Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24: Hibana wants to understand the Adolla Links
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Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24 Review – Best In Show

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Quick Summary • Best Moment • Setup • Delivery • Other Posts

Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24 Review – Quick Summary

In Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24, “Signs of Upheaval,” Shinra and Arthur tried to continue their training with Benimaru. But it just seemed to go in random directions! First he lets them roast over an open flame. Then he let random townsfolk drag them through the streets behind a hand-drawn cart. Finally, when Shinra and Arthur both tried to vent their anger against Benimaru, he decided to vent his on anger on them. Tamaki, looking on, expressed grave concern. Can Shinra and Arthur stand up — at all! — to Benimaru? What’s Benimaru’s plan for them? And while they’re training, what’s going on with Captain Hague of the 4th Company?

Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.

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Favorite Quote from Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24

Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24: Shinra and Arthur lost their patience with Benimaru

When one of my nieces was about 6, she would have said Shinra and Arthur were “p-i-s-t” pissed! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Shinra and Arthur had endured a lot. Benimaru roasted them on crosses. They’d been drug around town behind a cart. And now, when they asked him what it was all for, he confessed that he didn’t remember. But he was almost sure there was some point.

Now, Shinra is a good guy. He’s not going to jump to conclusions. Wanting to confirm his facts, he asked if there was not, in fact, any point to what he and Arthur had just gone through. When Benimaru told him not to worry about every little thing, Shinra and Arthur both snapped.

They launched themselves at Benimaru, the most powerful Captain in the Fire Force.

Benimaru commented that he could sense that they wanted to kill him. How did Shinra respond?

“Of course you can, sir! It’s the bitterness from our anger!”

Shinra was absolutely furious. But he still called Benimaru “sir.” Very classy, Shinra!

Best in Show Moment for Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24

Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24: Shinra evolved

Shinra, pushed beyond his limits, had to decide who he was. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Setup: Shinra Can’t Go Beyond His Limits…

This episode made it really hard to pick a single moment. With Fruits Basket Season 2, the problem was the sheer volume of amazing moments. This episode presented a different problem: Many of the moments were intertwined to the point it was hard to tease them apart. So I hope you don’t mind if the boundaries for this choice seem a little arbitrary.

Over the course of two seasons, we’ve seen Shinra get stronger and more capable. This episode saw him take another step, though getting there was no picnic.

It wasn’t just the physical abuse that he and Arthur withstood. It was the mental anguish of feeling betrayed that triggered them attacking Benimaru. Yet even in that state, Shinra still called sensei “sir.” Shinra hadn’t given up on his instruction. He just didn’t understand what was going on, and it made him angry.

Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24: Shinra felt the bitterness of his anger

Bitterness of his anger, indeed! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

So he and Arthur attacked Benimaru for five hours. And for five hours, Benimaru casually and easily smacked them around. Finally, neither Shinra nor Arthur could even stand. They had depleted their oxygen levels to dangerous levels. Tamaki was afraid they’d both suffer tephrosis, like Konro had.

Benimaru said (07:43), “Get up. The training begins now.”

Delivery: …Until Shinra Knows What His Limits Are

Going beyond isn’t a new concept in anime. But if the power up is too sudden, it feels cheap and unearned, which is why I’ve never embraced the idea that a character can be beaten down in the middle of a battle, only to bounce back.

That’s not the way it works. In the field, once energy’s gone, it’s gone. Learning a new way of fighting and managing your abilities takes time, it takes practices, and it takes the oversight of an experienced trainer.

Those three characteristics are why I liked Shinra’s evolution so much in this episode. It was two seasons in the making. From the first episode where he showed solid, though basic, ability, to his combat experience with spotty results. From learning his finger position/speed technique from Benimaru to the fight he and Arthur waged against Giovanni, Shinra slowly and painstakingly built his abilities.

Here, when Benimaru broke him down and pushed him to the edge of death, the change felt natural. Benimaru basically forced Shinra to confront who he was. The scene where he sank into his subconscious and had to witness his mother, in Infernal Demon form, holding the baby Sho was perfect in a chilling and horrible way.

Fire Force Season 2 Ep 24: Shinra's mother and Sho remained at the core of his being

From the beginning of the series, this has been Shinra’s emotional core. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Shinra’s answer to those pressures was to evolve. His flames turned blue (reminding me a little of Blue Exorcist Kyoto Saga). The sight made Benimaru smile and say (12:45), “Those flames. Now you’re cooking.”

Then, to put the perfect cap on the moment, he shut training down. His students were exhausted. There was no way they could continue. This isn’t some random, shonen series, after all! It trying to be something more.

What did you think of the toothy moon in the last shot? What was your best in show moment? Let me know in the comments!

Fire Force Season 2 Episode 24: Other Posts

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