Hello folks, and what the fuck is up. You all ready for some goddamn SYMPHOGEAR!???!?!?? I know I certainly am, and that it’s been far too long since we last checked in on the team’s adventures. Hibiki’s fist has been suspended in mid-punch for weeks now, her roar of “I’ll punch you with my song” resounding with all the force of a show’s essential pitch expressed as dialogue.

Adam is one of the most vile, irredeemable villains this franchise has concocted, and with the alchemists having already sacrificed themselves, it falls to our heroes to Finish This Fight. Having rescued Hibiki from one of those evil cocoons that our characters keep stumbling into, the team is fully assembled, and undoubtedly about to unleash some combo attack that exceeds my theatrical imagination. It’s frankly hard being a hype man for a show that’s this genuinely hype, so I’m gonna give myself a rest now, and just let the show take the reins. Let’s dive into the final episode of SYMPHOGEAR AXZ!

Episode 13

“The Reality Proved When Each Tear Falls On The Next.” A+, 10/10 episode titling. You can always count on Symphogear to clock in a title that sounds like a speed metal band’s indulgent concept album. I think Symphogear and Coheed & Cambria shop at the same title store

We open by once more saying goodbye to the alchemists. This show is very good at writing endearing villains, but we’ve also added so many characters to the main cast that even when they’re redeemed, at this point the show basically has to write them a glorious death. You can’t write in arcs for six symphogear wielders, three autoscorers, and half a dozen alchemists in a thirteen episode season, to say nothing of when you’re also establishing a new villain

“You’re still after the power of the gods!?” “This time… it’s in my hand.” Ouch ouch, that pun is terrible

The arm is now “a philosophical weapon filled with 2000 years of curses.” Hibiki rightfully ignores this insight

“Once again, all I could do was punch!” Hibiki please do not get existential about your powers, you are not equipped for this sort of reflection. You hug and punch, that’s good, you’re doing great

“What protected this country was alchemists dying for their ideals.” I’m sure Tsubasa’s grandfather would love this takeaway

“Understanding each other is impossible until the Curse of Balal is lifted. Until we can surpass the custodians that laid the curse on us, the Anunnaki.” Oh hey, that’s a new name

The Curse of Balal seems pretty bad, but all of the prescriptions we’ve been offered for it are shit like “blow up the moon” or “surrender to instrumentality.” These villains aren’t giving us much to work with here

This show does a good job of championing “shonen protagonist stupidity” as a genuine virtue – the cast claim that it is because they are “stupid” and imperfect that they can keep fighting back against impossible situations. I recall that later Negima actually went into some similar territory, though it never explored the “importance of the hero mindset” as fully as I’d have liked. Ken Akamatsu has some interesting ideas, but the ideas-to-nonsense ratio in his work can be pretty intimidating

Symphogear’s fight scenes have gotten so generous that it’s almost hard to fully appreciate them. So many absurd feats per second!

It seems unlikely now that the TV franchise has concluded, but I would kill for an Arc System Works Symphogear fighting game. This is basically already BlazBlue

“Are you saying that choosing justice is the cause of conflict?” I mean yeah, fighting for justice kinda implies conflict. “No conflict” is rarely a positive ideal, and in any society defined by injustice, preaching “no conflict” promotes that injustice

“Songs will never die!” That’s our girl

“So that’s True Adam?” I love how they capitalize his new boss form even in the subtitles

So are there like, super powered monsters just sorta lurking out there? I’m not sure what Adam genuinely being a dragon means for the mythology of Symphogear, but I’m comforted by the fact that it can’t possibly matter

OH MY GOD, HE USED HIS TELEPORTING PHONE TO DISTRACT THE BABIES. Incredible payoff for a season’s worth of teleport phone

Oh shit, it’s the S2CA Hexa-Conversion! Alright, they’re clearly just fucking with me now, they definitely never mentioned this before

The Ex-Drive transformations are always so great. Symphogear has definitely steered away from its original horror elements, but they live on somewhat in this delightfully monstrous upgrade

“You overstep your place, humanity!” You know you’re on the right side in a debate when your opponent’s yelling shit like that

“No! Recoil corruption!?” It’s frankly getting hard to keep track of all the powers and anti-powers possessed by the Symphogear wielders. It’s like Evangelion’s bridge chatter, except we’re actually supposed to understand the flow of these shifts, rather than them just serving as tonal reinforcements

This shot of Hibiki in the rubble is simultaneously one of this episode’s best visual compositions, and also one of its most butt-filled compositions. I suppose Symphogear wouldn’t have it any other way

Hibiki is infused with the powers of all of her friends! Even Adam thinks this is bullshit power creep, yelling that “you can’t just do whatever you want!” You may think that Adam, but what about PUUUNCH

Ahaha, this is such a gleefully indulgent choice. As Hibiki uses all of their powers, each member of the team shouts out in recognition, offering their delightfully chuuni titles. At times, Symphogear feels like nothing more than a child playing with action figures brought to life, in the best possible way

“The custodians will descend soon.” I guess we’ve got our season five premise established

We’re going through some classic giant robot/shonen beats here, as Hibiki makes her final charge. First, there’s the esteemed “giant robot dumps all of its added parts to fight the final foe,” as Hibiki does an armor purge. Then, we’ve got the “golden armor transformation,” which Symphogear attributes to the alchemists, but I think we can probably attribute in a larger sense to Saint Seiya

SHE PUNCHES RIGHT THROUGH HIS GUTS

Elfnein is curious about Hibiki’s nature, since only a pure soul “untouched by original sin” should be able to work as a vessel. I am eager to see Symphogear’s wildly heretical interpretation of original sin

I like how we check in on Ogawa and he’s just got a bunch of dudes in purple robes tied up. I imagine alchemists aren’t hard to find if they’re always dressed like that

The UN chastises the US for firing missiles, but unsurprisingly can’t do more than that – and at this point, the world in general is terrified by the potential of god-tier weapons

Oh shit right, it’s Hibiki’s birthday!

Her smile is so bright. She’s the toughest sunbeam out there

Bless this Chris pasta callback. This show knows the important things

“Will I still be able to clench my fist believing in justice tomorrow?” Saint Germaine had a real impact on Hibiki. She was her first opponent she couldn’t really “turn,” yet still completely respected. In the wake of that, Hibiki realizes some battles may have a kind of justice represented on both sides

“Even if you can’t believe in yourself, I won’t let go of the hand I’m holding.” Miku remains the Queen of Wife Island

Apparently one of the laser beams in season three cured Hibiki of original sin. Sure, we’re going with it

And Done

AND SO THE BATTLE RAGES ON! Though this was technically the end of season four, it really does feel more like a lull in between Symphogear’s final acts. Commissioning these two seasons simultaneously clearly benefited the show a great deal; rather than simply inventing new seasonal villains again and again, S4/5’s combined structure has actually allowed Symphogear to structurally pull itself together. The Curse of Balal, the resistance of the alchemists, and the tribalist, self-destructive desires of humanity – Symphogear is actually starting to feel cohesive at this point, which is something I’d never have expected a season ago. And with S4 having finally solidified the Symphoteam into a cohesive unit, I’m expecting some wondrous combos from the season to come. Terrific fights, charming characters, and a healthy layering of action-savvy irreverence; Symphogear remains a unique treasure.

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