HomePop CulturePop Culture NewsNo Game No Life Episode 10 Impressions

No Game No Life Episode 10 Impressions

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The Blankest Stare

No Game No Life
Episode 10: Blue Rose

Having regained his corporeal form and acquired two new allies last episode, Sora is looking to be in good form for his upcoming bout with the Warbeasts. Unfortunately for our King, his entire country does’t exactly see it that way. But if there’s one thing that this series teaches, it’s don’t believe everything you think you know. More often than not, you’re wrong.

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If the shoe fits…

Taking a rather logical approach to the whole “team up” process, Sora decides that it would be best to run through some introductions. You know, like one of those annoying team building exercises that business do to create a “friendly” atmosphere. Starting with Kurami Zell, whom we know very little about, this little “get to know me” session devolves pretty quickly when Fil Nilvalen divulges her, how do I put this, unrelenting animosity towards Jibril. To serve as a reminder that not everything was chore and games in the world of Disboard, we are told that Jibril once wiped out a large number of Elves because their magic made her crash and bump her head…yeah. Though credit to Fi because she decides that she can put aside her hatred for the good of the team…if Jibril licks her feet and apologises. Surprisingly for an anime like No Game, a discretion shot is used so that we do not actually see the apology take place. We hear about it immediately afterwards of course and let’s just say that Jibril is not too unhappy with having a Master. She is certainly an excitable Flugel.

All those shenanigans aside, the most interesting fact to arise from the introductions is the truth of Kurami and Fi’s relationship. Owing to their overarching sense of self worth and position as seventh out of the sixteen Exceed races, the Elves see no problem in owning slaves…of which Kurami is one. For generations her family has served the Elves, at least until Fi came along. Not like her fellow Elven folk, Fi treats Kurami with respect. Though Sora notes that their relationship is more in line with that of a mother and daughter, Fi being the mum of course. Of course this places them at odds with the beliefs of her race, warranting the need to keep up the appearance of a slave/master relationship. Additionally, if her treatment of Jibril wasn’t enough of an indication, we see quite clearly that Fi has a brutal side hidden under her saccharine demeanour. Though only a few brief statements here and there, it’s nice to see that Fi isn’t the simplistic, porcelain princess she appears to be.

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She certainly makes one hell of an entrance

Though having only shared a few interactions thus far, I’m rather curious to see how the connection between Sora and Kurami develops. Not necessarily in any kind of romantic way, I mean more in the “we share each other’s memories” kind of way. After all, it’s not like either of them is afraid to go delving into these memories, as both recite personal lines spoken from years in the past. I assume that the two will continue to utilise a few less-than-public memories to poke fun at their parallel mind, but hopefully we’ll see a camaraderie develop there as well. It’d certainly be interesting to see someone who can compliment Sora in the way Shiro does. After all, they say no one knows you better than yourself, but I guess they never counted on mind copy-pasting. The fools.

With preparations finally complete, Sora reveals to his allies the reason he bet the Imanity Race Piece: doubt. As he so eloquently explains, there is no truer watcher than one who is suspicious of your actions. Combined with his newfound Elven friend, the taller half of Blank created an environment that severely hampers the Warbeasts ability to cheat. With thousands of eyes and a magic wielder on their side, Imanity possess a threat considerably larger than the Warbeasts are used to. I honestly shouldn’t be surprised at this point. Everything Sora does is part of some grand scheme that shifts from ludicrous to brilliant in an instant. He even made use of a demand that he had left over from Steph’s day of challenges, you know that one were she wound up naked on the street? Or course you do. Well it looks like her final loss will come into play sometime in the near future and judging from what happened at the end of the episode, Blank is going to need all the help they can get.

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They’re not exactly what you would call “city people”

An unexpected turn to say the least. Thrown into a virtual world, Blank soon realises that they know the scenery all to well: Tokyo. How the Warbeasts came to possess knowledge of such a city is not yet known, but the mysterious leader of the Warbeasts may have something to do with it. Unfortunately for Imanity, being thrown back into the world they despise, or a virtual representation of it, Sora and Shiro revert to their timid and terrified demeanour. Though I’m sure they’ll manage to pull themselves together next episode because if they don’t, it’s game over for Imanity.

Check out more No Game No Life Impressions HERE.