In this week’s Spice and Wolf (2024) review, we discuss episode 24. Lawrence and Holo help Evan and Elsa escape from Tereo’s fate. However, Elsa has other plans. With only one episode left in this season, let’s see how our heroes plan to confront the Enberch officials!
"Path of the Snake God and Answer of the Wise Wolf"
In Spice and Wolf episode 24, Lawrence, Holo, Elsa, and Evan escape from Tereo through a secret tunnel underneath the church. Upon exiting, Holo transforms into a wolf and whisks them away towards Enberch. As they take a brief respite, Lawrence spots several carts bearing wheat and flour along with a contingency of spearmen. At the rear is a lavish, covered wagon bearing the colors of Enberch’s Church.
It’s clear Tereo’s fate has been sealed, and Elsa, despite how the townsfolk treated her, can’t abandon her duties as a priest or as Father Franz’s successor. She starts the trek back to Tereo with Evan in close pursuit. Holo, moved by Elsa’s resolve, takes out her frustration for leaving Yoitsu on Lawrence, who calmly talks her down and reassures her that nothing was her fault. They decide they can’t ignore Elsa’s bravery and quickly catch up, devising a plan to not only convince the Church of the town folks’ piety, but to also turn a nice profit.
Overall Thoughts on "Spice and Wolf" Episode 24
This episode made some interesting choices in terms of what it did and didn’t show. Firstly, Holo’s transformation was very well done; probably the best it’s looked so far. Then there’s the conversation between Elsa and Holo. A lot goes unsaid because Holo already suspects what Elsa is going to say, so she cuts her off a lot. In the light novel, it’s easy for the prose to explain what’s going through each of the characters’ minds. The anime can’t afford to waste time doing the same, though, so the scene felt confusing.
Next, when Holo vents to Lawrence about Yoistu, seeing her body language and expressions as opposed to just reading it added nuance to the scene that made her guilt feel more realized. It was a standout performance for the actors, too. FInally, the anime made the odd choice to crop out the result of Holo’s power on the wheat grains. To the audience, it’s fairly obvious that it sprouted into ripe ears, so there’s not much point in hiding that information. Maybe the animation team was on a time crunch, or maybe they wanted to save the sequence for the next episode.
Stream Spice and Wolf on Crunchyroll.
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