Bastard‼ Heavy Metal, Dark Fantasy (Episode 5) – Showdown

Dark Schneider and Sheila find the fire god Efreet blocking their way. And since Dark Schneider doesn’t know any cold spells, it’s not looking good. If he uses fire it could end up coming back at them with interest!

Bastard‼ Heavy Metal, Dark Fantasy (Episode 5) – Showdown

What happened?

Outside of Dark Schneider’s protective barrier, the temperature has reached more than one thousand degrees. Soon, it won’t be strong enough to protect both of them. So, to Sheila’s surprise, Dark Schneider steps outside and approaches Efreet. The fire god laughs at the human’s attempts and even more so when Dark Schneider casts a fire spell. However, his laughter soon turns to shock when he learns that Dark Schneider took Efreet’s fire and used it to amplify his own magic, sending a wave of heat back at him. The temperature reached twenty thousand degrees, turning the stone into magma. Efreet reeled defeated for the first time in his three hundred years of life.

Gara was impressed that Dark Schneider made it all the way to the top of his tower. Dark Schneider was less impressed when he saw Gara parading Yoko in nothing but a sheet. He was furious that Gara saw her naked before he did. Gara and Yoko were both stunned by this revelation. Gara then used this against Dark Schneider by telling him about all the lewd things they did together. Princess Sheila listened in, not really understanding any of it. Yoko was furious that Gara would lie about her that way.

Dark Schneider was livid. He began to cast Venom, but Gara charged forward and severed Dark Schneider’s arm from his body. It was too late, however, as the spell had been cast. Gara managed to take the hit on his left arm, losing it in the process. Had it been a direct hit, he would have been dead. Then, Dark Schneider cast another spell calling on the Earth and Wind elements. Combined, they tore the tower to the ground. As they fell, Yoko, Sheila, and Gara’s pet dragon, Lars found themselves protected within a barrier. After climbing out of the rubble, Gara accepted his defeat and warned them that Metallicana was under attack by another unit. This was obviously a distraction, although the Princess and her knights had no idea…

What did you think?

The one thing I was hoping to see from this episode was better fight scenes. So far, they’ve been fairly static with Dark Schneider making imposing stances and defeating the enemy with a couple of spells that don’t require much movement. I know it can be difficult to make magic battles that dynamic, but Overlord did it so I know it’s possible. Sadly, that didn’t happen and we got more of the same. I did get a few laughs out of it though, but I’m not sure they were all intentional. For example, how much blood did Dark Schneider and Gara lose in that fight? Gara is a ninja, he should have been attacking constantly using his speed to cut down Dark Schneider, but he seemed to want to stand there and let him cast his magic. It was a bit of a disappointment.

And then, once the battle was over, they were best buds again with Gara giving him information and just standing around like nothing had happened between them. I really wasn’t expecting the enemies-to-friends trope to appear in this series. That is not metal or dark. It was funny watching Sheila and Yoko realises that they both had fallen for Dark Schneider, although we all know how that’s going to resolve itself. As I said, there were some laughs and a bit of action, however, I’d argue that the fights are as important as the ecchi teases. A well-choreographed fight can do wonders for a story. Of course, in anime that requires quite a bit of animation. I remember the second season of How Not to Summon a Demon Lord suffering because they cut back on the battle animation. This series has potential, but it’s not quite there yet.

Episode highlights

Other posts in the series

• Season One – Part One
  • Episode 1 – The Arrival
  • Episode 2 – Rampage
  • Episode 3 – Abduction
  • Episode 4 – Invasion
  • Episode 5 – Showdown
  • Episode 6 – Destiny
  • Episode 7 – The Demon Beast
  • Episode 8 – The Progenitor
  • Episode 9 – Blue Nail
  • Episode 10 – The Goddess of Thunder
  • Episode 11 – Prophecy
  • Episode 12 – Life or Death
  • Episode 13 – Wavering

Series Information

English Title	Bastard‼ Heavy Metal, Dark Fantasy
Japanese Title	Bastard!! Ankoku no Hakaishin
Medium	Anime
Released	Spring 2022
Episodes	13
Animation Studios	LIDENFILMS
Genres	Action, Adventure, Ecchi, Fantasy
Demographic	Seinen

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