So I'm a Spider, So What?

Episode 20

Episode 20, “This isn't my fault, is it?” kicks off with best spider girl gettin' her snack on… only to be recognized as the Nightmare of the Labyrinth mid-bite by an envoy from the Kingdom of Ohts. She was reminded of her destruction of an Ohts-owned fortress back in episode 13, and the envoy is now using that as an excuse to lay claim to her. Of course, Kumoko's not about to be stolen away like that: she's no damsel-spider in distress. Instead, she spits some watermelon seeds in the face of the envoy and his companions, and easily leaves them in the dust.

Post-OP, the envoy from Ohts is pissed at Kumoko, and there's not much that the diplomats in Keren County can do to quell his anger. With the envoy determined to capture Kumoko by force, the tension between Sariella and Ohts has reached a boiling point – something that Lord Keren is painfully aware of. The fact that Ohts would send in someone so hot-tempered to handle such a delicate situation strikes his butler Merazophis as odd, and Lord Keren begins to suspect it as an attempt at instigating war.

Back to Kumoko, the mysterious man who initially put Kumoko in contact with Administrator D shows up: one Güliedistodiez, or Gülie, whom Kumoko calls Güli-Güli. He comes with no ill intent, and politely requests Kumoko to stop attacking Ariel. However, Kumoko explains to Güliedistodiez that this is an impossible task: one of her parallel minds was responsible for the attacks, and with Kumoko's connection to her severed, she can't even contact her, let alone recall her.

Güli-Güli is surprisingly understanding of Kumoko's situation and makes a second request instead: to stop interacting with the humans of this world. He reminds Kumoko that with her immense power, her actions can bring about consequences and ripple effects large enough to plunge the world into chaos. Yet Kumoko refuses once again, retorting that with her knowledge of the truth of this world and its looming destruction, she can't just sit back and let things run their course.

Turns out Güli-Güli's ominous foreshadowing doesn't take long to pay off. Kumoko gets attacked by the envoy's subordinates and proceeds to “take out the trash” in retaliation, including… the envoy from Ohts. Naturally, Ohts declares war on Sariella, and lauches a massive offensive with support from the Renxandt Empire and the Holy Kingdom of Alleius. Kumoko realizes that she screwed up badly, and recognizes that she's going to have to take responsibility for her mistake, which would most likely entail some degree of slaughter. Thankfully, humans pack some tasty EXP, so… war can't be all that bad, huh?

We spend the final few minutes of this episode with Oka, who's reflecting on the state of things re: her students being forcibly kidnapped and held within elven territory.

In her previous life, Oka's dream was to become a teacher who is adored by her students. To that end, she familiarized herself with things that are popular among the younger generation – such as games, manga, and light novels – and interacted with her students in a manner that she thought they'd find likable. Unlike some of the other reincarnations, Oka was content in her past life and continues to cling to it her current one as Filimøs. Her former life as a teacher not only equipped her with the knowledge needed to recognize the elven ears and features of her new family as well as her post-reincarnation situation; it is also what gave her new life purpose as she resolves to protect her former students – no matter what it takes – after learning of their eventual fates via her Student Roster skill.

However, her and her fellow elves' actions over the years have made the same people she protected grow bitter towards her. To those who underwent years of forced isolation under her and Potimas' wing, she's no longer just Ms. Oka the teacher, but Filimøs the elf, and the face of their captors – even though Oka did what she did out of love and care. It's what makes her question whether or not she's a good teacher. This episode ends without resolving that conflict, though I personally think the entire scene conveys the complexity of Oka's character quite well. I hope we'll get some form of resolution down the line, or at least some further positive affirmation of Oka's actions from the reincarnations.

Episode 20 was really, really good. It was complex and raises the stakes ahead of the finale. Last week, I pondered why I still adore this series and feel excited to engage with it, and I think the answer is how the series mixes and remixes familiar elements and tropes, how it keeps the plot fresh despite being another entry in the oversaturated isekai genre . Now that it's getting really twisty and even more fascinating, I find myself increasingly drawn to the series. It's all I can do to not pick up the novels, since I'm already busy enough. Still, episode 20 served as incredibly tempting bait, and I have to tell you: I'm here for these final four episodes ahead of us. Reel me in, So I'm a Spider, So What? because you've got me hooked! I genuinely can't wait until Spider Friday rolls around again.

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So I'm a Spider, So What? is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Mercedez is a JP-EN localization editor & QA, pop culture critic, and a journalist who also writes & reviews at Anime Feminist and But Why Tho?. She's also a frequent guest on the AniFem Podcast, Chatty AF. This anime season, she's all about Super Cub, which is great because she's also reviewing it here on ANN. When she's not writing, you can find her on her Twitter or on her Instagram where she's always up to something.