AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh my god, this episode was freaking fantastic. I can’t stop laughing, so much sass, so much shit hitting the fan, this has to be my favourite episode to date! Ai is so freaking gullible, he walked straight into an obvious trap set up by Windy and Lightning (the Light Ignis), that anyone else could have seen it coming a mile away! Really, it’s a good thing Yuusaku came after Ai, and alone at that! It would have been dangerous for Flame and Takeru to be there as well, not to mention it would only complicate things further with Revolver and the Hanoi Knights at the scene.

And the way Revolver just crashed into the scene was epic, but also freaking hilarious because Ai was trying so hard to persuade Light and Windy to let him try find a way to coexist with Humans with Yuusaku’s help, and then he comes in and declares, “I AM HERE TO KILL YOU!” At that point, I was in tears from laughing so hard because so much for 1 in 8 billion chances of coexistence! Better yet, I love how sassy Windy and Lightning are, they make themselves really fun and interesting antagonists, and am eagerly anticipating what else they have in mind. It certainly did not go unnoticed to me of Lightning’s host, blurred in black. He doesn’t appear to have an AI host like Echo as Windy does, but instead I wonder if the silhouette actually belongs to Jin’s consciousness, or perhaps belongs to what could be a figurehead who runs the Judgement Arrows’ organization. If that’s the case, there is a good chance that figure we have seen there is merely an avatar of a sorts.

Lightning’s grand plan for their domination over Humanity is to use them to create their vessels. While an Ignis life is eternal, they but not immortal, so they intended to make Humanity create and repair hardware until the day they figure out (in due time) how to do it themselves. What becomes of Humanity after that, well they can simply kill them off themselves since they will have the tools at their disposal to do so (not that there aren’t several things they can hijack and manipulate already).

We also learned how the Cyberse World was found and attacked in the first place. Lightning claims the defence program didn’t run. They were attacked while they immobile due to be in scan mode. It is a vulnerability that they believe they themselves should only be aware of, leading them to suspect the enemy had a spy within their ranks.  So when Ai explains how Aqua foresaw the Cyberse’s world destruction, and learned from Lightning that she had already gone missing prior to the events, they immediately make the case how she may have been the one to betray them.

Of course I have my doubts about that.Unless Aqua intended to set the stage of each Ignis challenging each other about their beliefs of which path should be taken. There is also the possibility she could have been captured and then exploited, which may have ended up contributing to their world’s destruction. Or she could have been captured by another party, unrelated to the ones who attacked them. But on the other-hand, if she did manage to get out before shit hit the fan, it only makes us wonder even more now, where could she be hiding, and how long does she intend to stay put? Could this event prompt her to make an appearance? I am curious to see what her role will be in this conflict.

In all, it took a long time to get to this point, and I am absolutely loving where this is going. This is the ultimate clash of ideals. Ignis VS Humans VS Co-Existence. Who will come out on top? Of course we sure to hope Co-Existence will bet he answer, but the trials they will need to overcome to get there will be a difficult one. Here’s to hoping we will see an upswing in the momentum now that the long awaited battle has officially begun.

Also quick shoutout for Revolver’s badass new look! I absolutely love it!!!!!!! It looks amazing!!!!! And a moment of appreciation for how freaking PRECIOUS Roboppi is! Oh my god, she is so cute, was both so adorable, yet so sad when she gushed about the outside world. Oh, and I think this is the first time we actually see Yuusaku use the “Cyberse” instincts he has. He was actually able to accurately use it to track Ai down.

Eva

Blogging Anime since Summer 2009, & Founder of AngryAnimeBitches Anime Blog ...I may or may not be addicted to writing

This Post Has 11 Comments

  1. Wilfredo Sifr Starduster

    If VRAINS could deliver one plot-heavy episode after another for the next few weeks (according to the spoilers), I’m not even gonna complain especially when this one was the most intense VRAINS episode in awhile. Windy and Lightning (cool name BTW) didn’t even hide their distaste towards humanity as their own “Final Solution” was the enslavement of us humans under Ignises’ domination (which was understandable given that the destruction of Cyberse World by the Knights of Hanoi prior to the start of the show gave them the casus belli to despise humanity). Plus it’s officially confirmed that it was Lightning himself (or that shady silhouette) who stole JIn’s consciousness with help from his underlings Bowman & Haru. Let’s see the Ignis’s perception on humanity and which side they choose to be:
    Ai & Flame: Aligned themselves to humans (specifically their Lost Incident partners Yusaku & Takeru)
    Windy & Lightning: Openly hostile towards humanity
    Earth & Aqua: Still unknown on which side they choose (although Aqua was framed as a spy and a traitor)
    And my goodness me did the episode end on such a high note when REVOLVER marked his return with a new badass avatar and will take on the Ignises to fulfill Dr.Kogami’s objective. Can’t wait to see him shine again, been too long! 😀

    1. Eva

      BRING ON THE PLOT!!!!!!!!! We waited a long time for it, so I just want to see that our patience paid off!

  2. ecarg312

    This episode was amazing! It’s plot-heavy and helps move the story after many ‘filler’ episodes! Roboppi is so cute! I think this is the first time Yusaku is seen interacting with her. With the way he talks to her, it shows that Yusaku is being nicer. Also, love the fact that Ai and Roboppi watch dramas (It makes me wonder if one of the two Lost Victims will be an actor). I like how Yusaku takes her to Kusanagi’s truck. Loved Takeru’s expression when they figured out what sort of prize Ai wanted in that crossword puzzle–Ai is so vain and it’s hilarious.
    I had a feeling Windy and Lightning were the enemies (Also, interesting how their names relate to weather). Seeing that there’s a spy amongst them, I feel like it could be Aqua, but I also have a weird feeling it could be Flame. I know Flame is a good Ignis, but he could be unintentionally manipulated like Lightning planted a code inside Flame that would make him evil if he were to meet Lightning again. I do like how Yusaku wanted to go alone first. I think he’s becoming a bit protective over Takeru because he got stuck in a trap before. Though, I do like how Yusaku’s group becomes more wary of traps ever since SB got stuck in one. It shows that they’re cautious people and really value keeping their identities a secret.
    ….Is this the first episode in Vrains that does not showcase dueling? Everything is plot related and there’s no dueling. Wow.
    Revolver’s new avatar is pretty great. He still has his color schemes, but changed his helmet. Though, the hair is a bit odd.
    Since SB and Flame will appear in the next episode according to the cast list, I wonder when they’ll appear. Will they appear at the end of the episode or will they come in between Revolver’s duel and find the fiasco in front of them?
    Also, I think the shadowy figure behind Lightning is Jin, but it looks a bit too tall to be him.

    1. Eva

      ROBOPOPPI IS SO PRECIOUSSSSSS!!!! I love how she and Ai watched soap operas together, I can already see the two crying about it.
      Yeah I was thinking about when the last time we had an episode without any duels taking place. I am quite relieved they didn’t throw in a duel and just focused on the plot. I think it would have interfered with the mood and momentum, so it was a smart decision to leave it out. Varying on what happens next week, that’s when we might just get a duel, or else perhaps Lightning and Windy will decide to cut their losses and retreat to fight another day.
      I love the green on Revolver’s new design, it really gives him a fresh new look, and I like they made it so he looks more like himself!

  3. Kazanova

    I love the part when Takeru shook hands with Roboppy, so cute and precious! Ai’s stupidity never ceases to amaze me. But at least I’m glad that he prefer coexistence with humans. I’m doubting that Aqua is the spy. It’s still possible that Windy is the spy and just pretending to be on Lightning’s side or something. Or perhaps there’s an unconscious spy. They unknowingly helped the unknown enemy somehow.
    Revolver’s new look is definitely one that I love! Now, amongst the cast from season 1, Playmaker is the only one whose avatar hasn’t changed/modified in a slightest bit. Revolver’s appearance gave me a feeling of deja vu. You know, when Playmaker was trapped by Akira and then Revolver appeared right on time.

    1. Eva

      Ai’s one of those few characters whose’ stupidity is actually hilarious to watch. It was so cute how he was like, “Aw chucks, it’s Windy, I dun wanna deal with him.” / “YOU WANT TO RULE HUMANITY?!” like there’s this innocence to his character that he still somehow has after all the shit he has been through. What really cracks me up though, is how he’s so stupid, it’s actually protected him up until now because the enemies expected him to be smarter than this. If only they knew how easily they could lure him into a trap! 😂
      Oooh good point about Windy. I do still have suspicions of him being the double-agent, I just wonder what his plans are, and how they might be different from Lightning. Maybe there’s even a leadership conflict since Lightning is regarded as their leader.
      And unconscious spy also sounds like a good idea too. I’ll keep that in mind!

      1. Kazanova

        Yeah. Ai’s stupidity is acceptable compared to Naoki’s stupidity. No, wait, scratch that, stupidity is a too nice of word for Naoki, he’s on a whole different level of idiocy. Urgh, Naoki’s idiocy is just so unbearable to watch even for a second after that last episode. Ai, on the other hand, is adorable and fun to watch. Besides, he actually can be smart at certain times.
        But one thing that bothers me, Earth mentioned that Ai is irresponsible but yet calculating and now Lightning said that Ai has the most wisdom. For some reason, I don’t think this is just a mere sarcasm. Not only that, they could have lured Flame too, but yet they chose Ai specifically for his data. It seems there are still more to Ai that have yet to be revealed and maybe even Ai doesn’t realise it himself.

        1. Eva

          Windy also joked about “evil wisdom” but I wonder if that’s really a joke or not considering the things we have heard him talk about in the first season with Roboppi. Maybe… Hm, it could be, when Revolver attacked him and his body was chomped on, maybe he lost that “wisdom” part of himself that they speak of? Maybe it’s been damaged from that incident? That might explain why Ai has been presented as little bit dumb for an AI in general. On top of that he’s based on Yuusaku, who we know is a very intelligent boy. So you’re right about that, I don’t think they said that for nothin, there must be more to than meets the Ai.
          I’ll see myself out.

  4. V.

    and here I thought the writers totally forgot about the Link Sense device they gave to Yusaku and would never use it again.
    It’s been a long long time since Link Sense was last mentioned. happy to see they didn’t forget about that portion of the mystery- how did Yusaku obtain it?
    And I wonder if Takeru, Kusanagi, and Flame can see everything that has happened? Can they hear the dialogue?

    1. Eva

      I really hope they will dive into the whole Link Sense backstory, I would like to see if all the victims of the Lost Incident developed it through that event.

  5. Moonflower157

    This is now probably one of my favorite episodes of Yugioh VRAINS too! Shin Yoshida did an excellent job, especially after the episode 55 mess with Blue Girl being incredibly aggressive to Playmaker and Soulburner back in June. It was definitely intense and the plot is driving forward at a good pace. I always knew Lightning and Windy were the shady Ignis and looks like those suspicions were confirmed. Lightning was surprisingly suave in my opinion in the way he was trying to convince Ai to join them. And I’ll be honest here, but Lightning and how polite he is sorta creeps me out. I’m actually creeped out by polite villains. Windy and Lightning are definitely the main antagonists this season. I mean, Windy did say that Lightning did say some villain’s dialogue. I thought, “Windy, you and Lightning are the villains.” I was disgusted in how Lightning and Windy want to brainwash Ai by rewriting his programming after he refused to join their cause. That is very sadistic along with the fact that they want to rule humanity and eventually destroy them as soon as they learn to make hardware to act as vessels. That is a case of ‘survival of the fittest’ and evolving over time. I have to say though, Ai was quite mature this episode. Looks like Yusaku’s influence has rubbed off on him, making him a lot wiser and more serious than before. I feel Ai should become the new leader of the Ignis if he is truly the wisest of the 6 Ignis.
    The Roboppy scenes were incredibly fun! She seemed quite happy about going out into the outside world for the first time and I thought, “Aww…” when she said that butterflies were so pretty. I couldn’t believe it when Yusaku tries to entice Ai out by saying there was a new soap opera on. So Roboppy and Ai watch soap operas when Yusaku leaves them at home. And everyone meeting Roboppy for the first time. That was so sweet! Takeru shaking hands with her was the best scene of all! I do wonder though, does Flame know about Ai corrupting Roboppy into becoming his minion? And yeah, I do agree with you and Takeru. Anyone could have seen that crossword puzzle prize being a trap coming from a mile away. It was definite pinpoint accuracy.
    As for Linkuriboh, I couldn’t believe what Windy and Lightning did! It makes me even more infuriated than before. They’ve definitely crossed the line when they mess with poor sweet Linkuriboh. I didn’t like its angry eyes. I want those sweet innocent blue eyes back! Ai could tell something was off about his pet just by the voice.
    Revolver’s entrance was amazing! Not to mention the new outfit. He looks so cool. I feel like in the future, we’ll be seeing Revolver’s season 2 outfit as cosplay outfits. Now that leaves only Playmaker to get an outfit upgrade out of all the major characters.

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