Rating: B+
One point that often gets underemphasized in discussions and analyses about this franchise is how much the structure and nature of familias can vary. Some (like Hestia Familia) function like a true family, while others function like businesses (Ishtar and Dian Cecht), fraternal organizations (arguably Loki Familia), spy groups (Hermes Familia), civic groups (Ganesha Familia), criminal organizations (Ikelos Familia), craft guilds (Hephaistos Familia), or even cults (arguably Soma Familia). Freya Familia absolutely falls into the latter category, and as these first three episodes have shown, that’s an important thing to understand. They don’t really care about each other; they only care about the goddess at the top and those who have special standing with their goddess – likely, apparently, Syr does. What the people at the top will always be honored, but woe be to any who try to intrude on those they venerate. With episode 3, we can see those two aspects come into sharp conflict.
The hostility that many members of Freya Familia have towards Bell over Freya’s interest in him has never been disguised, and the way they react to Bell taking off with Syr (at Syr’s request) suggests that at least some of their members were just looking for an excuse to go after Bell. Notably, it’s not the upper echelons we see doing that at this point; it’s the rank-and-file Freya Familia members who go as far as freezing a path to the dining cruise and essentially raiding it, only to find the others who were trailing Bell and Syr get in the way. And the upper echelon clearly aren’t all of the same mind on this, either; Allen seems dedicated purely to protection, Ottar seems to see himself as little more than a tool for executing Freya’s will, and Hedin, for all his harshness, seems genuinely dedicated to giving Freya what she wants, even she doesn’t quite understand that herself. Since Syr is very closely tied to Freya, why Syr would find all of that to be oppressive is not at all hard to understand.
DanMachi may be an action-adventure series at heart, but there was something especially delightful about how joyous and free Syr feels in the episode’s middle dating scenes. She’s clearly having the time of her life, regardless of what others want for her or whatever competition she has with Freya. Even so, she does seem to be acting in a meaningful way, too. The way she says what she does on the Heroes’ Bridge certainly suggests that she has expectations for Bell possibly every bit as strong as Hermes’ are, and where they two end up at the end almost seems planned, too. This may not have been the path that Syr had in mind to get to this destination, but this seems to have been her intended destination all along. In its own way, this is a threat to Bell as great as what Ishtar herself posed to him.
But there are plenty of other details to consider here, too. One little Easter Egg that the episode throws out for devotees of the franchise’s Memoria Freese game can be seen very briefly in the statues on the Heroes Bridge:
This is Fianna, the prum leader and founder of the Knights of Fianna, whom Finn venerates and is at least in part referring to when he talks about reclaiming the glory of his race. (The full story from the game can be found here, but summarized versions are also out there.)
While not referenced elsewhere that I’m aware of, the tale Bell relates about the story the Cathedral is dedicated to is also notable as one of the few bits of greater setting lore that actually makes it into anime form. The franchise has never been known for engaging in exposition just for its own sake, so doubtless that sad tale has at least some relevance to the current situation. Also, isn’t it curious that Syr also mentions Odr, something which Freya mentions early in episode 1 of this season? In Norse lore, Odr was Freya’s husband, though here the name seems to be used conceptually to refer to an ideal partner.
So far events have leaned towards the light-hearted side, but as events press on towards the end, the franchise’s more serious side seems to be starting to take over. How is Bell going to navigate his way out of one of the hairiest challenges he’s faced yet?
USA Anime 