We’re at the home stretch ladies and gentlemen and I am all the tingle!
Elfnein and Carol ready to face Shem-Ha.
Pretty sure Rory lost his mind seeing Elfnein (and Carol of course) bravely opposing Shem-Ha. I admit I too got giddy and was like, “Why are you so freakin’ badass all of a sudden Elfnein?”
This image was used a preview on their Twitter page for this episode. This series is unapologetic and I love it!
CaroNein vs Shem-Ha is a battle I didn’t know I wanted to see but so happy it happened. They then trapped Shem-Ha in a Big Bang Attack style move that visually would make Vegeta jelly.
Not enough.
Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to beat her. After all, she didn’t transform yet. This led us to the moment Shem-Ha was gloating before binding the Earth in Yggdrassil roots. CaroNein and Genjuro mentioned the Big Bang Attack requiring the duo sacrifice their memories to unleash its full power but as we saw it didn’t work.
Hibiki’s Dad making amends with his wife and mother.
The Earth is in greater danger than it’s ever been so what better time to say “I’m sorry for everything”.
Shem=Ha may be the least interesting/entertaining big bad in the series but she caused the most global damage so far. Gotta give her that much.
Back on the Death Moon we joined Captain Bikkie and Christopher confronting Vanessa and Elza. It was their turn to throw down. Our heroines were like “Is that what you wanted!?” Vanessa was like “Yeah. Everyone on Earth will soon become freaks like us! There’s no turning back.”
If Vanessa had two more she’d make a cool Dr Arachnia.
This fight yo. THIS FREAKIN’ FIGHT! Yes, my Vanessa bias is again taking over but can you blame me after what we saw? Freakin’ glorious.
Mini-Milaarc helping Vanessa.
I ask again, will this be Milaarc from now on or will she (if Noble Red survive) recover her sexy vampire bitch glory?
Amalgam Chris.
Of course like her sister girlfriends she too fell to the awesome might of Amalgam, courtesy of Christopher.
Vanessa defeated.
Vanessa selfishly tried to do the “noble sacrifice thing” sympathetic villains enjoy ending their TV time on but Christopher was like “Oh not this crap again. Eat wall dumbass.”. And thus by saving the trio Christopher’s Arc was at last complete. She had finally overcome all her past demons and found somewhere she belonged. Thus she wanted to share this gift with three other lost souls so they too can find redemption among the living. As cirno9fan pointed out in a discussion elsewhere Noble Red’s actions reminded her of how she used to be in season 1 where she knew what she’s doing was wrong but felt like there was no other choice. Thanks to the captain and S.O.N.G. she saw the light. Unfortunately they forgot one small detail. Shem-Ha implanted a part of her inside Vanessa, aiming and attack at the Death Moon Core. The situation being dire led to the following…
Best henshin EVAH!
Let me tell you all something. Suishou may be credited as Aoi Yuuki’s breakout performance of 2019 by some and others say Meduka Meguca is her most iconic…but the big boys and girls know Hibiki Tachibana is one of, if not the best anime roles of her career. No question.
Symphogear always loved its blood baths. Doesn’t make them any less gruesome.
Our Captain failed to stop Shem-Ha’s attack but Vanessa’s like “Chin up Cap. We’re still alive. You broke the sympathy villain curse.”. Shem-Ha took over the Death Moon (Murdock) mainframe and was like “My thanks pitiful mortals. It was your actions in the second eve (or was it third? Either season 2 or 3) when your plan to unite humanity initiated my eventual resurrection. To show my gratitude I give you an astral grave”
Vanessa’s final moment.
At the last moment Noble Red created a pathway back to Earth and they were like “Oh brother. That damn curse is so unfair.” The others thanked them for their sacrifice. “Tch. Why did you have be so nice to us in the end? No fair…Thanks and stuff. Bye.”.
Oh my Tsubasa. How lewd. But it is for the sake of saving the world so gotta go all out.
Ready for the final battle.
Not gonna go into detail on how they landed on Earth. It’s Symphogear. Figure it out.
I am beyond ready for the finale. Friends who have relished this show since day 1 over 7 years ago, join me for what promises to be a magnificent spectacle. To everyone else who came later it’s up to you.
You go capn’!
I was so hyped after the episode I didn’t notice this brief magical moment the first time. Goes to show how much the captain misses her sweetie. She needs snuggles BAD! Christopher understood that it’s in the heat of the moment or knowing that it’s “something Hibiki would do in a pinch”.
The Yuri Empire 
I can’t believe we’ve made it to the end after all this time ;_;
I remember way back when no one even thought it’d get another season, and here we are at season 5, and I’d say the team had the chance to tell the story they wanted to tell. That is something that is not often granted to any team of creators. I”m sure there are more things they could tell, but there never will be enough time to tell everything, because you always want to tell more.
What I am saying is, we’re getting an actual conclusive ending (probably, never know with Symphogear), and one that came after tying up the loose ends and giving every character so much growth, and it’s just been amazing ~ T_T
Going to really miss this series if this is the end, but I look forward to what the team can come up with next! I’m totally fine with getting to know new characters and new stories.
This episode was hard to get through, but in the good way. One more week….
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s one of the best action anime ever created. For viewers like us it’s been one heck of a ride. If the next episode truly is the last then hopefully it ends with a bang.
Hah. This is Symphogear we’re talking about. They’ve never had brakes.
LikeLike
Might want to fix that caption on the first screenshot.
I’m always happy to see Elfnein/Carol in action – what we got was effectively two final bosses facing off with each other and it was spectacular.
Hibiki got perhaps a little grab happy with Chris whilst fighting Vanessa, though Chris seemed to take it in stride. Perhaps Hibiki’s feeling a little pent up without Miku around.
Yet another wonderful Amalgam form; they’re all so great.
Hibiki’s transformation scene was incredible.
Noble Red, you will be missed.
That final shot of Hibiki at the end of the episode sent shivers down my spine.
Cannot wait to see what the finale has in store.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Was it a mistake, hmmmmm? Yeah it was but you loves you some Elfnein so I can imagine you envisioning yourself facing danger alongside them.
Precisely. A glorious battle.
You bet she’s yearning Miku snuggles when grabbing Christopher. It was in the heat of the moment but yeah, she misses her sunshine very much.
Indeed.
Bless you Aoi Yuuki for gifting us such a legendary character.
Personal favorite sympathetic antagonists in the entire series. I love Saint-Germain but Vanessa won my heart. Elza and Milaarc were great too. We might get a Force Ghost cameo in the final battle.
Felt like I too was ready for the final battle. This show is legendary my friend.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Really, Noble Red were your favorite? Honestly I thought they kinda sucked. Like, they had great designs, and the building blocks for great sympathetic villains were there, but they just came across as incredibly petty and self-serving, and their sacrifice felt more like an excuse to avoid the consequences of their actions rather than confront them. Millaarc especially: I’m not even sure if she realizes what she did was wrong, or if she would care.
LikeLiked by 1 person
@gurrenprime Ironically, Milaarc acts the way she does precisely because she understands the evils of their ways. Basically, she wants all the dirty jobs for herself and plays up the mad villain persona so that she’s seen as the most evil of the three and Vanessa and Elsa can get off easier when the hammer inevitably comes down on the three of them. You can see that confirmed in interviews and the like and reflected in scenes like the “who gets to kill Elfnein” part where Vanessa interjects with “nah, can’t have you shouldering ALL the sins”.
…and it actually worked on a meta-level. I often see comments stating that Vanessa and Elza are forgivable but not Milaarc. That despite them sharing the decision-making and responsibility for it all.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yup. Without writer interviews it was clear as day Milaarc wanted to carry the heavier burdens/do the dirtier jobs herself so her sisters/lovers didn’t have to.
She wanted most of the audience to dislike her most on purpose. She’s like babyfaces who try to sacrifice themselves to protect the ones they love.
LikeLike
@Cytrus that “shouldering the sins” thing would’ve worked a lot better if she had to suffer consequences for her actions, or if any of them showed actual regret, instead of self-pity about not being able to participate in the society they are actively murdering. The whole trio came off as DBZ Abridged Freeza voice “If I had any single regret for the countless horrific events that have transpired in my wake, it’s that I’m dying.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
Like Cytrus said, Milaarc wanted the majority to look down on her on purpose.
LikeLike
@cytrus or put another way, my problem with them isn’t what they did, it’s the fact that the show misidentified what their problem was, and had them “redeem” themselves for something much more minor than their actual sins. (Kinda like my problem with Hibiki’s dad, come to think of it).
LikeLike
OG-Man, you’re ignoring my actual criticisms.
1, Noble Red’s actions (mass murder) are disproportionate to their motivation (we just wanna be friends uwu).
2, the show itself doesn’t seem to realize what the problem is, and Noble Red show regret and suffer consequences for the wrong actions (being bad at communicating).
3, the combination of the above makes it feel like the show is saying that the mass murder was justified.
4, Millaarc didn’t suffer any consequences unique to her, making the whole “I’ll take all the blame thing” a bad case of telling instead of showing.
5, even if Millaarc did take the consequences on her own, she still thought her actions were justifiable, meaning she didn’t actually see what was wrong with them, she just acknowledged that other people would have a problem with them.
LikeLiked by 1 person
As always this series is a blast. Finally next week the last episode and Miku will be back (saved the best for last?).
I really hoped Noble red survived, maybe, in the end, the staff knew people would start to hate them after all they did and decided to give them redemption by sacrificing their lives but personally I would have liked for them to live and atone for their deeds.
Wonder if we’ll get Miku gear, everyone has already transformed at least two times, soooo maybe? please? If not at least expecting a kiss or very tender HibiMiku scene.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I and a few others expect Miku to help the captain in a pinch, break through Shem-Ha’s control and tell her the super important message. Hopefully it’s what we think it is.
They were great sympathetic antagonists. Personal favorites. Alas they couldn’t escape “the curse”. Only Maria’s Squad were fortunate enough to overcome it.
Fingers crossed. Day 1 viewers have been waiting over 7 years.
LikeLike
Given that I’ve heard that Kaneko likes the design for X-Drive Miku, it’s possible that we might even get that in the final episode.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best finale would be a double confession of H x M and M x T.
Especially after they build up M x T so much this season.
Either M does it by herself or the others convince her to do it. T just wants to hear it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
i know some of my friends might mock me from following this series, but i am glad to do so. back from when the visual looks kinda old and slowly evolving into a new one, as well as watching the development of the characters. not just miku, everyone needs a cuddle and snuggles after saving the world (off-screen ofc) :3. i appreciate the effort every VAs put into the series. what a blast.
hype for the finalllllll owo
LikeLiked by 2 people
Glad to have you on board all this time. All the work that went into the show over the years has not gone unnoticed and is very. Uch appreciated, yes.
Fingers crossed we get a magical conclusion.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great battles in both Earth and Moon. Carol is back once again. Chris getting grope (lucky Hibiki). It was awesome. It is kinda sad not seeing Noble Red next week especially Vanessa. I’m gonna miss her boobs missiles. And Millaarc just went all cute tiny bat and then poof into dust. Not gonna lie, I did see this coming. The world is not perfect, a lot of messed up things happened, people went bad. That is why I rarely hate the villains in this franchise for 7 years (man, is it that long?). That, and they’re not real, hate is a strong word. So yeah, I hope we get another season but if this the last season it’s still one of the best anime I’ve ever seen.
LikeLiked by 1 person
As always Symphogear delivers in the action department.
The captain needs Miku snuggles. Oh yes indeed.
As I and a few others speculate they could make one last appearance similar to Saint-Germain as “Force Ghosts” living on in our heroines’ Gear.
Milaarc did really bad things but in the end it was all to shoulder the worst crimes compared to her sisters/lovers. She didn’t care what others thought. It was all for her sweeties.
If the next episode is not the last I predict either a movie or a 6th season. We’ll find out very soon.
LikeLike
I should’ve chosen philosophy major in college, had i known it’d allow instant space travel between earth and moon in a straight line 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Symphogear made Alchemy and Philosphy so much more interesting over the years.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lots of great action in this week’s ep but it’s all leading up to that showdown in the season finale. Oh man that’s gonna be a battle of the ages.
That moment when Hibiki was running and transforming, wow that was insane. Aoi Yuuki once again showing off her incredible talent. I can’t wait for what’s in store in the final ep.
Sad to see the Noble Red trio fall, but I had a feeling they probably weren’t going to come to a good ending, especially after the whole turning into monsters thing via Shem-Ha. At least they were able to help out one final time.
Man that ending with them returning to Earth, that was so hype. I can’t wait for this final ep!
LikeLiked by 1 person
My body is so ready for the finale. This episode got me so hyped.
Aoi Yuuki is a legend.
Similar fate to the Agents of Illuminati so maybe they’ll become Force Ghosts too. We can hope.
GIVE IT TO ME!
LikeLiked by 1 person