I assume each plot arc is one light novel, and the third plot arc ended with ep 12. I think it was the most spectacular yet.

This show isn't giving me a lot of fan service, although we've seen two of the girls in their underwear briefly. What it is giving me is great magical battles, with lots of fireworks and lots of destruction -- and a small amount of blood on occasion, enough to make the battles believable without being so much as to be wallowing in gore. (Which I understand is the case in the series Freezing.)

I'm sensing some in-series tropes. One is Yukina saying, "No, sempai, we've won." She's said that in the final battle of each of the three arcs just before she administers the coup de grace. Another is Kojou getting henpecked by his harem afterwards, but that's de rigueur for a harem series.

Another is that every arc includes him drinking the blood of some new girl and awakening another of his familiars. He's got twelve, reportedly, so they can keep that going for quite some time.

Yukina continues to be interesting and powerful. His power is increasing and hers isn't, but she's good enough so that she isn't being left behind. She's also a smart fighter; she doesn't just rely on power and magic. And she hasn't been a damsel-in-distress yet.

Beethoven is quoted as saying that he had a hard time with endings in his pieces, because his music built up so much force and momentum that by the end most endings would have seemed anticlimactic. I'm wondering about this one; it's going to take one hell of a finale to make me feel sated and satisfied.

UPDATE: They're also borrowing ideas. The one about doors connecting all over the place, wasn't that in the Magic Users Club series?

UPDATE: And Yuuma is Fate from Nanoha.

UPDATE: Ep 19: "No, sempai, this is our fight." I think that was the fifth time Yukina has said that.

Posted by: Steven Den Beste in General Anime at 12:33 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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