English Dub Review: Hanaori-san Still Wants to Fight in the Next Life “Those Who Can’t Be Forgiven”
OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)
Ryusei faces a Returner, a human who was taken to another world to be a hero and returned with magical abilities. Later, Ryusei and Hanaori are confronted about a rumor that they may be dating.
OUR TAKE
Well, turns out I got that set up about the Returner totally backwards. She’s not another hero from the same world as Hanaori and Ryusei who admired him as a demon lord or something, she’s actually a human from THIS world that had her own whole Isekai journey over the summer and came back as a more popular person. Some of Hanaori’s classmates just chalk this up to your typical high school glow up that tends to happen from time to time, but the two witches uncover her ruse, and soon so does Ryusei when she uses an ability she kept upon returning, which is just charming people to do her bidding, including those she has a crush on like Ryusei. He’s obviously able to deflect this and keep her from learning his identity, though that doesn’t stop Hanaori and the witches from taking some action and…hospitalizing her? I mean, whatever works I guess, but…yikes. And it’s not like they were going to really explore the potential roads of a character like that anyway since she was clearly there to get all the girls talking and make Hanaori jealous to show their parallels. Heck, they even made the Returner’s hair the same color as hers to drive that point home.
The other segment of the episode is…kind of a dating counseling session? Even though the two of them are not dating and it’s still so friggin weird that the show is pushing it while also having Hanaori be a teenager (or at least be inhabiting the body of a teenager) AND having regular humans who don’t know the context just be totally on board with the idea of a student dating the only male teacher at an all girls school. It’s just all so gross, dude. But if I were to use every ounce of strength to ignore that glaring detail, I could point out that this “counseling” does help shed light on more of the two’s shared history. It was hinted at before, but Ryusei’s “Demon Lord” persona was actually a bit of an exaggeration by nobles who saw him as a viable scapegoat, when in reality he was reacting because those nobles were abusing the land. Hanaori, back when she was a hero, was eventually tasked with taking him down and succeeded, though he’s not bitter about it, especially since he views it as more of a mercy killing. And after that session, he takes a look at her and has a montage of good memories with her that usually accompanies a love epiphany, and AAAAAGH GOD DAMMIT, why didn’t you just make them both adults and co-workers?! Or both in college?! Or at the very least both in high school?! This fucking gross taboo relationship dynamic is hanging around this show’s neck like an albatross!
