The child becomes the parent.
What They Say:
“Forgive and forget”
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Although the shopping episode clearly showed that Chise already has a good friend in Alice, she has really taken to Stella as her first real friend outside of her crazy magical life. It seems like Alice could be Chise’s older sister while Stella would be her younger sister, but Chise sees Stella as a more mature person than she is, even thinking that they’re roughly the same age, even though Stella is very clearly much younger. However, when her age is revealed, it’s even younger than she appears, especially since she has shown herself to be quite mature since her introduction to the series. While Stella is impressive for a ten-year-old, Chise is merely putting herself down when she claims Stella is more mature, because Chise is honestly quite the adult despite only beginning to reach the point of her life that could start to be considered “adult.” She still has many issues to work out regarding her self-image, but seeing the two of them together is heartwarming in a way that, frankly, the rest of the people in Chise’s life can’t really give her. It’s nice to have this extended family of magical beings, but Chise has never really had a normal friend, and Stella appears to be just that, even if getting to know Chise means stepping into and accepting a world that is most definitely not normal. The fact that Stella accepts that despite her initial fear of Elias as a monster speaks to her incredible levelheadedness for being so young.
Elias, however, isn’t such a fan of Stella, and it’s precisely because Chise is. Elias proves more than ever that he is only just now awakening to common human emotions felt when one feels a connection with others. This time, he is overwhelmed by jealousy for the attention and affection he sees Chise now giving to Stella. This is a feeling that many relate to very strongly, but Elias goes a little overboard with his reaction, taking the metaphor of suffocating someone with love to near-deadly extremes. Even if we’ve gotten used to the idea that this suave, ancient beast of magical brilliance is really just an irrational baby that throws temper tantrums when something upsets him, this is perhaps his worst move yet. Chise is a very special girl to want to go home with a creature that spent the day nearly crushing her windpipe, but there are too many bizarre things about their relationship to list. The most striking conclusion from Chise’s actions is noted by Ruth, who realizes that their dynamic completes switches from father and daughter to son and mother when situations like this arise. While there are still definite issues that Chise should probably address a little more deeply, this does show an immense strength that she can achieve.
After Elias turns into a beast, he generally ends up in bed for days, leaving Chise to wonder what to do. This allows her the opportunity to visit another great woman in her life, Angelica, as well her husband and daughter. Conversations with Angelica seem to only come up when Elias is in a state like this and Chise has no idea what to do, but they always prove to be worth it. Interestingly, this time her husband David may have even more to contribute and it’s easy to see why he’s the man who deserves someone as great as Angelica. The episode comprises a solid arc of development between Chise and Elias, but does return to its old ways for a new cliffhanger.
In Summary:
Chise’s relationships with many of the other characters are explored in various ways this time. Some are heartwarming and some are concerning, but through it all she shows how much she’s grown as a person, and ultimately how lucky Elias that she has so much patience for his antics.
Grade: A-
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment:
Roku 3, Sceptre X425BV-FHD 42″ Class LCD HDTV.
