We’re truly in it now, folks. After already having consumed Seriousuka’s home dimension, the Emissary of Twilight has journeyed on to Asuka’s own world, and revealed itself to be a third Asuka altogether. Except this Asuka is tiny, so I guess that makes it Chibi Asuka? Smolsuka? I like Smolsuka, I’m going with that.
Anyway, as my cavalier attitude might indicate, I’m not terribly worried about how this whole King of Twilight conflict plays out. The show itself has rarely hung much dramatic weight on its scifi trappings; instead, we get goofy stuff like Cowboy World, playful venues for our heroines to go on adventures. The solidity of the fantastical trappings has been consistently loose because the show’s dramatic bedrock lies elsewhere: in the utterly convincing friendships between Asuka and her friends, and in its consistent reflections on what it means to assume a mature identity. One by one, Asuka’s friends have had their preconceptions about their identities challenged, and emerged stronger for it – but for Asuka, embracing a new self feels like a betrayal of her lost brother. At this point, I’m holding out for Yu still somehow reaching her – but either way, I’m eager to see how her journey ends. Let’s get to it!
Episode 11
Odd choice to open with this distant aerial shot, as we return to Asuka’s friends. It’s obviously not unusual to open with an establishing shot, but I figure one panning out across Asuka’s hometown would do a better job of conveying the human stakes of this battle. This flat aerial shot of the town’s main intersection feels a bit emotionally sterile for its job, and it’s also just not very pretty
The aerial shots continue as we move closer to Asuka’s friends. Perhaps they’re attempting to evoke the sense of an invasive presence coming down from above, or create a sense of disorientation? I’d be interested in hearing the rationale for these layouts; normally it’s clear enough what a cinematographer was going for, whether or not they achieve it
As expected, the others head off to fight the Clutters, while Yu heads for Asuka. Yu’s relationship with Asuka is one of Twilight’s dramatic linchpins – in fact, this narrative’s “characters reach their lowest point” moment came not when Seriousuka was killed, but when Asuka and Yu got in a fight about it
I like the pattern on Smolsuka’s robes
Smolsuka was selected because she had “the qualities that allow me to become one with the Twilight,” qualities that Asuka also apparently shares. And if these two Asukas share those qualities, Seriousuka presumably does as well. Seriousuka lives!
Ooh, I love a good “character caught in the reflection of an eye” closeup. An inherently pretty style of composition, and also an easy visual shorthand for being totally focused on your opponent
“I beg of myself to surpass my current self.” The OP’s lyrics feel pretty on point, now that Twilight’s thematic priorities are so clear
Ooh, I love how the corrupted Kitta-sensei’s glasses are utterly opaque, just a swirl of yellow energy. A really creepy, dehumanizing effect
Kitta-sensei is so diabolical that he doesn’t even follow sentai/magical girl rules, and attacks our heroines right when they start transforming. That’s just low, Kitta-sensei
“All things perpetuate a cycle of destruction and growth.” Oh great, one of these villains. People get so caught up on the fantasy trappings of narratives, when those trappings are generally just a series of familiar, interchangeable parts. The dragons are not what makes your story unique!
I greatly appreciate Asuka’s perspective here. She doesn’t give a crap about the Twilight’s lofty perspective, she just needs to know if beating up Smolsuka will make its work harder
And she just picks up a big stick to hit Smolsuka with. Asuka, I love you
“Everything you do is fake. Do you even know who you are?” Along with Asuka, Yu is the only other character who wasn’t given an identity-reassessing arc. Oddly enough, this is actually a reflection of her importance to the narrative. Nana, Chloe, and Mia were never essential to Twilight’s central dramatic arc, and could thus be “solved” as characters through self-contained arcs. In contrast, Yu’s story is directly tied to Asuka’s; the two of them are both lying to themselves, and remaining in stasis in order to maintain a certain level of peace. Asuka’s behavior is more obvious, but even Yu is ready to abandon responsibilities in order to stick with her friend, lying to herself all the while. It thus makes perfect sense for Sexy Yu to arrive now, and shake Yu’s shoulders until she stops lying to herself, and embraces her feelings. She doesn’t have to be as uninhibited as Sexy Yu, but she needs to lighten up a bit!
And so Sexy Yu gives her a Clutter radar, and tells her that only she can save this world’s Asuka
The other three have been trapped in an illusory high school by Kitta-sensei. Along with offering some direct action to balance the emotional drama of the Yu/Asuka narrative, Kitta’s presence here serves another crucial purpose: simply getting these three out of the way, while still giving them something important to do. Asuka and Yu’s story would not benefit from these three being there; they’d only obfuscate the core of the drama, and so they’re assigned a miniboss to give the episode some straightforward ticking-clock tension
“You know far too little about the truths of this world. I will now conduct a lesson on these truths.” Apparently this subplot will also serve a third purpose: filling out our worldbuilding through a direct lecture. Ugh, do we have to?
Okay good, he’s actually just confronting them with their past selves. Far more reasonable, and a decent way to bookend their arcs, and reaffirm their growth
Kitta’s attack on Mia basically comes prepackaged: “fight all you like, this is still going to be a patriarchal world, and you’re still going to be loved most when you perform traditional femininity.” A mean thing to say, but unfortunately not a lie
If Kitta truly wanted this to work, he wouldn’t have grouped them together. His attacks wound them because they’re insecure about their growth, but if they have each other to support them, they’ll overcome his petty jabs
“What should I say to Asuka? No, that’s not it. The important thing is to say what I want to say to Asuka.” Both Asuka and Yu have been lying to each other for years, hiding their true feelings out of fear, and never letting their frustrations show. Over time, they’ve ended up lying to themselves as well, in order to maintain their brittle friendship. But a true friendship requires true mutual understanding, and to reach that, Asuka and Yu must acknowledge the feelings they’ve been repressing all this time
In exchange for her own life, Asuka demands Smolsuka bring Seriousuka and her world back
As expected, the three girls in the classroom are all able to encourage each other back to confidence. Honestly, this whole subplot was basically just make-work storytelling; these three had to be kept busy, and the story lands with more impact if they reaffirm their arcs right now, rather than already feeling “finished” as characters. But in truth, their arcs really did finish back during their individual adventures, so the story has to futz a bit to give them some conflict now
I do like that they finish him off by bullying him about proposing to his girlfriend again
Smolsuka also lost Kyo ten years ago
In her sadness, the Twilight came to her. So it seems the Twilight is a bit like instrumentality – everyone is combined into a singular entity, living in perpetual stasis. The natural thematic antagonist of this story about shedding your childhood persona, and embracing the person you want to become
“You cannot change the truth of your loss. But you can forget your sadness.”
“Asuka, I’m here! And I love you more than anyone in the world!” YUUU
And admitting her love for Asuka activates her powers! Meaning that basically, to Yu, Asuka is the future she wasn’t willing to admit she wanted? THIS SHOW
I appreciate the ambition of this crazy panning cut up to Yu’s activation, even if the CG background can’t really pull off a convincing effect, and the composite between the CG and Yu is terrible
AND SO SHE FLIES INTO THE TWILIGHT REALM TO SAVE HER GODDAMN GIRLFRIEND
“You know, Asuka. You might not have heard me right now, but I… I just…” Hah, no ambiguity there, huh. A genuine romantic confession from her. I really didn’t expect the show to embrace an out-and-out romance between these two, but I’m happy to see it – their mutual concern clearly goes beyond simple friendship, and Yu at least is constantly preoccupied with thinking about Asuka
“It’s because of you that I think it’s okay to keep on living.” Goddamn, Asuka. What a beautiful thing to say – she believed she didn’t deserve to live after her brother disappeared, but Yu’s love for her managed to make her love herself again. What a beautiful goddamn relationship!
Oh my god, Yu princess carrying Asuka on her rocket surfboard is just so much. THESE TWO
And then they just lovingly look in each other’s eyes. The Emissary of Twilight is not amused
Ooh, they do pull off a nice shot for the pair tumbling off the rocket, with the camera following them through the tumble. These camera tricks work much better in the Twilight’s fully CG environments, when the characters themselves are in their CG suits
Their little shared smile as they stand back to back for battle. This show’s finale is going to kill me
“Eh, first I’m a liar, now I’m arrogant!?” Their rapport is so good. They’ve always been very comfortable with this argumentative, manzai-adjacent back and forth, but now that they’ve admitted they love each other, it all feels even more fond and familiar
The others arrive, and Mia summons a gun-horse that transforms into an even bigger gun. I love these stupid, stupid powers
“Yu, how’d you become an Equalizer?” “I-I didn’t say anything important!” “Ah, so you did say something important, to Asuka”
And Done
Ahaha, what an episode! The stuff with Chloe, Mia, and Nana was a little clumsy, but the phenomenal material for our main pair more than made up for it. Yu and Asuka’s journeys have each been articulated with great nuance throughout, as the show portrayed all the ways that Kyo’s absence drove an emotional rift between them. Seeing each of them acknowledge how much they care, and genuinely admit their love for each other, was a resounding payoff built on a season’s worth of top notch characterization and whip-fast conversational rapport. They’ve always been delightful together, and seeing them affirm how much they love each other was the perfect conclusion for their journey. On to defeating the King of Twilight!
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