Summary
While this episode is sweet, its information and conversations could have and probably would have, fit better somewhere else instead of dumping them into one slow episode.
We recap the Crunchyroll anime series The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 6, “Better bend than break,” which contains spoilers.
Chise (Atsumi Tanezaki) learned a lot about her classmates last week, meeting several new faces and learning about the Seven Shields.
With this new knowledge and these new friends, it seems Chise is fitting in better than expected. Still, it doesn’t make her entirely safe. It still feels like she is a target, and some of her classmates, like Philomela, are still quite hard to read. It’ll be tricky figuring out just who to trust, but hopefully, at least a few of these friends are allies and not enemies.
The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 6 Recap
The episode opens with Chise asking Elias what he meant when he first met her and declaring she would be his bride. However, the school bell rings before he can answer, forcing them to resume the conversation later.
How does Renfred describe Alice’s relationship with him?
Although Renfred explains that many sorcerers often take subordinates to continue their lineage, Alice is more like a daughter to him. He took her in and raised her, vowing to protect her until she could be on her own.
READ: The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 5 Recap
After calling Chise to pick her up from the college, Alice tells Elias that she wants to borrow Chise for a night and ends up sleeping over. She explains that she overheard Renfred and Elias’ conversation and realized that she wasn’t as useful to Renfred as she thought, considering she was supposed to grow up to be his bodyguard.
How did Renfred lose his arm?
While speaking with Chise, Alice reveals Renfred lost his arm protecting her from Joseph.
After thinking about it, Elias tells Chise he thought it would be a convenient solution, as no matter what her label was, she would be living with him anyway. Having one person be both things seemed easier to him then, but he soon realized he did not want her to leave, as apprentices generally do.
Does Alice confront Renfred?
When he finds her skipping classes, Alice confronts Renfred, saying she does not think of him as her father.
The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 6 Ending Explained
Upon talking further, Alice admits that she chooses to stay with Renfred and wants to be someone who can protect him as well. However, he tells her that she is still a child, therefore making it his job to protect her. He leaves as she tells him that he still does not understand.
The episode ends with several mysterious figures retrieving something from a drawer in the college’s basement.
Not that the season had much momentum, to begin with, but what little excitement and tension it had started to build was quickly killed by the slowness of this episode, as it was primarily long, drawn-out conversations. It felt like a lot of showing and not telling.
Although I am always a fan of the sentimental moments and episodes, it feels as if nothing much is happening this season in terms of plot. I’d be lying if I said there was no character development, but that seems to be the entire driving force of this season.
While the relationships and characters are progressing nicely, the story itself seems stagnant.
I have no idea where this season is going, and I am starting to lose interest in finding out. These secret moments at the end of every episode provide absolutely nothing in terms of entertainment value or plot, considering what little scraps viewers are given to work with.
I’m sure in the end, they will lead to some great mystery or reveal, but I’m not sure it will have the intended impact with such a weak build-up.
What did you think of the Crunchyroll anime series The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 6? Comment below.
