English Dub Review: Ragna Crimson “End of the Battle to the Death”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

The battle is over, but at a heavy price.  While a weary corps mourns their losses, representatives from the Solarian Church arrive to meet the fabled Reaper.

Our Take: 

The war between the Argentum Corps and the dragon Monarchs began and concluded with a bang!  Unfortunately, like many other wars, this one came at the cost of countless losses.  While the teleportation circle managed to rescue the surviving corps members and civilians, it couldn’t save all of them, including the corps’ leader, Starlia.  The previous episode showcased that Starlia seemed alive in a dreamlike ruined city after her surprise decapitation from Waltekamui.  Sadly, this week’s episode reveals that it was all in Ragna’s head after his brief confrontation with Waltekamui, meaning Starlia’s shocking demise is real.

After reuniting with the remaining corps members, Ragna confronts a young Dragon Scourge named Carula, who surprisingly resembles Ultimatia in terms of her appearance, mannerisms, and time abilities.  Carula informs the Solarian Church’s true intention regarding Ragna and Starlia, in which they sent Starlia’s assassin Nazarena to manipulate her into joining the church.  She also reveals that the church can’t offer the safety of the surviving civilians unless Ragna becomes the Dragon Scourge himself.  However, Ragna refuses, instead offering to hunt and kill Ultimatia if the church gives the civilians shelter.

The episode showcased that another journey is about to commence following the high-stakes battle that took Starlia’s life.  While less exciting than the previous episodes, the exposition-filled plot still offers plenty of surprises to keep the narrative from dying too soon.  However, the only issues I had with this episode were Slime being annoying toward the depressed corps members and Benjamin McLaughlin’s hit-and-miss performance as Isaac.  Fortunately, Jack Stansbury continues to do stellar work portraying Ragna’s emotional rage during his confrontation with Carula, which is enough to overcome the episode’s flaws.  With Ragna and Crimson reunited, our quest to hunt down Ultimatia continues.