Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout

Episode 8

With both this episode and the last one, it's clear that we have reached the “unpaid internship” arc of the story—you know, where an incredibly rich man has a group of young teens do troublesome menial labor for him under the guise of proving themselves to him. I'm half joking with that sentence—but only half. In these last two episodes, Ryza and friends have done a ton of hard work in the guise of “tests” and haven't even been reimbursed for the materials they used—much less been paid for the work. While this does show that Ryza and the others truly care for Klaudia, it's likewise obvious that Ryza's newfound powers are being exploited.

That said, the whole situation does prove to be just the kind of advertisement Ryza needs. While she's been helping out people here and there, this is the first time that she has a real chance to show her stuff to a large group—which is especially important in a town where practically no one knows what an alchemist even is. But more than that, Ryza is seen by the town as “one of those troublemaker kids.” To succeed in her new line of work, she needs to show that this is no longer the case—that not only is she reliable but that she can do things no one else can as well.

And then there is the more meta-level part of the story. This episode serves as the climax to Ryza's arc so far. She started as a bratty kid, selfishly running around and almost getting herself and her friends killed time and again. Then, she seriously reflected on her shortcomings and has since vowed to be a more responsible person. What we see in this episode is her first chance to put her words into action and become the changed person she has been claiming she is.

What's great about what we see here is that, while Ryza has grown, change is a series of ups and downs, not a simple light switch. At first, Ryza falls into her usual self-absorbed trap. When she sees the rubble in the square, she knows she has the knowledge to blow it up. However, as usual, she fails to see all the implications of her plan—namely showering the area with debris.

Yet, rather than going ahead with her original plan, she instead works to find a different solution (or, in this case, a different kind of explosive). But even when she finds the correct recipe, she doesn't just head over to the square and start blowing things up. Instead, she spends the next few days refining and practicing—making sure she'll only blow up exactly what she wants to. Gone is the girl who threw an untested bomb at a monster in an enclosed space. This Ryza understands how dangerous carelessness is in her line of work.

Honestly, it's great character work, and watching Ryza get recognition for all her hard work and growth is the perfect reward. It's also telling to see how those around Ryza react. To most of the villagers, she is the new fad. However, her childhood frenemies seem far from impressed, the local priest seems none-to-happy with Ryza's magic, and Lent's drunken father is more than a little pissed that his son has received his share of fame for the part he played in the spectacle.

Simply put, Ryza's biggest win so far looks to be the catalyst for a whole new set of problems. Let's just hope she doesn't add yet another one to the pile by letting this newfound fame go to her head.

Rating:

Random Thoughts:

• In that opening scene where Ryza has her jacket off, I think the art might be a bit off… or maybe her butt really is that big and the reason she always wears that jacket is to hide it.

• I wish we had seen a montage of Ryza, Tao, and Lent gathering the needed materials. It would have made Lent's father's comments seem a bit more relevant if we had seen just how much the boys helped Ryza out.

• Ryza's bombs literally vaporized the rubble. Assuming that the rocks we see were limestone, that means the temperature of her flame pillars was 1472° F. So from now on, can we just assume that every time she goes into battle, she has an “I win” button in her back pocket for when things go wrong?

• Okay, who else was expecting the raining sparks to set the town on fire?

Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.