Luz VS Eda is a tragic fight… But in a way, I’m also kinda proud of Luz over it? Remember how Eda said that Luz would have to earn her staff. How Luz fretted over being a witch and not even a fourth as capable as her mentor. But now here Luz is, able to keep up with Eda and even surpass her in some regards, effortlessly flying with Owlbert until Eda takes him from her; Because in the end, Owlbert isn’t for Luz, her own Palisman she’ll carve is!
Like it really does feel like a narrative milestone, to have the student face off against the teacher and show off all the skills they’ve learned and prove themselves this way. Which tbh Luz sort of WAS trying to prove herself in this moment, strong enough to fight with Eda; And it basically worked, as Eda realized Luz is just like her and will always find a way to butt in and help. So as Raine had to acknowledge this for Eda by letting her in, Eda does the same for Luz…
Luz finally earned her staff. She’s truly a witch now as Eda promised, as Raine recognizes, and now she can get that magic staff that she’s been working to for all this time. They say a teacher truly succeeds if the student can surpass them, and at least in some ways, even if you didn’t take Eda’s curse debilitating her magic into account (it HELPED in some regards like keeping track of invisible Luz), I truly think Luz did. And Eda certainlyagrees!
This fight really felt a culmination of the mentor-apprentice relationship these two had over magic but also life in general, a coming of age moment where Luz is strong and independent enough to actually contest with her parent and make decisions, make demands and have her own stake amongst the adults while still cared for as a kid, and I love it.
We see Luz use spells Eda helped teach her, the Light and Ice glyphs particularly, but also flex some of her own self-taught combos to prove Luz CAN innovate like Eda, and thus think and learn for herself as any teacher should desire out of an apprentice. Now I wish we got to see Luz use the Hover glyph combo too in this fight -there was a perfect moment for that when she falls- but this fight is so good in general I can live with it!
Just mentor and mentee showing off their skills. What Luz learned but also what EDA learned via Harpy mode, which can fly and hear Luz; A harpy mode Eda only attained because of the happiness her student taught her. And so the student teachers the teacher, the teacher learns from the student as well; And thus they both show off to one another what they’ve been taught and make the best of their lessons from the other! And Eda finally showed that when she agreed to let Luz in, after Luz taught Eda to open herself up…!
And as always, they’ve always got more to learn, and thus always have more to teach!
So I just gave this episode a rewatch to see if I could get anymore information on Darius. After watching “Hollow Mind” it feels like Darius would have been against Emperor Belos for quite sometime. I mean my theory is that when Emperor Belos killed the last Golden Guard, the person who was Darius’ mentor and the most powerful witch he has ever known, it deeply hurt Darius and turned him against Emperor Belos. This would mean Darius has been against the Emperor since “Separate Tides” at the very least, possibly longer. And as of this episode, it is quite evident Eberwolf is also against the Emperor. This would mean during the episode “Eda’s Requiem”, Darius and Eberwolf were already against Belos.
Now, something I noticed while rewatching this. When Raine Whispers gets announced as the new Head Witch of the Bards Coven, it is Darius and Eberwolf who are leading the ceremony. I don’t think at this time Raine is aware that Darius and Eberwolf are in fact on the same side as them, but I suspect Darius and Eberwolf are aware of Raine being on the same side as them.
Raine tells Eda that they worked their way up the ranks of the Bards Coven, finding likeminded individuals along the way and forming Bards Against the Throne. My theory is, that this did not go unnoticed by Darius and Eberwolf and that they suggested Raine should be the next Head Witch of the Bards Coven with the intent to recruit them in time to their cause.
I then suspect that Darius and Eberwolf volunteered to capture Raine with the intent of recruiting them. Throughout Darius and Eberwolf come off rather aggressive and as if they are true followers of the Emperor but there is the odd slip up, like Eberwolf has to prompt Darius into telling Raine that they will pay for their treachery. But like maybe Darius and Eberwolf were putting on a show for whoever maybe watching. And they would be right to be paranoid, as Kikimora appears as Raine escapes and Darius expressly says, “I told you we didn’t need help.”
As for putting the other 3 BATs in the conformitorium, having to keep up the ruse of being on the Emperor’s side perhaps he did this with the logic of “it is a sacrifice for the greater good.” Which as much as I hate to say it, I cannot argue with his logic. So far in “Hollow Mind”, Darius, Eberwolf and Raine seem to make a brutally efficient team and with their rankings as Head Witches, the 3 of them simply have access to the Emperor and his plans that Raine’s compatriots in the BATs don’t. Plus maybe in time Darius, Eberwolf and Raine can manufacture the necessary circumstances for an escape which won’t incriminate them.
Darius is an intriguing character though and I definitely want to see more of him. Eberwolf also, given we know even less about Eberwolf than we know about Darius.
Okay, I have just watched “O Titan, Where Art Thou”. I don’t really have many thoughts but I did bloody call it didn’t I? Darius and Eberwolf volunteered to capture Raine for the purposes of recruiting them. And the BATs are free from the conformitorium too. I bloody called it!
Also I love Darius’ response to them being called the CATs
ok but the way that the first episode of s1 was a heist to get kings crown because it’s important to him and also that’s where he got francois and now we’re in endgame territory and luz says the thing she wants to do most is rescue francois because it’s important to king and we’ve come full circle and i’m crying are you crying? because i’m crying
