Quick Summary • Best Moment • Setup • Delivery • Other Posts
Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 4 – Quick Summary
In Infinite Stratos Season 1 episode 4, “Showdown! The Class League Match!,” Lingyin Huang faced Ichika Orimura in the class league match. Ichika managed to not get blown out of the sky instantly. But her speed, skill, and experience began to take their toll. Ichika came up with a plan. It was a long shot, but he thought it might work. Then something changed the match completely. What happened? How will Rin and Ichika react? And is Chifuyu really as calm about the situation as she seems?
Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.
Favorite Quote from Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 4
I’ll give Chifuyu points for trying to project calm. And to Maya for knowing better! Capture from the Blu Ray.
When the rogue IS crashed into the arena, Chifuyu immediately ordered the match halted. We learned a little later that she also asked the government for assistance. The situation was so bad, though, that they could not evacuate or send in the senior team with their ISes. The rogue IS had inflicted too much damage on the facility. It had locked itself down.
Ichika and Rin attacked the rogue IS to buy the teachers time to assert control over the facility. Maya Yamada, nearly in a panic, ordered the two of them to fall back. When they didn’t answer, she demanded they respond immediately.
Chifuyu tried to appear calm. She said the two wanted to handle it, so they could handle it. She even tried to say that Maya was just upset because she was low on sugar. To prove it, she poured a cup of coffee and dumped in a teaspoonful of a white granular substance.
“Um,” Maya said (10:50), “before you drink that, what you actually just added was the salt.”
I think Chifuyu was a little more anxious than she let on.
Favorite Moment from Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 4
Strange. Ichika doesn’t look like someone expecting to be vaporized. Capture from the Blu Ray.
Setup: More Sub vs Dub Fun
I found some more evidence to show why I like the dub more than the sub. There’s a scene where Ichika is recovering from the fight with the rogue IS. He had just asked Rin on a date when Cecilia Alcott waltzed in and tried to have some alone time with Ichika. Of course, Cecilia was enraged – she said they had all agreed not to hit on Ichika until he had regained consciousness. So what was Rin doing?
That’s when Houki Shinonono walked in. Her dry, sarcastic humor came through in both the sub and the dub, but the dub in this case is one of my favorite lines of the series. Here’s the difference (21:10):
- Sub: “What about you? Apparently, you were trying to get ahead of me behind my back!”
- Dub: “And what about you, then? Because from my view of your fat ass, it sure looks like you were trying to get ahead of me.”
Houki can be brutal when she wants to be. Which seems to be about 90% of the time. Capture from the Blu Ray.
I think I could make a great argument that Cecilia’s ass is not fat. But, Houki is entitled to her opinion!
My favorite moment is another sign that Ichika isn’t a complete idiot. He might not have a clue when it comes to Cecilia or Houki (though he gets points for realizing Rin likes him – and he even asked her out (20:46)!). But he understands his goals and his limitations. He consciously decides to rely on the people around him.
Delivery: Teamwork is Underrated
I wondered why in the world Houki had rushed out to scream at Ichika that if he were a man, he should wipe out the enemy completely. It was to give time for Cecilia to get into position. Ichika used Rin’s energy weapons to replenish his shields, and then he attacked.
He managed to slice off one of the rogue IS’s arms. Then it launched a counter attack. It closed on Ichika and charged its weapon.
“How’s your aim?” he said (17:29). Cecilia’s answer came back immediately: “Perfect, of course.”
She pulverized the enemy. We found out later it was almost enough to finish it off, but her embarrassed reaction to him saying, “I knew you’d come through in time, Cecilia” (17:59) was perfect.
I hate to say it, but there are times when these two have good chemistry. Capture from the Blu Ray.
Ichika knew he couldn’t defeat the enemy alone. So he worked with Rin and Cecilia, especially Cecilia, to get it done. Teamwork is something that’s very important to me, in part because I see too little of it. So when I see it done well, it reminds me how cool it can be when it works.
What did you think of Ichika trying to get Rin out of harm’s way – and her suit seemed to shrink? What were your favorite moments? Feel free to let me know in the comments!
Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 4: Other Posts
Other Anime Sites
- Reddit: [Rewatch] IS: Infinite Stratos – Episode 4 (Spoilers)
- AngryAnimeBitches Anime Blog: Infinite Stratos 4: Unknown Enemy
- Lost in Anime: Infinite Stratos – 4
This Site (Crow’s World of Anime!)
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 1: All of My Classmates Are Female
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 2: Class Representative Match!
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 3: The Transfer Student is the Second Childhood Friend
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 4: Showdown! The Class League Match!
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 5: Boy Meets Boy
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 6: My Roommate is a Young, Blonde Nobleman
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 7: Blue Days, Red Switch
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 8: Discover My Mind
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 9: Ocean’s Eleven
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 10: Thin Red Line
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 11: Get Ready
- Infinite Stratos Season 1 Episode 12: Your Name Is
