The Most Exhilirating and Devastating Episode of Anime I've Ever Seen

[@Gongibongi]

Part that hit the hardest is realizing that Rudy and his mom never had the time to properly bond. Paul sent him away when he was seven, for a few years before that Zenith had to deal with the baby and the cheating issue, and she didn't train Rudy like Paul did, Roxy was in charge of that. She loved him so much as a mom but he didn't have the chance to build that bond. Now he's lost his favorite parent and the mom they gave it all to protect isn't the same person anymore. It has to really fucking suck.

[@xbgsheikiii3593]

Basically both his parents died one is just a complete other person

[@dbuy3]

@@xbgsheikiii3593now he has to tell Norn that she’s lost both of her parents.

[@Oakland510]

I have to disagree. As he confessed she birthed and raised him for his first 7 years before he went off to go train/travel/learn, which was a regular thing for most high born children in the medieval era which MT is set in. There was even a thing called wards where a child would leave around that age to spend time with another high born family to marry their eldest son/daughter when they reach puberty. Those 7 years are still enough to form a connection to the person who was with him in his formal years in that new body. We just didn’t get to see the literal day in day out experiences

[@Vonmoonlight]

​@@Oakland510 it's just that it was too peaceful that the bond never really grew, because conflict is how you really build that connection because you learn of each other differences and similarities. My parents were the same, I argued more with my mom than my dad So when my dad passed, I was sad and distraught but I wasn't as broken as i thought Then one of the day I thought my mom just passed because she was sleeping so soundly and not moving, her breathing was almost non existent since usually she snores really loudly and breathe hard. I instantly broke thinking she passed in her sleep So I would imagine it's kinda the same with Rudeus..on top of that, Rudeus had his trauma to deal with, so unless he in an argument where your focus would immediately shift to the argument, he won't really be in mind of it. As opposed to being so peaceful that you end up facing your own darkness instesd

[@thorstenkurafeiski1845]

For me it seems that Zenith kept Rudy at a distance because of his strange behavior he showed while growing up. Maybe she was worried about him but she didn't do much about it. It needed Roxy to heal him from his old life PTSD.

[@topek8693]

Rudeus wasn't distracted btw. The pov of that moment wasn't shown in the anime, but he was confused about what he saw in his eye of foresight, his entire vision being covered by the hydra's attack, and froze on the spot because of it.

[@aarondragon1]

Bro I swear Japan is fcking sadistic doing this on Father's day

[@ShreN_]

Idk, makes you appreciate your own parents more IMO

[@IceaBeast]

Also remember. They delayed the episode two weeks ago for a week. THIS WAS PLANNED

[@LeoSiegfried]

@@IceaBeast it was scheduled for this day least 2 months ago and Turning Point 3 was on Mothers Day

[@cheyennewhite9900]

This was perhaps the heaviest death media has ever presented to me. The immersion of the show plus the time they gave to the sequencing. The quiet when he sees him and they walk out was the loudest. My heart was so heavy for Rudeus when Zenith woke up too. Went from one plus 1 missing to zero. Straight masterpiece

[@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi]

It's fucked up that I was genuinly happy that Paul smiled. They had time. At the end, they had time.

[@Crescentfangs]

In the mobile game where more Paul's lore dropped it's stated that Paul lost his mom since a young age so he told Rudy to save his own even if it kills you. He of course loves Zenith more than Rudy. And he loves Rudy more than himself. Happy Father's Day.

[@Vonmoonlight]

Yep the first line he never managed to say the first time they went in I save you even if it kills me And it makes sense when Paul said to Rudeus about " Save your mom even if it kills you" But the line he never said from before Save your mom even if it kills you And I'll save you even if it kills me

[@Tounushi]

The devs also dropped the transcript with the two other arcs of the story. Paul fell in love with Zenith because she resembled his mother by her appearance and warmth of personality. So Paul in a way has a chance to save his mother, seeing as how he had failed before.

[@giacomopassarini2658]

which game? never heard about a MT game, i know one got announced some months ago

[@Tounushi]

@@giacomopassarini2658 There was a mobile game in 2021-2022.

[@giacomopassarini2658]

@@Tounushi what happened to the game?

[@Tk_brecci]

In case you read this Paul's new sword is really op the harder something is the easier it cuts

[@azumag4432]

Hmmm...that seems way way WAY *WAY* too OP...I mean does Orsted's hands/skin counts as "hard"?! That sword is way too broken if that's the case!!!

[@santiagorolon5986]

@@azumag4432yes it counts and is called touki, and still that sword can cut any touki like butter, but you need to remember that rudeus is a shit swordsman he cannot take to much advantage of that

[@maeckknox6535]

@@santiagorolon5986 He's not a shit swordsman compared to most people in the world of MT he just happens to know some of the most powerful swordsman and swordswoman.

[@justtye7966]

@@santiagorolon5986Nah, Rudeus is pretty competent with a sword. We see this when he beat Luke plus he has his eye of foresight. The problem is his magic will always be superior

[@icebox1954]

@@justtye7966 A fighter without battle armor is a garbage fighter. Luke is just even more garbage. Rudeus has had extremely good melee teachers while Luke likely hasn't.

[@asuutora]

I had gotten spoiled about various plot points wayyy back during s1 airing (thanks YT recommendations algorithm)… yet I still felt so emotional watching such a breathtaking battle, and seeing Paul’s corpse just broke me and made me baul my eyes out. Godspeed Paul 😢🫡, never felt this way for a flawed, yet well written character.

[@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi]

In the same boat. KNowing what's coming didn't prepare me at all. Now I'm fully in the dark.

[@Ncyphen]

I've known about their fate for quite some time, too. Experiencing is far more emotional than just knowing. It's how manga and light novel readers still enjoy watching the anime when it aires. Edit: I read ahead in Ascendance of a Bookworm when season 2 was airing, and knew how season 3 would end. I still caught myself bawling as I shouted at the screen, "that's not how it happened in the book!" (season 2 and 3 was very disrespectful to the source material.)

[@magicflierplays]

People seem to forget that Paul and his friends are ex-S Rank adventurer party members

[@Halofreakanoid]

Which is crazy given that Paul never went passed Advanced Rank in any sword style, though getting to that in 3 different styles is its own accomplishment.

[@fluin8433]

In my opinion, Rudy's mother would not have survived and everyone would have died if he hadn't gone to support his dad, which is why even though his father passed away, everyone else is still alive.

[@FlareBlare0322]

I watched this episode 12 hours ago and it's still the only thing on my mind

[@FlareBlare0322]

My head was in hands for the second half of it 😭

[@imjackplays4502]

​@@FlareBlare0322I watched it yesterday, I just can't honestly I was devastated for rudy, I saw myself trying to find funny videos on youtube just to forget the episode

[@kyrie980]

They deliberately postponed it one week in order to air this episode on Father's Day... btw talhand is not useless he just can't do anything with the hydra, so he is doing his very best to protect roxy and it's not mentioned but just want to tell (even though you probably already know) that geese is not a fighter if he participates in battle he will only be a burden, geese's role here is helper, guide, and the one who analyzes traps in the dungeon, he is good with a dagger tbh for an average person in that world

[@ShiNijuuAKL]

9:04 this wasn't explained on the anime but geese job is to return back if the mission fails to inform everyone that they died.

[@katcorot]

As Billy May would say, "But wait, there's more!"

[@blackman7186]

On father's day too... Mfs timed that so fucking well.. sadistic af.. i was devastated reading this in the LN. But trust me, there's just one more major heartbreak to come.

[@subham.biswas]

A conicidence that it was sunday 😅

[@timmythebirthdayboy8635]

You know they planned this so far in advanced with the pace of the content for the episodes for finding out that Sylphie was pregnant on Mother's day and then Paul's death on Father's day. That one week break they took makes more sense now.

[@DjCve]

I've read up to book 19, which heartbreak are you referring to? Or are you referring to "days of the future past", if you know what I mean?

[@blackman7186]

@@DjCve turning point 4 I believe. This is in a way just a hypothetical heartbreak since "that" does not really happen. But even that is heartbreaking. After all this, I think there is no more major heartbreak and everything starts lining up well.

[@Hypnos.7]

Man I was depressed af for like a week when I read this, W for a story if you ask me. Sick enemy and all the stakes on the line, a significant cost that makes you question whether it was worth it. The way they handles this episode was great too, feel like they could have spent a bit more time on the fight and then had the fallout next episode but oh well. I keep saying this but the story only gets crazier and crazier for a while after this.

[@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi]

Was it worth it? Yes Did it cost nearly everything? Yes

[@olgatolmacev5480]

What an episode!!! So this is why Man-God told Rudy not to go and leave his wife. He found his mom, was critical in saving her, but lost his father and his arm in the process and Zenith's mental condition seems, in my humble opinion, to be permanent. The thought of Paul seeing his wife in her mental condition would have been probably too much for him.

[@rolder50]

But at the same time, if he didn't go, Roxy would be dead instead and Zenith probably wouldn't have been rescued at all.

[@olgatolmacev5480]

@@rolder50 That's true and I think Rudy made the right decision by going to save Zenith. Now let's see how the story progresses from this point onwards.

[@anonymous7531]

If He didn't go, Roxy would've died, i.e. there is no Lara, so no one can threat Hitogami

[@timmythebirthdayboy8635]

I actually think Paul had already accepted that they might not get Zenith back alive, primarily with his line "What difference does it make if she's alive?", it was the not knowing whether she was alive or not that was eating away at his soul. The not knowing is worse than her actually being dead. Knowing they did everything they possibly could to save her, I think would've been enough for him. He would spiral for a bit, but over time being with Rudy, Norn, Aisha, Lilia, Sylphie, and Rudy's kid I think he would be able to pull himself back together.

[@Vonmoonlight]

​@@anonymous7531 bro put spoilers man The OP comment said THATS WHY. It shows that he doesn't know about the future spoils.

[@asrig3880]

There're a lot of "death flag" raised for Paul (like 1 out of 5 interactions). But I like that the show shows a lot of death flags for other characters without killing them off making Paul's death still (a bit) surprising despite the amount of death flags he has.

[@secrated]

Men Paul really fights like a berserker!! I wanted to see more of him too :( RIP

[@zmortis111]

Part of the point of this episode is that the person that Rudy used to be in our world is well and truly gone now. His life is tremendously more difficult and heart wrenching than his past life was, but the one skill he has finally learned through heartbreak and misery is how to carry on.

[@Kucharg1995]

Paul - DPS Other team - Heal end support Rudeus - we won, oh wait... Dad?

[@hundvd_7]

12:18 This right here. I think this might be the single best group fight in any form of media, ever.

[@BrothersYeo]

💯

[@Shinigami00Azael]

Happy father's day! I knew exactly what was going to happen, as I am a Light Novel reader, and still was invested throughout the episode the same way I was when I was reading. I do not comprehend people who say this series is mid, yeah it's a light novel, it's not Lord of the Rings or Dune, but the lore and worldbuilding is still great, and characters and human interactions as well as reality of the experience is on par with the best stories ever. You need to lack empathy to not feel everything you are presented with just because Rudeus isn't the best person.

[@grip3939]

Happy Father's day

[@exorr81]

💀

[@eizy1010]

Not for me

[@mrthedave1745]

Rudy hesitated because, when it got to the last head, it began thrashing wildly and began using the neck/stumps as weapons. It just took him a second to process the change in behavior, but that was all it took

[@captainvanisher988]

Perfectly describing the feeling through this episode with your title. Although after this I became a little depressed.

[@hugoruix_yt995]

My prediction of "youll regret it": 1- paul goes bye bye 2- mom is already dead 3- he cant go back home in time Aside from the 3d option which I guess is still possible, (hope nothing goes wrong there tbh) Mangod: All of the above + lose one limb cuz fk you. Really shows how fked the world is and how lucky rudeus has been thanks to mangod tbh

[@kristoffer2250]

Rudeus would've been dead if the mangod didn't give him the demon eye. Like people think Rudeus is OP, but the man's a glass cannon. His weakness and lack of experience is quite literally the reason for Paul's death.

[@xxxhalo4everxxx]

literally all of them would have died anyways if he didnt go tho

[@jimmyoreo9433]

@@kristoffer2250 Exactly. I personally see Rudues in the same lane as Gon and Killua in HXH. They are very powerful and talented children but they lack experience which usually leads to their downfall in situations

[@seanpierce4566]

@@kristoffer2250 Actually, his combat and adventuring experience might have kept Paul from dying. It was his reliance on the demon eye that killed his dad. Because he was watching with the eye the whole fight (one of the reasons his positioning was impeccable) and he was by necessity close to the hydra, when it started flailing with its stump necks and he couldn't make sense of it, the chaos the eye was showing him paralyzed his decision making. Also, there's give and take from the man-god. Think about what would have been different had Rudy had stayed at home, and then think about which would probably be worse. Imo, it's easily the bigger mistake to have stayed at home (so far). Easily extrapolated answers include Roxy dying, his father dying anyway but not saving his mom, Elinalise dying, etc etc etc. Seriously would have been much worse if he hadn't been there.

[@reignmans]

well... he'd probably be triple regretting it if he didn't go at all. why? For starters Roxy dies. Paul being absolutely hellbent on saving zenith would still kept going, forcing the rest of the group to follow him resulting in a wipe probly before even reaching the hydra. Rudy would kick himself for not going to help/support them for the rest of his life.

[@eralfion5316]

I think in the LN Paul got hit by the stump when he saved Rudy from the unexpected attack, but maybe with the anime they thought it's not obvious enough that the hydra's razor sharp scales are enough to cut him in half, so they made a second attack.

[@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi]

In hindsight I was so scared that Paul was in the hydra's mouth when Rudy cast his stone spikes

[@jimmyoreo9433]

i like the way they handled it in the anime more. Paul saves rudues the first time and the camera cuts away from Paul to trick the viewer into thinking he got hurt So when he appears the next scene to save Rudues again it makes the viewer assume he still got away unharmed

[@eralfion5316]

@@jimmyoreo9433 Sure, but it made Rudy needed to be saved twice.

[@hayatodera-nv0012]

can't wait for the next turning point

[@arnabbiswasalsodeep]

That thumbnail is amazing

[@netnoob77]

10:39 Rudy doing Paladin's passage of arms :)

[@fluks6286]

well now he is pau/el my man hercules soloed a hydra and they needed an whole group, should have hired hercules

[@reignmans]

About how fast and strong Paul is, Paul and as a rule of thumb warriors that are saint+ in the ranks can use battle aura, Paul is advanced in all 3 sword techniques which is a feat by itself. Battle aura is kind of like manipulating mana to extremely boost your physical stats even extension of your body like your weapons (the reason why paul could cut a boulder like its made out of butter with a wooden sword when training kid rudy). In the novel Rudeus comments on how fast paul was in that fight, he couldnt track how fast he was when Paul was using his battle aura. I believe Rifujin (the author) said that Paul just by being advanced on all 3 styles should be a mid level saint rank fighter. All of that while he was a doofus and left the dojo and never completing his actual training under a master. I'm pretty sure its out in the open that skill wise Paul was considered kind of a generational talent but also a lazy doofus that cared more about having fun than putting in serious work and improving his skills.

[@Lothkru]

Happy father's day ... *Goes to a corner to cry

[@leech4n598]

10/10 fight and episode. very well animated. not a huge fan of paul but i still feel sad that he passed. damn its so harsh on rudy

[@brendansmk]

Happy Father's Day to Paul... If only Ghislaine was here, i think the outcome would be different..

[@BlackTempus]

The fact that thus aired on Father's Day is brutal.

[@RastrKrok]

"The Most Exhilirating and Devastating Episode of Anime I've Ever Seen" Let me introduce you to best dad, Bondrewd, Lord of the Dawn himself! I wish he was main character of the father's day.

[@Tortuga-es5ln]

It's not really incorporated into the episode but Rudy was caught offguard because the hydra focused on him being the real threat and started acting wild randomly, making Rudy lost as he was at point blank range, he couldn't depend on his future sight to move. It's insisted on that even if he trains, he still cant keep up with high speed movement if he doesn't use his future sight

[@illumination_0109]

Its also the fact that he is gonna be a dad soon

[@MangSoraG]

It's gonna be hard for Rudy to explain this to Norn who loves her parents so much.

[@kristoffer2250]

From here on, Rudeus becomes the person he needs to be, which is necessary when things get real

[@azumag4432]

Saved Roxy. Paul Died. And Zenith is...uhhhh...who is Zenith again?! Let's see what's next.

[@luksalter8200]

Peak episode and paul,peak father

[@salieri_sg9413]

The worst part is, Paul would have won if Rudy didn't have a skil issue. Man was a monster.

[@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi]

Aside from Roxy probably they were all S ranks, and none of them had the "use fire" insight. That's how dangerous it all was. 1 second and it's over.

[@yourm8596]

​@@Jackie_Tikki_TaviRoxy would also be considered an s rank since she has Saint level water magic

[@ratoftoska7497]

Nah the worst part is having people with no critical thinking giving takes like these. The episode gives you enough information to figure out what happened and why, even without going into the light novels details of the fight

[@ratoftoska7497]

Nah the worst part is having people with no critical thinking giving takes like these. The episode gives you enough information to figure out what happened and why, even without going into the light novels details of the fight

[@InstanRamen]

Here the main story of S1 were done here, The mana teleportation. What plot that they gonna bring in S3 alot of stuff that we left behind not continuing yet.

[@SwiddyDiddy]

If you guys have been holding out, all spoilers in the op have been covered now so you’re free to watch it

[@jcval87]

real turning point 😭

[@bennisus]

Nice thumbnail i gotta say

[@fjoergyn]

I hope that is rly Zenith, cause Gees mentioned it, that probably someone was seen that looks like zenith.

[@xpo1220]

man if only they had ghislaine in the party, paul would live.

[@eizy1010]

If only I can trade my pathetic father for Paul:s place...I agree Paul kind of jerk in my viewpoint but at least he cares about his families.

[@thomaslavigne998]

Happy father's day paul

[@Tounushi]

8:15 Rudeus is actually one of the weaker combatants in that crew. The only ones weaker than him are Roxy and _maybe_ Geese. The anime hasn't gone into it, but Rudeus can't use his mana like so many others to sheathe himself in it to enhance his body. It's how Paul can move so superhumanly fast and use his abilities to enhance his cutting power. In those terms, Zanoba is Rudeus' polar opposite. ALL of his mana goes into strengthening his body, while Rudeus uses all of his mana for spell casting.

[@Kwerimirewk]

Man-god was right... Rudy was gonna regret

[@jcval87]

the regret is not over yet 😭

[@SheeeenaH]

Rudeus got careless and got Pa-ul dead, now he is gonna go back to his sadeus self

[@Angelss456]

anime of the decade..

[@lala97849]

Happy fathers day hahahahaha

[@RealILOVEPIE]

I don't want to spoil anything, but don't give up hope on Zenith.

[@Ardmorez123456789]

There’s a reason why they delayed an episode because of Father’s Day

[@Num201]

Veggie mom arc

[@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi]

I can finally watch the OP. Do I want to though?

[@pedrod.guimaraes5030]

Should they regroup to the city and made a contract with another experienced swordsman at least advanced rank or maybe even Saint... Just sad

[@hundvd_7]

Guys, you completely ruined other reaction channels for me. I've been re-watching various shows for _years_ now through YT reactions, and I've never had too much of an issue watching several different people at the same time, cause I didn't _really_ like any one of them. But you two: - have good editing, not wasting my time while keeping everything important - avoid ContentID claims in the least intrusive way possible - have great audiovisual quality, especially the dramatic lighting and the two separate quality mics - don't often theorize about bullshit that would be literally impossible if you paid attention - actually pay attention and know what happened more than 2 episodes ago - consistently remember the characters' names - watch everything in the original dub - speak -a bit of Japanese- weebanese - have pretty funny quips - pretty much the exact same taste in anime as me - aren't streaming, so you aren't constantly distracted by chat or your gf coming over to bring you ubereats or whatever - don't have an long and obnoxious intro - leave the discussion to the end so that it's optional but still there when I want more - even read the comments and sometimes reply

[@BrothersYeo]

most constructive comment ever thank you

[@BigBoss-sm9xj]

same reaction as ya. Shit hurt to watch

[@SuperSertyuio]

The most devastating, huh? They didn t yet experience Akame Ga Kill or Angel Beats i see!

[@kristoffer2250]

Ehhhhh

[@LuisBlackb]

Akame ga Kill it stops feeling sad and it start feeling upsetting. It happens so many times.

[@Edeedededealna]

Bro akema ga kill doesn't even come close to this

[@oolongTea295]

the repeating of killing the main characters started from sad to not feeling anything, because they were killing characters that the audience weren't emotionally invested enough.

[@xkittehsaurx]

Angel Beats made me cry more when I watched it years ago, but it's bittersweet because they got closure. This was just a straight up tragedy. Paul thought he saved his wife, but turns out she's basically 'brain dead.'

[@RKingdom05]

You should watch re zero

[@SebastianKhyleLBaja]

IF ONLY RUDEUS WAS HALF THE MAN PAUL WAS 😢😢😢

[@juggnautbitch]

Paul is literally half the man that Rudeus is.

[@Vonmoonlight]

He is just inexperienced and top it off, his personality He never faced such a tough foe. Aside from Dragon God. He went multiple raids and most of it were also very threatening but got through. Paul party are former S rank adventurers. So when they went with a plan, and it went through, and Hydra had a countermeasure to their plan but they still managed to counteract and proceed smoothly. Even avoided the Hydra biggest attack by a hair. He would end up relaxing a little and getting confident. My only qualm with this was how he couldn't foresee the attack. We see that it is still humanly possible to dodge. So for him with foresight eye, he should be able to see and dodge before Paul had to save him 1) Didn't put mana because he felt like they won so he couldn't foresee? 2) Ran out of mana after the breath attack? Since we see he poured alot into that defense so he couldn't put into the foresight? 3) The attack was the fastest of all the Hydra attacks that the amount of foresight he had wasn't enough to see ? 4) Pour too little mana into foresight far enough into the future to see what happened

[@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi]

@@Vonmoonlight 5) even the stumps are dangerous, so he's still predicting 9 necks attacking (apparently in the LN it was the stump's sharp scales that got Paul. No kids' gloves with this monster).

[@randomdude3798]

​@@Vonmoonlighthe failed BECAUSE of foresight. When hydra lost its second to last head it started thrashing around wildly including it's all headless necks so Rudy basically got confused by amount of visual information. If he was more experienced he would expect hydra's last ditch effort.

[@Vonmoonlight]

@randomdude3798 damn well...the anime sure didn't represent that well Wished they kept the stumped head as the killing blow, that way it really represents well the threat this Hydra poses. Even if you null the head, the neck stumps itself are still a massive threat

[@TrickyJebus]

kindof annyoing you guys talk in Gen Z terms. can you be yourself without trying to follow on those kinds of trends? "despairmaxxing" srsly? maaan im getting old. other than that. Im glad im not the only one who realized how Talhand wasnt shown to be helping as much. especially last episode.

[@johannesbowers7467]

😭Happy Father's Day😭 🔥⛩️🫡⛩️🔥 "You are twice the man I ever was, Rudy. .... Here, Let me demonstrate." ~Paul Greyrat~ Yes, Against regenerating enemies you always need fire, acid, or sometimes ice. The 🚩💀🚩 always collects.

[@CallmeSenpai69]

great reaction