Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to check back in on the explosive theatrics of Thunderbolt Fantasy, as our gallant hero Shang faces off with his former ally Wan Jun Po. Having been disillusioned with the selfish, chaotic orders of our murder princess, and with Shang refusing to use his sorceress sword index to interfere with the affairs of the mortal plane, Wan Jun Po made the most sensible choice he could think of: join forces with the Order of the Divine Swarm, that his evil master’s cleansing light might bring peace to this world.

Yes, it does indeed seem a little extreme, but I’m happy to see Wan Jun Po taking his place in the extensive pantheon of “I’ll take this evil upon me for the good of the world” Urobuchian heroes and anti-heroes. Season three had up until now been pretty light on Urobuchi’s usual moral quandaries, and if we can jumpstart the themey-wemey stuff while getting a duel between friends turned rivals in the process, all the better. Let’s jump right into the swordsmanship and sorcery of Thunderbolt Fantasy!

Episode 4

Given Dan Fei shows up in this OP, I’m hoping she’ll pop into the season proper at some point. She had a uniquely strong rapport with Shang – most of his companions tend to annoy him to the point where he just responds in sarcastic grunting noises, but Dan Fei is so earnest that she actually drew some earnestness out of him as well, resulting in some of the franchise’s most interesting conversations

Also eagerly awaiting the moment when Wan Jun Po turns his back on his new allies, and sacrifices his life in a final act of hopeless redemption. We in the real Urobuchi hours now

“If we both think we’re doing what’s right, then all that’s left is to see who’s more stubborn!” Well said, Shang. This show remains a treasure trove of one liners

Shang’s doing his best, but as the head of the Divine Swarm happily reveals, all of his adherents get crazy powerups and lair actions in this space he has created

“We were just walking through the palace tunnels, right? How did they lead to some freaky evil chamber!?” Juan Can Yun rightfully critiques this season’s bullshit level design

Meanwhile, Lin has already realized that this chamber is some kind of illusion. I appreciate that as a master of trickery and illusions himself, one of his main party roles is calling bullshit on other sorcerers’ gimmicks

What’s more, he looks beyond the what to the why, swiftly deducing that this illusion must mean there is an escape from this situation that’s currently being concealed

“Shang has gotten careless. A drawn-out fight where the enemy has the advantage is a bad idea.” Shang’s normally just as willing to retreat as Lin, but this fight is apparently personal

God, Wan Jun Po really does have some bullshit powers here. His sword is actually two swords, and he can use some kind of spell to make the smaller one just spin continuously on his palm like a circular saw. That is some highly irregular swordsmanship

“I can’t let any of them have this power!” Shang is an interesting riff on the usual Urobuchi protagonist, because he’s essentially made a career of existing at what would usually be the conclusion of an Urobuchi narrative. Characters like Madoka or Kiritsugu grasp towards one moment of world-defining power, hoping their righteousness will be sufficient to steer a power too dangerous for most people to use judiciously. In contrast, Shang has long since acquired this world-shifting power, and thus must spend his days fending off the countless opponents who’d use it for selfish ends. He is perpetually slapping people’s hands away from the wish-granting prize that really shouldn’t exist at all

Speaking of which, here comes Lou Zhen via teleport crystal, eager to cause even more problems

Lou Zhen’s new arm actually detaches to become a sword for his remaining arm. Brilliant work, cyborg dude

Fortunately, Lou Zhen’s such a blunt negotiator that he immediately gets on the Divine Swarm’s bad side

Man, they are doing some crazy spinning choreography tricks with the puppets this season. Fun to imagine them tying these guys up with string to spin them free, like heroic foosball warriors

Also like how, for all the absurd bombast of their weapons, the show is attempting to respect the unique capabilities of each one. Wan Jun Po’s tooth-edged sword is great for catching opponent’s weapons, while Lou Zhen’s spinning spear does exactly the opposite, redirecting his opponents’ force to the side

Ooh, I love this ominous droning track as Lou Zhen begins to power up

With the illusion broken, Lin steps in to deflect Lou Zhen’s strikes with his goddamn pipe. The master of disrespect

With Wan Jun Po’s treachery almost discovered by the palace guards, it is Lin who actually saves him, calling it “a small act of kindness, inspired by the general’s display of love for his homeland.” Lin understands that Wan Jun Po is driven by noble goals, and I imagine he thinks he can still make use of him – either simply by confusing his loyalty towards the Divine Swarm, or by making him actually defect. And what would be more shameful to the Divine Swarm than losing this key ally to a joker like Lin? I imagine he’s already savoring the thought of pissing off Huo Shi

“Doesn’t leaving Lin to his own devices worry you? Just… not about him.” Even Lin’s actual allies consider him mostly a liability, so I imagine he’s quite comfortable with Wan Jun Po’s company

Treating Lang’s injuries, Shang reflects that even the strongest warrior can be struck down easily if they are attacked when they aren’t expecting it. Shang’s musings reflect his general understanding that strength is ephemeral, and thus should never be confused with righteousness

“Seems like he actually did lose Seven Blasphemous Deaths. Which is another whole problem, but right now, not a priority.” Shang is very good at setting aside secondary concerns and focusing on the immediate task at hand, as he previously demonstrated through his disinterest in whatever dimension the void crystals sent them to. Lin weaves spiderwebs of plots, Shang cuts through them with blunt efficiency

Shang plans to hide his allies with Tian Gong Gui Jiang, the craftsman who actually created the Sorcerous Sword Index

“The humble Gui Niao only wished to demonstrate his usefulness to you gentlemen.” Goddamnit Lin, you’re not fooling anyone. Though this is still perfectly in character for him – Lin is the type of liar who will lie even without reason, purely for the pleasure of deceiving and speaking untruths. He prefers a world veiled in a perpetual smoke of misdirection, and does his best to blow as much of that smoke himself as he can

“Gui Nao? That’s not what Lady Xing Hai called you.” “If I may… it’s dangerous to take a demon’s words for what they seem to imply.” Oh my god Lin. He’s not technically wrong, but what a shameless play to make here

And when Wan asks if he’s betraying Shang, Lin counters that Wan himself was also Shang’s ally. Lin is an expert at using partial truths to construct larger falsehoods

Love this scene of Lin and Wan reflecting on Shang’s directness and obstinance. Wan admits “he means no harm, but he definitely has a tendency to focus on the immediate future over the big picture.” It’s undeniably true, though I think Shang would consider it a strength – “big picture” folks are to him people like Lin and the various seasonal antagonists, people who get so lost in some eventual goal that they lose sight of the injustice they’re committing in its pursuit

“I only wish to do what I believe is right and adhere to those beliefs, as any person should.” The goddamn audacity of this man. Lin is so fun

Wan seems genuinely taken by Lin’s honorable words, while Piaomiao can only sigh, lamenting that he has to hang out with these boring dudes instead of the Princess of Cruelty

“You have an intrinsic understanding of strategy” Lin tells Wan, practically salivating over how he’s going to misdirect all these fools

Aw shit, and now Xing Hai has found the Seven Blasphemous Deaths. What’s more, it seems like the demon trapped inside the blade is actually one of her sisters!

And Done

What a generously stuffed episode that was! The fight between Shang, Wan Jun Po, and Lou Zhen was an absolute delight, with lots of impressive choreography and fundamentally imaginative clashes of over-the-top sorcerous weaponry. But beyond the action, this episode continued to press harder on the character relations and philosophical divisions among the main cast, returning us to the engagingly meaty disagreements of the show’s earlier seasons. Wan Jun Po is proving himself a fantastic addition to the cast, and any episode where Lin gets to engage in this much scheming is going to be a keeper. This was a thoroughly satisfying episode that only has me more excited than ever to see how things evolve, and where Lin’s newest ploy is leading. On with the next one!

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