There comes a time in every child’s life when they must leave the nest. Granted, Arthur has technically already done that, but involuntarily doing it doesn’t really count. This time, though, Arthur has every intention of spreading his wings as he prepares himself for his future time in academia. But before he does that, he wants to get a few more miles on his soul by going out and seeing the world. All he has to do is convince his parents to let him do so.
…this is going to be hard.
Early Enrollment Exams 1
Due to the anime moving various events from the webcomic around, what we see happen at the end of the last episode and the start of this one takes place far later than in the source material. Perhaps A-Cat Studio did it because they thought it would make more sense, but all it does is annoy long-time fans who want a faithful adaptation of TBATE. Given how it doesn’t really affect the overall plot of the story, though, I think the anime can be forgiven.
At any rate, the woman that Arthur meets is Cynthia, founder and headmaster of Xyrus Academy. AKA this world’s equivalent of Hogwarts or Ranoa University. It’s not explained well here, but Vincent Helstea put in a good word with her and she’s testing him to see if he’s good enough to enroll.
As per usual, the fight is nowhere near as impressive as it should be. However, if you’re still watching TBATE at this point, you might as well abandon all hope of good fight scenes. What matters is that while he loses, Cynthia knows he’s got great potential and passes him. Despite offering to let him enroll in the Academy then and there, though, Arthur turns her down. He wants to wait until he’s the same age as the other students before he enrolls, meaning he’s got until he turns twelve; three years from now.
Although, Arthur has no intention of spending those three years being idle.
Arthur the Adventurer!
Despite being younger than Rudeus was when he got flung to the other side of the world, Arthur is set on becoming an adventurer. He wants to keep getting stronger so that he won’t lose anyone in his family. And while his parents know he’s more capable than people twice his (biological) age, they’re rightfully reluctant to let him become an adventurer. It’s only when he promises to visit every few months and he gets a ring and scroll that will let her know if he’s in trouble that Alice relents. It also helps that Jasmine agrees to go with him.
With that out of the way, now comes the most important part: choosing his weapon. And the one he ends up choosing with Sylvie’s help is pretty cool.
Cool Sword, Arthur!
Dawn’s Ballad W.K IV. is a unique weapon, to be certain. It looks unassuming on the outside, but the fact that it can absorb Arthur’s magic and adjust itself to his size says it all. That blade is special; the chosen weapon of an RPG protagonist special. And he manages to get it for free by tricking Vincent Helstea. Not the most moral of decisions, but even so, it’s a good find.
And so, this chapter of Arthur’s life comes to an end as he sets off on his journey as an adventurer with Jasmine. A journey that, sadly, we do not see, not even in the webcomic, as this moment marks the finale to its second “season.” AKA when a major timeskip occurs in Arthur’s life. The next season will subsequently cover the tail end of Arthur’s time as an adventurer before he starts school. That will end up being largely covered by what will be the second season of the show…sort of.
They already made the next batch of episodes
In a recent post, Crunchyroll announced that episode twelve will be the season finale for The Beginning After the End, with the second season releasing sometime in 2026. With the amount of backlash the anime has gotten from fans, it seems crazy that the show would get a second season. While they’re calling it a second season, though, it’s not; it’s more like a second cour, or episode block.
According to Anime News Network, TBATE was originally planned to have twenty-four episodes that would comprise its first season. Instead, they decided to split it up into two cours’ and release the second half in the following year. It’s actually common in longer anime. It doesn’t mean that the series is getting renewed for a new season. If it is, then hopefully, it will be made by a studio that knows how to animate properly!
Ladies, gentlemen, and those who identify as neither, this Sunday is Father’s Day. The day when we tell our dads and father figures how much we love and appreciate them. There have been many noteworthy fathers in anime. Some are great, others aren’t, and there’s the one dad who’s so vile that we consider him one of the most despicable villains in fiction. Fullmetal Alchemist fans know who I’m talking about. However, there is one dad in all of anime who stands head and shoulders above the rest—someone who’s gone above and beyond for their child. Someone so selfless should be canonized as an actual Saint. That man’s name is Bartholomew Kuma.
Kuma from One Piece is the walking definition of a gentle giant. Despite how terrifying he can be towards those who commit evil, he is just the sweetest to everyone he meets. And despite the horrific nature of his life, he never stops trying to be a good father to his little girl, Bonney. Not even death itself will stop this man from protecting his daughter. And with the One Piece anime having returned and now into the story of Kuma’s life, it is the perfect time to honor Saint Kuma. This man has one of the saddest backstories in all of One Piece, yet he manages to be one of the best dads I’ve ever seen in an anime.
Get some tissues ready. This story is going to make you cry.
Born to Hardship
It all starts forty-five years before Luffy sets out to sea when Kuma is born in South Blue. His mom was a normal human, but his pastor father was secretly the last survivor of the Buccaneers, a race of powerful hybrids that had spent centuries being hunted by the World Government. They claimed it was for a “crime” they “committed,” but it was likely for simply breathing the same air as them. And when Kuma was four, the Government found them.
They dragged the whole family up to their capital of Mariejois and made them the slaves of the Celestial Dragons, AKA the vile, disgusting, and hedonistic rulers of the world. They would beat, torture, and abuse the family until Kuma’s mom finally dropped dead. But his dad didn’t want Kuma to lose hope, so he told him stories about Nika, the ancient sun god their people worshipped. He would go around spreading laughter and joy and freeing the miserable and oppressed while doing a fun dance. But then, just as Kuma was starting to cheer up, the Celestial Dragons shot his dad dead right in front of him. All because they didn’t like him making noise.
Yes, you read that right. They killed a man right in front of his child for simply annoying them with his song and dance. That is how petty these people are! About 99% of them have no empathy for anyone and those who do end up dead. And this isn’t even the worst. Every three years, they annex an entire country, seize its resources, and then hunt down the entire population for the fun of it. And Kuma was being used as one of their prey.
Thankfully, not all their slaves were willing to accept this date, and at the next hunting event, they met Kuma and made their move.
Freedom
Meet Ginny and Emporio Ivankov, two slave children who decided to take matters into their own hands, and they wanted Kuma in on their plan. Weeks ahead of time, Ginny had managed to leak the location of the World Noble’s (AKA the Celestial Dragons) hunt to the outside world. That led to some of the toughest pirates in the world descending on the place, turning it into a warzone. And while that happened, Kuma and Ivankov would sneak over to where the grand prizes, rare and powerful Devil Fruits, were being kept. They planned to steal and eat them so they could use their powers to escape. Unfortunately, they were only able to get the one Fruit that Kuma ate, the Paw-Paw Fruit. It not only gave him paw pads, but it let him push away anything he wanted for as far as he wanted, even pain itself. Using that, Kuma was able to help himself, his friends, and five hundred other slaves escape. And that was only his first miracle.
After they escaped, the trio went their separate ways. Ivankov took to the seas while Kuma and Ginny moved into the old church his parents had called home. They would make a living selling wood in town, and once he came of age, Kuma became a priest like his father before him. He even used his powers to help the elderly by taking their pain away and into himself. But he took it like a champ.
During this time, Kuma and Ginny would fall in love with each other. But when Ginny asked him to marry her, he refused. He couldn’t bear to put her in the same danger his mom went through. But then, something happened; something bad.
Their island home’s new king, Bekori, was a greedy and horrible tyrant who wanted to suck up to the Celestial Dragons. So, he decided the best way to do that was by saving money by getting rid of the parts of the population that he thought were dead weight. So he declared the southern half of the kingdom was being thrown out, leaving all the elderly people who made up its population to rot.
No one was happy about this decision, and when Kuma tried to protest, the king had him arrested. And then arrested Ginny and their friends when they protested that. But then, help came in the form of their old friend, Ivankov. During his time out at sea, he had met a man named Dragon who hated the World Government as much as he did. Together, they formed a small team of like-minded freedom fighters to fight tyranny wherever they found it. And they came running as soon as they heard Kuma and Ginny were in trouble. With their help, they swiftly deposed the king and sent him running for the hills. Afterward, Dragon and Ivankov offered the two a place in their group. And despite Kuma abhorring violence, the two gladly agreed to join.
Thus, the Revolutionary Army was born. This group of rebels had one goal: to overthrow the World Government and free the world from the tyranny of the Celestial Dragons! With their skills, Kuma and Ginny earned a place in Dragon’s inner circle alongside Ivankov. Together, the group fought tyranny and injustice, took names, and helped those in need. Life was good for Kuma.
But then, another great tragedy befell Kuma. Around twelve years before Luffy set out to sea, Ginny was kidnapped.
Fatherhood
Since becoming an adult, Ginny had become known as quite the beauty and had many admirers, even though her heart belonged to Kuma. Somehow, though, a Celestial Dragon learned about her and, being who they are, had her kidnapped and brought back to Mariejois to be their “bride.” There was nothing her friends could do.
For the next two years, Kuma would become a different person. He threw himself into his duties, charging recklessly onto battlefields as his mood began to darken. Then, one fateful day, he and the others received a call from Ginny. She had been released and made it back to the surface! But whatever joy Kuma felt turned to even deeper sorrow. The reason she’d been cast out was because she was dying from a terminal illness; she had called to say goodbye. Kuma never heard it, though. He teleported back to their church home, knowing she would be there. But by then, it was already too late.
The saddest part of this scene is that while Kuma was flying to Ginny he was unaware of her last words telling him that she loved him. Ginny died not knowing that he didn't hear her.#OnePiece#ワンピース#OnePiece1132pic.twitter.com/wu4TjWca8X
To reiterate: the love of Kuma’s life had been kidnapped, forced to spend two years of her life as a s** slave, was r**** repeatedly, and then left to die after catching a deadly illness. And it was all the fault of the Celestial Dragons. For the second time in Kuma’s life, they had taken everything from him. And this almost destroyed Kuma. But amidst all this darkness, there was still a light to be found: a baby.
Ginny had gotten pregnant during her time in captivity and given birth to a baby girl. Being the monsters they were, the Celestial Dragons abandoned the child as well as her mother. Ginny sacrificed what time she had left to get her daughter, Bonney, to safety. And Kuma wouldn’t let her death be in vain. He would take in her daughter and raise her as his own. She would be the daughter that he and Ginny should’ve had. She became his new reason to keep living.
Being a single dad is hard in the best of times, and since Kuma was still part of the Revolutionary Army, he had to balance being a dad with his job. Fortunately, his Paw-Paw powers meant commuting wasn’t an issue, and the townsfolk were happy to help him raise Bonney, for they had long adored her parents. It was a busy life, but a happy one…until Bonney suddenly got a blue stone on her face.
By a cruel twist of fate, Bonney had been afflicted by Sapphire Scales, the same disease that killed her mother. It was such a rare illness that there was no cure for it. Any contact with natural light would make it spread, covering the host with blue stones before finally turning their skin blue before they died. The doctors who came to see her all said she wouldn’t make it to her tenth birthday. And to make matters worse, Bonney overheard this and misunderstood, thinking she would be better by then. Kuma had no choice but to maintain the lie to his little girl.
Kingship
After learning about this, Kuma left the Army to become a stay-at-home dad, keeping his daughter’s spirits up by telling her stories of Nika while looking for a cure. But then, the former King Bekori returned and regained his old throne. The difference was that this time, he opted to simply burn the southern half of his kingdom to the ground! Kuma couldn’t let this happen, and in a repeat of what happened before, he single-handedly stormed the palace and sent the tyrant back into exile once more. Afterward, the people were so grateful they declared Kuma their new king!
Kuma, naturally, didn’t care about such a title. He left rule in the hands of the tyrant king’s nicer predecessor so he could focus on Bonney. Who he just found out had somehow gained Devil Fruit powers of her own, letting her temporarily alter her age to look as young or as old as she wanted. It could even let her transform into alternate future versions of herself that she could imagine, even Nika!
But guess what? Bekori returned for a third time. He had spread lies overseas, claiming that Kuma was a tyrant who unjustly overthrew him, and the international community fell for it. The WG gave him a fleet of Marines to retake the island and everything!
Now, Kuma was a gentle man by heart who never wanted to hurt anybody. But after everything the king had done, Kuma decided that Bekori’s free trial of life had expired. He didn’t even wait for him to make landfall. He just pulled up on him at sea and sent the foolish former king and his fleet to the bottom of the sea.
After that, Kuma was now a wanted man. He couldn’t stay with Bonney any longer, and he knew it. So he set out to sea, fighting off bounty hunters while continuing to look for a cure for Bonney. Then, one day, he ran into his old friend, Dragon, who had managed to come through. Dragon recommended that Kuma go and see a friend of his, Dr. Vegapunk, a brilliant scientist and the smartest person alive. If anyone could cure Bonney, it would be him.
Just as Dragon hoped, Vegapunk could cure Bonney. Thanks to the miracles of stem cell research, the good doctor could save the girl’s life! The procedure would take a while, and it wouldn’t be cheap, but Bonney was going to live. However, Vegapunk wasn’t interested in money as payment. What he wanted was samples of Kuma’s blood.
Vegapunk had this idea about creating a line of cybernetic protectors that could keep the people of the world safe. With the Buccaneers renowned for their strength and durability, Vegapunk thought Kuma was the ideal template. Kuma happily agreed, thinking that being the template for an army of friendly peacekeepers was a great idea. It felt like things were going his way at last!
But then, the biggest opp in Kuma’s life and one of the greatest haters in all of One Piece came in and decided to take everything from him.
JayGarcia Saturn, a Celestial Dragon, one of the Five Elders who ran the World Government, and an absolute hater. Years ago, he had seen firsthand how Kuma had defied his masters and vowed to become a savior like Nika. And that act of defiance had been enough to make Saturn dedicate his life to making Kuma’s life miserable. And when he learned about Vegapunk’s deal with Kuma, he decided his time had come. Instead of arresting Kuma or forcing Vegapunk to back out, he did something worse. He would let them follow through on the deal. But in exchange, he would force Kuma to give up everything: his freedom, his daughter, and even his very humanity.
The World Government would oversee Bonney’s treatment, effectively holding her hostage while keeping Kuma from seeing her. As for Kuma, he had to agree to work for the World Government as one of the Seven Warlords and slowly be turned into a cyborg, with the ultimate end goal being to erase his free will, essentially killing him. And to add insult to injury, they would take Vegapunk’s clone army and turn them into weapons for the Navy to use!
So, despite knowing that this would lead to his eventual death, Kuma took the deal. He gave up his freedom and his very humanity all to give his daughter the future he deserved. That is how great a dad he was!
The process of becoming a cyborg was a slow one that spanned several years, and during that time, Kuma rarely got to see his daughter. And while he constantly wrote letters to her, the government op in charge of watching kept shredding them up! She had no reason to do so; she was just doing it to be mean! And the longer Bonney went without hearing from her dad, the more convinced his friends were that something was up. Sure enough, they were right.
Bonney’s Freedom
Some of Kuma and Ginny’s friends had overheard the Government agents talking in town, and that’s when they learned the truth: Bonney had already been cured. They kept lying about it to keep her captive as leverage. And it was at this point that those family friends took matters into their own hands. Having kept Bonney’s Devil Fruit powers a secret and having converted a ship in the local harbor to suit their needs, they managed to get the girl out right under her captor’s nose, set out to sea, and went to look for Kuma.
And, for extra karma, when the fake nurse tried to stop them, Bonney used her Devil Fruit to turn into a version of Nika and punch her face!
At just ten years old, Bonney had escaped to sea and become a pirate, and she would make a huge impression. Using her powers to mess with the marines wherever she went, she became part of the same new generation of pirates as Luffy and the Straw Hats. Yet try as they might, they could never find Kuma. And that was because he didn’t want to be found.
Even though they no longer had anything to use as blackmail, Kuma continued to serve the World Government. He knew that if he backed out now, Saturn would ensure that Bonney would not survive. The most he could do was watch her from afar as he awaited his end. However, all was not lost. Kuma had discovered something that gave him a new sense of hope for the future: the stories of Nika might be true.
Luffy is Pirate Jesus
For those who dont know, Dragon is the father of the series protagonist, Monkey D. Luffy. And despite keeping it a secret from his friends, Kuma was able to piece this together. More importantly, he saw firsthand how Luffy could stretch his body like rubber and seemed to bring joy to everyone he met. And it just so happened that those exact two things were what Nika did in the stories his father told him.
Kuma kept an eye on Luffy as he set out on his journey to becoming King of the Pirates, and the more he did, the more he grew convinced. He didn’t know if it was fate or coincidence, but everything that Luffy did matched the legends about Nika. After Luffy proceeded to punch a Celestial Dragon without any fear of retaliation, Kuma became convinced: Luffy was the second coming of Nika.
Unfortunately, that stunt he pulled meant that Luffy and the Straw Hats were now being hunted by the best fighters the Navy had to offer. With the Straw Hat Pirates woefully underprepared for the second half of the Grand Line, Kuma knew they would get themselves killed. So, he decided it was time for some tough love. As Luffy and his crew were being assailed by Admiral Kizaru of the Navy, Kuma stepped in. And before they could do anything, he teleported each of the Straw Hats to islands across the world for mandatory training arcs. It was cruel, and it caused them all grief, but it was the right decision. If Luffy was the new incarnation of Nika, then he would need friends powerful enough to help him. And this was something they all came to understand.
But it was not something that Kuma would live to see. For his time had come.
The End…or is it?
Vegapunk had begged Saturn to show Kuma mercy, but, being the hater he was, the monster refused. Yet despite this, Kuma showed no regret for his decision. He was giving up his life to ensure that his daughter could live a full one, like any good parent. Using his powers once more to extract his memories for the doctor to study, Kuma said his final goodbyes. Then, with the final pull of a lever, Bartholomew Kuma, the man, was no more…and the world was a little less bright.
But the story doesn’t end there.
So, two years after Kuma effectively died, the Celestial Dragons brought him full circle, turning them into their slave once more and using him as their personal mule boy. Until, that is, the day that his friends in the Revolutionary Army decided the time had come to pick a fight with the World Nobles. And in the process, they sprang Kuma loose! However, there was nothing that they could do to restore his mind.
Meanwhile, Bonney had made her way to Vegapunk’s lab at Egghead Island, and ran into the Straw Hats while doing so. Having not gotten the full story about her dad, she blamed Vegapunk for everything, and if he couldn’t make him fix Kuma, she was out for his blood. Until she stumbled upon her father’s memories and proceeded to see everything.
Return of the Opps
And I think I can speak with all sincerity when I saw that what we saw in Kuma’s memories has to be one of the saddest backstories in all of One Piece. Maybe one of the saddest things I’ve ever seen in my life! But it did make Bonney realize that the real opp was Saturn. Who, as it so happened, was currently leading an army of Marines to kill Vegapunk for secretly turning on them. And when Saturn arrived on the island as this demonic spider, Bonney decided that it was on-site. But as she quickly learned, Saturn was almost unkillable.
So, Saturn pretty much had Bonney, Vegapunk, and half the Straw Hats dead to rights, paralyzed by Conqueror’s Haki. And now that Kuma was of no use to him and Vegapunk had turned on him, he decided it was time to end Bonney’s life. But before he did, he decided to twist the knife even further.
Warning: spoilers from the manga lie ahead.
Saturn proceeds to tell Bonney the horrible truth: “You know how your mama died from that rare disease? And how you somehow got Devil Fruit powers at random? Who do you think was the one who did all that to you two?”
It was all Saturn! He used Ginny as a guinea pig and infected her and her daughter with sapphire scales on purpose. And then he injected baby Bonney with the essence of a Devil Fruit to see if it would give her its powers. He is the reason that Bonney died and Kuma had to sacrifice his freedom and life!!! HE DESTROYED THIS FAMILY’S LIVES! ALL BECAUSE KUMA DECIDED TO STAND UP FOR HIMSELF!
In all my years of life, I have seen some truly despicable villains. I have seen tyrants, psychopaths, predators, and haters of the highest degree. But this? This is hating on the same level as Reverse-Flash, DIO, and Frieza. This reveal was enough to make me scream for Saturn’s blood at the top of my lungs! He became public enemy number one in the fandom!
Thankfully, fans didn’t have to wait long for karma to come back to bite Saturn in the butt.
Justice at last
So, one of the last things that Saturn ordered Vegapunk to do to Kuma before erasing his free will was to implant a bomb in him. That way, he could blow him up if he ever went rogue. But Vegapunk secretly altered it to a simple shutdown switch that would render him inactive, because he had morals and ethics. By the time the Revolutionary Army found him, Saturn had already hit the button, meaning that he was pretty much catatonic.
Which only makes what happened next even more important.
As everything was happening at Egghead, Kuma’s friends were trying to restore his humanity. Suddenly, Kuma got up and started running as fast as he could. Before they could stop him, he had already teleported away!
None of them knew it, but Kuma’s dad’s sense had been tingling.
Despite losing his memories, free will, and humanity, and despite not knowing what was happening, Kuma somehow sensed that Bonney was in trouble. And in defiance of all logic and common sense, through sheer force of will, Kuma forced himself to run, fly, and teleport to where his daughter was. He climbed the 10,000-meter tall Red Line, fought his way through Mariejois, and slipped past Fleet Admiral Akainu to get to Egghead. And he got there just in time to save his daughter from being skewered by Saturn!
i added some sound effects to midael's kuma vs saturn animation, for the punch i used the sound of luffy punching the celestial dragon from one piece ep396 because i thought it kind of matches the intensity
Finally, after all these years, Bonney was reunited with her beloved dad. And while she sat there, being hugged by her father and crying her eyes out, Saturn was unable to process what was happening. It didn’t make any sense to him! He thought that Kuma was dead! Even Vegapunk had no idea how this was possible. It didn’t matter, though, because this was the beginning of the end for Saturn.
Saturn had made it his personal mission in life to make Kuma’s life a living hell. He had taken the woman he loved, endangered his daughter’s life, and robbed him of his humanity and freedom. And now, Kuma was ready to give him a lifetime of karma. He went full Asura’s Wrath mode on Saturn and, for the crime of making his daughter cry, sentenced the demon to a cathartic face-punch that should’ve killed him then and there. But that would be too good for Saturn. His humiliation was just getting started. Because now, it was time for the Sun God to punish him.
Saturn Gets Royally Clapped
After being left exhausted earlier from an earlier fight, Luffy finally recovered enough to re-enter Gear Fifth and rejoined the battle. And the moment that Bonney saw him in that form, Vegapunk told her that all the stories about Nika were true, and she was looking at them. Everything her dad had told her had been right all along; NIKA WAS REAL, AND LUFFY WAS HIS NEWEST INCARNATION. And he proceeded to
Utterly embarrass Saturn in the most cartoonish way possible. But that wasn’t even the best part.
Luffy is HIM fighting the Gorosei and a Admiral making both Kizaru and Saturn into a pizza then making Saturn call for the rest of the Gorosei to fight along is a huge feat https://t.co/zuVRA1IB3Ypic.twitter.com/TCaUdtOCqH
Remember those robot clones of Kuma that Vegapunk built, the Pacifistas? The newest models had been stationed as security on Egghead, and while everything was happening, Saturn had tried to use them to kill Vegapunk and the Straw Hats. He thought that they were programmed to follow the Five Elders orders above all else. However, Vegapunk had outsmarted them. He secretly programmed the Pacifistas to follow an even higher authority: Bonney. The good doctor made it so that they would never harm her and would always be there to help her. The love between father and daughter basically made one of the World Government’s greatest weapons completely useless.
Eventually, the Straw Hats, Kuma, Bonney, and all their allies managed to escape, but not before Saturn made one last attempt to kill them all. But Luffy and Bonney had had enough of this monster. And using her Fruit’s powers to mimic Luffy’s Gear Fifth, Bonney joined her hero in repaying Saturn for a lifetime of pain and suffering by giving him the mother of all beatdowns.
Luffy is HIM fighting the Gorosei and a Admiral making both Kizaru and Saturn into a pizza then making Saturn call for the rest of the Gorosei to fight along is a huge feat https://t.co/zuVRA1IB3Ypic.twitter.com/TCaUdtOCqH
Sadly, Saturn did not die…yet. However, his failure to kill Luffy and cost the World Government control of the Pacifistas drew the wrath of the true ruler of the world, Imu. And while Saturn tried to explain himself to his master, Imu was about as forgiving as Darth Vader. And Saturn had failed him for the last time, an act that would see the dark entity strip him of his immortality and, thus, his life.
– He killed Ginny & made Kuma become a cyborg – He made Bonney suffer – He made Kizaru & Sentomaru conflicted – He contributed to Vegapunk's death – He summoned all Gorosei in Egghead – He made Robin suffer
So ended the life of one of the greatest haters in One Piece lore. May they rot forever.
Kuma is Best Anime Dad Ever
And that is the story of Saint Kuma thus far. And I say thus far because, despite technically being dead, one of Vegapunk’s satellites, Lilith, said that she was going to work on a way to restore his mind. In other words, Bonney might be able to have her happy ending with her father after all! But for now, she’s just happy being able to be with her dad. And may no one ever separate them again.
Kuma is, without a doubt, one of the best dads I’ve ever seen in anime. He has lived a life of selfless charity, saving hundreds of lives and literally taking on their pain for himself. He’s so selfless that he is willing to make a deal with the devil to save his daughter’s life despite knowing it would kill him. He even willed himself to protect his child after becoming a mindless machine because he loved her that much. That is the kind of example every dad should follow! If he were a real person, he would be canonized as a saint!
So far, The Beginning After the End has changed up several things from the original webcomic. It’s moved things around, added new context to Arthur’s past life, and altered certain moments in the story. However, this episode marks the biggest departure from the source canon to date. And it all has to do with Arthur putting an arrogant little nobody in his place.
The Auction House Changed a Bit
For those who don’t remember, the reason the Helstea family is so rich is because they run the Helstea Auction House. Every year, they host a massive auction where adventurers, nobles, and even royals show up to bid for rare artifacts, weapons, and even monsters. And since they let them stay in exchange for Reynolds heading security, the Leywins get an invitation to the auction…with the other people.
Even before the episode starts, the anime is already making some changes to events, and not always for the better. In the webcomic, Arthur approaches Mr. Helstea beforehand and asks him to try and get him some gear he wants. In addition, the Leywins get to stay in a private box with the Helsteas, which will eventually lead to them meeting the Sapin Royal Family. Not only does the conversation not take place here, but for some reason, the anime sees fit to have the Leywins sit below, with everyone else. It might be so that what happens next makes more sense, but it’s going to aggravate plenty of fans.
What happens next, though, is the biggest change from the webcomic, and it revolves around poor little Sylvie.
Arthur Almost Crashes Out
So, as the Leywins are busy watching the auction, Sylvie gets bored like most little kids would, and wanders off. Arthur goes to look for her, because he’s a good dad, and that’s when he finds her being bothered by this shady-looking man in a robe who works for the Royal Family. This mage takes one look at Sylvie and decides “I want her,” and starts running his mouth, demanding Arthur give her to him. Arthur’s response: “Not for sale!” And then the man has the audacity to say “Kid, I work for the royal family! I could you and your entire family out on the streets if I say the word to the king!”
Arthur’s response? Unleashes the Conqueror’s Haki.
While similar events did happen in the webcomic, they took place in the private box. And Arthur got a lucky break by passing the blame off on some random intruder. In the anime, though, he gets no such luck, and his Dad gets in trouble for it! It’s not a major story change and doesn’t do much in the grand scheme of things, but longtime fans are gonna be frustrated with it. The comments on YouTube seem to say so.
Arthur Unleashes Za Warudo
At any rate, the King’s attempts to get Sylvie from Arthur are largely the same here, and Arthur’s retort of “how much would you ask for your kids” is still cool. He rightfully sees Sylvie as his adoptive daughter, and like any good parent, he ain’t giving up his kid.
And when the dumb court mage escalates by trying to kill him, Arthur pulls off the “Za Warudo” technique and lays down the law.
Arthur shows off his time-stopping power! 🔥 (via The Beginning After the End) pic.twitter.com/qQUbTalHtF
In any event, the mage gets fired from his job, and the King covers everything up and bribes Arthur to keep quiet, just as what happens in the webcomic. However, the ending to the episode differs thanks to certain parts of the story being moved around. It may not make sense right now, but hopefully, the next episode will clear some things up.
Six days; that is all the time the world has left before the first users of Hapna start dying. Time is running out for the majority of humanity, and Lazarus still has no idea where Dr. Skinner could be. Yet all is not lost, as the team might have not just one, but two possible leads they can use to track down Skinner. One of them requires Leland to face his past, while the other reveals an astonishing connection to another member of Lazarus: Axel.
With less than a week before Hapna becomes fatal, society is starting to break down. People are starting to break out in fevers from Hapna, hospitals are being overwhelmed, and governments are shutting down. No sense in remaining active if most of humanity dies. And herein lies a slight problem with how the story of Lazarus is going: the lack of time.
Skinner claimed that he has the cure for Hapna on him, hence the entire purpose of Lazarus is to find him in time. However, even if they find him now, mass-producing the cure in time will be next to impossible. Millions of people are going to die before they get their hands on it. Maybe the story will pull off something amazing, but unless the cure can be spread via aerosol form, people are going to die. And one of the team might be among them.
Wait, Leland is HOW RICH!?!
In any case, Lazarus might have a real breakthrough on their hands. That pill that Chris found at Skinner’s estate wasn’t the cure for Hapna. What it was was an antiplatelet medication used by people who have had artificial heart transplants. They realize that Skinner must have gotten surgery after going into hiding, yet finding no records of it, the team starts looking into a rumored clinic for the elite that does procedures in exchange for high amounts of money. That’s when Leland comes in to help them, revealing he has a secret he’s kept from everyone.
It turns out that Leland comes from money. He’s the illegitimate child of a deceased aristocrat whose family he’s on poor terms with. To make things even more awkward, as the only surviving son, the family rules say that he’s the head of the family, much to the anger of his older half-sister. Their reunion is an incredibly tense one, and one that Doug and Axel have to see firsthand at his own request.
Family can often be messy, especially in situations as complicated as what Leland grew up with. However, in a nice change of pace, the older sister isn’t just upset about Leland being the heir instead of her. She’s also upset at how little he’s tried to get to know his family. With the world on the verge of ending, people want to get their priorities straight. So, Leland agreeing to spend a few days with her is, honestly, a very touching thing.
In the end, Leland’s sister pulls through, and she gets him to see Skinner’s doctor, who confirms that he did get an artificial heart. Normally, that comes with a stream of data they can track but, Skinner being Skinner, he encrypted it. Furthermore, it doesn’t lead them to Skinner, but Eleina figures out that it’s being monitored by their old friend, Popcorn Wizard, in Pakistan. That leads her and Doug to head to Pakistan on another lead. As they do so, though, Elenia starts to show signs of a fever.
Uh-oh.
Axel Could be the Key to Everything
As promising as that lead might be, there’s another one that might be even more promising.
Remember the incident where Chris faked her death? The Schiphol Airport incident. Official reports say that it was a bio-chemical attack by terrorists, but as Hersch and Abel, the head of the NSA discover, that was a lie. In reality, government incompetence led to a shootout between INSCOM and Airport security, with Skinner caught in the middle. The firefight wound up unleashing an airborne, prototype version of Hapna. That is what killed everyone, and it left Skinner a changed man.
If you recall, INSCOM are the ones who hired that assassin to kill Axel for unknown reasons. Those reasons might have become a lot clearer in this episode, though. As it turns out, that same Hapna prototype was tested on prison inmates. And out of all of those inmates, only one managed to survive: Axel Gilberto.
Axel is in Trouble
This revelation could change everything. When a disease is threatening a large population, such as humans, there’s often going to be a small number of people with a natural immunity. Is it possible that Axel is immune to Hapna? Or was it just a fluke? Either way, it’s enough to get Hersch to send Axel looking for the prison doctor responsible for the test. Unfortunately, that’s when the INSCOM assassin, Soryu, makes his move.
This is not good. Not only would the death of Axel mean killing off the main protagonist, but if Axel really is the key to curing Hapna, then INSCOM could be dooming mankind to extinction. With the preview for the next episode showing a full-on battle about to take place, it could be the most important episode of the series. No matter what, Axel cannot die.
If a show gets to the point where even it wonders why things aren’t going fast enough, then you know something is wrong. Ten days are left before the first people to take Hapna start dying, and Lazarus is no closer to catching him. And now, they’ve come under the scrutiny of the US Government, which is looking to shut them down. And what’s worse, some of them are willing to go off the books and hire the second coming of Vicious to take care of one of them.
So, after their excursion to rescue Chris in the previous episode, the people in charge of Lazarus are not happy. From their perspective, the team, whose sole job is to find Dr. Skinner, has just been messing around. Thus, they bring Hersch and her boss before a committee to complain about them not doing their jobs.
While the audience knows that Lazarus has been looking for Skinner this whole time, it would make sense why the US government is losing patience. This is essentially the show calling itself out for the fact that it’s made little headway in advancing the overall plot, something that fans are already doing on social media. The suits even bring Leland in to have him testify against his teammates, though he doesn’t take the bait. However, as Axel and Doug themselves discuss, there is a very real chance that they could get silenced after they fulfill their job. And they’re right to think that, as we soon learn.
Everything gets put on the back burner, though, as Skinner decides to up the ante with another announcement (Start at 20:12):
Skinner Changed the Game
This completely reframes the entire mission. If they don’t find Skinner, he will die, and so will any chance of curing Hapna. It might not make sense for Skinner to not take the antidote, but given how he seems to view humanity as a problem, he’s holding himself to those standards. That, and even if only a handful of people survive, the world will be very empty for thousands of years.
Though Lazarus might already have the cure for Hapna in there possession. As Chris is getting dressed, she finds the pill that she took from Skinner’s home. I guessed it was either a clue to his whereabouts or a flat-out cure, but the fact that it’s being brought up now means it’s important. It could be the key to solving everything.
There are bigger concerns now, though, as members of the government are after someone from Lazarus: Axel.
Vicious Has been Reborn
For some unknown reason, members of INSCOM see Axel as a threat. Perhaps it has something to do with how he wound up in prison in the first place, but apparently, it’s enough for them to warrant hiring a black-ops assassin to take him out. And the final minutes of the episode are dedicated to exclusively showing how dangerous he is in what can only be described as the second coming of Vicious.
If Axel is the modern-day Spike Spiegel, this assassin is Vicious. And if he is after Axel, then Lazarus is going to have a hard time.
This entire episode was, for all intents and purposes, meant to set the show up for the final act by raising the stakes. There are only ten days left before Skinner dies, the US Government goes after Lazarus, and now there’s an assassin after Axel. The stakes have been raised to new heights. Hopefully, the last four episodes will see the team finally make headway!
When you’re a kid, there are few things as scary as the expectations of your parents. The pressure can make some kids crack from trying to meet it. Other kids choose to rebel against their parents expectations, especially if said parent happens to be of the abusive kind. Fortunately, Mr. And Mrs. Helstea are not bad parents. Unfortunately, as Arthur Leywin sees for himself, just because they’re good parents doesn’t mean they don’t saddle their daughter, Lilia, with the stress of expectations.
It’s time for the King to have an intervention.
Poor Lilia’s Insecurities
The episode starts off with Arthur in the middle of an intense training session as he’s trying to master Sylvia’s powers. However, using what is essentially “Za Warudo” is not something that a kid can fully master, much to his frustration. His concerns, though, take a backseat as his family (and Mrs. Helstea and Lilia) take him out to get a makeover. The entire experience serves as a means for Arthur to bond with his family while also revealing just how valuable the beast core Sylvia gave him really is. If people knew he had the beast core of a dragon…let’s just say that he would be the most wanted person alive.
Imágenes de avance del noveno episodio del anime "The Beginning After The End". Este capítulo se emitirá el próximo 28 de mayo.#最強の王様#TBATEpic.twitter.com/g9SOF6s91C
Besides the trip serving as a way to introduce Arthur to the value of what he has gotten, it also serves as a means for him to get to learn Lilia better. And thanks to his past-life xp, he’s able to realize just how much pressure the girl has put upon herself. Her parents, being good parents, want the best for her and hope that she does great things in life. And attending the Xyrus Academy could be the key to doing that. Unfortunately, there’s a mathematical formula at work that is not helping things:
Lilia’s insecurity over not having a mana core+envy at Arthur already having one+parental expectations and unintentional pressures+chance they could pay her way into enrollment=DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN.
Wait…why does Lilia sound a lot like Norn Greyrat?
I Got Norn Flashbacks
When it comes to this episode, the anime changes several things from the story in the webcomic to focus more on the plight of Lilia. Whether intentional or not, this makes what Lilia is going through feel similar to the issues that Norn Greyrat from Mushoku Tensei would undergo. Both are unintentionally overshadowed by someone better than them; both don’t like having to meet others’ expectations or what they think are other’s expectations. And both initially have negative feelings towards the main protagonist. Lilia is just more subdued about it.
Arthur, having grown to understand people better, realizes how bad things could get if they aren’t resolved now. So, he does something about them. It’s just that it is…morally questionable.
This is Not what happened in the Comic
In a major departure from the webcomic, Arthur has Lilia pretend to run away to stay with the Elves like he did, even having a note written. He only did this so that Lilia could see how much her parents cared about her, and to his credit, it does help them work things out. However, it’s still a little messed up to emotionally manipulate people like that.
In any event, Arthur says that he’s going to help Lilia gain her mana core, and he follows through on it. Using the same methods he perfected as a baby, he’s able to teach Lilia (and Ellie) how to start assembling their cores…and it works. It will take a few years, but Lilia will eventually be able to use Magic!
This was a really sweet episode of TBATE, as it shows just how far Arthur has come since being reborn. He’s better able to understand other people and relate to them, and thanks to that, he’s got a loving home, family, and now another friend in the form of Lilia. There’s just one problem: when Tessia finds out, things could get…ugly. But that’s not for a few years!
Of all the things we could eventually learn about the members of Lazarus, being a former Russian spy was never considered. Yet that is exactly what happens in the latest episode of the series as Chris’ life is put in danger thanks to her past. And with there only being a limited amount of time before things get worse, Lazarus has to put their search for Skinner on hold to mount a John Wick/Jason Bourne/James Bond-style rescue attempt. At the very least, though, this episode does capture the feel of those gritty spy movies fairly well.
Chris Worked for WHAT?!?
At the end of the last episode, Chris was returning from her part in the team’s latest attempt to find Dr. Skinner when she ran into someone who knew her. The next time we see her, she’s held captive on an abandoned oil rig in the Barents Sea by Russians. Apparently, Chris had once been a Russian spy, but after faking her death, she defected to the United States. However, she had to leave her handler/likely lover, Inga, behind, much to her fury. Either ignorant or uncaring of the fact that Chris is trying to help save humanity, Inga goes rogue to get revenge. Thus, Lazarus has to put everything on hold to rescue their teammate.
On the one hand, it feels rather frustrating that the search for Skinner gets put on the back burner for this episode. With less than two weeks left before people start dying, time is not on their side. On the other hand, the fact that all the members agree to this rescue mission demonstrates how tight-knit they’ve become. Even Axel, the most laid-back of the team, immediately wants to rescue Chris. If Axel wants to do that, then that’s a sign that things have gotten serious!
This is Just Like John Wick!
Thankfully, despite being a side-quest in the grand scheme of things, this episode more than makes up for it with the overall plot and action. It feels very much like something out of a modern action movie like John Wick or Jason Bourne. From the way that Chris manipulates her captors to escape on her own to how Lazarus mounts their daring and high-tech rescue, the entire thing feels on point. The fact that they’re up against Russian Special Forces only helps to highlight how much danger they’re in, as the members experience several close calls. Even the ever-lucky Axel could end up dead if he makes one wrong move.
The true highlight of the episode, though, comes during the climax. Just as Chris looks home-free, Inga has her at gunpoint and dead to rights. For a moment, you can’t tell if Chris will make it out in one piece or not, but then she and Inga have a heart-to-heart about her decision to leave so she could keep Inga safe from their leaders. The reveal that they were lovers is played very much for drama, and for a moment, Inga wavers. Tragically, one of her own men then shoots her before being killed by Axel, leading Inga to die in Chris’ arms. It’s a very emotional moment, and one you would never expect from someone like Chris. By the time the oil rig starts going up in flames, you can tell that Chris is emotionally exhausted by what happened, but also grateful that her team came to save her. The fact that Axel says he doesn’t care about her past only serves to emphasize how close they’ve all gotten.
As big a distraction as this rescue op was, this might be the best episode of the series to date. However, the clock is still ticking, and they only have 12 days left before Hapna turns lethal. They need to start getting more leads soon, or things are going to get ugly!
Everyone, we have found our Chopper, and he is adorable.
In 2023, the live-action adaptation of One Piece premiered on Netflix, and despite what many fans feared, it didn’t stink! In fact, it was one of the most faithful and enjoyable live-action adaptations of an anime that many had ever seen. Thus, it was inevitable that Netflix would end up green-lighting a second season as the Straw Hat Pirates finally leave the East Blue behind for the Grand Line. That means the show would be heading into the vaunted Alabasta Saga, which would introduce us to fan-favorite characters like Crocodile, Vivi, Nico Robin, and many more. However, there is one character that fans have been concerned about more than anyone else: Tony Tony Chopper.
A blue-nosed reindeer that ate a Devil Fruit, granting him sentience, Chopper serves as the Straw Hat’s doctor and one of its most popular members. Beloved by fans for his adorable appearance and sweet nature, he’s one of the most marketable members of the cast, and the subject of tons of merchandise. Given how picky fans can be with using CGI (Ugly Sonic), people were naturally worried about what Netflix would do to Chopper. And when Netflix put out an ad saying there would be a big announcement at their annual Tudum festival about One Piece, everyone knew what was coming.
And we were right. We got our first-ever look at the live-action/CGI version of Chopper.
So far, reactions to the Netflix Chopper has been…mixed. Some people are saying it’s as bad as Ugly Sonic. Others are saying that they could make him cuter. Others are going to be upset no matter what Netflix does, though. And while he could be made to look cuter, Netflix got one thing right about Chopper: his personality.
In the span of the short teaser, we see Chopper act just like how he does in the anime and manga. His shy and childish nature (because he is still a kid), his love of compliments, and his expressive face are all present. While it’s a little sad that they don’t get his English VA, Brina Palencia, to voice him, Mikaela Hoover captures the spirit of the character. Plus, it’s likely the Japanese subs will use her seiyuu, so there is that.
In addition to the reveal of Chopper, Tudum also confirmed that the show will be returning in 2026. For those who can’t wait, not to worry! LEGO is making sets based on the Netflix show set to come out later this summer. Either way, there’s plenty to look forward to in the coming months.
At long last, Arthur Leywin is home! It took him three years and more solo traveling than most eight-year-olds, but it was worth it to get back to his family. And more importantly, he finally gets to meet the sibling that he almost died trying to protect. The only question is, what will Arthur do now?
That, and just how cute can his baby sister possibly get?
Family Reunion
Thanks to that post-credits scene at the end of the last episode, the anime jumps the gun on Arthur’s reunion with his family. It doesn’t change much, but it does take away some of the inherent heartwarming nature that such a reunion entails. That, and it spoils the fact that Arthur now has a little sister.
Meet Eleanor Leywin, Arthur’s baby sister of about three or four years old. And like most kids at that age, she’s adorable and impressionable, innocently repeating curse words her dad uses without understanding why they’re bad for someone her age. Once her parents explain that Arthur is the big brother she never met, though, Ellie quickly warms up to Arthur, as well as Sylvie. Who, if she sees Arthur as her papa, makes Eleanor her aunt.
Arthur tells his family everything that happened to him while he was away…to an extent. He lies about meeting Sylvia out of respect for her desire to tell as few people as possible. Given how someone was out to kill Sylvia, the fewer people who know for now, the better. That, and it’s doubtful most adults would believe that Arthur was saved by a talking dragon.
What Will Arthur Do Now?
At any rate, the main points of focus for the episode beyond the Leywin family reunion are Arthur’s growth and what his future will be like. Through exposition, the anime reveals the different stages behind the Mana Core that serves as the heart of the use of magic in TBATE. And thanks to his training arc, Arthur is already close to being on his Dad’s level. Since Reynolds is a more restrained version of Paul Greyrat, Arthur finds himself immediately dragged into a sparring session with his old man out back. And, while the special effects for the magic remain subpar, the fighting animation continues to show improvements.
No, really. Arthur and Reynolds’ friendly bout is not that badly animated. No use of still images to convey the illusion of combat; just actual combat. And, again, while the way the anime chooses to animate magical aura’s is still an eyesore, it makes up for it by confirming what last episode should’ve had us suspecting: Arthur can potentially learn how to use all four basic elements. He’s basically like the Avatar!
All of this is also witnessed by the wealthy Helstea family, old friends of the Leywin’s who allowed them to move in with them in exchange for Reynolds helping guard the auction house they own. And as soon as Mr. Vincent Helstea sees what Arthur can do, he gets the idea of enrolling him in Xyrus Academy. AKA TBATE’s version of Ranoa University or Hogwarts.
Which brings us to the second main focus of the episode: Arthur’s future. He’s only eight years old, but even ignoring his past life, he’s already got more life experience than other kids his age. Whatever he wants to do, he’ll excel at it. However, enrolling in a school like that will mean that he can’t spend as much time with his family, and he just reunited with them. Considering how Arthur devoted his first life to his rise to being a king, it’s likely that he won’t want to let his time with his family go to waste. However, there might be another option that he’s considering. And, as fate would have it, it seemingly gets introduced at the end of the episode.
Did the Anime Skip Stuff Again?
It should be noted that Arthur does eventually reunite with the Twin Horns Party in the webcomic like he does in the anime. However, that reunion doesn’t take place until after Arthur has already settled back in with his family, and after several other events already take place. The fact that the anime moved this up means they’ve either rearranged the order of some events, or they’re skipping over some. If it’s the latter, then that bodes ill for the story, as some of those events are important plotwise. Given how I’ve stuck with TBATE thus far, though, I’m willing to continue giving it the benefit of the doubt. With the show starting to show some promise, it would be a shame if it were to fail now.
This was a nice episode, overall. Getting to see Arthur reunite with his family and meet his baby sister was a very sweet moment. Getting to see Sylvie and Eleanor bond, though, was downright adorable to look at!
Three years have passed since Arthur Leywin got separated from his parents and wound up in the Kingdom of Elves. Three years since he was taken in by the former King of the Elves, Virion, as his student. And three years since he started training his Mana Core and trying to master the Beast Will that Sylvia left him. As much as Arthur wanted to see his mom and dad again, those three years were worth it, as he’s gotten stronger in that time! All that strength, though, isn’t going to matter much if he can’t handle his toughest challenge yet: trying to get Tessia to let him leave.
That, and he now has a kid.
Arthur is Pretty Much a Jinchuuriki Now
Thanks to the kindness of former King Virion, Arthur was able to live in the safety of the Elves of Elenoir. He’s still only eight years old in his current life, but thanks to his training, he’s stronger than any eight-year-old would normally be. Just as important, though, is the fact that Tessia’s been able to train alongside Arthur, allowing the two’s friendship to continue to remain strong. To his dismay, though, Arthur has gotten to the point in his life where she’s showing her haughty side more often. I.E. she’s constantly waking him up in the morning and making him food, all while saying he should be grateful a beautiful girl is doing these things for him. Yet, as the anime notes, her ego isn’t unjustified, as she’s proven to be as much of a prodigy with magic as Arthur, gaining her own mana core at age nine.
This episode primarily serves as the stage upon which the story can provide more details about how magic works in the world of TBATE, and it’s here where the anime starts to show off more of what helped to inspire the world it exists in. Virion’s explanation of how magic is broken into four basic elements takes a page from Avatar: the Last Airbender. That series is set in a world where certain people can bend the four classical elements, and while it’s possible for anyone in TBATE to use all four, it’s so rare it might as well be unique. In addition, the explanation about what a Beast Will draws a lot from Naruto. Like Naruto, TBATE includes people who can gain the powers of a powerful monster and use them for themselves, though in this case, they’re called Beast Tamers. And since Arthur got his Beast Will from Sylvia, a dragon, his is extremely powerful. The good news is that all the training he’s done means he’s no longer in any danger of dying.
The bad news? He’s…now a parent.
No, Really. Arthur has a Child Now
In case people forgot, Sylvia gave Arthur two other things besides her Beast Will before she died. One was one of her feathers, and the other was a stone. Fast forward three years, and Arthur discovers that that “stone” was actually an egg…and it just hatched.
While some viewers might share Arthur and Tessia’s sentiment that Sylvia’s newborn daughter, Sylvie, is adorable, the anime ultimately does her, and Sylvia, a little dirty. After biting and leaving that mark on him in the webcomic, Sylvia gains the ability to mentally communicate with Arthur. Yet, for whatever reason, the anime either neglected or forgot to show what Sylvie was thinking, forcing viewers to guess what she’s thinking. As a result, this deprives the show of some of the humor that this moment had in the webcomic. I.E. Sylvie first calling Arthur mama, and then papa, and how freaked out she gets when Tessia insists of cuddling her.
The cute and adorable little dragon Sylvie has arrived! ☺️🥰😍
There are many characters in fiction whose verbal communication is deliberately rendered unintelligible to the audience. Two major examples would be Chewbacca and R2-D2 from Star Wars. The cast can usually understand them, but it’s up to viewers to guess for themselves what they’re saying. In Artoo and Chewie’s case, it’s fun. In Sylvie’s case, though, it’s an issue that’s keeping us from getting to know her better. Hopefully, this was a one-time thing and we’ll soon get to hear what Sylvie’s thinking in future episodes.
By the end of the episode, the Elves have finished the preparations to send Arthur to the human kingdom, so it’s finally time for Arthur to reunite with his family. Thus, he and Sylvie get a big send-off from everyone they’ve met and known in Elenoir, with one initial, and notable, absence: Tessia.
So, Who Ships Arthur and Tessia?
The Beginning After the End makes it no secret that it takes a lot of inspiration from Mushoku Tensei, with Tessia being a combination of the three women who fall in love with Rudeus. And just like Sylphie, Tessia’s reduced to tears at the prospect of her first and only friend going away. That being said, Tessia handles it rather well for an eight-year-old, understanding that Arthur has his own family that misses him. More importantly, while the two go their separate ways for now, it’s all but stated that they will see each other again when they’re older, meaning Tessia has another chance of seeing Arthur.
The Beginning After the End is now seven episodes in, and while it’s no Mushoku Tensei, it feels like the anime is slowly improving. The animation could be better, with one person on TikTok even proving they could do better in under an hour. But it feels like the series is at its best when it’s not focused on the big action scenes, with the slower moments of this episode proving to be just as good.
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