Episode reviews for the second season Options

[Dr. Casey]

I'm going to order MKR Season 2 for my birthday coming up, so I'll give my thoughts on the episodes after watching them like I did with the first season.

[Dr. Casey]

Episode 49: The Road to Victory - The Tomorrow that the Believing Heart Opens!

This is the only time I've done three episodes in one night. You know, just in case that little tidbit went past my readers. That episode title is quite a mouthful, isn't it? Heh... no matter, though. It's a good title and the episode itself is amazing.

This is one of the few times I've watched the opening song. It's a good opening and all, I just haven't felt like watching it all 29 times. I also noticed that there was no pre-episode summary this time around. I guess they figured that if people are watching the last episode and need it explained to them that the Magic Knights lived in Tokyo and were the summoned to Cephiro, then... yeah.

Hikaru's approach with Nova wasn't what I expected at all. She looked awfully intimidating as she approached Nova (and Nova damn well looked intimidated), but then she pulled a Sailor Moon Episode 200 on us. After the conversation the two have, I can't help but finally like Nova. Excellent closure to Nova's character as well as Hikaru's inner conflict. Hikaru mentioned how well the story is laid out, and this is but one example of it. It was pulled off as well as everything else in this episode. Sayonara, Nova.

Presea continues to try and get Debonair's whereabouts out of Alcyione. Umi and Fuu enter the room and make their pleas as well. They no longer bear any malice towards Alcyione... the first enemy they made in Cephiro was the last one they made amends with. Finally she decides to tell them what she knows, and as anyone who's seen this episode knows, do more than just that. She really does redeem herself. Tragedies in stories rarely bother me, but this one really did. What we've seen of her entire life wasn't that great, and when she finally tries to do right... yeah. I hate what happened. And, as rather a rarity for villains, I hate Debonair as well.

Cut to the residents of Cephiro Castle as well as our good friends Lafarga, Caldina, Ascot, Ferio, and Mokona (oh wait, I forgot Primera... nah). The Magic Knights might come rescue Cephiro in times of extreme crisis, but for the most part these guys are Cephiro's real guardians. The distant shot of everyone in front of the crystallized backdrop is perhaps the single most picturesque frame in the series. If I had some way of uploading it, I would.

With the information gained from Alcyione, the three Magic Knights find Debonair and the Mashin combine into their Super Ultimate Form Used For Final Battles But Is Never Actually Explained In The Storyline At All. Debonair is so powerful that even their combined attack, which would normally be a OHKO Deus Ex Machina, isn't enough to stop her. Finally Hikaru receives the weapon which allows her to defeat Debonair. I won't spoil it since I really don't have any reason to, but I will spoil everything from here on out because I kinda have to mention it, so if you haven't seen all of season two then proceed with caution.

Jumping back a bit, one thing I liked about the fight (the fight itself was alright, it had some good animation and art) was the representatives of Autozam, Fahren, and Chizeta showing up. Aska's "You have to win, Magic Knights!" was really cute, and I've been a fan of endings where everyone comes together since I first saw it used in Final Fantasy 4. Anyway, back to normal chronological order.

For a brief moment, Hikaru is the Pillar of Cephiro. Her first and only act is to eradicate the system itself and let the citizens guide the country. Finally, the moment I've been waiting for. Beams of light break through the clouds and the sky finally reverts from its perpetual darkness. Cephiro is back to normal.

The citizens of Cephiro gather as the three Magic Knights fly toward them in a very holy and angelic manner. The Mashin reveal who it is that summoned them to Cephiro this time, and it gives me hope that this won't be the last visit they pay to the country. Clef speaks telepathically with Umi; Umi almost tells him that she loves him (or something along those lines), but decides not to at the last moment. Good move. Could you imagine the bitterness Ascot would feel if that was his last memory of her? I know he talked all mature, but he's only human. Anyway, Fuu and Ferio say goodbye to each other. They seem to be content with the fact that they were able to see each other once again rather than dwell on the fact they might not have a third chance. Finally, Hikaru has her turn with Lantis. Her last memory of Cephiro is the feel of Lantis's hand.

Whenever the girls open their eyes again, they are back in Tokyo Tower. I got the feeling that their immediate, first reactions were a little bittersweet, although that's an improvement over clutching each other in tears like they were when they returned from their first journey. Of course, the tone quickly becomes much more positive as they discuss how they're not filled with regret this time.

The last scene in the series sees Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu at the Tokyo Tower once again three years later. I like their new outfits. They're spiffy. The three are in high spirits; Umi make a joke (although it's more like an ironic observation in the original version) and they all laugh heartily. The three see an image of Cephiro (not sure how they saw it), thankfully still in its new prime. The camera zooms out to show the Tokyo Tower, and the word "Farewell" makes its way onto the screen.

Rating for Episode 49: Masterpiece. Best episode in the series.

Badass Scene of the Episode Award: Hikaru's initial intimidation tactics towards Nova were pretty badass. Anyway... hurray, I actually did these for all the episodes.




And so ends the series I began on August 13th, 2004. Early on in this topic I said that I got my MKR Season 1 Set early my Sophomore Year... heh, how silly of me. I joined this forum a week after the last day of my Sophomore Year, and it was a very pronounced time in my life so I really shouldn't have gotten those two mixed up. Ah, well. I suppose I'm allowed the occassional mistake. The first week of my Junior Year sucked majorly. Whenever I got home from school that Friday I had half a mind to punch the mailbox, but I decided to refrain and simply open it like I usually do. There it was. The series on which the RPG I had liked for about three years was based. It was a couple of weeks late, but it couldn't have arrived at a better time. I watched the first episode, and by the end (way before it, actually) I was in a perfectly good mood. I then posted my first review. I think my reviews back then were relatively short... they were around the same length as the review for episode 25.

I used to think two seasons of MKR was too short. I like my series to be long, which is why I'm attracted to shows like Sailor Moon and One Piece. I don't really think that now, though. This is a really tightly-made story and, short as it is, I think it managed to tell a full story. The three Magic Knights came a long way from the beginning of the first season to the end, and in the second they corrected the mistakes they had made before and the weaknesses they still had. Don't get me wrong, I would have still loved to see a third, fourth, fifth, tenth season made, but I'm much more satisfied with what we have than I had expected to be. Heh, I wonder how quickly I'd have finished the second season if I was just watching it and not writing up these reviews... XD I'd have probably finished in July.

Thanks to Hikaru-san, Batou-san, and anyone else who read this topic. I believe I'm done here.