Eugeo Screws Up

Sword Art Online: Alicization Episode 21 Review/Recap

Twenty-one episodes in, and we finally get the fight that no one asked for, least of all me. Kirito’s forced to fight a brainwashed Eugeo, now the latest Integrity Knight. I stand by my assertion about the time it will take for Kirito to kick Eugeo’s butt.

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Recap

The clash between the two friends continues as Kirito does his best to undo Quinella’s brainwashing. Try as he might, though, nothing seems to get through to him. At least, not until Kirito mentions the name of Alice. Then just like that, all his memories come flooding back to him. Quinella was in such a rush to turn him into an Integrity Knight that she didn’t seal off his memories. Instead of teaming up with his friends, though, he freezes them in place and goes to confront Quinella alone.

We all know how that ends, though. Eugeo tries to kill Quinella, only to fail miserably. Fortunately, Eugeo had already set Kirito and Alice free, and they bust in right behind a terrified Chudelkin. Face to face with the fake Pontifex, Alice declares that she will never serve Quinella; she serves the people. Rather than sully herself in battle, the hag commands Chudelkin to dispose of the three. In exchange, she “swears by the Goddess Stacia” that he may spend one night alone with her. Chudelkin then unleashes his most powerful fire magic, summoning a massive Genie to fight.

Review

What kind of fight did we watch? It’s bad enough that there was little to no build up of tension to it, but then have it end so quickly is pathetic. I knew that Kirito was going to snap Eugeo out of it with the magic of friendship, but I wanted to see them duke it out. It was a buzzkill in the end.

I also had some issues with how Eugeo and Alice acted during the episode. I fail to understand why Alice didn’t jump in and help Kirito fight Eugeo; that doesn’t make sense. Second, if Eugeo snapped out of his brainwashing, then why didn’t he come up with a plan with Kirito and Alice? They could’ve ganged up on Quinella and taken her out in one fell swoop. Instead, Eugeo went to fight someone he knew he couldn’t beat alone. If the Abridged Series ever gets to this, I hope they bring it up.

I Hate Quinella

Another problem I have is, once again, with Quinella. I hate how the anime is going out of its way to use her for fanservice shots. Seeing her naked’s This bad enough, but the close-ups on her boobs and legs are irritating. It veers into shameless fanservice.

The worst part of it is that we know that Quinella has no intention of keeping her promise to that groveling coward, Chudelkin. I could tell by the haughty laugh she gives: she expects him to die for her.

While this episode was my least favorite of the season, but it did have one saving grace: Eugeo calling Quinella out on her idea of what love is. I had done it before in a previous post, but hearing her repeat herself made me realize how pitiful she is. If that’s her idea of love, then I don’t think anyone ever loved her before, because she knows nothing about it. She’s hollower than any machine could ever be.

I look forward to seeing her get her comeuppance.

I Give “The 32nd Knight” a 2/5. Worst “Fight Btwn Best Friends” Ever.

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