| Title: | Busou Renkin |
| Episode: | 23: Boy Meets Battle Girl |
| Synopsis | |
| "The primary assault against Victor has begun. The alchemic warriors used their various forms of Arms Alchemy to go after him, but Victor evolved, progressing to the third stage of "Victorization", and showed the true extent of his power. Meanwhile, Kazuki and the others reached Newton Apple Girl's Academy and discovered the white Kakugane, which has the power to restore the "Victorized" Kazuki's human form. There are two Victors, but only one white Kakugane. It is still a few days away from completion, and Kazuki is urged by Alexandria to think carefully in the time remaining, then decide whether he will employ the white Kakugane to save himself or Victor. "Things are becoming difficult, aren't they?" Victoria comments. "But consider yourself lucky, since you still have a choice". At the end of summer break Kazuki's friends are overjoyed to find him and Tokiko waiting for them at school. They presume this means the two have completed their mysterious mission safely and everything will be back to normal now. Everyone agrees to go to an amusement park to celebrate. Captain Bravo, recuperating in the alchemic hospital, has a feeling Kazuki's strong values won't allow him to ignore Victor. Shuusui is appalled to learn that Hiwatari hopes to use Kazuki to defeat Victor, then betray and kill him. Kazuki runs into Gouta, who says that if he can promise not to create any "painful memories" for Tokiko, he'll support him unconditionally; if he can't, then consider him a "love rival". Kazuki also encounters Papillon, who reminds him that he hasn't forgotten about the duel Kazuki promised to fight with him someday. On their way to the amusement park, Kazuki mentions an event from his past to Tokiko; she says she has no past... | |
| Comments | |
| I really like this episode! There is hardly any fighting, instead the genuinely funny comedy that I loved in the early episodes, plus intriguing character development. Early on, Kazuki seemed a pretty standard main character--tough, honest, unselfish, but without much to set him apart from a plethora of similar characters from numerous shows. You might say he was upstaged by more interesting characters like Papillon. Now, his desire to "protect everyone" has come back to bite him: Is he willing to sacrifice himself to save Victor? As he puts it, "If I protect everyone... who's going to protect me?". Romantic feelings between Kazuki and Tokiko move forward considerably, which only complicates things for him: If he's going to sacrifice himself, should he fall in love with her? I've got a feeling that in a low-angst sort of show like this, Kazuki will survive one way or another, but I'm eager to see just how things work out. I just hope the series manages to maintain something like the quality of this episode to the end. | |
