Goblin Slayer Season 2: Episode 12 Review [Season Review]

/ kvasir369

One day she’ll be able to support him rather than stand behind him.

The twelfth and final episode of Goblin Slayer Season 2 has aired! The Goblin Priest was slain, but it had a final trick up its sleeve. Yet the party must persist. What awaits them at the end of their traveled path?

Let’s uncover everything in a Recap and Review.

Recap

The episode opens with them securing the Princess after they kill the Goblin Priest. Priestess finds her chainmail and the Princess is still alive, so it seems all was good. But then Lizard Priest pointed out it seemed they were trying to resurrect a Dark God and the Goblin Priest was still alive because GS didn’t double-tap like normal. As a result, he half-completes the ritual to awaken the Greater Demon’s Hand using his own body as the final sacrifice.

It immediately casts Blizzard and Lizard Priest has to pray to his ancestor to weather the cold as he shields Priestess and the Princess with his body. She wants to use a Miracle, but he tells her to hold off since can’t and they don’t know what they need. Goblin Slayer gets in front of him since he’s cold-blooded and Dwarf Shaman creates an ice wall to give them shelter from it.

Priestess, Princess, and Lizard Priest are given Stamina Potions to pop while Dwarf Shaman has Goblin Slayer and High Elf Archer drink some Fire Wine to stave off the cold. They opt to retreat since this isn’t a Goblin, but then it hits the wall and basically one-shots HEA. Goblin Slayer states he has a plan to deal with it and has Priestess lure it away before tossing some oil to make it slip before hooking it with the grappling hook.

It uses Rapid Spin and bats him into a wall, buying time for Priestess to use the ribbon to act as a key to get the Elevator working again. However, it gets ready to unleash another Blizzard that reminds her of the near-wipe she had against the Ogre as the rest of their party opts to interrupt the spell by having HEA launch one of the claw sickles into the thing with her bow. Goblin Slayer then tosses the thing into the elevator shaft and has Priestess use Protection to lock it there.

It won’t last as each hit threatens to break her mind until the elevator finishes coming back up and crushes it against the barrier. Hammer and Anvil strategy for the win. Of course, now they had to get back up where a bunch of Goblins were waiting for them with only HEA, Priestess, and Goblin Slayer acting since the others are incapable of fighting.

Princess apologizes for everything, to them and her brother. Priestess sees her old self in the girl eighteen months ago. Goblin Slayer tells them she can’t help what she doesn’t have but to do what she can. Then they leave out of the cave and find a horde of Goblins waiting for them, drawn by the noise of the battle below.

It honestly looks pretty bad considering Lizard Priest can barely stand to meet his death on his feet, and Goblin Slayer doesn’t seem to have an answer. Since they don’t think there will be any reinforcements coming, they make a final stand with Priestess reaching for his hand. Then Sword Maiden pops up and drops a magical nuke on top of them.

She declares these aren’t Goblins, but instead NPCs who are trying to bring back demons of chaos after the Demon Lord was killed. Meaning they are heretics and there’s no shame in killing heretics. So, thanks to Goblin Slayer providing her with the information, she is justifying mobilizing all of the Paladins and Battle Clerics to kill them rather than the Kingdom’s army.

Goblin Slayer sees she’s still trembling from a distance, but she came through when they needed her. Priestess thinks that as a result she still isn’t able to support him, but one day she will. Then we see the one behind this whole plan was some noble who intended to have a demon resurrected using the Princess and then having it merge with the Eldritch Abomination, as it would be able to impersonate the Princess.

Since the kidnapping was kept a secret, they intended to keep the King helpless because they couldn’t say anything. And even if the plan did fail, they intended to spread rumors that she had been tainted so her engagement would fall through. All because he feels that a filthy adventurer has no right to rule due to having the bloodline of royalty. Of course, the Knight of Diamonds pops in and gets ready to slaughter them all.

Then we go back to Guild Girl as she talks with HEA and Priestess about their quest. Goblin Slayer only charged them for the amount of a goblin slaying quest rather than the mountain of gold he could have gotten considering who it was he saved. Then Guild Girl mentions how the heretics in the capital were slain.

Priestess wishes she could mature a bit and the other two girls tell her it’s fine. She also learns that the Princess decided to become a cleric of the Earth Mother because she was inspired by her. It’s enough to bring her to tears since she made a difference.

Meanwhile, Goblin Slayer heads home while thinking nothing changed. His job remains the same and he can’t walk a different path like Sword Maide, Female Merchant, or even Priestess. He can only do what he can while thinking about the others he’s met and interacted with over the season.

But waiting for him when he comes back is Farm Girl, who welcomes him home with dinner ready. Nothing will change and he’ll go on adventures to kill Goblins. That’s what he has chosen to do in the end.

Review

Well… that was… an ending, I guess. I mean, it makes sense considering GS is a low-key character and just coming home to his childhood friend should be enough of a happy ending. In the end, he just killed Goblins, saved a prisoner, and came back home.

And that’s enough.

But on the topic of the episode, it was… middling as much as I hate to admit it. For probably the first time I can recall, Goblin Slayer didn’t double-tap a Goblin to make sure it was dead before leaving to speak with the others. And as a result, it managed to go sideways.

Then the hand only menacingly stood there, casting Blizzard, and waiting until the party had enough time to get their buffs up before it smashed down the wall and got High Elf Archer with splash damage. It promptly gets kited and thrown down an elevator shaft, where it gets smashed into a Protection barrier to kill it. That last part I liked because it was creatively done on their part considering they were largely out of resources.

Admittedly, I did have a slightly morbid chuckle when Priestess went over to get her chainmail first and then comforted the Princess. Like, I know she cared about the equipment but the girl could have been injured. Priorities.

Then again when Lizard Priest prayed to his ancestor for strength before he stood in front of the blizzard to shelter the girls. Though it’s mentioned repeatedly that the cold cripples him, the mountain in the movie being one example. He’s cold-blooded so that was him killing himself to keep them safe and it effectively left him unable to help when they needed it.

The fact that they were facing a last stand had more tension because you could see they were not ready for this fight. It was a roll of the dice that Sword Maiden could justify sending a swarm of Holy Knights and Battle Clerics from assorted sects of worship to kill the Goblins to save them. She was still terrified, but she paid back the help GS gave her by saving him for once.

So, there was still the question of how the Goblins got the knowledge to do this, which tied into the mention of the God of Wisdom and an Evil Sect. They were mentioned briefly in the episode where she got kidnapped, and we found out that they had intended for a greater plan to happen. Goblin Slayer being there basically thwarted that plan, but they had a few contingencies.

Cue the Knight of Diamonds coming in and dishing vigilante justice. We all know that was the King and the woman behind him was the maid, right? I’m not spoiling anything by mentioning that, am I?

So that issue was resolved off-screen to be mentioned by Guild Girl, who also tells us that Princess has decided to become a cleric because of Priestess. So I guess that means just like Goblin Slayer became someone she looked up to, Priestess became someone she looked up to. It probably also takes care of that whole engagement issue since I’m not sure if clerics can get married considering the Resurrection Miracle requires you to be a virgin or have one with you.

So everyone managed to make it out alive and relatively unscathed. Goblin Slayer goes back home stating nothing has changed. Goblins will still be there and he’ll still kill them.

But looking back over the season, he’s done so much more than that and made the lives of many people better for it. So not a bad ending overall, even if lackluster.

Season Review

Okay, so for this season I will admit I am not as hyped as I was for the first one. The content itself isn’t bad, though considering how much cut content I have to write about I’m not happy important things get snipped, but I really felt the budget. Especially those still shots as they climbed to the top of the Dungeon.

There’s no way to exclaim just how lacking the animation for this season was compared to the first season. Not to mention the scenes don’t highlight the epicness of the LN (this last battle especially in the bottom section), so it feels lackluster. It wasn’t unwatchable, but as a fan, I grieve the quality and wish we got better than we did.

I sincerely doubt we will be getting a Season Three, even if there are enough materials for it. So this is what people are going to remember it for in the end. And that saddens me because the world of Goblin Slayer is an interesting take from the eyes of one who hunts the weakest monsters.

We got to see some fresh rookies getting training, seeing how someone who lost a relative to the Goblins had to put up with people talking down about his dead family member because of it. We got to see him being humbled, learning from the experience, and applying what he learned to save those he could. And while he still grieves for his sister, he decides to inherit her dream rather than become someone trapped by his vengeance like Goblin Slayer.

We got to explore the homeland of the elves and even dive into their habits and why they are the way they are. The mortality of other races compared to their own was brought up, with it being mentioned that HEA knows that Goblin Slayer and the others barring Lizard Priest are going to die well before she does of natural causes. Yet she still finds comfort in being close to them despite knowing that their time will be so short.

We got to see more of Farm Girl, and yes I’m going to keep calling her that, including her thoughts about him. She’s not ignorant of the fact that there’s a very real chance he might not come back one day, so she always wants him to see her regardless of what she looks like. She’s his wife in all but the paperwork, hanging with one woman she knows likes him, another who she is reasonably sure, and possibly a High Elf, yet she keeps things fair by even having Priestess join in catching the bouquet.

That’s a power move if I ever saw it and she’s not even mean about it.

I did like more introspection from Sword Maiden and Female Merchant, showing how even though they managed to stay active after surviving their ordeals they still struggle in the face of what happened. They are victims who will likely never get over their trauma, but they still help where they can. Sword Maiden was able to rally people to help and Female Merchant was the one responsible for the training camp so more people don’t end up like her.

They’re all making a difference in their own way, and that is beautiful.

So while I didn’t like the quality of the anime, I did like the content. I would recommend it, but only if you watched the First Season and two-thirds of the Movie. And, while I would like for us to get a Season Three, I hope if it does happen it’ll be given more of a budget.

Differences in Adaptation

Strap yourselves in, this is going to be a long one as this episode starts in the middle of Volume 8, Chapter 8, and wraps up the entire thing:

  • Priestess was still questioning what she should say to Princess. She was unsure if she should be happy she was safe or angry that she stole her chainmail. She was still unable to reach a conclusion even after she saw that while Princess was fortunate to be alive, she was wounded and heartbroken.
  • Even when she recovered her chainmail and hugged Princess, she wasn’t sure if it was that she was glad to have recovered her precious item or the girl. She knew that if one was lost but the other was found, both would leave a sting in her heart. That’s why she hugged them both.
  • The book justifies the Goblin Priest surviving having his head smashed in as a really good roll of the dice. No one lapsed in their vigilance like how the anime showed, he basically rolled a critical success on his death roll and thought to himself that the Dark God would save him. It didn’t.
  • The Blizzard that it unleashed was so cold and sharp that Priestess considered the pain unendurable as she writhed in agony, even her very breath tormenting her as it smothered every last light in the Dungeon and her eyelids threatened to freeze shut if she didn’t blink while she desperately tried to keep Princess alive before Lizard Priest offered his body for shelter.
  • Lizard Priest got it even worse as frost formed on his scales, his skin froze, and snow collected on his claws and fangs. The reason he couldn’t even cast another Miracle was because it took a certain amount of strength to do so and the cold sucked the life out of him as he was getting ready to nearly shut his eyes for good.
  • Goblin Slayer was tanking sleet and hail along with the snow, battering his armor and shield as he beelined for them and supported Lizard Priest with his back. They couldn’t retreat fast because the floor was iced over and if they tripped they probably weren’t going to get back up.
  • The Priestess’ body was pale and bloodless, her lips turning purple from the cold and her teeth chattering by the time High Elf Archer sheltered both her and Princess.
  • In the thirty seconds it took for them to get together in that single turn, Lizard Priest was in a state where he couldn’t even drink a potion without the risk of choking. Priestess had to pour in a cloth and press it against his mouth so he could suckle it while she drank a half-frozen one herself that burned on the way down.
  • High Elf Archer taking that direct hit crumpled like a dried leaf was bad enough they were worried it had been a critical (fatal) but she was still able to move. 
  • The Hand was actually starving and withering because it couldn’t get nourishment from the Goblin’s flesh and soul it consumed. It intended to kill the Adventurers, seeking their lives and souls and despair, using senses so far removed from mortals they couldn’t understand it.
  • When the hand got ready to go after Dwarf Shaman, who it recognized had gotten inspired by something akin to joy or greed, Priestess baited it. Seeing her trying to fight back the cold and fear, it rushed her faster than she could hope to escape with the intention of squeezing her into a bloody soup.
  • It never saw the oil coming since it was a moment away from grabbing her, hence why it slipped then and did the same when Goblin Slayer hooked it. The gasoline basically acted as a lubricant so that he could reel it in.
  • At that point, the Demon Hand backhanded him hard enough that his armor cracked when he hit the wall. It hurt, but he was still in a better condition than the Ogre left him. He then tried to get it into the elevator and the hand stopped resisting because it decided to cast a Blizzard instead, and Priestess was getting ready to support GS while thinking that before she couldn’t do anything and used up everything prior to then.
  • That was when Lizard Priest, who regained just enough strength for a miracle thanks to Dwarf Shaman using Kindle to give him warmth, created his Sword Claw for HEA to shoot it. It didn’t cause the thing any serious pain, but it was enough to interrupt its casting and give GS the chance to reel it into the elevator.
  • The pain from the hand slamming into the Protection clouded Priestess’ vision as a shockwave went through her solar plexus and it felt like it was tearing out her insides, forcing her to swallow the bile since if she faltered they would be screwed. Even then she began to have her life flash before her mind until she heard Goblin Slayer tell her the elevator was coming and she clung to his words. The Demon Hand still held off for several seconds before there was a squish.
  • Then she noted Goblin Slayer supporting her as they walked was the first time he did so, which caused heat to rise in her cheeks as she looked down to see his boots and her own feet walking side-by-side.
  • With Lizard Priest not at full strength, Goblin Slayer needing to support himself on a wall, and HEA clutching her side by the end of clearing the room of Goblins, she realized that they were still hurting but they couldn’t rest for long and even then they knew there would be more goblins waiting for them at the top.
  • The greenskins numbered more than fifty total and their thoughts were pretty clear on what they were going to do to the girls (necrophilia is on that list) as they inched closer and closer to draw out the fear, since they enjoyed seeing the Adventurers looking so beaten.
  • Goblin Slayer hadn’t given up. He stood at the entrance of the Dungeon, where their numbers couldn’t be used to swarm them from both sides, and he intended to act as a wall. The others seeing this got ready, despite HEA being almost out of arrows, Dwarf Shaman only had his axes after setting Princess down behind him, and Lizard Priest striking an imposing stance. 
  • Then lightning came down and smote a bunch of them as it came down like rain. The Goblins tried to flee into the Dungeon, but they couldn’t get past GS, and so it was another hammer and anvil situation.
  • Priestess noticed that despite the fact that she was terrified to the point she needed to lean on her alligator since she couldn’t stand on her own, Sword Maiden’s attention was only on Goblin Slayer. He was the reason she could confront her greatest fear.
  • The above made Priestess feel humiliated, pathetic, and pitiful considering she was clinging to him. But it also reaffirmed that she wanted to be his source of strength one day.
  • The plan was to use the fiery stone to control the Goblins, have the creature assimilate the Greater Demon, and impersonate the Princess, so they could manipulate the King. They really thought they could control it, and were fine with letting the King remain on the throne so long as they could spread their faith.
  • And to deal with the Heroine they would try to wrap her around their fingers by fawning over her, playing to her seeming naivety, or sending her on a suicide mission. The cultist, being a misogynist, would have been fine with the monster from beyond the stars absorbing them for their power.
  • The reason the Knight of Diamonds was also going to kill the guards was that they didn’t flinch when demons were called in by the cultist, meaning they were coconspirators used to it. No mercy to Non-Prayer Characters.
  • Even Priestess thinks that while Goblin Slayer probably wouldn’t ask for the Princess’ hand in marriage or anything, he could have asked the King for sterner measures against Goblins, or being promoted to Gold Rank, or discreet royal support. But it wouldn’t be him if he dreamed so big.
  • Witch was there as well and noticed Priestess was upset about something, which was her wanting to be more like her: outstanding, beautiful and strong, mellow and giving good advice, knowing everything, and being elegant and refined. She also saw Sword Maiden in that same light.
  • From her perspective, seeing Apprentice Cleric and Rookie Warrior celebrating, Female Knight making a bold statement, and everywhere she looked people were sparkling, she feared she hadn’t changed at all.
  • The reason she was afraid of Princess joining the nunnery was that she often met girls who went to a temple after their first adventure, broken in heart and shattered in mind, even if their bodies weren’t. She was afraid that it meant she failed someone again, so hearing that she decided to become a cleric made her so happy that it brought tears to her eyes.
  • Part of the reason Goblin Slayer can only do what he does is because he was told he’s too stupid for anything else by Burglar. Just focus on what’s in front of you, take care of it, and then go on to the next thing. Keep looking forward; move your feet. Stand up and proceed. That way everything in the world will be taken care of. If you don’t do it, nothing will change.
  • He feels he can’t walk the same path as the others since he didn’t see the point in praying to gods, but because of that, he was impressed by those who did and could believe. He didn’t know what was right, but he could only keep walking and that was everything to him.

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