5.0 out of 5 stars
Back to the Basics of Magic, March 16, 2010
With only four episodes to go following this set, Negima! finally hits its stride, returning to the threads of established plot with strong turnouts from its characters. It gets off to a good start by finally getting around to solving the "mystery" of the apparantly empty classroom seat at the head of the first row. Although we, the audience, have occasionally "seen" its occupant, she has heretofore remained invisible for good reason to the rest of the class, Negi the wizard included. There are also a decent number of plot twists and revelations as the cast finally embarks on the long-awaited class trip to Kyoto.
Once there, they are thrust into a battle involving two rival factions of wizards, each intent on claiming for themselves the mysterious latent powers of an unlikely and unsuspecting source. Said source has required quite a lot of protection throughout the past; and it is revealed that, as hinted at throughout the series, more than a few of the members of Negi's class have considerable and varied powers which come into play during a major showdown. As Negi's own powers are shown to be quite inadequate to the task, help arrives in a surprising, if not altogether unexpected form. This leads ultimately for him to make a somewhat drastic turn in the course of his own training as a wizard.
Following the victory and subsequent return to Mahora Academy, things appear to have returned to normal for everyone but Asuna, who's suffering from the unnoticed aftereffects of a curse that was furtively placed on her during the battle by the mysterious white-haired boy. That, plus her deteriorating physical condition and emotional frailty leave it very uncertain how things will play out over the next volume. The episodes here show the possibilities this series had, ones too often wasted by sloppy writing and poor production values. I only hope it "goes out with a bang, not with a whimper"!
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