Quick Summary • Best Moment • Setup • Delivery • Other Posts
The Eminence in Shadow Episode 4 – Quick Summary
In The Eminence in Shadow Episode 4, “Sadism’s Rewards,” Cid Kagenou found himself detained and questioned as a suspect in Alexia Midgar’s kidnapping – where “questioned” meant “being tortured.” Though the investigators weren’t being nearly as effective as they thought. Meanwhile, Alexia regained consciousness to find that she had, in fact, been kidnapped. Who had been responsible? Why had they kidnapped her? And is Alpha really gone for good?
Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.
Favorite Quote from The Eminence in Shadow Episode 4
Alexia gets credit for maintaining her composure under difficult circumstances. Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
I’ll give Alexia credit: she’s no coward. She’s got nerves of steel. And how she expressed those traits earned her my favorite quote.
She had just regained consciousness to find a deranged scientist from the Cult of Diablos hurrying into her cell. He carried a tray of empty syringes. The sight of those enormous needles would be ample cause for panic. But Alexia held herself together.
In fact, she forced herself to speak normally.
“How do you do?” she asked (01:03). “Are you my kidnapper?”
I’m not sure I would have been able to maintain that level of calm under those circumstances!
Best in Show Moment for The Eminence in Shadow Episode 4
Beta seemed happy to chronicle their adventures – in the middle of a fight! Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
Setup: Earned Confidence is Cool
I know Cid is operating under the false impression that the knights he fought in this episode were simple villains. But there are times that I take a step back and wonder if a human could be that dense! That scene where Alpha visited him (10:08) should have given him a clue.
That is not how a woman acts when she’s playing a childhood game. I mean, I know next to nothing about such things – but even I could see her intent. I came this close (holds fingers about two centimeters apart) from declaring that my favorite scene. But I didn’t.
Though it bears repeating: it was close!
It was great seeing Alpha again! Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
One of the things I’m enjoying about this show is that all of Shadow garden, from Cid to whatever letter of the Greek alphabet they’ve gotten to (and didn’t Beta say they had one hundred and fourteen members now around 14:35?), train. And they train hard. They’ve earned their abilities and a right to show some swagger.
Cid doesn’t even work up a sweat when he took out those two knights. It looked like he expended about the same amount of energy as if had just shrugged. And then there’s Beta.
Delivery: Beta, the Passionate Chronicler
She stood around the corner from Cid as he put down the knights who had tortured him. Do you remember Haganai? Do you remember how excited Rika would get? She could go from a G rating to NC-17 in the space of about a tenth of a second. That’s exactly the kind of energy I got from Beta.
Except she didn’t speak. She wrote, and we heard the narration in her voice. Her writing said (16:53), “In that instant, the Great Lord Shadow moved with superhuman speed to stand before the lowly knight. No sooner had his noble voice finished speaking than his fierce attack…”
Did I mention how great it was to see Alpha again? Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
Cid walking about the corner to join her interrupted her prose. But she didn’t look at all disappointed! In fact, that’s what I liked about this. She had the time to chronicle what happened, precisely because she had confidence in her abilities – and in Cid’s abilities, too. If they were just casual about it without cause, that would grate on me as unrealistic. But given how hard we’ve seen them train, and given what we saw them do in episode 2, the moment felt well-earned.
What did you think of how Cid played the torturers? What were your favorite moments in this episode? Feel free to let me know in the comments!
The Eminence in Shadow Episode 4: Other Posts
Other Anime Sites
- Reddit: Kage no Jitsuryokusha ni Naritakute! | The Eminence in Shadow – Episode 4 discussion
- RABUJOI: The Eminence in Shadow – 04 – World of Shadow
- OTAKU SINH: Cid Gets His Payback! The Eminence in Shadow Episode 4 [Review]
This Site (Crow’s World of Anime!)
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 1: The Hated Classmate
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 2: Shadow Garden is Born
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 3: Fencer Ordinaire
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 4: Sadism’s Rewards
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 5: I Am
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 6: Pretenders
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 7: A Fencing Tournament of Intrigue & Bloodshed
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 8: Dark Knight Academy Under Attack
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 9: The End of a Lie
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 10: The Sacred Land, City of Deception
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 11: The Goddess’ Trial
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 12: The Truth Within the Memories
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 13: A Bloody Showdown as an Offering to Annihilation
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 14: Your Life, Your Wish
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 15: The Strongest Weakest Man
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 16: Unseen Intentions
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 17: The Moonlight That Pierces the Darkness
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 18: Betting on a Moment
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 19: Dancing Puppet
- The Eminence in Shadow Episode 20: Advent of the Demon
My one qualm thus far is that we have seen the girls just enough to know that they are there – and roll our eyes at how they’re all girls, and no guys, harem situation anyone? though they certainly do rock those outfits! – but not enough to get to know them or get attached to them. Alpha mentions one of them misses him, and we have no context for it. I’m like… GIMME MORE!
Though I did love it when Beta was furiously chronicling her master’s exploits in the most epic and worshipful language she could come up with at the moment, LOL. That, I like that, I want more of that with these girls! It tells me she’s a storyteller and intent on telling this particular story someday, perhaps after they win. 🙂
Outside that, I have a suspicion that we are doomed to see Shadow Garden go through the whole of their war with the Cult of Diabolos with their wise, cunning, all-knowing mastermind… knowing absolutely nothing of it! It will be alternately funny and frustrating, I imagine.
Regarding only females being in Shadow Garden (with Cid being the only exception), it’s interesting you mention that. I feel like I should object to that, but I’d be dishonest if I said it bothered me. Maybe it’s because I could see few males want to be in a group with Cid. Males tend to strive for dominance, if they’re an alpha type. I can’t see Cid engaging in those kind of games. He’s on another level of performance, and he wouldn’t even recognize what they’re doing as competition.
I’m with you — I’d like to know more about Alpha, and Beta, and (recites the Greek alphabet). Their character models are distinctive, and the brief glimpses we’ve gotten of characters like Delta gave hints at some interesting characters!
It’s going to be interesting to see how the show plays Cid going forward. It feels like they’re leaning into an almost tragic misconception on Cid’s part — namely, he’s so different and so out there that it’s impossible anyone would really relate to him. That’s sad, and at the same time, it’s compelling. I want to see him get through that, so I want to see him finally realize what’s going on and just what Shadow Garden has been up to.
And what Alpha, Beta, and probably the others see in him.
That could be a really cool ending!
Happy Halloween! I still need to catch up with this episode, but it certainly looks good. I love it when hard training gets put to good use!
Happy Halloween (a day late!)!
The results of their training felt realistic in this episode. TBH, I’m not sure why! Sometimes my brain generates backstories and doesn’t tell me. Regardless, I really did enjoy Beta’s scene!