Shangri-La Frontier Season 2

Episode 39

We're finally here! We are finally at the climax of the epic showdown between Sunraku, his haphazardly thrown-together crew, and the mysterious shadow wolf. All the conditions for everybody to pull out their key techniques were met, and the result was a lot more satisfying than I expected. If anything, this climax was probably the best way to handle the situation satisfyingly. After four episodes of buildup, we finally get the ultimate finishers to take out our big bad wolf. While visually I would've liked a little more variety in how some of those ultimate moves were handled, it was nice seeing everybody pull their weight to accomplish the ultimate takedown.

This felt like those epic moments in online games, like trying to take down a big monster in Final Fantasy XIV. Everybody locks in, and everyone manages to get off their strongest move but even then, you only barely survive. I thought they would lose or Lycagon would disappear at the last minute. But no, it took all of the attacks head on and I love how the directing kept trying to emphasize Lycagon's different facial expressions during the fight. We now know that the shots were there to establish that Lycagon is more than it seems, because while our heroes came out victorious, it is a case where they won the battle, but not the war.

This wolf, seemingly untouchable by most players in the game, is only a shadow of the real puppet master who is monitoring the fight from a different location. It looks like our cast managed to earn their respect in the end, which is how they survived. I like this end because it still feels like an accomplishment while foreshadowing bigger things. I doubt the show will use the rest of its real estate during the second half to delve into this, since it looks like we will focus on another unique encounter, but I like how it all came together. This climax emphasizes some of the best the show has to offer.

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