I love this story so much. The mystery, the intensity, the beauty in the magic, the ART. This world is so fascinating because every answer just seems to open the door to ten more terrifying realizations and questions.
Episodes 7 and 8 shifted the tone again. Up until now, the magic has felt beautiful, whimsical, inspiring. Dangerous at times, yes. I'm never forgetting the dragon's labyrinth arc. But still it was full of wonder. Solved by fluffy warm clouds and flying shoes. But then The Knights of Moralis arrived. And suddenly this entire magic system started to feel unsettling and suffocating. The way they immediately moved to erase Coco's memories without a single hesitation. No attempt to understand what happened. No compassion. No innocent until proven guilty. Just authority and punishment. It was chilling. It instantly made me understand why Qifrey has been so secretive and uneasy whenever certain rules or organizations are mentioned.The Knights of Moralis hold a terrifying amount of power.What's even scarier is how normal that power seems to them.But after Episode 8 ended I'm really sitting here wondering.. Who IS Qifrey? Because these episodes made it painfully obvious that his history with the Brimmed Hats and the Knights of Moralis run so much deeper than we're being told at this time.The moment we learned what was really causing Coco's insane spell my mind went racing. Blood magic!? In this cute, bubbly magic world!? Every new layer added to this system makes it feel both more beautiful but more horrifying at the same time. I love that this series doesn't treat magic lightly. Magic here is starting to feel political. Dangerous. Controlled. Sacred. Weaponized. Everyone seems to fear different parts of it for different reasons. And I'm really obsessed with trying to figure out why.I love that we finally got more of Agott's story in these episodes. Finally a deeper look into why she is the way she is. Those voices in her head telling her she isn't enough, that she'll fail, that everyone is looking down on her for being average. Ugh. I think a lot of us can understand that feeling. She sees the world through this harsh, poisoned lens. A lens where her worth has to be earned perfectly or not at all. No wonder why she projects that harshness onto everyone else around her. It feels less cruel now that I know it's less intentional and more a survival instinct.. The way episode 8 ended has me spiraling & wishing I could just binge the rest of this story already. Qifrey made it a point to talk about how devastating erasure of memories can be.. yet he did what he did to Mr. Nolnoa. The way Qifrey clung to that vial like Gollum clutching the Ring genuinely disturbed me. But then my mind races back to The Knights of Moralis and how they treated Coco. It races back to the Dragon's Labrynth and the test they put Coco through. And maybe he isn't corrupt or disturbed or evil. Maybe he wants to fight fire with fire. Or maybe it's something deeper and darker. I don't know... I can't wait for the next episode now!How are you all feeling about Qifrey and the Knights of Moralis right now!?Thank you for your support on Patreon!Relax and enjoy 🍿🌿SYNC ALONG LINK: https://youtu.be/BT6HjpscGKYI watched this on Crunchyroll in original Japanese with subtitles