Anime

Record of Grancrest War Episode 7: The Measure of a Leader and Werewolf Twins Attack!

Quick Summary of Record of Grancrest War Episode 7

In Record of Grancrest War Episode 7, “The White Prince,” it’s Theo Cornaro’s turn to attack a castle by himself. Will he do as well as Milza in episode 6 — with a similar body count? Or will he find a different path? Later, at a celebratory banquet, Theo meets Lord Pederico Rossini, the corrupt ruler of Sistina, his hometown. Will Theo let him live? And how will Rossini react to the name “Cornaro?” Finally, an unexpected visit turns deadly as Theo and his household have to fend off an attack. Can even the combined strength of Theo, Siluca Meletes, Irvin, and twin combat werewolf maids push back so many attackers?

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

What’s In This Post

Quick Episode Summary
3 Favorite Moments
Thoughts
Related Posts

Interested in the OP?

Moment One from Record of Grancrest War Episode 7

Ladvan Torius crossed diplomatic swords with Theo. And they both won! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Last week, Milza threw down the gauntlet: Acting out his personal philosophy that those with strength and skill trample those without (and to be fair, sometimes the trampled deserved it!), he took a castle single-highhandedly by killing the corrupt Lords. Can Theo match that? When our hero traveled to the walled village ruled by Ladvan Torius, Theo chose his form of combat based on his worldview — honest negotiation and leadership — and gave his answer (3:40): more than match it, he surpassed Milza’s milestone. When he was done, Ladvan had pledged loyalty to Theo, even though as a knight, Theo couldn’t accept it.

This scene really worked for me: both leaders wanted to speak to each other and to the people. The people pledged their loyalty to Ladvan, who’s apparently a compassionate leader like Theo. Theo wanted to move forward by bringing the village and its intact leadership along with him. Granted, Milza dealt with Lords that appeared to be corrupt, so maybe their deaths were necessary to help their people. But I liked seeing Theo show off his leadership to the entire village — and boost his reputation as a Lord at the same time.

Moment Two from Record of Grancrest War Episode 7

Even Theo, no stranger to controlling his emotions in front of people, had a hard time masking how he felt about the man who was his arch enemy. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

I like how the show gives us the opportunity see how well Theo can fight in a variety of situations. We’ve seen him take on a band of ruffians by himself; we’ve seen him in open-field combat as part of an army; we’ve seen him in small-team combat with Siluca against the Black Witch in episode 5. In this episode, we get to see him face off against his sworn enemy, Lord Pederico Rossini, the despicable Lord of Sistina, Theo’s homeland (14:10) — on a field of battle defined by a banquet! Theo has to walk a knife’s edge: he can’t overtly threaten a guest, but his personal code of honor won’t led the opportunity pass without declaring his intentions.

Speaking from experience, it’s hard to write such a scene: if you give too much away, the dialogue’s unrealistic; if you are too subtle, you lose the audience. I think this episode got the mix just right: as a viewer, we can see that Pederico Rossini hates Theo; we see Theo declare that he’s going to return some day. The implication was clear: that day won’t go well for Rossini!

Moment Three from Record of Grancrest War Episode 7

I got to see the twin werewolf combat maids in action — and wow, they are lethal to their enemies! They have great teamwork, too! Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Is there anything better than well-honed teamwork? Well, in the context of battle, anyway? Hardly three second passe between the time Irvin announces that they’re under attack (19:18) and the moment the werewolf maids retrieve Theo’s sword and throw it to him. Then, we get to see how well they fight. And I have to say: I was absolutely not disappointed! They were lethal! And do you know what else was really cool? Everyone fought well together! By now, I expected that from Theo and Siluca, but even Alexis Douse’s guards fought hard and well. We even got to see that Sir Balgary (who we last saw in episode 2) again, and he proved himself dangerous enough to rip an opponent’s arm off (20:30). Of course, he demanded to be picked up as payment! All in all, a very satisfying and enjoyable battle scene!

Is Alexis really this nice? And I wonder: does it mean anything that his eye and hair color is similar to Siluca’s? Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Thoughts about Record of Grancrest War Episode 7

Alexis and Siluca Have Similar Features

I wonder if there’s any significance to Alexis sharing hair and eye color with Siluca? Though to be honest, the show might already have explained that, and I just missed it. There’re still so many names and relationships that I feel like I’m struggling to keep up…

One complaint that I could level against Grancrest Senki, if I really wanted to say something negative, it is that it’s been hurling throw-away characters at us at a furious rate. It’s ironic, then, that the same show has introduced a character that is almost startlingly out of place in a fantasy (and is therefore unique and interesting): Marquis Alexis Douse.

We got a hint of his character in the first episode, when he fainted in terror when the agents of Chaos attacked. I got a strong sense that this disgusted Marrine Kreische to the point where I wonder if it’s part of the reason she abandoned Alexis. In this episode, during his quiet chat with Theo and Siluca, Alexis revealed that he inherited his position when his father died in episode 1, and he doesn’t think it suits him at all. If he could choose his life, he’d live somewhere quietly without title, without authority, with the woman he still loves: Marrine.

His language suggests a stronger emphasis on emotions than I would expect from a feudal-style Marquis. Maybe I’m overly influenced by works like The Prince, but there’s a reason we overthrew the aristocracy: they tended to be brutal, they had varying levels of respect for those “under them,” and in general, they were poor leaders. Sure, there were exceptions. But even though Marie Antoinette may not actually have said “Let them eat cake,” the phrase articulated a real sentiment of royalty: that “peasants'” well-being were not a major concern.

Alexis’ Tragic Conflict

Even as she and Theo pledge to help Alexis’ dreams come true, Siluca seems to suspect such a happy vision is not to be. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

In this context, I found Alexis’ attitude surprising and, to be honest, refreshing. Having someone in charge whose main goal is to be reunited with the love of his life — when she’s leading the faction intent on wresting the crown from him and his Lords — sets up a conflict of tragic proportions. Also, his attitude is so much more humane and vulnerable than I would expect for someone in his position. It makes me want to root for him all the more!

And with the show exploring the implications of Milza and Theo’s conflicting philosophies of life, I’m getting really optimistic that the series might try to show me something thematically surprising, something the likes of which I haven’t seen since Concrete Revolutio. And if such a thing were to come from an action-oriented fantasy?

How cool would that be?

What did you think of this episode? What were your favorite moments? Let me know in the comment!

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