Sword Art Online: Alicization Spanish dub episodes 18.5-21 review

 Sword Art Online: Alicization

Spanish dub episodes 18.5-21 review

     ¡Bienvenido! Welcome back to Learning Spanish With Anime! We're getting close to the end now, and this group of episodes focuses a lot on the bonds between the main trio of the Alicization arc before setting up for the big battles to come in the finale.

    After a recap episode in which Kirito recounts the events of his Underworld journey to Alice, he also shared with her all of the information he learned from Eugeo about her past in Rulid village, as well as the secret they discovered about the Integrity Knights - that they were taken from their lives and had their memories stolen. When Kirito asks, "¿Recuerdas tu infancia, o tus padres?" ("Do you remember your childhood, or your parents?"), Alice cannot recall any memories of the distant past, not from her real childhood or the heavens the Integrity Knights were supposedly summoned from, according to the lies told by Administrator.

    Although Alice's memories have been sealed away, there are fragments that remain which are deeply tied with her emotions, much like Eldrie when Eugeo mentioned his mother's name. This was one of the most beautiful and emotional scenes in the whole series for me, when Alice describes the feelings in her heart from hearing her sister's name. "No puedo recordar su rostro ni siquiera su voz, pero estoy seguro que no es la primera vez que digo su nombre. Siento que mis labios y mi corazón la requerdan muy bien." ("I can't remember her face or even her voice, but I'm sure it's not the first time I've said her name. I feel that my lips and my heart remember her very well.")

    Alice's voice actress did a truly stunning job in this episode, portraying all of her emotions so well from her heartfelt sadness, her sobs as she mourned the life that was taken from her, to her rage against the system when she shouts into the night that she is not a puppet ("¡No soy una marioneta!") and declares her will to fight - and ultimately, her pained screams when she overcomes the seal of the right eye. It was a very moving performance. 

    Sadly, at the same time that Alice managed to free herself from the bonds of the seal, Eugeo became ensnared in Administrator's trap. Her calm, almost gleeful tone of voice when she planted morbid false memories in Eugeo's mind was chilling. Even as he lost the will to fight, the memories of Eugeo's loved ones called out to him before his recollection of them was sealed away, with little Alice pleading for him to run ("Corre!") and Tiese's final words of warning before a firewall formed between them, "No la escuches. Eso no es amor." ("Don't listen to her. That's not love.")

"Yo protegeré tu flanco derecho." ("I will protect your right flank.") - Kirito

    When Alice awakens from her traumatic experience and finds that Kirito had carried her up the next few floors on his back, her initial concern for him quickly turns to embarrassment and outrage. I really appreciate the way Alice's VA can switch from one emotion to another so well, going from subtlety to extremes. It's important in portraying a character like Alice, who has a great deal of inner conflict and still isn't sure how to feel about Kirito. 

    In an amusing twist which diverged from the original dialogue, he responds to Alice's question about carrying her up the tower with "Sí, lo hice pero no fue nada fácil" ("Yes, I did, but it wasn't easy") and then jokingly asks for a thank you kiss (a combination of the words "gracias" for thank you, and "besito" which means little kiss). Needless to say, Alice did not find it humorous. I thought it was kind of funny, but only because I knew he was kidding - Alice definitely seemed to have taken him seriously.

    While searching the higher floors of Central Cathedral for Eugeo, they are confronted with some unsettling truths - the first being that Bercouli has been frozen in place by Chudelkin, and Eugeo was taken. This was a nice calm but emotional scene before the more startling reveals, and I like Bercouli's nickname for Alice in the Spanish dub, "Pequeña", which means  "little one".

    The next shock comes when the two of them discover the source of the mysterious face that appears every time a taboo is broken, a room filled with people encased within pods attached to the wall, and Kirito asks if they are heads without bodies. ("¿Son cabezas sin cuerpo?") Alice is quick to point out that is not the case, but catching this line gave me a good laugh. Another point of interest in the Spanish dub is that Chudelkin's title is translated as "Dignatario" (meaning "Dignitary") rather than Prime Senator. The other senators - or, as Kirito refers to them, heads without (visible) bodies - are referred to as dignitaries as well. Alice's interrogation of Chudelkin was great, especially when she rejected the Synthesis title and insisted that she is not a number. ("¡No soy un numero!")

    When they find Eugeo at last, the moment is bittersweet because he appears as an Integrity Knight with his memories sealed. Even as Kirito asks "¿Recuerdas quién soy yo?" ("Do you remember who I am?") and tries to remind him "Soy tu mejor amigo" ("I'm your best friend"), he received little response from Eugeo. He also tried the same tactic he used with Alice when hanging from the ledge of the cathedral, calling her an idiot. ("¡Eres un imbécil, Eugeo!")

    After he provided so much strength and emotional support when Alice needed it, she is the one reassuring Kirito now that it won't be impossible to save him ("No será imposible salvarlo").

    Eugeo's voice actor does a great job showing how different and empty he is with all of his happy memories sealed away and only devotion to Administrator remaining. He sounds like a completely different person. Kirito engaged him in a fierce battle while desperately trying to remind him of all the people he cares about and his goal of saving Alice, pouring his heart and soul into his words and sword strikes.  

    When Eugeo activates his Enhance Armament and freezes Kirito and Alice in place, Kirito sounds absolutely heartbroken when he says "Amigo... ¿por qué?" unable to understand why Eugeo would do this when in fact, this was the moment when Kirito was finally able to get through to him. Eugeo's plan was to keep his friends safe while he faced Administrator alone.

    Well, that didn't work out the way he hoped, but it was heartwarming to see Kirito and Alice catch up with him, reuniting the main trio at last. It was awesome seeing Alice finally get to tell off Administrator too, further cementing the decision to fight against her and what she represents. The episode ends with the three of them preparing to fight Chudelkin, whose high pitched overly fanatical voice was harder to understand this time around during his outbursts of anger and groveling, now transformed into a giant creature made of flame elements (which sounds a lot cooler than it looks).

    Check out my translation guide below for common and key phrases from this episode, and stay tuned for more weekly episode reviews of Sword Art Online: Alicization's Spanish dub. My next blog post, which will conclude the Alicization storyline before moving into War of Underworld, will come during the first week of the new year. ¡Hasta luego! 

Voice Acting: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Translated Script: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Recommended Proficiency: Intermediate 

Key phrases: 

• La tierra prohibida - The forbidden land 
• El brazo de encarnación - Incarnate Arms (literally, "the arm of incarnation") 
• El sello del ojo derecho - The seal of the right eye
• Llamada al sistema. Genera elemento de sombra - System call. Generate shadow element

Common phrases: 

• Hace muchos años - Many years ago
• ¿Dónde estoy? - Where am I? 
• Es muy pronto - It's too early 
• Tú mismo lo dijiste - You said it yourself
• ¡No lo hagas! - Don't do it!
• Debes tener frio - You must be cold  
• Hola. ¿Cuánto tiempo? - Hello. How long (has it been)? 
• Ella siempre está preocupada por ti - She's always worried about you
• Por ahora es imposible - For now it is impossible
• Adelante, habla. No tengas miedo - Go ahead, talk. Don't be afraid

*All images are from Sword Art Online: Alicization, screenshots taken by me