English Dub Review: Reincarnated as a Sword “An Excited Fran Sets Off”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

It’s a race against time as Fran and Teacher rush to the aid of the adventuring party. In the aftermath, Amanda reflects on an unexpected connection she has to Fran.

Our Take:

The season one finale picks up where we left off, with Fran, Amanda, and Teacher discovering a large white owl emitting a bright light. It turns out that the owl is a Familiar named Tarua, who’s summoned to help the group find the rest of the party. After finding and rescuing the crew, Fran and the others fight the Trickster Spider one last time, with Amanda dealing the finishing blow. However, Amanda also destroyed the spider’s crystal, angering Fran.

Amid the thrilling final confrontation between Fran and the Trickster Spider, “An Excited Fran Sets Off” includes one last piece of Amanda’s backstory, which happens to be crucial regarding Fran’s clan and maybe Fran herself. During the fight, Amanda remembers her adopting two Black Cats named Kinan and Flamia. Like Fran, Kinan and Flamia wanted to become adventurers and exceed their given capabilities. However, Amanda refuses to teach them because, being the overprotective and caring “mother” she is, she doesn’t want them to get hurt. Sadly, that didn’t stop the Black Cats from attempting to accomplish this seemingly impossible feat, resulting in their deaths.

This moment fully reflects Amanda as more than just an A-Rank adventurer with an infectious motherly side. It represents the adventurer’s hidden guilt of failing to protect those she vowed to care for, mainly Kinan and Flamia. Her personal feelings drive Amanda to annihilate the Trickster Spider, vowing not to let the same fate happen to Fran. We also find out later that Kinan and Flamia are Fran’s parents. Thanks to this emotional reveal, the episode continues to make Amanda’s arc a much-needed improvement over her first appearance in episode eight.

The episode also incorporates specific elements that reveal the truth behind the challenging spider-filled dungeon quest and tease what we could see in its upcoming second season. It’s revealed that the owner of Tarua, who helped Fran and the others, is Klimt’s nephew. Klimt, who promotes Fran to battle mage and gives her permission to go to the Ulmutt dungeon, discusses with his nephew that August’s father hired someone to provide the spiders with evolution potions, explaining the sudden appearances of Trick Spiders and the Trickster Spider. So it sounds like the former lieutenant may not be through with Fran and Teacher yet.

“An Excited Fran Sets Off” is a satisfying conclusion to Fran’s time with the Alessa Guild, complete with a promotion and new armor for her to wear from Garrus. Although, Teacher’s not very fond of Garrus’s design for exposing Fran’s belly despite it being equipped with a force field. More importantly, it’s also the beginning of the next step of their quest, with the student/teacher duo confronting a mysterious necromancer, Jean du Vix, during their journey to the Ulmutt dungeon, ending the season on a cliffhanger. Thankfully, they already announced a second season of Reincarnated as a Sword following the episode’s airing in Japan in December. So it won’t be long until we see the young Black Cat and her sword teacher again for another grand adventure in the RPG isekai world.