[DreamSword]

Episode 22: Rudra

Rudra has been unleashed, and the final battle is at hand.

I think what was most interesting about this episode was how it didn't solely focus on the battle itself, but also on how people reacted to said fight.

To elaborate, while there are good number of scenes showcasing Raiko and friends battling the behemoth of a Horror, there's also alot of time dedicated to Yorinobu and how he tries to guide the people of the capitol through this crisis.

Michinaga of course takes the opportunity to make himself look good to the people, all the while having no qualms in leaving the masses to die so long as he can protect himself and his image; Even going as far as to try and get Yorinobu assassinated. This is the final straw for Yorinobu.

On the battle side of things, Xehanort has fully merged himself with Rudra, and I will say that despite this episode having a more obviously limited budget, they did do a solid job at selling the scale and power that Rudra has. I chose the screenshot I did for a reason, afterall. Other than that though, the fight itself is mostly budget beam spam.

Of course, we do still have two episodes left, so it's not like the show's' final battle is ending on a weak note with this episode. It's simply a stepping stone towards something more grand, of which I am perfectly fine with. Other highlights include Kaguya regaining her memories, and Kintoki feeling happy that his friends are reunited again. Oh, and for the villain side of this, there was Xehanort having no problem cutting off his own arm. That was metal.

Overall a solid and interesting episode in a way that I didn't much expect. Hopefully the final two episodes can continue to keep the balance that this one did.