[DreamSword]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

The episode also goes from peak Rinko to peak Shunpei right after that, as the establishing shot of the police station makes explicit that Hiroki's outfit being so similar to Shunpei's is anything but an accident.

>implying that Shunpei isn't always peak.



I love the implications that this moment has for Ryu.

Anyway, one thing I've always loved about Shunpei in this show is how great he is at dispelling tension. And goes for both in and out of universe. He really shows his stuff here with the kid, and his ability to take care of the Gates and his constant attempts at keeping everyone in high spirits really do help to make him endearing to me.

But, admittedly, the star of the show when it came to this two-parter was Phoenix. I always felt he made a great foil to Haruto, and these episodes showcase some reasons as to why. He has no style, he has no grace, and I bet bro can't even make a funny face. Whereas Haruto fights for the hope and happiness of others, Phoenix fights solely for his own, and at the cost of others too. And that's even getting into the very forceful yet cool ways he utilizes his own fire magic as opposed to how Wizard does.

While I'm sad to say I wasn't nearly as emotionally invested in these episodes as you were, seeing Phoenix and Haruto go at it was more than enough for me, so I'm overall satisfied.