The battle continues in the fourth episode of GRANBELM, though time runs short. There is also a case of the enemy of an enemy being a friend – or not, it depends on whether the girls can trust each other.
Nene makes the battlefield a much more dangerous place
In this episode, the battle that started previously reaches its conclusion, and then the mages start tracking each other down in the real world.
Mangetsu can sense when an attack is incoming
We jump right into the action for this episode, with the skirmishes between ARMANOX interrupted by a bombardment of lasers. It really brings up the intensity of the battle, and gives Mangetsu an opportunity to show off her dodging skills.
DROSELA
During this battle, we also get to see Suishou’s DROSELA in action. It isn’t for all that long, as there are a time limit on GRANBELM battles. When the moon sets, the battle finishes.
Suishou’s voice should sound familiar, especially if you are also watching Symphogear XV this season
Kuon proposes an alliance with Mangetsu & Shingetsu
After the intense action at the beginning, things calm down for the second half of the episode as we get back to the real world. Well, besides Anna – she boils with rage.
This part of the episode has Mangetsu, Shingetsu and Kuon discuss an alliance, though they also have an eavesdropper listening in.
Kuon, Shingetsu & Mangetsu
This episode also delves into Nene’s past a little, which gives us some insight into why she looks the way she does. She also makes quite a bold decision at the end of this episode, perhaps influenced by the conversation she overhears between Mangetsu and Shingetsu.
This episode of GRANBELM was good, though the way in which the fight ended was somewhat anticlimactic. The action up until the end was intense, as I’ve mentioned.
Discovering more about our characters and their motivations is also nice, and in this case the episode very much belonged to Nene.
Nene may have been the star, though I feel like it is also worth focusing on Mangetsu potentially being a “new mage”. That seems to be a new concept for GRANBELM, so perhaps Mangetsu will shake up the system in some way.
It has been implied there can be only one winner of GRANBELM, but the subtitle for this series suggests otherwise: The Two Princeps.
Overall, a good episode, I would say.
Rory Muses 