Snow White with the Red Hair

Episode 11

There's a fine line between “romantic” and “cheesy,” and I tend to think it largely relies on your mood. This episode is likely to walk that line for viewers as it seeks to resolve the aftermath of last week with Zen's confession and Shirayuki's emotional panic, but whichever way it strikes you, it is difficult to deny that there's something deeply satisfying about the end of the episode.

Ostensibly the plot this week is about Zen finishing up the whole bird business, going to Kihal's home island and negotiating the use of the birds as royal messengers. What it's really about, however, is everyone trying to figure out what on earth happened between Shirayuki and Zen in the tower, because she's acting pretty weird. (And her efforts to look normal? Yeah, those just make her come off as even weirder.) While Kiki and Mitsuhide, presumably used to getting information out of their prince, have a well-formulated plan of attack which basically consists of Mitsuhide getting Zen alone and flat out asking what's going on, Obi is a much less straightforward character, and his sly attempts at getting the truth out of his charge are not quite as efficacious. Shirayuki is not going to let go of her tight grip on her emotions, and talking about them to Obi or Ryu would mean facing them head on. I get the distinct feeling that she is most worried about building castles with no foundations where Zen is concerned. She's very well aware that he's a prince and she is not a princess, and she can't be oblivious to the whispers that have been flying around the court about her relationship with him, and despite what Disney and fairy tales have taught us, a kiss is not always a promise of true love. Therefore this feels like a much harder realization for her to come to. She is likely to be the subject of much more censure as the commoner in the relationship, and to suffer more backlash should things sour.

How much of this Zen understands isn't fully addressed, but his gesture at the end, specifically the pose he takes while talking to her and the placement of his sword, indicate that she really hasn't been giving him enough credit. The road ahead won't be smooth sailing, as Shakespeare very nicely told us, but it also won't be one walked separately. As I said, this may strike you as heart-tremblingly romantic or kind of corny, but one thing we can say for sure is that there is no doubt about anyone's feelings.

Well, except maybe Obi. It is difficult to decide, based on one scene towards the end, whether or not he is harboring romantic feelings for Shirayuki or just very protective ones, and while I doubt that he would act on the former, I have my suspicions that it sure isn't the latter. He's always been an interesting character in any event, and this simply confirms that he's someone to keep an eye on. Likewise Zen's friendship with Mitsuhide is interesting, and could be used against the prince just as easily as his feelings for Shirayuki, something that he hasn't shown any signs of realizing. With the major romance plot on its way to resolving (although there are plenty of social issues to be worked with), it seems like we should be keeping an eye on the other relationships in Zen and Shirayuki's lives as potential plot points.

With one episode left of this first half, it looks as if Snow White with the Red Hair will follow the path of fairy tales with its first twelve episodes, taking its break when the girl gets the prince. Luckily for us, life goes on for Zen an Shirayuki, and the story will go beyond the usual shoujo happy ending to show us that there's more to the story. We still have one more episode to give us a glimpse of what we can expect in January, and hopefully it will give us something that we can hold close to our chests while we await what happens after the fairy tale finishes.

Rating: A-

Snow White with the Red Hair is currently streaming on Funimation.

Rebecca Silverman is ANN's senior manga critic.