Magane’s caught up to Souta, and she questions his motives for participating in the Elimination Chamber Festival. Souta says he says he might’ve joined in to atone for what he did to Setsuna, or to help the other creators who helped him, but regardless of the reason he feels that in the end he was just compelled to create.
Magane disagrees with him, saying that because he feels it’s ok to do whatever he wants he is a “monster” just like her. Souta insists that he doesn’t care about good or bad, just that as long as his “wish” comes true nothing else matters.
Magane says that what Souta’s trying to do with the festival is a lie and doesn’t matter, because everything is made up. The creations and their worlds are all technically fictional, even if they’re temporarily existing as real people in the human world. Magane says that Souta should create an all-powerful god based on lies because eventually the lies will surpass reality and because believeable… or something like that. She spins a lot of bullshit. Souta snaps and grabs Magane by her lapels as he yells at her to not look down on him, and says that her BS idea would never be liked by others. Magane simply snaps her fingers and says a “lock has been released” meaning whatever Souta had planned will now be set in motion.
Apparently this means she has helped him somehow, and the two share a somewhat normal moment between them (if the background music is any indication). Magane says that she just likes fun things, and feels that as long as people are alive they should just enjoy life as much as possible. She doesn’t care about the battle with Altair or the outcome of the world – she only wants to watch people’s reactions as they fight, as they win and lose battles and interact with each other. She uses the analogy of people fighting over gold, both real and fool’s gold, because that’s just what people do. Before she leaves, Magane hugs Souta and whispers to him that second chances don’t come along every day.
Elsewhere Blitz has been reunited with his once-dead daughter Erina. Shunma reveals that because she merged the world of Code Babylon (which has no
magicians) with Meteora’s world, Meteora was able to revive Erina. And the audience accepted the change, meaning that Erina is back for good. Now that his daughter’s alive again Shunma questions what Blitz will do next. The military officers lead Shunma away to safety, who reveals that she had prepared herself for such an encounter between herself and Blitz by wearing a bulletproof vest under her shirt.
And while all these confrontations have been going on, Yuuya has been fighting his old nemesis Shou. Then Hikayu shows up, and via her creator’s fandisk she is now a magical martial arts fighter who has some very powerful attacks. It looks like the fight has become a two-against-one match when out of the blue Blitz arrives. Shou naturally thinks Blitz is there to back him up, but he’s proven wrong very quickly as Blitz starts firing at him! The icing on the cake is that Magane has released Hangaku, so the curse returns to Yuuya.
Shou doesn’t last long against these three, and once he’s been defeated Yuuya reveals his series’ spoiler (much to his creator’s dismay): Yuuya wasn’t the one who killed Shou’s sister and best friend. It was the fortune teller priest who gave Bayard to Shou. He’s been the mastermind behind everything. …Well then. Looks like Yuuya has lost an enemy and potentially gained a friend.
But the episode’s not done yet! Selesia, Rui and now apparently Aliceteria are still fighting against Altair. Selesia uses a very powerful ability to create a cage of energy around Altair, breaking her sword barrier and confining her to a very small space. From behind Selesia comes Rui and Aliceteria, who are going to use their mecha and lance respectively to land a killing blow.
However at the last moment another mecha knocks into Rui from out of nowhere, and Selesia is stunned and what she sees. It’s Charon and his mecha! How will the flow of battle change now, and will Selesia be able to win him over to their side?
My thoughts: Awesome episode! Lots of action, and we learned more about a few characters that we didn’t know before. I’m happy that Erina will be able to live with her father now, and I hope Blitz continues to fight against Altair with the good guys. Altair has lost three of her allies – Aliceteria, Shou and Blitz. Will Charon be her only protector?
I’m most interested about Charon’s emergence onto the battlefield now. How long will he protect Altair? Will Selesia be able to get through to him? What is motivating Charon to side with Altair? Ugh I just have so many questions!
Author’s Note: This week at work was the week from hell and that’s why this review is a little late. I’m sorry! I have my computer and new desk FINALLY set up, so I’m hoping this will help me get my reviews out on time. Thank you for your continued patience with me. ^^;;
Yuya’s spoilers totally had me laughing until my sides ached.
And somehow Charon has brainwashed eyes.
Oh good point! Yes his eyes did look strange. ;~;
The Souta-Magane exchange is thematically interesting as it confirms Souta’s transition from someone who only writes for himself to one willing to share his work far and wide, per the show’s meta jargon on creators and creating. It goes back to director Aoki Ei’s confirmation that Re Creators isn’t really about the flashy fights, but about the creative process & its related joys and pitfalls. (ie. Setsuna’s suicide could be a warning to creators not to let themselves be overly affected by outside criticism of their works).
Magane basically used her powers to ensure Souta’s Creation for the Festival doesn’t need audience acceptance beforehand, so he’s free to unleash it without fear of viewer backlash. Conversely, he may have offered Magane the chance to use her magic to become real in the world, although I think she may have refused his offer.
Theme-wise, I’ve always felt Creators is largely an outlet for venting/commenting on the animanga industry and creative thinking. I’m reminded of some author interviews/afterwords where they worry about whether their stories/characters will be accepted by the wider audience; ie. whether they’re good creators or not.
I think I agree with you on all those points. Yay for Souta’s character growth!