Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III Episode 11: A Polite Betrayal

DanMachi III Episode 11

Introduction

We learned a lot in Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III/DanMachi III/IIWTTTPUGIAD III (how many synonyms does this show have?) episode 11, “Ultra Soul | Decisive Battle.” At the same time, there’s a lot we didn’t learn. Like, why did Hermes give Eina that bracelet to give to Bell? 

She never did give it to Bell, did she?

Before we get started, how has your week been, Irina? Anything interesting happen?

But First, a Note About Flying Squirrels

Well, vaccines have started rolling out in England and we are starting our first inoculations up here on Monday. That’s good.

I also found out that Momonga are actually a type of Japanese flying dwarf squirrel and potentially one of the cutest animals out there. If you want to go Google that right now, it’s o.k. We’ll wait for you. Won’t we Crow? See!!! Ok, now imagine those adorable little fur balls in your Christmas three. Best decorations ever! Am I right?

I have a feeling that that’s not what you were asking about. 

OK folks, let me warn you ahead of time. I’m going to try really hard to remain on point here, but I really don’t have much to say about this episode of  Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III/DanMachi III/IIWTTTPUGIAD III. So there is a small chance that this post will get interrupted by random adorable animal facts. Ok maybe not so much facts as stary musings. 

Also, I will be in bold this week, like every week. And even if I haven’t read ahead, I’m pretty sure we’re going to spoil a few things about episode 11 “Ultra Soul | Decisive Battle.” So if you haven’t seen it yet, you have been warned!

At first I thought you were talking about Momonga from Overlord. To be fair, the squirrels really are adorable! 

Back to DanMachi III Episode 11

Quick Recap and Opening Thoughts about DanMachi III Episode 11

This episode gave us five high-points, with the last coming after the ending credits. First, Tiona justified my observation that she was the most adorable main battle tank ever (in our review of the previous episode) — smart, too. Haruhime stood up to one of the strongest children in Loki’s Familia, with not so surprising results. In the most telegraphed confrontation of the season, Bell, Wiene in tow, had to face off against Ais. Did Ais show enough emotion to register in Irina’s memory? Speaking of Wiene, she made a grim decision in this episode, and I’m really curious to get Irina’s take on it. 

Finally, Hermes… Well, we’ll talk about that in a moment. 

Any opening thoughts, Irina?

I’m also a huge fan of baby sloths. If you’ve never seen a baby sloth you are missing out. 

But seriously, did you really think they were going to kill Wiene again? There was zero chance of Tiona not letting her go. I’m actually not sure why Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III/DanMachi III/IIWTTTPUGIAD III chose to put her as the damsel again. Aside from the fact that it’s consistent with her characterisation and we haven’t really gotten that attached to anyone else. But considering the events of past weeks, it was pretty much impossible that anything consequential would happen to her so it sort of undercut the tension. If they had chosen any of the other Xenos that had a real chance of dying, I think the suspense would have been much higher this week. 

For instance, I’m actually super worried about the Black Minotaur. We didn’t even see him at all and I’m a bit nervous about him. 

Tiona Confronts Wiene

Wiene Misunderstood — Again

Tiona plainly saw that Wiene didn’t attack the girl. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

I’ve always liked Tiona. It’s her attitude. She’s self-effacing in proportion to her strength, which is to say, very. She’d been playing cat and house with Wiene and had almost caught up with her when Wiene encountered a small girl. What was a small girl doing out on a night light this? No idea. I assume the Plot Fairy (maybe Jorgen’s whimsey?) willed it so. Whatever the reason, the arch over her head decided to give way, and Wiene saved the girl. As she feared, onlookers claimed that she’d attacked the girl, so she fled. Tiona told the others to attend to the girl while she went after the monster.

Tiona caught Wiene before she’d gone far. Wiene closed her eyes in terror, figuring her number was up. But no. Tiona said, “I think you saved that kid back there, right?” Wiene was too terrified to answer. Tiona told her she could go.

I thought it was a nice touch when Tiona said, “I wonder if this is how Argonaut-kun started feeling, too.”

What do you think, Irina? Was my invoking Jorgen too harsh?

Was Jorgen Right?

Oh no… I have no idea who Jorgen is. I mean I looked at that clip you linked and it looked pleasantly wacky but I’m afraid it’s not a show I have ever seen. It didn’t look that harsh from the clip.

Tiona decided that she couldn’t kill Wiene, primarily because Wiene hadn’t done anything wrong — and had, in fact, save that little girl. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

So Tiona saw that Wiene was a tiny girl that looked terrified and made no move to attack in any way. And then saw her risk her own life to save a human. Then cornered Wiene and saw that she still isn’t attacking. At this point if she hadn’t let her go we could have put Tiona squarely in the villain pile. She would have been on par with Dix or maybe a bit worse. And I think Tiona is a recurring character in future stories as well. 

I guess it could have been interesting to see her turn to the dark side. I’d be up for that. She probably would be the most interesting villain Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III/DanMachi III/IIWTTTPUGIAD III has had!

Bete’s Turn to Mess with Bell in DanMachi III Episode 11

Wiene met up with Bell, who was travelling with Haruhime. He threw his invisibility cloak around all three of them and tried to make their way to the Xenos. Unfortunately, Bete found them by scent. Among the Loki Familia, he might be my least favorite because he’s so one-note. But he’s undeniably strong, so when he called them out, I wondered how Bell was going to get away.

So was Bell. He looked like he was thinking hard. Haruhime saved him the trouble. She stepped out, alone, and confronted Bete. It was a brave move. The only thing Bell could do was make a run for it.

Well, Haruhime gets points for bravery, at least. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Bete knew there was more than one scent, and he tried to brush past Haruhime. She blocked him, and he kicked her aside. Now, I know we’re supposed to be equal opportunity here, but I didn’t like it much at all. I mean, come on — it’s Haruhime! 

She took temporary revenge by working a magic spell that called Aisha to take on Bete, so Bell and Wiene still got away.

Irina, what’d you think about the encounter?

It was great. I hope we get to see more of Bete in the future because I like him. I also like the leader of the Loki familia. The short blond one. Let me go look up his name. Right Finn!!! There really isn’t much on him in the DanMachi wiki. I guess he’s not a very important character. Too bad, there’s not many cool headed mastermind types in the series. It could be a nice contrast to the other characters.

Ais Steps Up to the Plate (Good Thing They Were Sequential!)

Bell Brings the Roof Down

Ais confronted Bell and Wiene, and he blew the archway under which she stood. Hidden by the debris cloud, he and Wiene made a run for it. 

Ais seemed a little surprised that Bell shot the arch. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Remember back in season 1 when the giant ape-like creature escape from the arena Ganesha Familia ran? It was all the way back in episode 3. Well, Bell and Wiene came upon the same area where Bell had protected Hestia. Now, knowing Ais would likely catch up to him sooner than later, he gave Wiene the communications device and told her to make a run for it down the same secret passage that he’d asked Hestia to hide in. Wiene reluctantly left him. 

Weirdly I remember season 1 way better than season 2. Season 2 had its moments but overall I wasn’t crazy about it and promptly forgot it once it was over. I did enjoy season 1 though. 

Bell and Ais Communicate

Moments later, Ais showed up, and she looked a bit miffed. It’s hard to tell with Ais. But she was not about to let Wiene get away, so she and Bell went at it. Bell’s gotten a lot better. He held his ground for quite a few minutes. 

I thought there was some drama here, even though the OP telegraphed the confrontation all season. Also, I know I’m supposed to root for the Ais x Bell ship, because it seems the narrative leans that way. But maybe it’s because I think Eina would be a lot better for him that I’m not sure the moment clicked. What did you think, Irina?

Bell was determined to give Wiene time to escape. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Well, I think I mentioned it before, but I find Ais utterly dull and I always have. I think Bell would be better with just about anyone else of any gender. I like him with Lili, or Hestia or Welf or that elf from the inn, hold on… OMG her name is Ryuu Lion! That’s amazing, how could I have forgotten a name like that? Heck, pair Bell off with Freya. Now that’s bound to stir up some conflict.

I’m sure there are some Ais fans out there and I will admit that I think her character design is quite nice. I like her weird ¾ breastplate. I love that her arms are completely armored but her entire torso is exposed. Genius! I do honestly like the aesthetic of her. 

A Dandere Misstep in DanMachi III Episode 11

But there is a right way to do a dandere and to me, Ais ain’t no Rei Ayanami. I honestly keep forgetting her character exists.

When you combine that with the fact that it was a toothless fight. Obviously the show isn’t going to kill Bell and obviously they wouldn’t do a second Wiene death, and obviously they aren’t going to kill Ais. It seemed like a bit of a useless sequence.

I did like some of the fighting animation though. The fact that Bell fights with two short knives while Ais has that much bigger range with her sword made the choreography very interesting and not something we see that often.  

The fights were well-choreographed, at least! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Bell had held out long enough, in fact, for Wiene to decide she wanted to protect Bell, though I wasn’t really sure what she could do.

Wiene Tries to Convince Ais in DanMachi III Episode 11

What she could do was convince Ais that Wiene was, in fact, sentient. At first, she just tried talking, saying “Don’t bully Bell! Please don’t hurt Bell.”

Ais looked shocked. Giving voice to the shock Wiene had delivered to her world view, Ais told her to stop talking. She even questioned why someone like Wiene existed. Ais’ anger flared when Wiene said that she just wanted to stay with Bell. 

Ais simply snapped, “I will not allow that.” 

Apparently, Ais draws the line at talking monsters walking around on the surface. Well, to prove she wasn’t dangerous, Wiene made a grim decision: She tore off all of her finger nails. Bell was aghast, and even Ais looked shaken. Then, in a strongly unsettling move, Wiene ripped off one of her wings.

Bell caught Wiene as she sagged. The blood loss affected her. Ais lowered her sword and said there was no way she could kill Wiene now. Ais even provided a healing potion.

This is about as much emotion as we’ve ever seen Ais display! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Of all of the emotional moments in this season so far, this hit me the hardest. Wiene was willing to go that far to stay with Bell. Irina, what’d you think?

My notes are: Oh my, those weren’t connected very solidly were they?

The Most Polite of Betrayals?

Hermes and Asfi Step Out

Now we come to what was to me the most surprising moment of the season. To the point where I wonder if the story’s just jerking us around. The Xenos followed the map from the book that Hermes gave to Ouranos. Hestia had been using it to guide the Xenos to the secret doors to the dungeon. However, they came to a dead end. They were at a loss, and even Fels didn’t quite know what to do. 

That’s when Hermes and Asfi stepped out. Fels asked Hermes what he wanted.

“Won’t you die, please, you heretical monsters?”

That was unbelievable. So unbelievable that I have to wonder if it’s some kind of cruel joke. Hermes doesn’t strike me as the blatantly evil type. Asfi, either.

Irina, what did you make of that?

Okay, Hermes, what are you up to this time? Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

A Real Betrayal or Something Else?

Ok, so two things. Hestia saw something in that book. Something that seemed quite surprising to her. That’s probably tied into it.

I’m not sure if you’re calling the entire Loki familia blatantly evil cause they have been trying to slaughter the Xenos this whole time as well. And they didn’t even say please!

Hermes probably has some type of plan up his sleeve as per usual. It might be a way to ensure peace. Making the world think the Xenos are dead or some other ploy of the type. I really like Hermes and I rather not see him as a bad guy.

This said, Hermes would make an excellent villain. I would watch a season of Bell vs Hermes anytime. I might root for Hermes but you know, it wouldn’t be the first time I fall for the baddie.

Your theory has appeal — Hermes just isn’t the blatantly evil type. I guess we’ll find out next week!

Reviews of the Other Episodes

• Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III Episode 1 – Dungeons and Wyverns
• Is It Wrong to Try To Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III Episode 2: Coexistence And Lili’s Foot In Mouth Disease
• Is It Wrong to Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? III Episode 3 – The Mission To Level 20
• Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III Episode 4 – Told You He Was A Dix
• Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? III Episode 5 – Gros Isn’t Wrong
• Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III Episode 6 – A Man Named Modaka
• Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III Episode 7 – Bell Takes on Wiene and the World
• Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III Episode 8 – An Enemy of Humanity
• Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? III Episode 9 — Regrets And Introspection
• Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? III Episode 10 – Wild Bell Chase
• Is It Wrong To Try to Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? III Episode 11 — A Polite Betrayal
• Is It Wrong To Try to Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? III Episode 12 – Full Circle