The World's Strongest Rearguard

Madoka and Melissa sharing scones is the most wholesome thing this show has done and nobody can convince me otherwise. Melissa finally having a friend after her backstory about being feared for her mixed blood. That got me good. Cion also ate during the fight.

That Sophie reveal was genuinely creepy. The vine thing living in her chest while she smiled like nothing was wrong. This show keeps pretending it's all cozy and then drops body horror like that. The tea party in the middle of all this was weirdly timed though.

Theresa feeding Arihito that apple slice was so soft. Girl went from guilt spiraling over hitting her friends to gently spoon-feeding him with a smile. Also the Vine Puppetmaster reveal gave me chills. Real horror energy there

Can we talk about how much time they spent on Madoka and Melissa having scones while Georg's whole party is dying in the forest. I like the characters but this pacing is killing me. The actual fight at the end was good though. That Demi-Harpy summon better deliver next week

Nobody is talking about how gross the Vine Puppetmaster design was. Those dark vines bursting out of Sophie's chest and back. Genuinely unsettling. And the dilemma of not being able to fight back properly because you'll kill innocent people was well done for this show. Kyouka catching the broken weapon was the smartest moment all episode

The massage scene was the healing content I needed. Theresia melting into Arihito's lap while Kyoka frantically fans her face... pure gold. This show knows when to cut the tension with something wholesome

I wasn't ready for Steiner to look exactly like Alphonse Elric. Every time he talked I kept expecting him to say Ed. The armor design is a straight-up homage at this point and I'm honestly here for it

That Elitia confession scene got me good. The way she just crumbled once Suzuna touched her head... you could feel years of guilt pouring out. Misaki setting up the King's Game on purpose to coax it out of her was sneaky but so caring

Elitia's confession hit harder than I thought it would. The part where she drops to her knees crying while Suzuna holds her head got me. That backstory with the Flashing Flame dragging her friend away and the brigade just fleeing is properly dark for this show

That cow girl Meliss came out of nowhere and I was not prepared. Also the Demi-Harpies trembling before Arihito then warming up to him after he kneels and talks about their singing voices being for protecting people. That was actually sweet for a monster taming scene

Theresia melting during that massage was the most personality she has shown all series. Also the Alphonse Elric armor had me rolling. Cere is basically a budget Fullmetal Alchemist reference and I kind of respect it

I need the show to explain why Arihito is still fighting in a full office suit. His party gets actual armor and he's out here in slacks and a choker like a Hot Topic employee who wandered into a dungeon

The whole episode dragged until the Puppetmaster showed up and then it got dark real fast. Watching Polestar get used like puppets knowing the party can't hit back at full power. Good stakes honestly but the forest scenes before that were stiff as hell animation wise.

Arihito's inner monologue during fights is getting genuinely exhausting. Man needs to just act instead of narrating every single thought. But the party clearing Theresa's confusion with that water spell was clean teamwork. And I'll never apologize for loving how Cion stays a dog. Best girl stays best girl

I actually loved the cafe scene. Melissa's whole backstory about being mixed blood and never having friends hit me harder than expected. That moment she smiled and asked Madoka to invite her again was really sweet. Rykarton watching them from the shop with that old photo got me

those golden robotic arms appearing in a fantasy setting was so strange like why did we suddenly go full mecha out of nowhere

When those giant glowing armor arms popped out of nowhere to catch that boss maw right over Reval I completely lost my mind That was such an insane look for a rearguard skill

They really blew through that entire stampede event in like ten minutes didn't they It felt way too fast for something that was supposed to be a huge citywide disaster

was that golden mech arm thing supposed to be high fantasy because it looked like a robot straight out of a sentai show and i could not stop laughing

It’s a good show and funny but I would like him out of his office clothes though