Well folks, it’s just about that time again. Wednesday has arrived once more, and though I’m currently buried under a variety of end-of-year lists and other assorted projects, the ongoing anime season still demands a moment of reflection. The anime was quite good this week, on the whole – My Hero Academia seems to finally be realizing the dramatic potential of the Overhaul arc, while Stars Align and Vinland Saga remained as reliably excellent as ever. There’s plenty to discuss and never enough time, so let’s jump right into another Week in Review!

For the first time in what feels like far too long, I am happy to report My Hero Academia killed it this week. Red Riot’s major battle and “origin story” were one of the top highlights of the Overhaul manga arc, and this episode did its material justice and then some.

In terms of visual execution, the sheer brutality of this slugfest came through clearly in the production’s thick, wildly shifting linework, creating the sensation of characters whose fundamental physical forms were being shaken by the force of their blows. There was no real strategy to this fight – it was purely a test of physical strength and endurance, as each side hammered the other as forcefully as possible. A lack of narrative complexity like that can often lead to underwhelming battles, but this episode’s beautifully raw animation made it one of the anime’s most thrilling sequences yet.

This episode also benefited greatly from Kirishima’s very compelling backstory. My Hero Academia’s initial pitch is “what if you were a normal person in a world of superpowers,” but Midoriya swiftly proves he’s anything but ordinary, and while his journey is sympathetic, it’s hardly a relatable “everyman” story. In contrast, Kirishima’s anxieties about his quirk, and self-doubt when he doesn’t spring into action, felt painfully relatable, and his anxieties being both echoed and assuaged by his own role model served as another strong demonstration of My Hero Academia’s thematic heart. I’m happy to see My Hero Academia can still pull off an episode like this.

Stars Align’s latest episode offered a pretty balanced helping of basically all the show’s key ingredients, featuring some tense home scenes courtesy of Toma and Rintarou, slice of life shenanigans with Maki, and even a couple of match sequences. I was amused by the thematically on-the-nose choice of making this show’s apparent “final boss” a pair of twins – given this show is basically all about the importance and validity of found, non-genetic families, having the ultimate “villains” be the most genetically related felt pretty funny to me.

This episode was full of charming little asides like that, as well as nice bits of incidental characterization; the class president’s sudden and sympathetic “oh jeez, am I being a bully?” was another great moment, and Toma’s anger issues were handled gracefully throughout. Stars Align can sometimes overstep in terms of its personal drama, but it simultaneously possesses a satisfyingly light touch when it comes to little fragments of unvarnished humanity like this.

Finally, Vinland Saga pulled out all the stops for Askeladd’s full backstory, offering an episode rich in beautiful backgrounds, evocative character closeups, and even some fluid fight animation. The fading light of the late afternoon sun set the ideal tone for this somber, reflective episode, supplementing recent episodes’ persistent snowscapes with a burnt yellow skyline, and providing a natural complement to Askeladd’s unusually frank confessions.

Those confessions fell perfectly in line with Vinland Saga’s persistent emphasis on the natural, tragic cycles of human society. Ever since the introduction of Canute, Askeladd has spent all of his time and resources attempting to break those cycles, and perhaps help instigate a new and kinder world order. But even Askeladd’s pursuit of a better world could be seen as a kind of “revenge” for the fate of his mother – and here in the finale, he revealed his similarities to his two adopted “sons” stretched even further than their mutual entrapment within this system. Just as Thorfinn is planning to kill Askeladd, and Canute is planning to kill the king, so did Thorfinn once kill his own father.

Askeladd seemed to intend this story as both a gesture of solidarity and a cautionary tale. His final takeaway seemed to be that killing his father proved he was one more cog in this violent machine, and thus unfit to be king of a new world. Unfortunately, neither of his current sons internalize that moral – Canute wonders at why he didn’t seek the kingship for himself, while Thorfinn reiterates his desire to kill Askeladd, proving they’re still both the boys that Askeladd once was. Attempting to build a perfect world out of imperfect pieces is difficult, and it seems the wisdom Askeladd has internalized through suffering might not be teachable without it.