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Princess Principal ends in such a way that if there isn’t an OVA or sequel planned, then it would mean we have been hoodwinked.
You Say You Want a Revolution?: Charlotte, Zelda
From what it seems, the new heads of Control only sought out this “Revolution” to weaken the kingdom. They know it has only a 1/10 chance to actually work. The idea here is that with the royal family dead, thanks to a ceiling collapsing on them, and then Charlotte taking the blame, it would mean the people taking over. Well, the people being those who rule over the Commonwealth that is.
Leading to you realizing that those who now run control and those behind Major Yngwie are working off of two completely different plans. For Major Yngwie is thinking they are going to get rid of the queen and most of the royal family, plant Charlotte, and then there will be peace. For Control, they are using Major Yngwie’s people to create an opening for the Commonwealth.
Which, of course, neither plan sits right with Charlotte. Does she want to be queen? Yes. She has so many plans of what to do with the country. However, there remains this question of how will she convince people to stop a plan already well in motion? Of which the answer is, she can’t and doesn’t.
The Rescue Mission: Ange, Charlotte, Zelda, Chise, Dorothy, Beatrice
As Ange finds Charlotte’s pocketbook and realizes she has held onto the beret they wore as kids, all the mean things Charlotte just said goes out the window. She becomes adamant on saving her and causes a fire in the airship and makes her way back home. Leading to her discovering Beatrice and Dorothy. Both of whom want to help save the Princess but that is easier said than done.
After all, the usual means they have used to get past royal guards can’t be done. Ange can’t dress up as the princess and just make her way inside. So, they pretty much have to break in. With that being the chosen method, yeah, Charlotte does get rescued, with some help from Chise, but their cover is really blown.
However, perhaps you are wondering how in the world do they get past Zelda who has been keeping a close eye on Charlotte? Especially as she figures out that Charlotte is not Ange in disguise? Well, that is one of two main things Chise helps with. The first being, helping Ange and crew get away from the Duke of Normandy’s top soldier and the second is Chise taking on Zelda as Ange escapes with Charlotte. Someone who got shot in the leg for starting to convince Major Yngwie to maybe abandon the plan [note]Which led to him being killed[/note].
Casablanca: Ange, Charlotte, Chise, Dorothy, Beatrice
In the long run, everyone ends up in Casablanca but, with Seven and the old Control back, their vacation doesn’t last long. However, considering all the ruckus the girls took part in, can they really still be of use to Control and the Commonwealth? Surely, if Ange can be reported as looking like Charlotte and that information getting to the Duke of Normandy within 10 minutes can be done, how can these girls continue to be spies?
Highlights
It Leaves Room For A OVA or Sequel
Though I was never really over the moon about Princess Principal, and even wanted to drop it sometimes, I honestly wouldn’t mind a part 2 or even just an OVA from this series. Especially because, all of season 1 seemed to be about building up the characters so now I want to see what happens past that. I want to see how they could use up all that time that was used in terms of spy missions which may mean something and more.
Villains To Worry About
With there seemingly being infighting between the Commonwealth and Control, alongside the ever looming presence of the Duke of Normandy, there is even more reason a sequel is needed. For Zelda surely isn’t going to take someone ruining her mission without some form of payback. As we have seen, spies hold grudges for decades and wait until they have the perfect opportunity to cross paths and settle scores.
Criticism
Shouldn’t Their Careers Be Over?
What everyone has to admit by now is that as touted about Dorothy and Ange are, they don’t necessarily cover their tracks to the point no one could associate them with what goes on. I mean, between them always being with Charlotte before something goes down to this episode where stealth goes completely out of the window, how exactly are they supposed to maintain secret identities? The Duke of Normandy now knows someone masquerades as Charlotte. Those of the Commonwealth/ Control know about the Princess being part of the organization and that gives leverage. On top of that, Chise is a Japanese woman, one of the few seemingly around, so her leaving her master’s side and there being a sudden influx of explosions, among other things, surely will be a red flag.
I mean, it isn’t clear how thorough the Duke of Normandy’s people are, but they should have long put two and two together by now.
If There Isn’t A Second Season or OVA Planned, This Is Kind of a Crappy Ending
If this is the definitive end, sadly the ending is, like Knight’s & Magic, an ellipsis. Which for this show would be infuriating for it would mean it really spent the entire season on backstories, well most of it anyway, and relied off that for a speedy finish. One in which, Operation: Changeling ends up a bust. Making it so, the one thing this show was building towards, with semi-consistent effort, was for nothing.
And yeah, one could talk about Charlotte and Ange’s relationship blossoming but, I don’t know. That plot point never felt like it was worth being the be all to end all, the highlight of the season. It was sweet, don’t get me wrong, but it isn’t like this was a slice of life anime or drama. It was a show about teen spies. So unless that was the Trojan Horse to get you into a story about eternal female friendships, I don’t get it.
TV Shows We’re Covering This Season
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I really enjoyed this ending episode as it kind of reminded me of the fun of the first episode where we had fast driving, gun shots, and real threats. The middle of this season was fun enough but didn’t quite pack the same punch so it was good to see this final episode return to that initial feeling.
What is less great is that the story is completely unfinished, other than Ange and Charlotte finally coming to terms with each other as they are now and not holding onto their image of each other as children. And that, while sweet, isn’t quite enough of a payoff so I’m also hoping for a season 2. Though, given anime, this might be all.