Ranking of Kings: The Treasure Chest of Courage

Episode 3

After two episodes of mostly fluffy excursions starring Bojji and Kage, this week we shift focus to Queen Hiling and Daida. The first portion of the episode takes place approximately between episode 9 and Hiling and Ann's return in episode 13. I'm always down to spend more time with Bojji's not-evil stepmother. How the narrative gradually revealed her to be a brusque yet deeply compassionate person over the course of the first season is still a major highlight in a story that arguably ended up too lenient toward its less savory cast members.

The first segment expands on Hiling and Ann's past together before she was married to Bosse. We discover that during her time as a clergy member, Ann served as her bodyguard, and the two women have had a close rapport ever since. Hiling, deeply troubled by Bosse's possession of Daida, goes with Dorshe to enlist Ann in their upcoming fight for the kingdom. Also there's another knight, maybe Ann's husband or something, is there but let's ignore him in favor of this wholesome ship. (Ann is a babe, and I will hear no arguments otherwise). Anyway, like any good video game, you can't enlist a new member to your party until you resolve a problem for them so they're free to take their leave. Thus, Ann, knight-guy, Dorshe, and Hiling have to take out some bandits terrorizing a nearby town in search of treasure.

The actual plot of the segment isn't that important in the grand scheme of things. Instead, it's better to focus on it as further establishing Hiling's personality and how other characters regard her. She's one of the better actualized female characters in anime recently. Her specific brand of entitlement and impatience pairs perfectly with her dedication to doing the right thing. The audience is able to forgive her shortcomings because they're in service of doing the right thing and helping people.

The young Bojji and Daida segment reinforces the brothers' dynamic and serves to contrast how their relationship changed as they approached their teenage years. When we met Daida in season one, he had few redeemable qualities. He and Bojji hardly seemed to have any kind of caring sibling relationship, and it's not until later we learn this is due to Miranjo's scheming. Before the mirror entered the picture, Daida's perception of Bojji was quite different. We see him watch his older brother deftly leap around the castle and sneak off to explore areas outside its walls. Compare this to Daida, who is spending every waking moment trying to master his innate healing ability by mending a potted plant.

When a series of events leads the boys to become lost in the forest during a rainstorm and Daida's own pride injures Bojji, it's then that all the young king's communing with flowers finally pays off. As far as I can recall, this is the first time we've seen Daida use his healing abilities on his own accord; the other time was when Bosse possessed his body.

These episodes remain quaint so far, with above-competent animation and direction. It's still a little difficult to move away from comparing these side stories to the main narrative. The original series was appointment television, whereas Treasure Chest of Courage asks us to adjust our expectations for stories that offer little more than "awww."

Rating:

Ranking of Kings: The Treasure Chest of Courage is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

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