Angolmois: Record Of Mongol Invasion Episode 9: Battle at the Castle

Battle of the Mountain Castle is an episode where the title explains exactly what you are going to get. And as Angolmois moves back into fighting with a clear battle objective and clear sides, some of the strengths of the series come into play making for a fairly enjoyable episode.

While the overall characterisation has not gotten any better in this series, we’re at a point where at least the characters we’re supposed to at least recognise in some form have been established so there’s little to complain about as we see them prepare for and enter the battle. Jinzaborou’s ability to make accurate maps of areas once again comes into play which I thought was a nice touch and the other characters, including the Princess and the pirate guy had moments that at least reminded you of who they were.

The battle itself was one where both sides were using strategies rather than just rush the wall and so there were some conversations and observations inbetween the rounds of running, flying arrows and dying screams. I did appreciate that they didn’t try to make the Mongols out to be too monstrous (though they weren’t sympathetic either) and in honesty the Japanese side igniting a squad of the Mongols could be seen as pretty horrific if they weren’t so incredibly outnumbered in this battle.

All and all, this episode was a fun and engaging watch and it brought out mostly the best that this show has had on offer though at the same time it hasn’t done much to correct some of the issues in the mid-season that might make it overall difficult to recommend this to all but the most avid watcher of anime set in historical settings. Still, I had fun this week and I look forward to seeing what happens next week.

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