Welp, Guin; you just told the Ultimate Enemy how the next arc would go. So now he’s about to rig the game so that he can win- or at least get the upper hand. I don’t know what the “cost” of defying Fate is gonna be, but it had better be Huge for this to not look like a total blunder on your part. I just said that because I don’t really have any opening thoughts for this one. The only real thing is that I’m really excited to see the anime- for the First time in a LONG time. I don’t know how it’s going to come out, but that PV got me excited. Oh, and maybe I should talk about the new editing software. Yeah, my computer went and updated, and the editing tool I use got changed so I could write on the image and stuff. So I’m gonna be doing that a little bit more.
I probably alluded to this in the Edens Zero post around the end- considering I’m writing these posts at the same time. I did the opening and review for EZ, and I’m doing the same for this post. Maybe I should be focusing on one before starting another. Eh, One Piece is on break this week and Black Clover shouldn’t take so long, based on the leaks. I’m writing this Wednesday, February 1st, 2023, 3:21pm. So- should be a fine week(knock-on-wood, knock-on-wood, knock-on-wood). Let’s begin. Four Knights Of The Apocalypse Chapter 92: “Heart-Pounding Wallnack.” If it were up to Gawain then the “heart” wouldn’t be the Stopping RIGHT THERE.
REVIEW
Picking up where the last chapter left off: The Four Knights and their allies have arrived on to their destination- Wallnack, the Relay point between Dalmary and Liones, with roads going in all four directions. According to Tristan, the wall was erected to act as a defense because this is where most cargo stops on its way to Liones. Thus, the wall is attacked by Warring countries and bandits regularly- thus the battered surface. The only real entrances to the town are 2 gates on opposite sides of the town, and once night falls- both are shut until morning. Inside the town; the kids find that the buildings are Tall and the streets Narrow. Which Donny and Percy think will make for good “Hide and Seek” gameplay.
They come across the towns people carrying torches at night. Isolde says that this is part of the “Festival of The Dead;” an annual event in Wallnack in which the people of the town light torches and parade though the town, praying that those who are no longer with us to find repose in the afterlife. Apparently, Chion, Jade, and Isolde were here at one point in the past. Tristan wants to join the parade, too, but Lance tells them that he needs to find them an inn to stay in.
Gogmagog Inn: Tristan requests 2 rooms large enough for 10 people(5 per room). But Gawain REFUSES to share rooms with everyone- unless she can get a 2 person room with Isolde. While Chion wishes Gawain to be cursed, Lance gets this…….. Ominous feel from the town- like something bad is about to occur. The Inn keeper tells them that they only have 3 3 Person rooms and a 2 person room for one person. Percy and Donny don’t care who they end up with, so they decide to go an play, leaving everyone else to choose. Gawain takes one for herself, Anne, and Isolde. That’ll be fun. The boys are left to choose now, so Tristan gets an idea…….
Meanwhile, we see Percival and Donny trying to determine who’s better at Wall Climbing. Donny is good, but Percival is better. He ends up high enough to come to a window where a Woman is changing. She scares him enough to make him fall to the ground. This woman is the Chaos Knight “Teaninich.” And Macduff has come to see what she was fussing about, only for her to tell him that some Pervert was trying to peek at her “Dynamite Body.” “Such is youth” Macduff responds. Alright then. In any case, they have received intel that the Four Knights set off for Wallnack the day prior. Since the towns gates close at 6 pm, they would have to be in the city already. Meaning that it’s time for them to Move.
Percy and Donny return in time for the decision: A Game of Rock-Paper-Scissors. Tristan’s mindset is that the boys should try a “different combination” to get to know each other better. So who ever loses here gets the 2 person room, and the others are left to decide. They all through “Rock-“ although Lance changed midway through. He’s too distracted by this feeling he has. But because the rest through Rock, Tristan wants them to try again- for “keeps.” And he loses, meaning he has to share a room with a total stranger. But when he comes to the room, he finds that his roommate for the evening is………. well, she’s going to be a test of his “Patience-” if ya know what I mean. Four Knights Of The Apocalypse Chapter 92 END!! Poor, poor Isolde.
Analysis
Quick Question: Has Meliodas had “The Talk” with Tristan yet? Given who Meliodas is, you would think that he’d have gotten it rather early in life. I mean; Meliodas isn’t afraid to grope Elizabeth in front of ANYONE- he’ll look you in eye while he does that. And Tristan- being around them more often than not- would probably ask what that’s about. Especially since it looks like Elizabeth doesn’t like it. Thus the questions………. and, given how Meliodas acts; he probably delayed it as long as possible before he finally had to explain. Thus the current Tristan. I also think that Elizabeth might have helped in that explanation; answering further questions that Meliodas probably didn’t answer because it would be “Funny.”
Okay, the “Meat And Potatoes” of the chapter. Macduff and Teaninich are here as predicted, but it seems as though Arthur has thrown someone else into the mix. Though I’m guessing he was expecting Lance to be the one who had to stay in the 2 person room. Thus, he probably chose a Knight with the exact counter to Lance. But it might be because of that person- this lady at the end of the chapter- that Lance’s mind was elsewhere during the Rock-Paper-Scissors match; he was sensing someone with powerful, ominous magic! And now that he’s “added something to the mix,” the whole future that Guin predicted is all out of whack. Which might have been what she was referring to last time: If he messed with fate in any way, then the events might not play out as he was told. And that can either be to his benefit- or detriment. Depending on what it is that he’ll lose.
Guin foretold that Macduff and Teaninich would sense the Four Knights upon arrival, but this chapter portrays it as if they didn’t even notice that Percival was one of the Knights they were looking for. It might be that Arthur has chosen to withhold that kind of information from these 2 in favor of this woman- she’ll be his “Plan A,” while the other 2 are just “Plan B.” And thus- Expendable. What I’m getting at is that- now that he knows that they were going to fail- they’re………… less of a “priority” to him. If he knows that they’re just going to fail him, then why would he assign them something important to do. They are- Effectively- A Decoy. Or at least that’s what I’m making of this situation. But the point is that- if they ever find out how “Expendable” they are- what will become of them?
Based on her behavior when Percival caught her changing, she’s not the type that’s going to take that lying down. Macduff is a bit of a mystery, but Teaninich is definitely going to be the driving force Behind: They’re Betrayal. If we’re so ‘inconsequential’ that they can be disposed of for a failure that YOU prevented anyway, then it shouldn’t matter if we join Liones and help the Four Knights and their allies find a way in to Camelot, right?” could be one of the lines of thought. If he really didn’t plan to use them like that, then he would have pulled him out of Wallnack before the Knights got there. They have their own purpose here- one that Arthur is giving them without even realizing. Though………… this is assuming that he didn’t “install a Failsafe” should his Chaos Knights ever turn against him. That mark might just do more than act as a “key” to the entrance to Camelot.
Something that I’ve been noticing in manga as I’ve gotten more in different series is that the first handful of chapters- particularly the bad guys that are redeemed and live beyond their initial stint as a Villain- is that they tend to be some of the most important parts. They establish character motivations, set up important lore, and usually hold a hint as to how the story will end. Now, we’re getting “Up There” in terms of count, but it only turned 2 years old LAST WEEK; it’s still a relatively young series. When we get passed this arc, we’ll be getting into the bigger, long form arcs. And when it comes to that, I think that Teaninich and Macduff will prove their worth to the story. Maybe this arc is now going to see the Four get into Camelot without much of a problem, and the next- rather than seeing them split up- sees them gathering information on the “Eternal Kingdom,” and relaying them to Meliodas and the others to prepare for an Assault.
You would think that something like that would leave Liones undefended. But thinking about it; Meliodas and the Holy Knights would probably be the only ones who take the assault to Camelot. That would leave characters such as Elizabeth, Ban, Elaine, King/ Harlequin, Diane, and Gowther there to defend the home front. And every single one of those characters could take on an Army by themselves, let alone all together like that. And I’m saying this after realizing that Merlin is also out and about somewhere!! This could EASILY be a loss for Camelot. So OF COURSE there’s probably more to this move on Arthur’s part. He might have made Camelot in such a way that intruders Die the moment they enter the Kingdom. He’s reshaping a f*cking DIMENSION, he could easily make it so that someone without the mark can’t breathe there or something. But yeah, that’s what I think could happen; whether it does or not is up to Suzuki sensei. He might have a completely other plan for this arc that I’d never be able to think of………
The only other thing that I want to briefly mention is something in chapter 17 of the story. All that way back. Anne said that Ironside was trying to marry her off to his son. But he hates Percival, so it probably didn’t make sense at the time for him to say that. But now we have Diodra added to the equation and it’s all started to click. That would make Diodra around the same age as Anne and the others- 16 years of age. So where does…….? I don’t know, maybe they’re Fraternal Twins(twins that don’t look alike) or something.
Conclusion
That’s all I got for the lot of ya today, folks. It took me a while, but I managed to finish. I should probably finish 1 post before starting another. Good to know for next time! Let me know what you guys are thinking in the comments. I don’t know why, but I’m super Amped for this series right now!! I don’t know how long we’ve got with this series; now that Suzuki Sensei knows what it takes to make a popular manga, he now knows how to “streamline” the story to hit all the necessary points without adding too much “fluff.” So this probably won’t be the 345 chapter story “Seven Deadly Sins” was. Maybe more “Demon Slayer” length- if not a little longer.
Okay, FOR REAL this time- I’m Done. Let me know what you think. Til next time, America…….
