English Dub Review: Radiant “The Light That Follows the Darkness -Awakening-“

No one expects the Inquisition…to be competent rulers!

OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)

Enraged by Hameline’s murder, Seth rushes at Troque and another Inquisitor, Von Teppes, unleashing an unforeseen level of Fantasia that causes him to go berserk. He then one-shots Von Teppes, disperses Santori’s miracle, and even holds his own against Torque for a little while until he’s given a wound that could inhibit his energy and is saved by Grimm. As the Thaumaturges retake control of Rumble Town, Grimm, Melie, Doc, and the injured Seth return to Artemis with help of Lord Majesty. On the trip back, Seth mourns Hameline’s death and receives some sort of mental message from Piodon, confirming that he was the one who activated Seth’s inner power, as well as that the two of them are brothers.

Seth eventually recovers and awakens back in Artemis, where Grimm tells him just how grave his injuries are. Seth isn’t sure how to feel about the possibility that he may never be able to use Fantasia again. On one hand, it really hinders his plans to find Radiant, but even if he could use it, would it stop more people from dying? Still, even with how much might have been lost, they can all take pride in the fact that Rumble Town was saved. Even with the Inquisition still in charge, they should at least be able to put someone in charge that isn’t nearly as bad as Conrad. And Hameline’s Nemesis brothers are safe in an enclosure. All’s well that ends well, as they say.

But still, Lord Majesty feels that something else might be on the horizon for Seth.

OUR TAKE

Obviously, this wasn’t going to top the total emotional precision strike that was last week’s episode, but as far as arc epilogues go, this one is also pretty damn good. Despite the fact that the day is saved, Seth’s worldview is irreparably changed. Beating bad guys was the easiest thing to do when he came across them, but now he’s met someone who he could only fight but needed his help…and he failed them. Plus, even though he used his strength to fight and defeat Conrad, the real bad guy in all this, he wasn’t the first or last of people like him who will twist people’s fears and prejudices to suit themselves. Where Seth sets his sights and goals next is unclear, but what IS clear is that is the time in Rumble Town has made an impact.

Then there’s his little “Super Saiyan Nine-Tails Hollow Seth” moment in the beginning. It’s a pretty well-worn trope in shonen series like Radiant to have a moment where a hero witnesses a great injustice to someone they care about, forcing them to summon forth a previously unknown amount of power that forces them to go berserk and fight off a seemingly insurmountable opponent with ease. As mentioned, Dragon Ball Z has done this with its various Super Saiyan forms, just like Naruto and Bleach have done this with their respective protagonists’ unleashed abilities. I’ve always found this kind of moment in this genre intriguing, mainly due to the fact that it forces you to be unsure who to root for at that moment: the antagonist who might be in over his head now, or this new deformed version of the protagonist who might not even be themselves right now. Still, can’t say I’ve ever seen a form like that use GREEN energy before. Usually, it’s somewhere between Red, Yellow, or even Black.

I feel like I’ve made clear how pleased and impressed I’ve been with this arc since it started two months ago, and this was a great way to cap it off. This leaves just the three episodes in the season, but who knows what they could fill in to make a good finale after THIS rollercoaster? Guess we’ll find out as we enter the home stretch next week.