Magia Record has been hit and miss so far, but I’m happy to say that the latest episode was pretty solid. In fact, it’s my second favorite episode from the show (the premiere still reigns). Magia Record’s tackle on loneliness and the bond between this girl Sana and the Artificial Intelligence Ai are handled with nuance and its emotionally powerful. Considering how we barely know any of them prior to this episode, I can say the show did a pretty good job that I legitimately care about them as the credit rolls.
As Iroha investigates about “The Invisible Girl” rumors and ends up sucked into the Endless Solitude, we come to learn about Sana’s tragic past, and her ill-advised wish of becoming invisible. She indeed goes unnoticed at all, to the point that her existence is wiped out. It doesn’t fare much better for the AI counterpart, as she is a result of a failed project and is fated to doom and forgotten. Normally, the notion of being trapped without a way out would be terrifying, but Sana finds peace in there, and is happy since Ai accompanies her. Shaft’s visual excels again on bringing her loneliness in her real life as her friends bypass her, ignore her and simply fail to notice her. What this episode did so right is the fact that her “invisible form” is a manifestation of her failure to connect to others, which she ultimately finds in the least likely place.
Of course, not every element of Magia Record work this week. There is this Wings of Magnius member randomly appearing, overacts and nearly ruins the moments for me. Why the need to include her in this already-dense episode though? Her shticks are already annoying in the short time she appears, and she adds very little to this week’s main story. Speaking of “main story”, when will Magia Record get back to Iroha’s quest to find her lost sister Ui, then?
Yeah, I didn’t like Alina either. Her appearance just felt like a massive case of mood whiplash to me. But the episode makes up for it with Sana, the saddest girl who really really needs a hug.