The Asakusa arc comes to a close this week, folks! We get a little bit of shaky animation at the start of this episode, but this is quickly dealt with in order to handle some momentous fight scenes and solid character moments. Plus, we learn more about those mysterious dang Infernals! Let’s dig into the episode!
1. Pep Talk
Even the most mightiest Fire Soldiers struggle with self-confidence, guys. At the start of this episode, we see Beni fly up to his buddy Konro to try and make sense of all the chaos taking place in the town below. Our boy Beni is feeling overwhelmed and unsure in his leadership position, and so has reverted to the same place he was in two years ago to look to Konro to save everyone. Konro talks him back up into his natural leadership role, presumably not just because he wants to see Beni excel but because damn it, he’s literally suffering from Tephrosis! Don’t make him do this shit again!
Beni is worried about how to deal with the shape-shifting infiltrators that have gotten into the city, and how he will be able to deal with each one of them, but Konro essentially eggs him on, lighting a fire under his butt to make Beni use the same tantalizingly commanding tone he takes with all the villagers to unite them under one side. On a side note, the animation and posing in this scene is kind of awkward and stiff and takes away from the mood, especially as the camera constantly slides back and forth between Beni and Konro.
2. The heat is on
Once we move past the opening sequence, the episode really kickstarts. Captain Obi makes a ponderous note about how the majority of people in a crisis will often stand still, frozen and unreacted, which adds a nice level of tension to the scene. And then, Asakusa’s champion Beni goes and smashes that tension into a million glittering pieces, having made a rocket out of the tower he was standing on, and using it as a veritable stage to address the town – his town. It’s this kind of bombast and attitude that makes Fire Force so much fun to watch, and I’m glad it’s come back hard.
We see Beni discuss this moment of chaos like a rockstar, somehow elevating his voice enough so that everyone in the town can hear him and cheer back to him. It’s an incredibly cathartic moment for the characters and viewers alike, especially as Obi watches with a smile on his face, saying more about how he sees Beni than words ever could do justice. Beni reveals the information that there are shape-shifters amongst the townsfolk, and so declares the most rock-and-roll method of dealing with them. Have the town erupt into a giant mosh pit and knock each other out, of course!
3. Not just an Infernal, but a Demon Infernal
In the middle of this fervent absurdity, we jump back to Shinra and Arthur dealing with Haran, who consumed an Infernal bug right at the crux of the last episode. For a moment, Haran retains some sentience, mocking our rival boys for the progress in fighting that they’ve now lost. Now, here’s the important part, so pay attention. When Haran Infernalizes (I’m never quite sure if this is a technical term in the show or one that I’ve just made up over time), he grows a set of “Hellboy”-ass horns. According to the Arrow, this means that Haran has surpassed a base Infernal mode and has now become a Demon, which is potentially due to Asakusa being a hotspot for Infernals.
What this means isn’t super clear exactly, other than the fact that Haran now has the ability to wreak burning havoc on our poor boys. In a quick touching moment, Arthur takes the brunt of the hit for Shinra, who is in shock because he’s seen one of these Demons before, back when his mother was killed by an Infernal! Luckily, Beni now shows up after his dramatic speech, and tags in.
4. Light up the sky
This is where we finally know the good good animators have arrived, folks. The battle between Demon Haran and Beni is superbly choreographed, showing off influences from all sorts of mixed-martial arts to shows like Avatar: The Last Airbender (I know that’s not an anime, but it does have a pretty massive audience!). There’s a beautiful fluidity to how the two characters duck and weave around each other, with eye-searing pyrotechnics highlighting the screen for us each step of the way. Every now and then, there will be a break in the hand-to-hand stuff and we will see one of the combatants move back for a more powerful energy attack, and they feel just as impactful as they should.
Beni decides to end this with a bang but thankfully decides to take the fight high up into the stratosphere in order to lessen the damage to the city. Arrow sees this from afar and tries to shoot one final shot at Beni to take him down. In a tense moment, Konro tries to protect his friend in vain, but somehow shoots across a telekinetic message to Shinra’s… legs? The pacing and atmosphere are so all-encompassing though, you don’t stop to think about this, you instead whoop and cheer as Shinra rockets up to Arrow’s fire bullet, and kicks it the heck out of the sky, leaving Beni to blow Haran to bits without worry. Whew!
5. Drinking buddies
The episode ends with a neat post-credits scene of the town of Asakusa once again rebuilding from the wreckage, as they have done so effortlessly in the past. It’s a great way to see a town deal with the aftermath of a disaster in an action series like this, as it ties it directly into the emotional core of the characters, and shows how much the townspeople still love Beni. Konro and Beni go on to meet up with 7th Company and tell the townspeople about how integral our gang was at helping handle the chaos, particularly our golden boy Shinra.
The final scene is touching and incredibly true to form, with Obi and Beni sharing a glass of sake to commemorate the friendship between their companies. Beni immediately blossoms a super endearing smile, a characteristic that is tied with his drinking and a personality trait that I LOVE for him.
