[FreshToku]

While I still don't like that Aruto is back in his seat in HIDEN Intelligence, nor do I like that the direction with the Ark becoming this all-encompassing evil instead of just representing Metsubojinrai... I do like Horobi a lot! Maybe more than he deserves!

He's honestly mostly been static for the last 40 episodes, but I've never really needed a lot from him. I always figured and hoped from the beginning that they would firmly establish that his own genuine will is for humagears to completely replace humans, thus driving in his conflict with Aruto and AIMs, and then coming to blows to Jin over it. It happened a lot later than I would have expected, but I'm glad it happened at all. Speaking of Jin, wow, did he get clobbered left and right all day. I'm not surprised he lost to Horobi but I didn't think it'd be that one-sided!

Assuming they don't somehow still change Horobi's heart, I'm speculating that he will meet his end at the hands of Vulcan, who's kinda been desperate for something to do during this final stretch (I mean so is Valkyrie but that's nothing new...). I would say that would even be a perfect showdown with history and conflicting ideologies behind it if the show hadn't went and said Fuwa's backstory was made up (hey i'm still not over that).

Anyhow, even if Horobi does still somehow turn good before the end of the show, I wouldn't even be upset because at least they established that all his actions up until this point are his own. I always had a worry at the back of my head that they would just say 'the ark is the only reason he is like this' which would have been a lot less compelling.