! I had a feeling you’d like the music.
POWUH: Meta Team and The Mad Scientist with 5525 comments
I love Gieve. He’s the kind of guy I’d punch square in the face if I met him in real life, but watching him be a sly bastard onscreen is endlessly entertaining.
I’ve seen some complaints that the series has been showing too little of Arslan lately, but I like the attention we’re getting on the bigger picture here. I think episode 6 made me really get excited about this show and the potential it has. Things are getting intense!
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
It gets even better in episode 7. I like that they are portraying this as a larger epic as well. I don’t mind that Arslan doesn’t get all the screen time. It really feels like a lighter, anime version of Game of Thrones, with all the different characters.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I downloaded the episode but have yet to see it but I did notice the video thumbnail. Did you get trolled by the “Universal” intro? It was the same with this week’s episode of Seraph of the End.
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
Actually yes, when I watched Seraph, I thought someone had mixed up the files or something. 😛
It turns out all the Geneon logos we had been seeing in the beginning are being replaced with the Universal opening. Universal has owned Geneon for a few years now, but for some reason waited till now to change over in terms of opening logos, probably for distribution purposes.
It does make every episode it’s with feel a little more epic than it is. I hear that and I’m expecting Jurassic World to start or something. Though, I do think it is going to suit Shingeki no Bahamut when it comes out. 😀
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
*sigh* There’s just no pleasing certain people no matter what is tried. A balance is being put in place. If Arslan gets too much screen time, then it will lead to wondering what’s happening to the kingdom after the loss at the battlefield. Everyone is in need of an equal share. So one way or another, these ignorant, cynical elitists are going to complain on the pettiest of things.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
@IreneSharda: Psycho-Pass Producer Expresses Interest in Making More