Last week’s episode gave us quite a few interesting developments. Colonel Balance was forced to strike a deal with the Yotsuba clan for her safety. Meanwhile, Tatsuya confronted the Parasites once more in one-sided fight that unlocked a deeper connection between Honoka and Pixie.
Episode 9 is a continuation of that fight, which ended in an initial victory. Most of the scenes are spot-on and faithful to the novels, though it slightly baffled me that Tatsuya was shocked to see Leo with Erika and Mikihiko. If you guys remembered my review last week, I mentioned that there was an altered scene where Tatsuya asked for Leo’s help, which was not in the novel. But in this episode, Tatsuya was shocked to see Leo, which was IN the novel. I do not know if this is a misunderstanding on my part, or the translation was inaccurate, but I feel like this is a minor blunder in the script.
The encounter between Erika’s group and Section Three was just as engaging as in the novel. Each of the characters shone in their respective fight, albeit briefly, and you can tell that while Erika’s group was no pushover, their opponents are really just well-prepared which resulted in the capture of the Parasites.
One thing I really liked about this scene is how cute they portrayed a smug and confident Erika. She is my second favorite female character in the series, and I was totally smiling all throughout her scenes.
Tatsuya’s discovery of the incident was funny and epic, especially with their reactions. It may appear as a serious threat, but he was also half-joking at the expense of his friends. And this is a side of him that we are gradually seeing as the series progressed, which is a nice character development that shows his emotions are no longer as tied to Miyuki as before.
The fact that Pixie can use magic is, of course, another interesting development. The Kudou clan grew interested in her, and no doubt will plan to use the idea of using robots as CADs. After all, if the technology is created, an army can utilized robots with devastating effects. This would surely have an impact on the world, and one that I really hope to see in later arcs.
One thing that they skipped here was the fact that the Yotsuba was also interested in Pixie, and in fact tried to buy it from Tatsuya, who in turn borrowed it from the school. Of course, I’m guessing that they might show it in the next episode. After all, the volume adaptation is nearing its conclusion, but we still have 4 episodes left in this season.
The fact that Raymond, Shizuku’s classmate, is one of the Seven Sages was truly shocking and seemingly out of the blue. And frankly speaking, this is one plot twist that I wished they had changed somewhat from the source material. Even in the novel, this twist came out of nowhere. The anime could have simply included a few subtle hints that would make this scene appear more authentic.
Overall, episode is a nice buildup with a good fight scene in the beginning. It is not as epic as some of the previous episodes, but it still deserves a solid 7.5/10.