Oof… OOF the beginning of this episode HURT LIKE HECK. I wasn’t sure what I expected this episode to be about, but when I saw Seth walk into that inn I knew what was going to go down. THE CONFRONTATION WE WERE ALL WAITING FOR. Now, I’m gonna be honest, I actually went and read this part in the manga after the first season ended just to see if he would meet up with Melie and Doc again. I didn’t remember all the details, but I did remember how PAINFUL this part was. And man, Lerche did a WONDERFUL job with this scene.
We all knew this was coming. Seth finally confronting Melie over what happened between them. What I didn’t expect, however, was how well crafted this scene was. And while I noticed that they basically reused so many frames of animation throughout the entire scene, I’ll forgive them since it didn’t take away from the raw emotion in this scene. It was honestly really unnerving how calm and almost detached Melie sounded when talking to Seth at first. And while I can’t blame Seth for immediately thinking she was mad, it was still a bit presumptuous that Melie would only be mad at him for leaving. You can tell she wasn’t mad, she was HEARTBROKEN. However, when she was talking about how easily Seth can move on to the next thing… that hurt. That really hurt. Especially since she made it sound like Seth didn’t treasure the moments they all had together as much as they did. And the fact that Seth didn’t even say anything was infuriating! While he did try to explain how their bond meant a lot to him afterwards, that silence basically confirmed what Melie was thinking.
While I can understand why Seth didn’t want Melie and Doc with him after he lost control of himself in Rumble Town, I can also understand where Melie is coming from. It just shows how much Seth cares for these guys by putting aside his feelings of wanting to be with them for their safety. However, on the other hand, it was rather selfish to not take their feelings into account. You couldn’t have talked it out with them like this before just up and leaving?! However, this whole confrontation was a lot of justifiable back and forths. Both Seth and Melie were not wrong, but they weren’t completely right either. It’s reasonable to think that Melie and Doc would not be able to handle themselves if Seth were to lose control again. And while Melie was right in her assumption that Seth didn’t trust them, she was also underestimating just how powerful Seth is in his berserk state. It’s not even just him either, he’s fearful that they’ll get mixed up in the Inquisition that’s chasing after him as well. You could just tell from Seth’s face and tone that this whole thing was hurting him as well and it’s honestly painful to see how estranged and distant Seth and Melie have become after being such adorable friends.
However, the most painful part of this episode came when Seth said he didn’t want them to be near him when he’s not in control. As soon as he said that, I immediately cringed because: BOY, DO YOU NOT KNOW WHO YOU’RE SAYING THAT TO?! Of all people, Melie knows EXACTLY how it feels to hurt those she’s close to when her curse takes over. And Melie had a good point that Seth shouldn’t be afraid to ask for help from others when he needs it. My heart just broke when Melie just spun the situation on herself and was just so hurt by the notion that someone who has no control over their actions should just be alone. Her friendship with Seth meant so much to her and for him to just leave without a word, he ended up just hurting her just like the others who left. All she wanted was for someone to stay by her side and stop her when she went crazy. And judging from the opening, Melie will most likely become the person who would stick to Seth’s side in order to stop him whenever he went out of control… just like she hoped someone would do for her. AHHH MY EMOTIONS.
This whole scene put me to the brink of tears, especially when Melie broke down crying. I appreciate that the episode just gave her time to sob, allowing us to feel the raw emotions and see just how much Seth’s friendship meant to her. Just watching the two in the first season, they became so close despite only knowing each other for not that long. I’m glad the anime didn’t rush through this scene. Instead, they allowed it to breathe and give us moments of silence to let the pain just sink in and feel the weight of Seth’s decisions. I was so impressed by this scene and by far had to be the series’ best moment. This one scene was ten minutes but it didn’t feel drawn out or slow at any point. Just pure, raw emotion and heartbreak. Radiant… I didn’t expect you to make me feel so emotional… Kudos to you.
There wasn’t a satisfying conclusion to this confrontation with both parties heartbroken and unable to make amends. Both obviously meant so much to each other, which made the confrontation even more painful. And I have to give Doc some credit in actually being the adult in this situation. He approached the topic very delicately and tried to give Seth a better idea on how Melie is feeling, which I appreciate. He wasn’t being a jerk, he was being both real and gentle. If he was more like this in the first place, I probably would have liked him. But we’ll see how he progresses from here. So far, he’s been doing a fairly good job at just keeping an eye on Melie as she struggles through this situation.
After that eleven minutes of pain and suffering, Seth heads to the stables to try and return that crystal that put him in a suit of armor where he finds Ocoho sparring with Dracoon. It seems like she’s still in good spirits so my dread of her downfall hasn’t happened yet. However, it seems like she’s trying to train to become an official Sorcerer Knight before they announce who will go on to be one. Though I have an inkling she won’t be chosen due to some sour feelings over what happened in the previous episode and underestimating her abilities. But she ends up reigning in Seth’s help as a sparring partner, even having him agree to spar with her at five in the freaking morning. As someone who loves my sleep, that’s a pretty BIG favor to be asking someone who she barely knows. And while I like Ocoho, it was kind of painful to see Seth ask for her help after that big falling out with Melie not even a few minutes later. UGH. Though I guess it shows that he’s still listening to what Melie had to say despite their estranged status.
We also get to learn a little bit of how sorcerer curses are perceived in Cyfandir. Compared to how open everyone was with their curses in Artemis, it seems like curses are very personal information to the sorcerers living in Cyfandir and are uncomfortable talking about it. Which makes me curious as to what Ocoho’s curse is, since she refused to divulge that information. It’s all very mysterious and I hope we learn as to why the people of Cyfandir are uncomfortable talking about their infected curse.
The episode had to be the best in this series so far. It made me feel so many emotions and it didn’t feel dragged out or rushed, which is a first for this series. I feel for both Seth and Melie and I look forward to their reconciliation because I’m sure that will be such a sweet and satisfying moment. I JUST WANT THESE TWO DUMMIES TO BE FRIENDS AGAIN DANG IT.
