Saga of Tanya the Evil

Episode 12

The way episode 11 played out left this season finale wide-open from both dramatic and adaptation standpoints. I'm not sure what I actually expected, but taking the series back to its philosophical underpinnings was an eminently sensible decision, and the production definitely sell what the episode was saying! As a result, we get a fantastic and fitting cap to the series, which leaves the door open for further adaptation but also provides a suitable end point should this be the last animation we see from the franchise.

Back in episode 2, the man who would become Tanya's discussion with Being X dwelt on matters of faith and whether or not divinity actually had a place in the human world. Between that, how he ended up dead in the first place, and her many experiences in combat since then, Tanya has come to the conclusion that rational behavior may be the preferred and ideal approach, but it's not the reality of the world. So any strategy based entirely on what is logical, efficient, and rational is inherently flawed. You have to account for emotional responses, as she tells Lt. Colonel Rurugen during their early-episode discussion. This is hardly ground-breaking philosophy, but what makes it more interesting here is how it shows that Tanya was not basing these actions entirely on a knowledge of history – perhaps not even partly so. Now that she's had time to calm down and put her fear into more reasoned terms, she's asserting that the Empire screwed up by too readily reaching for peace when the enemy's capacity to fight back still remained. She even goes further to suggest that the way the Empire has flexed its might invites opposition from other parties who might fear what the Empire will do next.

Almost everything else that happens in the episode proves her right. Yes, the Republic forces that weren't stopped from retreating are mounting an armed resistance in the “southern continent” that must be dealt with, which throws the peace treaty into disarray. And yes, the neighbors are getting antsy enough that the U.S. is sending volunteer forces (which, historically, it did before formally entering both WW1 and WW2). Those emotional responses are also driving the potential rise of a new Being X-inspired nemesis: Anton Sioux's daughter, Mary Sioux, opening a pathway for her to get involved in the story if more material from the novels gets adapted. If more doesn't get adapted, her scene in the recruitment office still drives home the point. Interestingly, about the only person who isn't thrown for a major loop by all of this is Viktoriya. There have been prior implications that she's either simple-minded or emotionally detached, which surface here when her biggest complaints about the war resuming are the mud and cold food.

What elevates a lot of this above typical war story fare is the directorial choices. For a post-climax final episode, the tone is remarkably heavy, with vaguely ominous music throughout and the entirety of Tanya's discussion with Rurugen taking place in a dimly-lit room under dark, cloudy skies. Crowd shots show an anxious rather than jubilant population, and the rhetoric of the Republic commander – which would be heartening if the series was being viewed from the opposite perspective – carries worry and trouble for the Empire. The hint of madness in Mary's tear-stained face also play into this tone. Perhaps the most telling scene is when the unshakable Mr. Mustache actually loses his cool at dinner for just a moment.

Putting a cap on all this is Tanya's speech at the end. It's hardly unheard-of for anime characters to claim that they're going to slice up God, feed him to the pigs, and become Gods themselves, but given Tanya's experiences in this series, the speech takes on a whole new dimension of commitment and emphasis. It's also quite fitting that the series ends the way the first episode did, with Rurugen insisting that Tanya is a monster in the form of a little girl, only this time for (reluctantly) positive reasons.

So in the end, this series melds military history, magic, and theological discussions into one sharp-looking, often intense war series, and it has been loads of fun to watch! I had already declared this to be my top pick for the season before the final episode aired, but this episode only reassures me that I made the right choice.

Rating: A

Saga of Tanya the Evil is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.