Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry – 03
Nice sequence tipping in here…
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We’re on to a more usual set up for this week’s episode, with a shopping trip as a bit of a way for the students to blow off some steam before the matches for the tournament start. |
Date or Not
At least Alice isn’t holding Ikki’s hand, too.
The impetus for the trip is Stella’s attempt to ask Ikki out on a date, but her stammering gives the opportunistic Shizuku a chance to swoop in and get the question out first, albeit by cell phone. And with typical MC-ness, Ikki goes ahead and agrees even while Stella is fuming over her asking. It turns out to not be your typical date, though, as Shizuku brings Alice along, although it’s not exactly sure if Alice is to make the numbers even or to make another person to confound Shizuku and Stella. I’m not sure that Alice’s campy response to Ikki looking at him in a questioning manner, after stating that he is “biologically a male, but rest assured I have the heart of a maiden” is exactly a forward looking example of how trans people would like to be portrayed, but it’s certainly less presumptuous than the usual drag queen act depicted in anime. Alice even looks pretty sharp in his Carmen Sandiego purple coat.
Shizuka blows a fuse while Stella looks for a razor…
The shopping goes pretty normally, with Shizuku winding Stella up pretty well by holding Ikki’s hand, and even daring Stella to state her “special feelings” for Ikki. Stella’s attempts to try to be even with Shizuku for Ikki’s attentions are typical harem hijinks, but they limit it in the show to her lathering up with whipped cream in response to Ikki wiping some off Shizuku’s face, an action which even blew Shizuku’s fuse (and leading Alice to jibe her that she’s all offense and no defense). But interestingly, Stella’s earnest floundering is pulling Alice and even Shizuku to her side. It’s almost that when Stella proves herself to not be a spoiled princess, the objections to her being with Ikki fall aside. And there’s a bit of appreciation for Alice coming from Ikki as well, who recognizes that Shizuku keeps to herself and that she’s opened up to him.
Strange Things are Afoot
Stella gets defeated
Despite my talking about the date for half the episode, it actually comprised less than half of the time, with the remainder given over to a criminal plot to take over the shopping mall for ransom. But as the director says, it’s not really about the money. It’s about the control and about the forcing recognition. So as the effectives on the scene, and given the director’s permission, Ikki and the others are free to use their spirit weaponry in response. But it isn’t just a mop-up job, as these guys actually go so far as to shoot a little kid. Stella keeps the kid from being shot, but the shots were fired. But it doesn’t go all well, as there’s a Blazer (or two) on the bad guys’ side also. Using a power similar to Touma Kamijou’s, Bisho can absorb the power of an attack with his left hand, and then use it to attack with his right hand. Using this, and the threat of killing hostages, he forces Stella to submit, even forcing her to apologize naked.
“Hold on there, Peter Pan…”
But luckily, the time that it takes Stella to comply allows Shizuku to complete her preparations and shield the hostages, although Ikki needs to be restrained by Alice’s interesting control of shadows halfway through. And when Ikki finally attacks Bisho, he does what all those guys who fight Touma don’t do: cut his arm off. And while the focus is on Ikki and Bisho, Stella manages to take out all the other guys, not worrying about her state of undress. But it’s not over until the bad guy’s plant in the hostages shows herself, leaving everyone motionless until Kirihara finishes off the situation. “Who’s Kirihara” you ask? He’s Ikki’s nemesis at school from the previous year, and the school’s tournament representative from the previous year as well. And he’s a smug jerk voiced by Yoshitsugu Matsuoka, to boot.
The guy even sits on a bench like a jerk
I don’t think that Kirihara will end up being too much of a big villain in this show, given that his showdown with Ikki is in the first round, and coming up in the next few days. He’s all busy being smug about Ikki running away from a duel last year (Yuri-chan did mention that it was ok if a student didn’t want to fight, this year) but I think that we’ll find there’s a different Ikki this year than last year, even if Stella’s sticking up for him makes Kirihara laugh.
“I don’t need clothes to finish your guys off.”
This was a pretty standard episode all around, but it didn’t make any mistakes. It’s really easy for these date episodes to get lulzy, like the Absolute Duo fight in a mall, which was long on hoary tropes, attack screaming, and split screens, but short on getting things done. And there was some nice development in the relationships between not just Stella and Ikki (who embraced Stella in worry after the fight), but also in the relationships between Stella, Shizuku, Ikki, and Alice. There’s still some of that mysteriousness in Alice’s person, but my guess would be that he’s going to be that guy who will be friends, but not hold back when they have to fight him. But overall, an episode that didn’t screw stuff up, and kept going with some good characters.
About Highway
Proving that you don't have to be young to love anime, I enjoy all genres and styles of shows. If it's not hurting anyone else, you should never be ashamed of what you like!
POWUH: 400-499 with 462 comments
In fairness to Index-verse villains, Touma’s arm actually has been taken off before. It generally turns out badly for whoever was responsible, and the arm ends up back on again.
It’s a bit less aboveboard than that, although since he’s an asshole bully of course he tries to make it sound as bad as possible. Show ▼
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I think it’s likely that they’ll deal with the story behind Ikki and Kirihara next episode. Ikki has been forthcoming with the information with Stella, so it would be a change in his personality to hide this. Especially because it doesn’t seem like it’s something he’s ashamed about, and is of a piece with the previous information he’s told Stella.
POWUH: 400-499 with 445 comments
yea cutting touma’s arm off is something you dont want to do if you value your life
POWUH: Metanorn Lover with 154 comments
Ah yes. I loved watching the aftermath of when that alchemist cut off Touma’s arm.
POWUH: 400-499 with 462 comments
I really think spammy has it in for me. Can someone smack it a bit until it gives that post back?
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
I gotcha!
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
A not so different problem on my end. Can someone regulate my comment count? It’s not matching with the Top 20 list.
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Cream-bearded Stella Claus? But it’s still too early for Christmas!
Also, the LN had more details on Ep 3’s villians.
Show ▼
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
So basically… they were typical creeps. Sounds like one of those good directorial decisions to not bother with a big backstory for a group of thugs who are likely gonna be one-and-done. Plus, if they become a bigger story later, they can always do the “Oh, these guys are affiliated with those guys we fought in the mall.”
Stella’s got that “try hard” attitude that is endearing. And it helps that she doesn’t push the tsuntsun up too much. It’s bad for Shizuku that Alice is half on Stella’s side.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
A two month distance is close enough! 😛
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
“Who’s Kirihara” you ask?
Kirihara also made a brief appearance in Ep 1, watching the Ikki vs Stella fight.
Note his casual clothes look a lot like this video game character’s outfit:
http://static.zerochan.net/Iori.Yagami.full.1622781.jpg
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
Well, Ikki was between a rock and a hard place with Shizuku and Stella. Of course he had to do something with his sister, having not seen her in four years. But Stella is wary of previous advances, so wary it clouds her common sense. But this is anime, wincest could happen, no matter how much Ikki is initially turned off by the idea.
Alice is probably the best depiction of a trans in anime yes, as he isn’t some attention hound dragster. But since trans are really just normal folk, depicting them with the brevity a show still requires needs short-hand.
Well, Touma could only negate powers, specifically AIM distributed abilities, and magic (roughly the same things, really), so yeah, terrorist arsehole is his own unique creature, what with his power being handheld like that. But he’s an interesting opposition. It makes me wonder how weak he is to a gang-up attack.
…and hey, it’s been since last episode that Stella gave some fan service…queue the lingerie!
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I think that Shizuku is taking advantage of the fact that Ikki is still thinking of her as 10-year-old Shizuku, rather than 15 years old. Her chibi stature doesn’t hurt her in this regard. I think that as soon as that illusion of her still being his “little sister” wears off, he’ll stop with the handholding. But it also means that he’s not nearly the siscon that Stella accuses him of being.
Yeah, they could have taken Alice over the top. I get the feeling that his winding up of Ikki was supposed to be taken more as an aspect of his individual personality than as some characteristic of trans people, but it can be hard to separate when they don’t make it clear.