Some anime shows are distinctly and obviously comedic, while others – like RekiAku – are a little more subtle. I’m enjoying the humor in this series – in particular, the irony. It’s richly ironic that a good, wise girl like Alicia thinks of herself as a villainess. The irony intensifies as it starts to become clear that Alicia may be the Saint of the story and not the villain at all. I feel like the story is heading in that direction, but we’ll see as the show progresses. Here is my episode review for RekiAku episode 5!

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Episode 5: The Villainess and the Villainess Test

Episode Rating: 7/10

It was a fairly entertaining episode. The first item of interest was the report from Rebecca about the state of Roana. At the current time, Rebecca reports, most villagers are still hopeless and resigned to their allotted roles as criminals and outcasts. However, thanks to what Alicia and Rebecca are trying to do, hope has appeared in a few villagers. The report suggests that Roana is capable of gradual change.

With that out of the way, let’s mention another character who came to report to Alicia, but unofficially. It’s her brother Henry, one of the twins. He lets Alicia know that he’s drifted apart from Alan (his twin) due to his obsession with Liz Cather. The entire school is on Liz’s side, vilifying Alicia and anyone else who speaks out against Liz’s lofty ideals. Essentially, while Alan and Albert are now in Liz camp, Henry alone is on Alicia’s side. It’s nice to know that she has at least one ally in her own family.

The main event of the episode was the tea-party with the King and the sons of the top noble families. Despite being a commoner, Liz Cather is also invited. Alicia remembered this event from the game, citing it as “the Saint test,” where they verify if Liz is worthy to be considered the Saint or not. But Alicia decides to consider this event a “Villainess test” for herself, much like the last interviews with the King. It will also be a chance to prove how she’s doing as Liz Cather’s secret monitor.

Alicia performed excellently at the tea-party. She and the King and Liz discussed a neighboring country that had gone bankrupt. Alicia predicted that would happen three years ago. Her plan for how to handle the country’s situation was right on-point. Though Liz’s ideas were initially too vague and short-term, she did contribute some helpful notions later on, which made the King pleased with both young leaders. Having guided Liz along, Alicia passed the “Villainess test”!

After the tea-party, Alicia got lost and had to be assisted by Duke, who was still acting weirdly affectionate. A bit later, Alicia was discussing some points with Henry and Gill. Noticing that everyone practically worships Liz, Gill suggested that she could be using some kind of mind-manipulation magic. Henry dismissed this, and Alicia said she wasn’t currently aware of any magic that could achieve that effect. Still, I’m glad Gill brought up the idea. It’s a possibility.

One of my favorite parts of the episode was when Alicia finally admitted to Henry her dream of being a villainess. He broke out into hearty laughter after a short pause of disbelief. I probably would have reacted the same way. We must remember that no matter how smart she is, Alicia is a 13-year-old with very limited self-awareness. She doesn’t understand why it’s funny to call herself a villainess. Like I said in the intro, this is subtle comedy.

In the very last scene, this episode takes a sudden turn. Some ruffians with makeshift weapons appeared out of nowhere and kidnapped Gill and Alicia. They knocked Alicia unconscious, but due to anime logic, of course, she woke up a bit later without a serious head injury. Alicia finds that she’s tied up in some kind of storage shed with a very beaten-up Gill. To be continued.

~Thanks for reading~

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