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Sword Oratoria: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? On the Side
Episode 6

by Rebecca Silverman,

How would you rate episode 6 of
Sword Oratoria: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? On the Side ?
Community score: 4.3

This is the first episode of Sword Oratoria where I feel like I'm finally getting to know Aiz. Or maybe it's better to say that this is the first time she's allowed herself to show emotion beyond vague surprise. In either case, here at the halfway point of the series, Aiz at last takes center stage. I suspect it's no coincidence that she spends much of this episode alone or with Riveria or Bell – we've seen that while she likes Tiona, Tione, and Lefiya, she's also somewhat uncomfortable with them, so she's more likely to hang out in the background when they're all together as a group. If the purpose of this series is to showcase Aiz, then there's been a major miscalculation in keeping her with them until now, because when Aiz is by herself, she allows herself to show fear, frustration, and a recklessness that's been implied but not made clear.

With the rest of Loki familia sent back to the surface, Aiz and Riveria are left to their own devices. This gives Riveria the chance to ask Aiz what's bothering her, because even Aiz isn't usually quite so reckless as to try and take on a massive floor boss alone. But Aiz is insistent that she will do this herself, to prove that she's strong enough to be worth something. As Riveria gently chastises Aiz, that's the source of her underlying fear: that she'll be abandoned for being too weak. Her drive to become the strongest isn't because she has any grand aspirations, it's because she has a deep-rooted fear of being left behind, something that the name “Aria” brought rushing to the forefront of her mind.

That's also why Bell's tendency to scream and run whenever she's around hurts her so badly. If Aiz's greatest worry is being left behind, the fact that Bell won't even look at her has to be a major source of pain, especially since she's apparently convinced herself that being stronger means being more worthwhile. She's saved Bell on at least three occasions so far. She's more than proven her worth. So why does he keep fleeing? Aiz's need to apologize keeps growing with each encounter as he unwittingly stokes her deepest insecurity. At this point, it almost seems like she wants to apologize for helping him, which is not only contradictory to her goal of being invaluable, but also speaks to her need for approval. Whatever befell Aiz before she got to Orario is clearly central to her character – hopefully now that we've gotten that Lefiya nonsense out of the way, the story can focus in on that.

The chances of getting this focus seem decent. At episode's end, Aiz encounters a mysterious, potentially inhuman mage who states that she was the one who initially sent Lulune on the quest that got Rivira in such trouble. Now she wants Aiz to take on this adventure. We don't know precisely what the quest entails, but it isn't likely to be anything good, given the whole evil flowers issue, and Aiz may seize on this as the chance to figure out what's going on once and for all. The real question is whether or not she's going to let Loki and the rest of the familia know about it. Her need for approbation might incline her toward just doing everything herself, if only to prove that she's worth something to the group. (She doesn't seem to necessarily believe that anymore, as her elevation to level 6 this week doesn't make her all that happy.) This could lead us to a finale where Loki familia rides to the rescue and proves to Aiz that she doesn't have to go it alone, which seems very plausible right now. Whether or not things go in that direction, it's clear that Aiz needs to realize that she's loved and useful in her own right, regardless of her past or how she may feel. It should be interesting to see which direction the story takes leading to this revelation.

Rating: B

Sword Oratoria: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? On the Side is currently streaming on Amazon's Anime Strike.


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