English Dub Review: Requiem of the Rose King “If I Don’t Grab Your Hand, I Won’t Have to Let Go”

Overview (Spoilers Below):
The Earl of Warwick seethes at his humiliation and loss of power caused by King Edward’s marriage. Meanwhile, Richard’s time with the earl’s daughter, Anne, raises new possibilities in the young duke’s mind.

Our Take:
It’s times like this when marriage announcements aren’t as cheerful as we thought they would be. The previous episode sees King Edward announcing his marriage to Elizabeth, which concerns his subjects, including Warwick. This episode sees the aftermath of Elizabeth becoming the Queen of England, along with Richard discovering that he too could become the king after meeting with the Duke of Buckingham.
It’s always interesting to witness people’s feelings towards a specific situation because it causes concern and affects their trust in their ruler. So far, the only person who’s affected the most is the Earl of Warwick. Because he thinks his love for Elizabeth is misguiding Edward, Warwick believes he’s not fit to be England’s true king. So he devises a plan to have a true king sit on the throne, mainly George.
However, the main focus of the plot is Richard’s quality time with Warwick’s youngest daughter Anne Neville (voiced by Emi Lo). Here, we see Richard having feelings for Anne but struggling to accept it in fear of losing her. But, more importantly, he’s still dealing with his identity, thanks to Joan of Arc continuing to torment the poor guy. This is an endearing dialogue-driven moment that sees Richard’s continuous conflict with self-identity and love. But, of course, the touching moment didn’t last very long as Richard overhears Warwick convincing Anne to marry him as part of his rebellious plot against King Edward.
Overall, the show’s fifth episode is one of the more heartfelt chapters of the Shakespearean story arc. Along with its gorgeous animation and dialogue, the episode is another engaging scenario that further develops the characters effectively, especially Richard. With Warwick being another treasonous scumbag, it would seem that Elizabeth isn’t the only one that King Edward should be afraid of.