“Could you hold on a minute before you continue?”
CONTENT WARNING: This post contains descriptions of scenes that portray sensitive topics including internal depictions of the slavery trade, abuse, and stillborns. Reader discretion is advised.
…and we’re now two for two for Clevatess episodes that require content warnings. Though, in the series’s defense, this is a series that is 100% intended to be on the darker side, so it’s understandable for there to be more serious subject matter like this within the episodes. So obviously things can’t be all sunshine and rainbows.
This episode begins where the last episode left off in its post-credits scene: with Alicia waking up and finding herself, Clevatess, and Luna in the back of a wagon, alongside other people that have been captured by these folks. Here, we learn that Clevatess didn’t expect humans to be so fragile. Friendly reminder that our guy Clevatess is USUALLY in the form of a dark beast that has hard skin, so it’s completely understandable that he’s not used to being so weak.
When they arrive, they see that those who are captured are being split into two groups: men and old people in one group, kids and women in another. However, it seems that even despite what seems like it’s supposed to be ways to keep those who are captured organized, Clevatess ends up being able to stick with Luna, while Alicia is kept separate from those two. Okay, I guess screw that organization system then.
From here, the episode is split into two different plots: the “A” (for Alicia) plot, and the “C” (for Clevatess) plot. And before people point it out, yes, I KNOW that the proper terms here would be A plot and B plot, but I wanna have some fun with this.
In the A plot, we find out that these bandits are in the business of selling trades. While Clevatess made the observation that they probably sold the survivors as slaves earlier, this is where we get the confirmation. However, we also learn that these bandits sell fake magic weapons (aka: they’re scammers AS WELL AS slavers!), and since the Hidetian royal family is basically dead now, that means that more of their scam weapons can be out in the world! Oh no! 😦
We also see her and some of the others go to an area where there’s a shaft filled with water that people can get sent into to die. Yeah, not pretty. But it’s also an area where a legend died, so…yikes! Maybe next episode involves Alicia fighting whatever this thing is? Who knows.
However, what I found most interesting about this episode was the C plot. (Remember, C for Clevatess! Not there being three plots in the episode!) He seems to get treated a lot better, and even meets a new character called Nell, who’s responsible for serving as a servant for the bandits and feeding any babies who are brought to where she is.
This is also where we learn Nell’s story, in which she had three stillborns (though having the first one was what allowed her to produce mil in the first place), and that while she had a mom, she only ever saw her from the back, and after her mom disappeared, she began getting hit when she messed up (if it wasn’t already happening before), which really makes me think that Nell was being abused. However, Clevatess seems determined to help get Nell out of this situation by wanting Nell to be the wet nurse for Luna.
Honestly, this was a great episode that I believe managed to keep a good balance on everything. While it’s gone into dark territory, not every single show is going to be cute girls doing cute things with the protagonist and deutragonist having yuri undertones in their interactions. While it’s nice to have comfy shows like that, it’s also important to have shows like this, due to everyone’s varying tastes. Though I’m genuinely hoping that this show will properly criticize slavery. Please, Clevatess, portray your story in such a way to make it clear that slavery is bad.
ADDITIONAL POSTS ABOUT CLEVATESS:
Sara Talks Anime 
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