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Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 marks the fortunate end of a polarizing season with plenty of peaks and valleys. Unfortunately, Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 marks the lowest that the season has fallen, bordering on being a complete waste of time.
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 is plagued by recap scenes which easily comprise over half of the episode’s runtime. Additionally, Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 adds almost nothing to the season’s story except in its final moments. This is not meant to be a compliment as the aforementioned scene from Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 could have easily been added to the prior installment for much greater effect.
Follow along as this article breaks down the unfortunate Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 in its entirety.
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 fails quality test, depicts exactly what went wrong this season
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13: The recap-a-thon begins
Rising of the Shield Hero Sseason 2 Episode 13 begins with one of its few non-recap scenes, showcasing Naofumi’s group clearly on a journey somewhere. Raph-chan is seen napping on Filo when the two notice Naofumi, Rishia, and Raphtalia returning with a bunch of flowers in hand. After climbing onto the wagon, the group departs to an unknown destination.
They begin discussing the friends they left back home, such as Eclair and others, as they continue heading on their journey. The discussion is interrupted by the beginning of the sunrise, which makes for an unforgettably beautiful scene in the otherwise disappointing episode.
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 plays just a few seconds of the theme song and shows a sketch of Naofumi and Raphtalia. The former’s group is then seen parked along a river, with Naofumi and Raphtalia fishing, Filo unsuccessfully trying to fly, and Rishia trying to start a fire.
After reminding Filo that she can’t fly, she retorts that they should go see Kizuna so she can fly. Naofumi rejects the proposal, saying that it isn’t possible and they’re probably doing the same thing. He then asks Rishia how the fire is coming along and prods her for not learning survival skills from Kizuna.
Raphtalia suddenly begins laughing, remembering their time in Mikakage shopping for clothes together. This begins the first recap-esque scene of the episode, which at least offers some new content for viewers to digest.
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 then shows what actually happened inside the store. While others look at armor, Raphtalia begins looking at clothes while stealing glimpses at Naofumi, alerting viewers that she wants something he’ll like on her.
Kizuna also picks up on this and offers to help Raphtalia shop and dress, enlisting Rishia for the same. This begins a montage of changing outfits, complete with lolicon jokes and unrequested fan service.
If this scene were to play out during the season, perhaps it would be different, but surely there are better things Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 could show viewers now that we are at such a crucial juncture. Setup for the third season, alerting viewers to Kyo’s fate (as to whether he’s dead or merely back in the real world), and many other topics could have been tackled here.
However, fans are instead “graced” with a forced, unrequested, fan-service filled outfit-changing montage which would’ve been better utilized in the episode it revisits. Nonetheless, the montage goes on, with Naofumi eventually hearing and noticing the ruckus before going back to his shopping.
Eventually, the girls settle on the outfit Raphtalia is seen wearing in the recapped episode, thanking Kizuna and Rishia for their help. Kizuna teases her by saying that she hopes Naofumi likes it, and then the episode shifts to the actual scene which played out in Episode 8. Raphtalia is seen trying to get Naofumi to notice her new clothes and compliment them. However, he doesn’t realize, leading Kizuna to internally criticize him for being as dense as a rock just when the screen goes black.
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13: Recaps in another world
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 then cuts to Kizuna and Yomogi in their world, fishing by a riverbank and apparently discussing the same events.
She explains that Raphtalia doesn’t seem to mind how dense Naofumi can be prior to questioning what’s actually going on between them. Yomogi comments on how their relationship seems extraordinary, with Kizuna commenting that extraordinary might not be the best word for it. She then apologizes for telling stories while they’re supposed to be fishing.
Yomogi, however, says that she doesn’t mind, and that she’d actually like to hear more of Kizuna’s stories, such as about the Infinite Labyrinth. This begins yet another flashback with added scenes, showcasing Kizuna’s time alone in the Infinite Labyrinth. She’s seen resolving to level up and hunt while telling herself that there has to be an exit.
She’s then seen addressing the food problem as she eats plain, open-flame roasted fish for weeks on end. She eventually becomes sick of this routine and the island itself, resolving to find her exit one way or another. She carves a boat out of wood planning to row out into the ocean.
However, as she detailed to Naofumi’s party previously, she runs into an invisible barrier which stops her from progressing further. She returns to the island dejectedly lamenting her position and then heads out into the woods to hang herself. While she comes close to the latter, she removes the rope at the last moment before wailing in pain.
Returning to the beach, she makes friends with a ball that is on the island with her, drawing a face on it in true Castaway style. This seems to help her mental health as she begins boiling seawater to get salt to season her food. This parlays into the scene in which fans are introduced to Kizuna, as seen in Episode 7 of this season, before returning to the present.
This flashback, like all the others in Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13, unfortunately highlights the major flaw of this season, namely pacing issues. While Kizuna did tell Naofumi and viewers of her struggles alone, it would’ve been so much more impactful to show them when introducing her character.
By this point in the season, fans know Kizuna as the upbeat, optimistic girl who is willing to do anything for her friends. Showing this side of her is nice, but it’s done in a way that falls flat compared to what could’ve been. Had they introduced Kizuna via this montage of her struggles alone on the island, it would’ve made her escape so much more rewarding and fulfilling to see.
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 presses on, returning to the present where Yomogi and Kizuna are fishing. She tells Yomogi that when Naofumi and the others arrived, it felt like time had begun moving again for her. Appreciative of the story, Yomogi teases her for eventually talking to a ball.
She then says that the ball was to Kizuna what Kyo was to her, before lamenting how she can only see his last moments when thinking of his face. She tells her to remember the fun times instead of the bad, that is to look back on times when the two of them had fun with one another.
This prompts Yomogi to tell a story in which Kyo angrily loses his glasses but Yomogi sees them on his head. However, she refuses to tell him, letting him look instead until he eventually realizes and gets upset. While Chris and Kizuna seem to find the story interesting to say the least, Yomogi does thank the latter for showing her a way to think of Kyo once more.
Again, while it’s great to see this rapport, Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 shouldn’t have been the time and place for this story. Had the production team instead added this story into the scenes of Kizuna and Yomogi talking towards the end of Episode 11, her decision to help Naofumi’s party would’ve been much more impactful.
Additionally, it would’ve helped to further characterize her as someone who loves Kyo and wants to save him but recognizes that he’s too far gone. This infuriating issue with pacing has popped up several times throughout the season, with Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 almost feeling like it was constructed to specifically remind viewers of these issues.
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13: Farewell to a friend
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 then switches the perspective back to Naofumi’s party who seem to have entered a mountain range on this leg of their journey. Filo is attempting to fly once more, only this time with the wagon attached to her and Naofumi’s party in the wagon.
The group is thankfully able to explain to her that she cannot fly in this world and that she’ll hurt them all if she tries to jump the cavern with the wagon attached. As they continue on their journey, Raphtalia and Rishia begin discussing how Filo could fly if Ost was here to use her Gravity Magic.
This parlays into yet another flashback, thanks to Rishia remembering her way of saying things in a way that was subtle but not explanatory. This causes Raphtalia to blush and beg Rishia to not recount what she’s referencing as another flashback to the days before the battle with the Spirit Tortoise begins.
The women of Naofumi’s party are seen gathered around a fire when Raphtalia suddenly asks Ost what it means to “get intimate as fast as possible” with someone. She says that she remembers her giving Rishia the same advice earlier, and the latter begs Ost not to elaborate upon it.
However, she misinterprets this signal and begins to explain to Raphtalia what the phrase means in secret. Raphtalia, however, doesn’t quite understand, leading to Filo also being told the same by Ost. However, the Filolial begins likening the act to mating which causes Raphtalia to be in an uproar over her clear misunderstanding of Ost’s words.
What follows is essentially everyone yelling over one another about the decency or indecency of mating, with Rishia trying to get the conversation as a whole to stop. While still somewhat entertaining, the conversation could have been inserted much earlier in the season to sow the seeds of Raphtalia realizing her feelings for Naofumi.
Instead, it’s crammed into Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 unnecessarily, resulting in a less impactful and less engaging scene for viewers. Sadly, this is yet another example of how poorly constructed the season was from a storyboarding perspective, resulting in numerous pacing issues.
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 then, thankfully, ends its last flashback. Naofumi’s group seems to have arrived at a mountain peak of some sort as the group departs the wagon and begins walking to the said peak. As the four approach the peak, they look out onto what seems to be the Spirit Tortoise’s backside mountain range and tell Ost that they’re here.
Naofumi tosses down the flowers from earlier in the episode as the wind catches them, and Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 begins playing its ending theme. Each member of the party is clearly paying their respects before Naofumi tells them it’s time to go.
However, he turns back before walking away, revealing Ost’s spirit waving him on from where they were just standing. As he smiles and walks away, Naofumi waves back. Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 at least manages to nail this ending note.
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13: In summation
Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 brings a mishandled season to a fortunate and merciful end. Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 is essentially a montage reel of all the clips fans should’ve seen throughout the season at the appropriate times but didn’t due to poor pacing.
While this issue is inherently intertwined with pacing, the effects impact everything, from overall story progression to character development. Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 feels like a rushed, last-ditch effort to justify the questionable pacing and writing choices made throughout the season.
The second season of this formerly smash-hit isekai series was a mixed-bag of good and bad moments. Every episode brought new highs and lows for the season, proving that it was not even capable of delivering consistent quality on either side of the scale.
Overall, Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 13 is a difficult-to-enjoy episode which serves as a microcosm of the season’s problems at large. While some viewers surely enjoyed the finale, those who are more critical will likely find themselves only getting angrier as the finale progresses.
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