Chivalry of a Failed Knight

Episode 11

It's always rewarding when a show takes a risk and it pays off. This episode of Chivalry of a Failed Knight really raised the bar for itself, and while in a more consistent show this might not have merited such high praise, Chivalry really outdid itself with this one. The first half starts off innocently enough – Stella wins another match, we have some fanservice when we find out that Toka is (of course) actually a klutz and kind to small children, and Ikki and Stella have a romantic moment...which is photographed by a paparazzo. Just before the commercial break, the photo is published, at which point Mysterious Portly Bad Guy shows up. It turns out that he's one of Mr. Kurogane's minions, and his polite(ly veiled) invitation for Ikki to come with him takes a dark turn very quickly – the colors shift to grayscale and text tells us that Ikki has been incarcerated.

If unfairness makes you angry, prepare to be enraged in the episode's second half. Essentially what Portly Bad Guy, whose name is actually Akaza, is doing is trying to use Stella, the one person who loves him unreservedly and isn't under the sway of the Kurogane family, to break Ikki's will. It's not entirely clear if Ikki's dad is in on this – my money's on yes – but he very clearly tells Ikki in this episode that he feels that his son is worthless and therefore not worthy of teaching. Therefore it is an embarrassment to him that Ikki should be succeeding with what he sees as mediocre techniques, shaming the family name by having to do things the long way around rather than using proper skills. It's frankly disgusting, as is the way Akaza delights in torturing Ikki, throwing him in an isolation cell with no bed, refusing to let him speak in his own defense, and, as far as I can tell, arresting him with no prior warning (he didn't say, “Hey, Ikki, come with me so I can lock you up!” remember) and treating him like a criminal for daring to be successful.

All of this is really enhanced by the use of color in the second half. All scenes in the prison are in black and white with one or two other primary colors for highlights (eyes, hat, mouth, shadowing the opening theme), while scenes at school are in muted color overlaid with noise to make it look like an old film reel. Ikki briefly returns to full color when he thinks his father cares before being shot back into black and white with a crack of thunder, black rain falling in viscous gouts from a red sky. It's almost too much, but the injustice of the events taking place rescue it from feeling too gimmicky. The stark contrasts between the two halves of the episode helps set the mood and keep us on edge. It's too bad that the first half has a lot of awkward animation and off-model people, as if the animators were rushing to get to part two.

In terms of the content, it's interesting that Ikki gets all of the blame for the relationship with Stella, as if she had no say in it. Given that we the viewers know her to be a very proactive participant (if not the more aggressive of the two of them), this says something about the way the smear campaign is being directed towards Ikki – they don't want to sully Stella's virtuous reputation or impugn her purity, things Stella herself cares very little for. Happily Shizuku seems to step up to the plate for a change, helping to remind Stella that she is (at least on the surface) the reason Ikki is going through all of this.

There's only one episode left for this show. I'm glad it really pulled it together at the end, because it could definitely use a very strong finish to follow this up and leave a lasting impression. If the episode isn't rushed, it looks like this may be one show that ends stronger than it began.

Rating: A-

Chivalry of a Failed Knight is currently streaming on Hulu.