Having learned the truth about the ritual, Hisone is determined to find a new way to appease Mitatsu, but the D-Pilots are running out of time.
The girls are horrified to learn the truth about the ritual, but Iiboshi states it's necessary to sacrifice the Key Girl, and the maidens have grown up knowing this.
Misumi thinks how she's been waiting for this moment; in the fact her fellow maidens gushed about how becoming one with Mitatsu is supposed to be better than sex. This makes her think of Haruto, and now she is prepared to complete the ritual. Hinomoto explains Yae was the Key Girl of her time, and how they'd planned to run away during the ritual; she only cared about keeping Yae safe. When the time came, however, Yae decided she couldn't just let so many people die. She reminded Hinomoto of their bond with "Montparnasse," who then swallowed and flew away with Hinomoto, a sight Yae was glad to have as her last. In the present, Hinomoto says again how people betray each other; she claims to have betrayed Yae after the ritual, but says Montparnasse would no longer let her fly. Her wish wasn't to become one with him, but is now that she wants to pay tribute to Yae by following through with the ritual she gave her life for. Mayumi is horrified at the thought of sacrificing someone, but she and the others realize they can't just let the country sink. Hinomoto asks the quiet Hisone what she chooses for the future, considering unlike the older woman, she chose both flying and the person she cherishes.
As the maidens continue the ritual, Haruto thinks back to his realization there is no one "normal," and wonders what Hisone would do in his situation.
She in fact declares her intent to stop the ritual, claiming the Air Self-Defense Force can't just let someone die, and says she's thinking as hard as she can. Hinomoto smiles as the fired-up Hisone says they could've at least tried to find a new solution if they'd known about the ritual, as maybe no one ever has before. Outside, the higher-ups are frustrated that Mitatsu has been in this spot without them turning him for two hours, and even now only one OTF is even doing it. Misumi feels apprehensive and realize things feel wrong, and suddenly Masotan crashes in and lands behind her, vomiting out Hisone. She begs Misumi not to sacrifice herself, and the other girl angrily says her and Haruto's lives have led up to this, and there's no place for Hisone in the moment. Surprisingly annoyed, Hisone calls her a cheater, saying if she finds this moment so important, she should be saying it's between her and Mitatsu, not Haruto. Misumi tries to argue, but Hisone surprises everyone by saying even if she shares this moment with Haruto, he'll then be with Hisone after the ritual. Haruto and the other maidens watch awkwardly as the two argue, and Hisone finally snaps that if Misumi doesn't want them together, she has to live so they can fight. Mitatsu starts shaking, and Haruto realizes the giant OTF is falling. Outside, everything is shaking as they realize the Ritual is failing, and Hinomoto contacts control to say they have to skip right to turning Mitatsu.
Hinomoto goes over how the ritual is supposed to lull Mitatsu to sleep and stabilize him, but says this time they have to skip the step, then deal with what happens.
Iiboshi surprisingly becomes angry, demanding a more clear answer, but Hinomoto says that as the Dragon Pilots, they're the ones who have to do this, not him. Mayumi brings the news to the others, and despite Misumi's objections, Hisone drags her along as everyone evacuates. Hinomoto directs Hisone on where to go and says she'll give orders, then tells her to show the future she wants. Hinomoto tells the girls to sever the ropes binding Mitatsu's tails, and reminds them they only have one shot with their harpoons. Elle takes a shot, but a bolt of lightning hits her harpoon. Everyone starts panicking and Hisone arrives with Masotan, but Misumi thinks it's hopeless. Fittingly, Hisone's shot is a major flop, but she's determined to succeed and has Masotan divebomb at the rope and start chewing on it. Elle and Norma join soon after, and the pair succeeds in biting through both ropes. Haruto determines they've found what they need to protect, and Misumi realizes she hasn't been able to do the same after all this time, and doesn't want to die. Mitatsu's is revealed to have twin heads that begin roaring, and Iiboshi urgently tells Misumi to plunge her staff into his heart to complete the rolling. Everyone realizes anyone could do this, but learn the process also traps the person inside. Haruto decides he should be the one to do it, but Misumi reveals he can't, since she dropped her bell staff, leaving everyone terrified. Hisone cuts in that she found the staff and will do it herself. Despite everyone's objections, she recites her oath as a D-Pilot and assures them she'll return. With seemingly no other way to save everyone, Hisone is determined to make the ultimate sacrifice and protect what she cherishes.
Well, as much as I loved this joyful series, I'm sad to say it has come to an end, but happy to have seen how it all wrapped up.
The ritual's true nature comes to focus in sad ways in this episode, perfectly shown whenever Yae's tattered kimono robe and other belongings floating nearby. This is the sight that ended the previous episode and begins this one, and it's a haunting showing of the fate their helping Misumi achieve. This is most often a kind of choice that appears in superhero fiction, in which the hero has the impossible choice trying to weigh the needs of one vs many. This burden is placed on Hisone, because out of anyone at the base, she's been the one to look for unique possibilities and found a way to overcome anastomosis. Hinomoto's belief that Hisone can find a new solution goes along with Haruto's belief that there is no such thing as one "normal," as she realizes Hisone will go against the grain and find something new the others wouldn't consider. As one should expect, Hisone is of course completely against the ritual once she finds out the truth, and immediately takes reckless actions to prevent it. At this point, the series is in a very dark place considering how charmingly simple it has always been, as they seem moments away from Japan's total destruction. Despite this, Hisone's character is able to keep things lighthearted in a way, preventing the show from changing from its roots. The key moment for this is when the harpoons are brought in. Elle's shot seemed critical, as they've got no way to reload and severing the ropes is essential. After this dramatic moment when her harpoon fails, Hisone comes in like a hero, only to soon flub it up with a flimsy shot. Despite all the danger, the moment is able to bring in comedy, with Hinomoto appalled at what a poor shot she made, and Hisone stays determined. ]Like a typical anime hero, Hisone keeps fighting the way she knows how, and her out-of-the-box thinking allows her to find a solution that saves the day. We actually see very little of the rest of the team for this section, but what we've seen so far shows how the girls have come as a team. In the past they were all separate and didn't work together well, but now they're effectively reacting to and spreading information. Elle and Hisone fittingly get the best moment: in the past Hisone was the one who annoyed Elle most, ad now she rushes in, fully trusting her plan. We see a slightly different character moment with Iiboshi as well, as for the first time things aren't going exactly how he's planned. Even when anastomosis happened, he didn't seem extremely worried, and a new plan was developed but he becomes furious in this episode. Hisone's unconventional thinking leads the group into a dangerous position, and without a perfect plan, Iiboshi becomes anxious and angry. The plan Hisone does come up with leads the group to still needing to make a sacrifice, and dealing with the results of Hisone's actions. The ending definitely caught me off-guard, leaving us off with a lot of unanswered questions, but I didn't really hate it. Numerous characters get great clear endings three months after the series, but Haruto takes a trip that makes us wonder how exactly things happened. I was really just happily frustrated, because the ending comes as a surprise, but with the right explanation can still make sense, so fans can have fun theorizing. It's a great way to end things with the theme we started getting lately from Haruto and Hinomoto, that Hisone is able to persevere against adversity with odd methods. Of course, I have to give some time to talking about the art in this episode, which has the show end strong with beautiful designs and animations. This episode has a mix of what we got early and later in the series: early on we got a lot of gorgeous, happy landscapes, and later there were darker things showing the more serious side of the series. For "Invincible us," there is a variety of beauty in what we see. Right off the bat we get an expertly designed shot of Yae's tattered clothes, a dark and somber sight, while one of the final shots is of the sun shining over the new Mitatsu island. there are plenty of these kinds of shots throughout the episode, too. In Hinomoto's memories we get serene but sad shots of her with Yae, and in the present there are ominous shots of Mitatsu, whether falling or showcasing his multiple heads. Much like the continued use of humor in dark moments, the wide variety of art is a perfect way of showcasing the spirit of the show. I'm sad the show has come to an end, but I feel this episode was an excellent conclusion to the series, and I definitely recommend watching through yourself.
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AuthorI love the entertainment side of things. Video games, tv shows, superheroes and movies are my passion and I'd love to get the news out for things I enjoy. My contact page has links to my social media, so if you enjoy what I have to say, likes, shares, comments, and follows are always greatly appreciated! Archives
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