Time for the endgame, folks! With the assault on Precia’s fortress in full swing and Precia herself having fallen into some ominous dimensional crevice, it’s time at last to conclude the first season of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha. This show has been a ride that shifted from intriguing but uneven to consistently thrilling, and at this point, it’s no surprise whatsoever that Nanoha inspired an entire franchise. So before we dive into this last episode, let’s do a brief overview of Nanoha’s strengths so far.

First off, there’s Nanoha herself, and her firm bond with Fate Testarossa. Nanoha has proven herself to be an exceptionally competent protagonist, which might feel a little odd in the abstract, but which works perfectly to build her up as a foil for Fate. And the situations surrounding these characters has felt unusually well-observed on both sides; Nanoha’s relationship with her family is illustrated through copious convincing incidental scenes, while Fate’s time with her “mother” contains some of the most brutal and immediate illustrations of both familial abuse and its psychological aftermath that I’ve seen in anime. And both of these situations have benefited from Nanoha’s signature stylistic trick, its tendency to extend certain scenes far beyond their theoretical “narrative necessity” in order to create a more convincing illustration of a genuine lived experience.

In aesthetic terms, Nanoha isn’t the most beautiful show out there, but it certainly has its strengths. Shinbo’s love of striking full block colors aligns very well with Nanoha’s focus on energy attacks over action choreography, and the show’s often surreal backgrounds and consistent fisheye shots do an excellent job of creating a sense of unease throughout. And finally, Nanoha’s underlying worldbuilding feels ripe for exploration and expansion – its techno-magical world has the key quality of feeling like it exists outside of Nanoha’s own story, full of wild tales we haven’t yet experienced. With all that said, let’s see how the first season of Nanoha comes to an end!

Episode 13

The opening monologue shifts for the finale. “The start of every new journey is always full of sadness, but because our feelings are surely connected… ‘Goodbye’ isn’t a word of finality, but rather the word of a new beginning.” Though the show is significantly lighter in tone, Nanoha seems to share some of the “hope in spite of a cruel world” perspective that defines Madoka Magica

Precia’s fortress is crumbling. I’d figured her plan would sorta half-succeed, and grant her great power but not return her daughter (thus necessitating a TRUE last fight), but this may just be a full episode of denouement

Tremendously fluid animation as Fate stands on the edge of the abyss while her friends cry out to her. We don’t actually need Precia to return – this show’s true conflict isn’t “defeat Precia,” it’s “convince Fate to accept the hands that are reaching out to her”

And at last she does. Nice use of the soundtrack here, as we shift from an imposing full orchestra to one mournful horn playing the main melody, echoing the shift from panic to intimate, somber reflection

‘Call My Name.’ The episode title makes our conflict and the show’s overall thrust explicit. Fate’s always been waiting for someone to truly love her for herself – “my name, not the lost daughter you see in me”

Looks like we won, then. The dimensional disturbance passes, and we learn Fate is being kept in the brig as a key witness

Chrono spitting out this faux-scientific gobbledigook with a serious face while Amy ties a silly bow on his head is very good content

Yesss they lean into it. “This is a very grave matter” undercut by Amy admiring her handiwork

That funny contrast also undercuts the seriousness of his intended takeaway – that Fate needs to be treated as a suspect in a very serious operation with ramifications outside of our cast’s immediate feelings. It’s actually a neat trick, because while Chrono’s words are obviously reasonable in-universe, they don’t really correlate to what Nanoha the Show values, and so Nanoha the Show undercuts him using its own tonal tricks

Nanoha and Yuuno get an award for being the only members of the strike force who actually did anything

Chrono actually pulls off a cool moment for once, as he explains both the usual punishment for Fate’s actions and his confidence that he’ll be able to keep her out of trouble. As he should – it’d be hard to feel much sympathy for an organization that punishes a girl for being abused by her mother

Lindy tells Yuuno he can’t go home for made-up scifi reasons, so I guess he’s staying with Nanoha

It’s always wild to me that so many people put genuine faith in Watsonian reasoning for narrative decisions – that is, the reasoning as explained by the characters within that universe. Nothing in any story happens for any reason other than “the author wished it so,” they can always bend the universe to make their will seem sensible. Though I guess as a critic, it’s tougher for me to get wrapped up in a show as its own universe without considering its authors

Chrono is next to Amy and he is so small

Only now do they start to directly explain Alhazred, the place Precia was attempting to reach. A land where all magic stems from, where you can rewrite reality or even your own past. The fact that this is only being explained now makes me think that Nanoha was produced with sequel potential already in mind

The officials dismiss it as “just a legend” before admitting Precia was such a badass she might have actually found it anyway

I’ve come to appreciate how Amy undercuts the seriousness of the Space Time Bureau – she’s often used to recenter us on Nanoha’s childish point of view

And so we say our goodbyes to the Space Time Bureau

Nanoha’s return to her everyday life feels like this show at its most classically “children’s magical girl show.” Lots of upbeat reflections on how her time away changed her in some ways, but her home life was still waiting for her. I could easily see a moral like this in a show like Ojamajo Doremi, but it’s a little odd to see considering Nanoha’s own fractured and presumably older audience. This show uses many of the visual and narrative beats of children’s magical girl shows, but those shows’ thematic/moral beats aren’t necessarily as appropriate for a show aimed at teens which heavily emphasizes domestic abuse

I suppose it is appropriate for Nanoha of all shows to finish on a weirdly extended and dramatically unfocused denouement, considering the weirdly extended mundane sequence is its signature trick

Yuuno tucks Nanoha in. I’m eternally grateful there’s been not a hint of misguided romance between these two, and instead their relationship is a very convincing sibling one

“The one thing I’m worried about now is that girl. That girl who’s so gentle… who has such beautiful eyes…” And for contrast, here’s Nanoha immediately demonstrating the kind of language she uses for thinking about Fate

A few days later, Nanoha is busy being a lump in bed. She’s definitely earned it

Chrono calls to inform Nanoha that she can meet up with Fate before Fate is transferred to their central office. I kinda love how this finale takes place entirely post-Precia, and makes explicit the fact that this show’s true core was Nanoha finally making a connection with Fate

Fate’s casual clothes still stick to her black-against-yellow color scheme, of course

There’s something weirdly adorable about Yuuno jumping on Arf’s shoulder. Supportive mascots unite!

“I had so much to say to you, but the second I saw you, I forgot all of it.” “But after today, you’ll be leaving for a while, right?” Nanoha speaks of friends, but the dramatic framing and dialogue used here are all classically romantic choices

Fate asks how they actually become friends, which seems like a fair question given her own life experience

“Your hand sure is warm… Nanoha.” Oh my god this scene

Damnit, now I just want to see these two actually working together. This is one hell of a hook for a second season – even just this scene feels like a strong demonstration of the friendly dynamic they’ll develop, with Fate being the more stoic one and Nanoha being this ball of emotions

“Next time, when you’re in trouble, I’ll be sure to be the one to save you.” These twooooo

Ahaha Arf is crying too. ARF IS SO GOOD. I am so infinitely grateful they didn’t just kill her to raise the stakes or something. Be kind to your characters! Don’t shelter them from things they have to experience, but don’t expend them cheaply, either

Nanoha hands off her hair ribbons. “This is all I can give you… so you’ll remain in my memories.” I guess Madoka’s use of this conceit was a direct nod to its predecessor, then

I hate to tell you this Fate, but you look very silly in those ribbons

And Done

Well, that sure was an extremely Nanoha conclusion. As it turns out, the prior episode’s final moments had basically already resolved all of this show’s conflicts, and so we were afforded a full episode of denouement and reconciliation. That itself felt very characteristic of this show, which has always prioritized the seemingly mundane lived experience of its characters over barreling forward with beat-after-beat drama. And the ultimate reunion of Nanoha and Fate was an incredibly charming scene that single-handedly established a new and loving friendship between them. From its unique genre melding to its profoundly influential dramatic choices, engaging direction, and novel set of dramatic priorities, this has been a critically engaging and just-plain-fun ride all throughout. I am very happy to have a greater understanding of how Nanoha clearly impacted subsequent anime, and have enjoyed spending this journey with all of you. On to Nanoha’s next adventure!

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