A Certain Magical Index III

Episode 20

Over the course of this series, I've gradually come to the conclusion that it can be best enjoyed by entirely givubg up on expecting it to make complete sense and just going with the flow. Who needs proper explanations of who characters are or why they're doing what they're doing? It's just the flashy action and stunningly improbable heroics that matter, right?

While that impression is not as strong in episode 20 as in previous episodes, it's certainly still there. I'm only clear about what Fiamma of the Right is trying to accomplish by securing Sasha because of spoilers I've read on Wiki sites; even with that information, why he's trying to accomplish this thing with B'tselem (and why use that when it's clearly meant to be “Bethlehem”?) is not clear at all unless I've missed something. The whole battle going on between Britain and France on the frozen sea is a little more straightforward, being more grounded in long-standing religious animosities, but where did this Maiden of Versailles come from? To my recollection, her existence as a French powerhouse hasn't even been hinted at in the anime before. (She's actually closely-related to another character who has already appeared in the anime, but since that connection could still be a spoiler, I won't reveal that yet.) That whole part of the conflict does at least allow major players from both sides of the English/French conflict to come into play in their battle, and Knight Leader asking for permission from the queen to spank Red Princess for going over-the-top was actually funny.

Most of this episode's focus is on Russian action, however. While I've got to give credit to Hamazura for his continued efforts to stand up to opponents well out of his league, I was glad to see that he couldn't solve the predicament of the mercs attacking the village without some strong help. More emphasis is placed on Touma and Accelerator finally crossing paths, an event you had to figure was coming at some point. His black wings, which I'm assuming are manifestations of his power on overdrive, must interfere with his sharp ability to be analytical in fights, as otherwise his continued attempts to directly attack an opponent that he knows can't be defeated with his powers makes no sense.

Touma, for his part, continues to prove that his real power is that sheer grit and determination can carry him through physical circumstances that should have upended him, because otherwise he couldn't do his punching-people-out thing. Still, it does make for a good fight, and that it's as much about convincing Accelerator that he doesn't have to be a hero in order to be heroic as it is about the physical conflict makes the moralizing not come off so heavy-handed this time around. Touma probably solving Last Order's problem with just a neutralizing touch makes sense, and if that note Accelerator finds is supposed to result in him being directed against Fiamma, then I'm all for that. Accelerator is at his best when he's fighting people who are at least as much of a total prick as he is.

In other words, this could be the point in the storyline where Accelerator stops leaning toward being a hero and actually becomes one. How that will affect his contacts with Mikasa Worst – who's shown at the beginning of the episode but then mysteriously disappears in the aftermath of the fight – remains to be seen. While the outcome of the Touma/Accelerator fight feels like it should be a story arc-level climax, it's actually only a stepping stone in this case. Both Russia in particular and the broader conflict as a whole still have a lot more play in them.

Rating: B

A Certain Magical Index III is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.