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Overlord IV Episode 6 Review – Quick Summary
In Overlord IV episode 6, “The Impending Crisis,” Ains Ooal Gown arrived at the dwarven city even as they closed their front gates against their gathering enemy. His offer: to protect them from that enemy, the Quagoa. All he asked for was a favorable trade arrangement. Oh, and all of their runesmiths. The dwarven general knew their chances without Ain’s help. Yet, members of the dwarven council had their doubts – or terrors, more like it. Can they overcome their fear and loathing to accept Ain’s offer? Or will they perish at the hands of their enemies? And will Shalltear ever run out of paper for taking notes?
Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.
Favorite Quote from Overlord IV Episode 6
There’s no shame in admitting fear! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
Ains presented his proposal to the dwarven council. He asked for trade relations; one of them asked polite questions about alternatives. One burst out that the deal was too good to be true and Ains had to be hiding something. Ains agreed and told them he wanted all their runecraft masters.
The dwarves looked at each other. They asked Ains if he could wait until tomorrow for another; he said no, and the general of the dwarves agreed. He asked Ains to wait in the next room so they could deliberate.
When he left, they sat silently, seemingly lost in their own thoughts. Then one of them heaved a sigh and promptly freaked out. “What the hell was that?” he said.
Another could barely contain his fear when he said. “He’s such a powerful monster!”
My favorite was one honest dwarf who blurted out (12:29), “I almost pissed myself!”
I’m so used to Ains and his fleet of dreadnoughts that I completely forget just how powerful he appears to the characters around him. This was a hilarious reminder!
Best in Show Moment for Overlord IV Episode 6
Ains had the audience right where he wanted them. And check out Shalltear’s adoring smile! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
Setup: Who is Ains Now?
Did you see Shalltear still scribbling away in her notebook? There were two shots that I thought were particularly awesome: while Ains considered who could have killed two of his Death Knights and when Ains told Shalltear he wanted to brief her on some of the details of his plan. During that second moment, she tilted her head and reached up into her bow to pull out her pen and paper.
My favorite moment is a quintessential Overlord moment. On one hand, it shows Ains doing something that could be considered uplifting. At the same time, it might also be interpreted as manipulative. And I’m not even sure Ains knew the difference. In fact, and I think this is one of the core ideas behind the series, we seem to see Ains’ original humanity recede a little more each season.
I love how Shalltear is still taking notes! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
At what point will he become simply the manipulative Overlord? Is his humanity really in retreat? Maybe it’s infusing his identity as Overlord with human considerations? He wants a kingdom of milk and honey. He wants Shalltear to become even stronger through encouragement and experience. Are those urges from his humanity? His identity as Overlord? Or maybe in the final analysis, there’s really no difference, and the point is that as humans, all of these behaviors are native to us?
I recently bought J. Michael Straczynski’s new book Becoming a Writer, Staying a Writer. He wrote it for beginning writers of all ages, and the book is informative and insightful in ways you could only find with someone like JMS. The man’s a creative legend.
His recommendations have me thinking hard about the craft of writing. That, in turn, has reminded me of how much I respect any efforts that require craftsmanship. I don’t care if it’s dance, painting, software development, baling hay, or rebuilding a diesel engine. If it requires drive, skill, and practice, it interests me. That was a huge influence on picking my favorite moment this episode.
Delivery: Masterful Leadership, Ambiguous Motives
Gondo had gathered the runesmiths together. Ains, Shalltear, and Aura entered, and Ains began his pitch. The council had already approved the plan, but Ains showed he has become shrewd. Or maybe wise? He tried to entice them. So he drew an ancient black sword. Dwarven runes glowed purple-white. Even after just a glimpse, the runesmiths surged forward and clamored to see it.
Shalltear’s snarl halted their progress. Ains himself demanded silence. And in that silence, he asked if any of them had the skill to “engrave twenty runes” onto a magical weapon. A dwarf near the back said that was flatly impossible. Even the king’s hammer only had six – but that had been created two hundreds years ago with now-forgotten skills.
In front of them all, to hammer the lesson home, Ains lamented that this sword must have been created with lost technology. Worse, its creator was no longer in this world. The assembled runesmiths all deflated. They seemed despondent over the loss.
Ains had the dwarves just depressed enough to listen to him! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
Seeing the audience was exactly where he wanted them. He said (16:36), “I want everyone here to rediscover that lost knowledge. I wish to revive this valuable craft. This is why I need your strength.”
One of the dwarves said, “I want to make it,” meaning the sword. In that instant, Ains had them. And what’s so cool about this moment is that they all walked away with something. Ains had access to the runescraftsmen he needed. The dwarves had a renewed sense of hope and a real chance to regain their lost art.
So is Ains a master manipulator? A visionary leader? A mentor? That’s probably just me wanting categories. The real answer is he’s just the Overlord. And I’m looking forward to seeing where the next episodes take us!
What did you think of Ains misunderstanding what happened to his Death Knights – and heading into battle way over-armed for the enemy? What were your favorite moments? Feel free to let me know in the comments!
Overlord IV Episode 6: Other Posts
Other Anime Sites
- Reddit: Overlord Season 4 – Episode 6 discussion
- RABUJOI: Overlord IV – 06 – Runes for Revival
- Random Curiosity: Overlord IV – 06
This Site (Crow’s World of Anime!)
- Overlord IV Episode 1: Ains Ooal Gown Nation of Leading Darkness
- Overlord IV Episode 2: Re-Estize Kingdom
- Overlord IV Episode 3: Baharuth Empire
- Overlord IV Episode 4: The Ruler of Conspiracy
- Overlord IV Episode 5: In Pursuit of the Land of Dwarves
- Overlord IV Episode 6: The Impending Crisis
- Overlord IV Episode 7: In Pursuit of the Land of Dwarves
- Overlord IV Episode 8: An Unexpected Move
- Overlord IV Episode 9: Countdown to Extinction
- Overlord IV Episode 10: The Last King
- Overlord IV Episode 11: Well-Prepared Traps
- Overlord IV Episode 12: Invasion of the Royal Capital
- Overlord IV Episode 13: The Witch of the Falling Kingdom
I honestly interpreted Ainz’s actions as being a businessman. He’s essentially poaching the dwarves talents from their kingdom . But you know what business men can be evil too lol . But at least the dwarves felt uplifted.
Good point. At least the way Ains framed it, the offer was transactional. Maybe I was reading too much into it to think Ains saw it any other way. I like the ambiguity, though. It makes for interesting discussion!
It really does plus because Ainz isn’t the common protaganist his motives are always questionable plus having a skull face can be hard to read emotions lol
The death knights are just another example of Ains sometimes not being very bright. Not checking out the bottom of the chasm for their bodies is just stupid. He’s trying to interpret it in a way that fits his desire to see another player or at least see signs of another player.
He has blind spots — especially where I’d expect someone with his experience to have them.
You’re right about him wanting to find anything about other players who might be trapped. I wonder if that even matters? For a while now, I’ve wondered if everyone around him are, in fact, actual persons. Not NPCs; but fully realized, independent beings. They sure don’t act like NPCs. Even STALKER’s A-Life isn’t that good!