Quick Summary • Best Moment • Setup • Delivery • Other Posts
The Eminence in Shadow Episode 8 – Quick Summary
In The Eminence in Shadow Episode 8, “Dark Knight Academy Under Attack,” it will come as no surprise that Cid was only mostly dead at the end of the previous episode. But even though he’s alive, the enemy claiming to be Shadow Garden has deployed an artifact called Eye of Avarice. Even Cid’s magic had been impacted. Alone, what can he do against so many terrorists? Or is that even the right question?
Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.
Favorite Quote from The Eminence in Shadow Episode 8
Cid’s reaction to the attack seemed very different than that of his classmates! Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
Wasn’t it fun watching Cid shadow Sherry so he could take out any baddies that tried to capture her? And the fact she wore flip-flops that made a racket made that whole sequence even funnier.
But it all started with a moment of absolute glee. So much glee, in fact, that Cid practically squealed out loud. The opening scene in this episode replayed the ending from last week, but with slightly different details. Specifically, Cid’s absolutely overjoyed reaction to the attack.
Which is scary if you think about it.
As soon as Cid realized that terrorists had attacked the school, he got super excited. He thought (00:54), “The dream of having your school attacked by terrorists! They really, truly went there!”
I’ve seen pre-school kids less excited at Christmas (or insert your preferred present-giving holiday here). I thought it was funny through the narrow lens of Cid’s perspective, which I’m still trying to get a firm handle on.
Favorite Moment from The Eminence in Shadow Episode 8
I have to admire Cid’s dedication to his world view. At least, I think “admire” is the right word. Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
Setup: Cid Had Sherry’s Back
Ever play an escort mission in a video game? Check out the Reddit thread (link below) for lots of discussions about how Cid protecting Sherry was a lot like those missions. It was, too. Some of the mods for my favorite first person shooter, S.T.A.L.K.E.R., have escort missions.
I hate escort missions.
Um. I’m not sure which moment to pick as my favorite! I will pick one, of course, but I wanted to mention this because it made me realize something about this show. It’s also partly based on a comment that Merlin left on my favorites for episode 7. What I realized is this: Cid is guano crazy! The dude is so far out there that I can’t even measure it! He freaking arranged his dead enemies in a classroom, each at their own desk, in their own poses, solely for the purpose of freaking out Rex in the moment before Cid killed him.
Sherry gets points for effort. That’s about it, though! Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
And did you see the happy, little-kid-like smile Cid showed Rex – just before he palmed Rex’s face so hard he practically blew him through a wall?
How do I choose a favorite moment among scenes like that? I don’t know whether I should laugh, scoot back from the screen in horror, or hope Cid gets treatment! Though I suppose I could do all three if push comes to shove.
I decided to pick a moment that shows Cid’s nearly insane levels of dedication to his world vision. It’s when Cid died at the beginning of the episode.
Delivery: Cid Really Died!
Apparently, he really died. At least, his body did. About ten minutes after a terrorist killed Cid, he still lay in his classroom, alone, in a pool of his own blood. As the shot zoomed in on him, I figured that he’d sit up, brush himself off, and go about his business. In fact, I thought it was so obvious that I was convinced that was exactly what was going to happen. Felt kinda bored by it all, in fact.
Even when he raised his right hand and made a fist, I figured he’d make some bold proclamation and sit up. But he didn’t (04:44). He started pounding his chest. He had to hit it four or five times before he could sit up. And when he did, he was clearly in distress.
He did not look like he enjoyed the experience. Well, not in the conventional sense. Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
The dude was restarting his heart! He had really died!
That’s when he stood and announced that it had worked. What was “it?” Cid called it his “Background Character Secret Technique – Ten-minute Death: Heartbreak” (05:13). He went on to explain that his heart had actually stopped, but he used magic to continue a circulatory loop between his lungs and brain.
He added (05:25), “One wrong step and it’s the afterlife.”
How dedicated is he to his craft? Very dedicated! I’d go so far as to call his dedication “irrational!” Yet, it’s my favorite moment because of what it said about Cid. It also surprised me! I’ll take that combination any day!
What did you think of Cid casually taking out enemies from the rooftop? What were your favorite moments in this episode? Feel free to let me know in the comments!
The Eminence in Shadow Episode 8: Other Posts
Other Anime Sites
- Reddit: Kage no Jitsuryokusha ni Naritakute! | The Eminence in Shadow – Episode 8 discussion
- RABUJOI: The Eminence in Shadow – 08 – A Terribly Flawed Scenario
- OTAKU SINH: Cid Uses the Ultimate Background Character Technique! The Eminence in Shadow Episode 8 [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
This is like one of those things you see on Facebook, where they talk about, “Imagine this outlandish scenario, oh, I would totally watch TF out of that!” That’s the kind of vibe I’m getting here, where the protag is demonic levels of insane and here come the overconfident cultists who have no idea what fresh Hell they just stepped into. Cid is definitely certifiable, and something tells me it’s actually a very good thing for the world that he can manage to keep his delusions of the “game” going. It gives him an outlet that happens to be rather beneficial to society.
I did enjoy the rather meta commentary about the tropes and the critique of Sherry’s sneaking skills. That was hilarious, though certainly not from the cult’s perspective, LOL!
Oh, and speaking of Sherry, something tells me this entire situation is *not* going to convince her to keep things platonic with Cid. Nor Rose, who still believes not only that Cid just died for her, but that he must have done so out of love for her, so the moment she sees him alive – and how on Earth is he going to explain that? – things could get very romantically complicated very quickly.
“and here come the overconfident cultists who have no idea what fresh Hell they just stepped into.”
Man, isn’t that the truth?
“It gives him an outlet that happens to be rather beneficial to society.”
They have no idea how lucky they are!
I’m really looking forward to how Sherry and Rose process this. And how Alexi reacts to that!
So often, in a series with a harem, the male lead is weak (I’m looking at you, To Love Ru!). Or uninteresting (hello Infinite Stratos!). But in this case, Cid is the most powerful character we’ve met, by far. Plus, he might be overly theatrical to everyone around him, but to the women in Shadow Garden and even to Sherry and Rose (Alexi’s just Alexi!), he doesn’t treat them badly if he treats them at all.
I guess that’s a long way of saying I can see what someone like Alpha would be attracted to him. That makes a big difference!
I think that as a reward for being a hero in real life but dying early, in the after-life he gets to live as a character in his own RPG. That’s why he takes such delight when all his favorite plot elements show up. He is playing a game for the entire season and doesn’t need to take anything seriously.
Well… not until he meets the final boss. Maybe then. Makes perfect sense to me.
That would explain a lot. I’m not sure that’s the ultimate explanation, but it sure feels like it fits!