The real hero is the thick layer of royal fat.
What They Say:
Back in Ecbatana, Guiscard is sorely regretting leaving Andragoras alive long enough to escape and is determined that he will not make the same mistake again.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
It’s not often that an entire episode passes without more than a few seconds of anyone from Arslan’s party, but there’s a lot going on in Ecbatana, so it’s necessary that we shift gears to get a taste of that side. We had seen hints of events involving not only Innocentis, Guiscard, and Etoile, but the blind princess with whom Hilmes has a tender history, Irina. This all comes together in a story that, while taking time away from the main cast, is very relevant in the overall story as it builds up, includes appearances from most of the major characters outside of Arslan’s party, and is able to resolve itself pretty thoroughly in this one episode, still leading up to the integration with the rest of the plot that will hopefully bear worthwhile fruit before this season has run out of time.
Etoile has a special place in the series, seen only on occasion, never a member of Arslan’s party, and still swearing that they’re heathens she can’t get too close to, but also the character who had something of a sharing role alongside Arslan in the first episode, back when they were younger children. And of course, in their more recent interactions, her reveal as a female put her on the fast track to become Arslan’s love interest, a role which is somewhat surprisingly not shared among other characters. Etoile’s luck (or lack thereof) for arbitrarily getting involved in major events continues when her king, Innocentis, happens to see her walking by and calls upon her to let Guiscard know that his men are keeping him prisoner for some reason. With promises of knighthood or, preferably for Etoile, an opportunity to help those who truly need it, her story could already be even more eventful by sheer coincidence, but the timing of her request to Guiscard intersecting Guiscard meeting Irina and learning of her grudge, he concocts an exceptionally devious plan to deal with all of his problems without arousing any suspicious toward him, making Etoile’s story so eventful that it would have to end just like that, all of this without Etoile actually doing anything, much less having any idea of what’s going on or how corrupt her leaders are.
Finally, several other characters appear to ensure that even after all that has happened, Etoile’s story is only just beginning, as is Irina’s. Removing Arslan from the picture and using Guiscard, who has gone down a very dark path since he was introduced, as the main villain, Hilmes is able to be depicted as the greatest hero of the story. Although his goal was Irina, his actions are starting to create more direct connections with Arslan as someone who is a friend of friends, having already been an enemy of some enemies. Arslan now has two comrades heading his way, and both must see Hilmes as someone in the right. Any Hilmes material is welcomed, because the most interesting part of the series is generally the relationship between these two cousins, especially as it becomes more complex and less black and white. That just makes it more unfortunate to see the season moving toward its end so quickly with no real chance of that reaching its climax, or at least the point at which all of this buildup can truly come to fruition.
In Summary:
Arslan and crew take a short break from their series to let us see what’s going on in Ecbatana. Etoile is the character we identity with most here, but it’s more about how villainous Guiscard can become with everyone else as his pawns. The biggest takeaway, aside from the characters that will be joining Arslan soon, is the role of Hilmes as an increasingly likable and sympathetic figure.
Grade: B
Streamed By: FUNimation
Review Equipment:
Roku 3, Sceptre X425BV-FHD 42″ Class LCD HDTV.
