The Rising of the Shield Hero S4 Ep 3 Review
Ever since Naofumi arrived in Silvelt, I have been very consistent in my opinion about the country: it’s a fan club that is also a nation. Everyone in Siltvelt worships the Shield Hero and would jump at the chance to help them. But like any large fandom, there are going to be toxic elements. The worst of them are the fans who claim to support what they want, but are really trying to manipulate it for their own ends. And having seen how the leaders of Siltvelt are acting, Atla puts on her Tims and gives the adults the verbal beating they deserve.
Atla Grills All the Adults
As we saw in the last episode, someone tried to poison Naofumi and his party, though everyone knows that it was Jaralis who did it. However, instead of arresting him on the spot, the leaders of Siltvelt went back to arguing amongst themselves. That is when Atla finally reaches the limits and proceeds to crash out and tells them the truth: THEY ALL SUCK.
What follows is three minutes of a child proceeding to verbally tear a bunch of foolish adults a new one, and it is glorious. And in keeping with the fandom analogy, she’s basically the one who’s calling out everyone for making that which they claim to love so unwelcoming to others. Having seen and heard stories about how toxic the fanbases of certain franchises have gotten, it’s nice to see someone not letting something similar slide. And if you thought Atla was cool in the anime, that’s nothing. She starts aura-farming so hard, she breaks the floor underneath her while Naofumi sees the figure of an angry tiger forming around her! PURE EPIC!!
Yet despite everything, and despite Naofumi getting the cook for breakfast to admit being told to use poison, what does Jaralis do? Lying through his teeth.
Jaralis Suckz!!
One would think that the end of the world would be a good motivator for people to put aside their wants and needs. However, the stupidity of some people cannot be so easily cured. In this case, Jaralis outright says that the Waves the world is facing are not the ones of legend, and that Naofumi isn’t the real shield hero. It’s like watching Littlefinger from Game of Thrones. The man will lie straight to people’s faces to get what he wants! It also doesn’t help that the Lion is a racist who continually belittles Atla for being half-human.
As this episode makes abundantly clear, Atla and Fohl are hybrids. Their father was a White Tiger, but their mother was human. And a very important human, at that. However, the fact that Jaralis, a grown man, is willing to play the “hybrid” card on children, just shows how pathetic he truly is. And he’s not going to let this go anytime soon.
So, Atla decides to pull up and put him in his place. She challenges Jaralis to a duel.
Let the Duel Begin!
If you’ll recall, Naofumi once fought a duel against Motoyasu over the matter of Raphtalia’s freedom, completely ignoring the fact that she was a slave in name only and was choosing to serve him out of her free will. This time, though, the terms are simpler. Atla and Fohl will fight on Naofumi’s behalf against Jaralis and a champion of Siltvelt. If they win, the Council will give them their ride to Q’ten Lo and let them go on their way. However, if they lose, not only will Naofumi have to stay in Siltvelt…he’ll have to form a harem.
ATLA, FOHL, YOU HAD BETTER NOT LOSE!!!
Naofumi’s chastity aside, this fight is just as important to Fohl as it is to his leader. He’s got questions for Jaralis, and he will get answers.
Grab some popcorn! This will be good!
