Welcome back to another episode of Spice and Wolf! This week is all about the stonks as Lawrence and Holo talk market volatility, currency theory and the economic value of an apple. Confused? So was I, lets dive in.
Now it’s at this point that I have to admit something to you dear readers: I am not smart enough for this show. I don’t know economics, I didn’t go to business school, I can barely balance my bank account. I have a Computer Science degree for goodness sake, computers do my math for me. So when Lawrence and Holo starting discussing economic policy and warfare via coins I got a little lost. I had to actually rewatch some sections a bit to fully… not understand, but to truly “hear” it. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I can’t predict where this silver coin plot thread is going at all because of it. But it can certainly be a bit of a chore at times to listen to. Luckily the back and forth between Lawrence and Holo is interesting enough, their play by play entertaining enough, to keep me engaged
For instance I love all of the subtle things Lawrence and Holo pick up about each other. From Lawrence noticing Holo’s reaction to the coins to her noticing his jealousy. Or when Lawrence saw her tail under the cloak and her reaction to the apples, but still made her ask. These aren’t big moments, Spice and Wolf doesn’t call attention to them with zooming camera lens or sound que’s. Rather it presents them like any other scene and later on has the characters mention them. They are fit nicely into their dialogue, always feeling natural. It’s never “I have to say this so the viewer can follow the plot”. Rather it’s always a natural circumstance of their playful back and forth.
Spice and Wolf doesn’t stop there though, the two don’t just make jabs at each other, they also learn. Lawrence has a lot of knowledge about trading, giving him a lot of theoretical know-how such as with the coins. But Holo has centuries of watching traders, a volume of experience even Lawrence is hard pressed to compete with. As we saw with the furs, the wise wolf brings a level of cunning that Lawrences more straight laced approach lacks. These small bits make it clear to me what the true appeal of Spice and Wolf is for people. It was never about the economy or the story. This show is, and will continue to be, carried by this relationship. And I’m ok with that.
Speaking of Holo’s trade deal, the greatest in history, I’m curious if that will come back to bite her. She has seen a lot but she lacks practical experience with people. She knows how she expects the traders to react to her little deception, but will they truly be so respectful? To them she just cheated them out of 70 extra silver so I would not be surprised for them to be upset about that. And since Lawrence and Holo are returning to Milton to ask about the coins I expect there to be a bit of resistance. Nothing violent, Spice and Wolf doesn’t seem like that kind of show so far. But I am hoping that maybe they deny them help of some kind. A bit of a slap on the wrist for Holo in her continuing development of learning to interact with people again.
Moving on, this week we meet Zheren again! I wasn’t expecting this reunion so quickly to be honest. I figured we had an episode or two before they met up, yet here he is. Last week I said I was still a bit suspicious of him and it looks like I was partly right. As Lawrence says, he was clearly lying about the silver. And Holo points out even if his scam is revealed, he only ever breaks even by returning the investment. Small risk for small gain. Where Zheren gets interesting though, and seems like a reoccurring character, is his place in the silver plot. Did he know, was he tricked, is he spreading the rumor for no reason? I’m curious to see if he was duped as well or a cunning member of a much larger scheme.
Finally lets talk about the world of Spice and Wolf, because boy does it put in the effort here. From the sheer variety of coins, including fakes, to how strength of a currency can denote the strength of a country, to the accuracy of the abbacus. I don’t know how much of this will be used later but it surely makes for interesting filler activities. And with Lawrence and Holos back and forth even this filler stuff still serves a purpose.
So all in all, if it wasn’t obvious, how was todays episode of Spice and Wolf? Well it was pretty good. I’m still not in love with the series, it’s not exactly up my alley. But I am certainly enjoying it more than I expected. Holo and Lawrence continue to be the main draw, though the world and economics are slowly becoming rather interesting as well. I do wonder how much time we are going to spend on this coin plot and where it will lead. Because while its interesting for now, I think the real strength of Spice and Wolf is going to lie in Holo’s journey. Her exploration of new people and places, and how that bounces off of Lawrence. I have no reason to doubt Spice and Wolf just yet. I simply know where I am hoping it goes.
So long as it can keep Lawrence and Holo’s relationship engaging, I am sure it will be fine. See you next week!
