God Eater

Episode 13

Is this really the final episode of God Eater's first season? It is, and that just isn't fair. From the beginning, this show has been an audiovisual treat, and its storytelling improved significantly post-hiatus. However, “Lotus” was not a finale, or at least not a satisfying one. Though it was a more momentous than usual episode, it left too many loose ends unresolved, and if we don't get a second season it's going to hurt to never see how this wraps up.

So is Pita short for “pain in the ass?” This Aragami is one tough mofo. Last week, we worried that Lindow had given up his life to battle it, and this episode doesn't tell us any different. Everyone is certainly acting like Lindow is gone for good, as if they've never heard of the old movie rule: don't confirm somebody's death until you actually find a body. But as the sun sets on Lindow's life (quite literally, as the ever-evocative setting dims to dusk), Lenka's star is rising. When the team is breaking up over tragedy, Lenka pulls them back together. Using Lindow's wishes to unite them, they work along with the people of Asyl like a well-oiled machine.

Since it's the final episode of the season, the God Arcs are more impressive than they've ever been, with multiple iterations. Last week, I hypothesized that Lenka's God Arc was a bit overpowered and broken, but not when he's up against Pita. It takes all five of them working together to even come close to Pita's strength. Pita is the most engaging villain in the show right now. He's an Aragami, but he's intelligent. He's even able to fake the God Eaters and get them off their guard. From the neon electricity emanating from Pita to the aerial moves and evolving strength of the God Eaters to the rising tempo of the soundtrack, this is everything I wanted in God Eater's final battle. The final blow is a stroke of genius — a brand new Lenka finds a way to use Pita's immeasurable strength against him.

The battle is contrasted with an exchange between Paylor and Johannes, which seems to explain what's going on with Pita. “If they continue to evolve,” Paylor says, “Aragami may acquire intellect,” allowing them to communicate and coexist with humans. Well, he's not wrong about the first part, but it doesn't seem like Pita was all that keen on coexisting. This episode also seems to imply that it's Johannes everyone should be watching out for — that twisted smile when everything is going wrong suggests he is the saboteur, which would be brilliant. Since he's the most powerful guy in Fenrir, there won't be a quick or clumsy solution.

But we're not going to find out for sure. The tail end of this episode is extremely vague, setting up for a resolution that may never arrive. Is Lindow dead? Or is somebody giving him canned food in the mountains? Who is the mysterious person Soma is trying to contact? What is the Ark Project, and who's going on that spaceship? What happens after Aegis is built? I suspect that I could learn at least a few of these answers by playing the God Eater video games. But if the point of this anime was to attract a wider audience than just the game audience, then it's not going to retain it for very long.

Rating: B

God Eater is currently streaming on Daisuki.

Lauren writes about anime and journalism at Otaku Journalist.