I-I'm not crying,
you're crying, who put all these tears in my eyes!?Poor Fumitan. That was the most tragic scene I've watched... ever, I think. I didn't expect it, but it really hurt when she died. Kudelia's reaction during the entire revolt was heartbreaking but I broke down when Mikasuki had to drag her away from Fumitan. Maybe it's my imagination, but I think they actually do color her eyes a bit darker or with less shines after that episode...
Kudelia's arc was extremely well-done. I loved watching her grow, I loved her reactions, I loved watching her win. I thought it was going to be really stupid, that she was going to be another dumb princess that just didn't get it and would learn the harsh truth, but... well that's exactly how the arc went but it was
fucking awesome. I felt for her every step of the way. I hope she continues to show up as a side character, if the plot really does move on. I haven't started the second season yet so I don't know.
I feel bad for McGillis. Scratch that, he's a bastard, but I like him. I think he legitimately wants to reform Gjallerhorn, or maybe he secretly wants to burn it all to the ground. Either way that was an awesome gambit and I'm curious what happens next. I liked Gaelio too but not as much, and Ein was the weakest of the main villains IMHO. The final battle was still awesome, I stood up because I was too excited to sit.
Mikasuki was like a pile of wet cardboard, the weakest character of the series thus far IMO. At first, when Kudelia was talking about how he saw right through her, I thought he was going to have some hidden depths. But the series went on and he was only ever the guy that drives Barbatos, nothing more, nothing less. I'm glad the romance was a red herring because I can't imagine Mikasuki doing
anything other than delivering anime hero one-liners. At least Shinji Ikari screamed when he was fighting.
Besides Mikasuki, I don't think the music was all that great. The opening themes especially are pretty annoying, to be honest. It was also kind of annoying that the episodes almost always ran into the credits, that's usually something they save for finales. Why not just make the episode 30 seconds longer, or the credits sequence shorter, instead of putting the credits on top of an important scene?