The Chained Soldier season finale (episode 12) was an eventful one from beginning to end. It was filled with emotion, some creative production decisions, intense action, suspenseful story development, and of course, fan service.
Episode 12 had a lot going on. It felt like a mashup of all the good traits of the series and its characters. There was never a scene that dragged on too long or felt out of place that derailed any momentum. Above all else, this finale showed that the writing for Chained Soldier is actually better than some criticize it for.
Kyouka gaining peace of mind after defeating the Unihorn with Yuuki was wonderfully done from a writing and voice-acting standpoint. The transitions from each scene were impactful, especially Yamamato’s soundtrack behind it. It really made me sympathize with Kyouka as a person more than any other episode did beforehand. Sure, other episodes dug a little trench into her past, but everything came around full circle wonderfully in this episode.
All the scenes from her past going back and forth with her present self is how a proper end to one part of her story should finish. Remembering the reason she was there in that moment, which we got a beautifully produced glimpse of, came together as a perfectly layered story.
The cherry blossoms turn into fire. The brutal sound designs of watching her friend be crushed in front of her to watching the Unihorn perish by her hands. It was an all-around well-crafted part of episode 12 that Kyouka rightfully deserved.
It just went on to further strengthen my argument of Kyouka being the best character in the series. There’s no legitimate trait of hers that’s dislikeable and that’s crucial for the main character. She’s not there for strictly fan service—no. Kyouka has an unbreakable resolve. And after this episode, that resolve gained strength for a new, unexpected reason—to help Aoba.
Where do we begin? Kyouka and Tenka vow to help Aoba when it’ll be possible. Aoba agrees to side with them but not the rest of the Demon Defense Force. Shikoku has taken Naon and Koko, trying to turn them into something much grander than their current forms. Himari wants to improve her ability to be able to fight alongside Kyouka. Shushu and Tenka are still Yuuki-obsessed. There’s just so much more to unfold.
I’ve said before Aoba’s character constantly rubbed me the wrong way but her final goodbye to Yuuki before going their separate ways was really well done in both voice acting and music. The light piano is always a perfect go-to for any music composer when it comes to touching moments—also one that I highly prefer than any other instrument to set a mood.
There was no brother-complex humor from Aoba this time around which made it much more enjoyable. She joked with him at the end giving him an “A+” that really put a lid on their “for now” goodbye in a way that shows Chained Soldier can flex its writing muscles when it needs to.
Now, thanks to Aoba’s conversation with Tenka and Kyouka, we have another side of the story to pull interesting developments from. It wasn’t a complicated one and it gives fans something else to be excited about other than Naon and Koko being taken away.
However, Aoba didn’t seem to be strung up on watching her friends being taken away. No cliche final scream for them? No anger? I wouldn’t say I necessarily wished either of those showed from her at that point in time, but she did have her moment of stoicism at the end of the episode that showed how much she’s grown in just the span of a few episodes, even if she was the one who sent the Shuuki out to fight the 7th Squad.
I loved how all the girls gave Yuuki his respects at the celebrity dinner. It was a nice change of pace from it usually being the opposite with them in the spotlight. Albeit, it was cut short because of Shushu, it was a nice moment for our future hero.
It was also a time for Yuuki to reflect which we don’t see all too often. Usually, he’s basking in the glow of the series’ intimate moments or he’s punching the mess out of some CGI demons. So it almost made me feel happy for Yuuki in a way that he got a proper, civil response from everyone in the 6th and 7th squads for his hard work.
He’s always treated all of them with proper respect so it was a nice change of pace seeing them all do the same for him in a proper way. Kyouka playing rough with Yuuki towards the end felt a lot more serious than it was portrayed. She rough-housed him, sure. But it almost felt like it was Kyouka’s own way of showing Yuuki how much she cares for him and that’s starting to come out a lot more recently, fan service aside.
Chained Soldier received a surprisingly solid adaptation. Seeing another Takahiro work come to life is always a joy to see. I’d go as far as to say this season finale may be my favorite episode of the series so far. There was just everything you could want and all the characters we’ve gotten to know throughout the season had their own moments in this episode, no matter how big or little.
I think this is an anime that’s only going to garner more and more interest as it continues, for both story’s sake and the new characters we’ll be introduced to. I can’t wait for a season two announcement!
Episode 12 rating: 8.5/10
If you loved Chained Soldier episode 12 then be sure to vote for it in our weekly poll! There is currently no news on Chained Soldier Season 2. HIDIVE is streaming the uncensored version of the anime.
Images via HIDIVE
© Takahiro / Yohei Takemura / Shueisha / Magic Defense Corps Public Relations Department