Style over substance. That’s the best way to describe Fena Pirate Princess episode 11 and the best way to describe this anime as a whole. I doubt the one remaining episode left will be enough to get me to change my mind. There’s no way that even an exposition dump will be able to tie together all of the loose strings and problems that Fena has with its story. It sure looks and sounds fantastic though!
Fena Pirate Princess Episode 10 Review
Where can I watch Fena Pirate Princess episode 11?
If that opening paragraph didn’t scare you away and you want to go watch episode 11, there are a couple of options available to you. The first of those is Crunchyroll. Fena Houtman’s journey to Eden with the Goblin Knights was co-produced by Crunchyroll and Adult Swim. As you’d expect, Crunchyroll has the newest episodes available right when they come out. If you’re a subscriber, you get access to them right away. If you’re not, you’ll have to wait a week until Crunchyroll makes it available for free.
Adult Swim is your other option if you don’t want to watch Fena on Crunchyroll. It’d be strange to have a network co-produce a show and then not have immediate access to the content. Adult Swim airs the latest episode of Fena on their programming at the same time Crunchyroll makes it available on their streaming service. You can also find Fena on Adult Swim’s website. In order to access it you’ll need to have some type of cable subscription.
Watch Fena Pirate Princess Episode 11 at Crunchyroll or Adult Swim
How was the story in Fena Pirate Princess episode 11?
It’s not easy to give a good description of the story in episode 11 because there really wasn’t a coherent story. It felt like I was watching a grouping of actions taking place one after another “just because.” The treasure room contains all of the lost artifacts from around the world. Why’s that? They’re just waiting to be needed. Abel gets possessed by something, even though he’s never shown an inkling of it before. Why? Well, it just fits the story for episode 11. You get the picture.
Fena Pirate Princess does a poor job of piecing together a logically sound and coherent story and episode 11 is no different. As a result of that, moments that are meant to be meaningful and full of emotion fall flat. How am I supposed to feel anything over Abel and Helena’s reunion when I don’t understand the reasons why Helena had to do what she did when she was alive? What am I supposed to feel when Fena portrays Yukimaru as Franz Houtman only to have Cody show up as Franz’s reincarnation as well?
To me it feels like Fena Pirate Princess is trying too hard to force deep meaning into a story by linking all of its characters together. Unfortunately, it fails at doing that.
Was it really that bad?
Episode 11 was the inevitable culmination of the lackluster story that we’ve been presented with. While the series started out interesting enough with Fena’s escape from a life of prostitution, it quickly dove off a cliff with the turn towards the supernatural. The problem with that was there was never a good explanation of why everything was happening. Yes, I understand that Fena is supposed to be Joan of Arc’s reincarnation, but we never got a good explanation of how that all came about. If you don’t explain big plot elements like that then you’re going to end up with a mess of a story.
If you wanted a visual representation of Fena’s story, just look at all of the historical missing treasures that have shown up. In episode 11 we get to see Noah’s Ark. Why is Noah’s Ark here? We don’t get an explanation. It’s there just because that makes a good setting for the showdown between Abel and Yukimaru. We’re just supposed to accept the significance of its presence without questioning the logistics or the logic. That’s what Fena has done to us for most of this anime’s run.
What did Fena Pirate Princess episode 11 get right?
The opening line of this review was “Style over substance.” What that means is that it appears that Fena spent it’s time developing the animation, music, voice acting and overall presentation of the anime more than the substance it was presenting. The story might be a mess, but at least it’s a mess presented in a beautiful way. The colors are vibrant, the animation is smooth and the music is pleasing to listen to. It’s too bad that the story that’s being presented is a dumpster fire.
Besides that, I don’t really have anything to point out as something that’s done well. There wasn’t anything particularly spectacular about the action in Fena episode 11. I found it to be the standard affair. I get a laugh out of Enju and Kaede, but I wouldn’t put them here as something that’s uniquely special. Really the only thing that Fena has going for it is the level of its production.
What did Fena Pirate Princess episode 11 get wrong?
Strap yourselves in because this section will be much longer. The only question is where to start? Let’s go with the increased magical element of the anime. For most of the anime, there’s only been hints at magic. Fena has been possessed a few times when it’s been convenient so the plot could advance. She’s the reincarnation of Joan of Arc after all. There has to be some sort of spiritual or magical power behind that.
In Fena episode 11, someone turns up the dial on magical elements significantly. Abel, who’s shown no signs of magical power in the past, all of a sudden has red eyes. It’s like he’s possessed by a demon. How and why this happened is left unresolved. I can understand his delusions of seeing Yukimaru as Franz Houtman, but not this possessed look.
There’s also the appearance of Helena. Somehow, she’s able to make an appearance in Eden. Why she didn’t show up earlier and stop Abel and Yukimaru from fighting is a mystery. She’s just there to redeem Abel after the damage has been done. Just the fact that she’s there is a mystery that’s left unexplained. It definitely adds to the magical element of the anime though. All of it just feels like it’s forced. It’s an unnatural transition for the anime and it leaves the story feeling cheap.
What else did you think was bad?
The way Abel and Yukimaru’s fight ended was infuriating. Do you expect me to believe that Yukimaru, a trained samurai, would sit there and allow himself to be run through like that after cutting off the arm of an opponent? Am I supposed to think that Abel would’ve been in a position to make an attack like that after being caught off guard? With what we were shown, Abel’s deadly blow to Yukimaru was just an attempt to show us that the fight between the two was somehow linked to the fight Abel had with Franz ten years ago. It’s a poor way to end their fight.
Speaking of Abel, his end here in Fena Pirate Princess episode 11 was a little too good for him. Yes, he is a little bit of a sympathetic character considering all he wants is to be with his childhood love. That doesn’t excuse all of the brutal decisions he’s made over the years in search of how to get to Eden. Abel wasn’t lying when he told Helena that his hands were stained with blood. Now that I’ve seen his ending, I’m left wondering if a different path could’ve been used to get us to this same point.
If Abel was to end up in Eden with Helena, why not have him still have a moral compass through his pursuit of Fena? Make him out to be a determined yet noble character whose sole focus is on finding Fena and reuniting with his lost love? It would help explain why he could work so closely with Yukihisa without there being a conflict of interest. It would also make his ending to feel less like an undeserved reward.
Are you finally done complaining?
No. I’m not. There is one more thing that bothers me about Fena Pirate Princess episode 11 and I’ll be as brief as I can. I don’t understand what part Cody is meant to play as we’ve already been shown that Yukimaru has taken the place of Franz Houtman. Why is Cody showing up here in the image of Fena’s adopted father? What does he mean that he’s “The Observer”? Cody’s been a little strange ever since we met him, but this is taking it to the extreme now.
With Cody showing up at the end of the episode, it feels like we’re about to get an exposition dump. Supposedly everything will get explained. My guess is that after Cody is done with his explanation, Fena will have a choice to make that will determine the fate of the world. What that might entail is anyone’s guess. There hasn’t been anything in particular that Fena has been fighting against that merits a monumental decision like that. It feels more like an added plot device that is devoid of any real connection to the rest of the story. I guess you can say that it fits in with everything else in this anime.
Is Fena Pirate Princess episode 11 worth watching?
Not really. Fena Pirate Princess episode 11 is confusing, disjointed and just a mess. Its amazing visuals can’t overcome the poor plot. I can’t in good conscious recommend this anime episode as something that’s worth watching. When I think back to how this anime started that’s really a disappointment. I wanted to like it, but there were just too many things along the way that have changed my mind. Episode 11 only further cemented my thoughts that Fena is an anime that lacks a coherent story. I suggest looking for something that actually makes sense.
Now go watch some anime!
