Accel World - Episode 23

A fitting companion for the Black King.

In terms of whether I liked or disliked this episode, I'd probably say that I enjoyed it but disliked it; sounds weird, right? Although some parts really got me into the whole fight, others made me shake my head in disappointment. Funny thing is, many of the scenes could be classified as both good or bad, depending on how you look at it. For the purpose of comparing and contrasting, I've split my thoughts into two sections.

Positives
Starting with the positives, the battle itself was great. The momentum swung back and forth quite a bit, with the dialogue timing actually being reasonable this time around, making things more interesting. Obviously, seeing Nōmi being owned by Taku at first and having Kuroyukihime come at the most crucial moment to save the day was nice. Furthermore, I'm glad that it'll be Silver Crow vs. Dusk Taker in a fair 1v1, Incarnate System users duel since a victory would mean that much more now. Chiyu not interfering with the match was also a relief, given that I was sure she'd betray them after her suspicious story in the beginning. However, I'm not sure if this statement will stand once the next episode comes. Oh, and Kuroyukihime's entrance with her tamed, black unicorn Enemy was definitely a sight to behold.

Negatives
Moving on to the negatives, first off, I was really disappointed with the revelation of Nōmi's past. Prior to that, all was well as his character was shaping up to be one of the most despicable of the year. However, I felt this new information created a reason for people to sympathize with him, and thus, possibly decreasing his number of haters, even if by a bit. I think that a purely evil antagonist—one whose actions are solely motivated by themselves—would've been the best fit for Nōmi. Luckily, he redeemed himself in a sense by torturing Chiyu and laying waste to Taku afterwards.

Secondly, Haruyuki's negativity made an unfortunate return yet again. Going into the battle, his confidence was decent to the point where I thought he'd be able to battle through the difficulties that were to come. But it looks like I was wrong. Once again, he goes through the phase of losing motivation, remembering Kuroyukihime's words, getting a random burst of energy, and finally falling flat on his face (this time, literally). I guess you could say that he's all talk right now, which is disappointing, given his apparent mental strength when he confronted Nōmi about the BIC in the last episode.

Lastly, while Kuroyukihime's entrance was grand and all, it was still hardly surprising; a typical event in a shōnen anime battle. Personally, I think it would've been better if Haruyuki stopped Nōmi instead, showing that he's still got some fight left in him and that he's able to earn the victory by himself. Right now, I just hope he'll be able to do just that in the season finale.