Fate/kaleid liner Prisma☆Illya 2wei! Episode 5: Wish

Impression

Rejoice, Emiya Shirou. A new pairing has been born.

…Wait, what?

I think those scenes were about as awkward for me as they were for Shirou, although perhaps I shouldn’t be accusing this show of providing manservice after all the sweet yuri it’s dished out thus far – and there was a standard bath scene for the first half anyway, alongside some innovative use of water bubbles as a new censoring method. Beyond the usual talk about boobs, it was nice seeing Miyu and Rin with their hair down for a change – both of them looked a lot more feminine all of a sudden. Especially Rin. And somehow, it’s still the case that no-one not in the know notices that Kuro isn’t actually Ilya. The real purpose of the bath scene though was to provide that final push Kuro needed to end their little attempt at peaceful coexistence and go back on the run – she’s gotten pissed at Ilya before over the same issue, but Ilya repeating her desire to go back to her normal life was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Beyond the fact that Ilya and Kuro have very different ideas of exactly what “normal life” consists of, it’s also the case that such a scenario would inevitably end up with Kuro’s disappearance – and it just so happens that Rin and Luvia’s desire for the Archer card back would do the same thing.

It’s therefore not surprising at all that she’d decide to leave, coincidentally to the ocean near where Ilya’s birthday party will be held, although I didn’t foresee her reaching out to Miyu despite their connection. Miyu’s always felt more amiable towards Kuro compared to the others (I wonder if it’s because of that kiss?) and she’s got her own secrets in line with her own status as an irregularity – notably, I’m suspecting she hasn’t said anything to either Rin or Luvia about the fact that she too can use her own body as a catalyst to transform into Saber. And she can control it much better than Ilya can, too. Meanwhile, adding to the list of questions about Kuro is the idea that she can project a chair, even though Archer’s alignment should be “sword”. To be honest, a lot of what Kuro said was perfectly correct – Ilya wishing the whole magical girl thing never happened has stretched as far back as the original season. But it just so happens that Miyu’s first loyalty is Ilya even in spite of this – even though Ilya’s “normal life” would be one in which Miyu disappears, she’s hoping that Ilya considers her enough of a friend to keep her around regardless. For Miyu’s sake, I hope the yuri ship actually gets somewhere, because she’s as devoted as Fate is to Nanoha.

An anticipated fight scene awaits next episode, in which Saber takes on Archer once more! And also, a wild Iri appears. Something’s telling me that she knows more than I thought she did…