天下制覇

Subtle lighting there, Zexcs.

Impressions:

I guess this episode was supposed to create a contrast of everybody living their happy lives before Sion betrayed Lyner and tried to kill him, but I’m pretty sure that they could have figured out a better way to do it than by having everybody go out of character and do schtick for Sion’s birthday party for 75% of the episode followed by an insert song and montage of fireworks. Even Miran was doing gag comedy. That was… unsettling. Also, people at parties in this show have traditionally been murdered. I think this is the first social get-together that didn’t end in some form of disembowelment.

Don’t get me wrong, the gags made this episode at least three or four times more entertaining than usual, but the whiplash here from changing atmospheres is a little staggering. Plus if they wanted to show Sion suddenly snapping and attacking Lyner after all that talk of "isn’t Roland super neato?" then they shouldn’t have had some kind of weird environmental jump. It was hard to even understand what was going on for a moment. No transition or anything. Just one moment they’re on the parapets, the next they’re in the courtyard. As it is, Sion’s overly plotty nature and the tone of the episode undercut that scene and make me think that it’s all for show instead of Sion finally actually trying to kill him. So there goes that contrast they were probably working for.

Preview:

Just put him out of his misery already and rule the world with your harem, Lyner.