5 Princess Hibana Highlights - Enen no Shouboutai (Fire Force)

The Sadistic Scientist of Company 5

  • Episodes: 24
  • Genre: Action, Supernatural, Shounen
  • Airing Date: July 2019 – currently airing
  • Studio: David Production


Fire Force Preview (No Spoilers)

In year 198 of the new Solar calendar, the Fire Force Brigade keeps Tokyo safe from “Infernals”—flaming monsters created from humans who spontaneously combust in the streets. Young Shinra joins the Fire Force to shake off his reputation as a “devil” and discover what really happened during the fire twelve years ago that killed his mother and younger brother. But the organization itself is corrupt to the core, and Princess Hibana, the maniacal scientist captain of Company 5, will be his first opponent on the road to the truth...

Hibana Highlights (Spoilers Beyond This Point)

1. Her Over-the-Top Design is Everything

In contrast to Shinra and the rest of Company 8’s relatively simple character designs, Princess Hibana looks like she just walked off a Paris runway. Her firefighter jacket is custom trimmed with fur and fits closely to her body, and the white dress she wears underneath is more suitable for a cocktail party than a battleground. She even has flower patterns in her eyes! She definitely wouldn’t fit in at an actual fire scene, but she’s perfect as an over-the-top anime character.

2. She’s More Than a Little Bit Crazy

Hibana grew up at the same convent as Iris, the resident nun of Company 8. When a freak fire consumed everyone at the school except for the two of them, Hibana lost what remaining faith she had in the Sun God and swore revenge against whoever was responsible. Obsessed with the idea that fire is evil and therefore she must be evil herself, Hibana established herself as the sadistic captain and lead Infernal researcher of Company 5. At least her male subordinates seem to enjoy being stepped on and treated like “gravel” in her presence...?

3. Her Pyrokinesis is Precise and Powerful

As a third-generation pyrokinetic, Hibana can create and control flames as she pleases. Her “Clematis” ability allows her to create flowers made of fire that overwhelm multiple opponents at once with small burns and exhaustive heat. She can also induce heat syncope (a mild form of heat stroke) by instantly concentrating heat around a person’s body and glaring at them like they spat on her expensive shoes. A precise powerset fit for a princess!

4. Her Rigorous Research is Vital to the Team

With her shrewd eye for science, Hibana is one of the first people to figure out that someone is creating artificial Infernals—and to make it worse, the culprit may be part of the Fire Force Brigade itself. Hibana eventually becomes a valuable ally to Company 8, informing them of possible leads and steering them away from trusting people she knows to be corrupt. Without her help, they’d be up a creek for sure.

5. She Becomes the World’s Biggest Shinra Fan

After Shinra defeats her, Hibana calms down significantly and realizes that the convent fire doesn’t have to condemn her to a life of evil. As thanks for getting her out of that rut, she becomes the world’s biggest Shinra fangirl to a completely ridiculous degree. She flits between acting like a lovestruck schoolgirl (making Shinra lunch, claiming to have “taken a liking to him”) and asserting her normal domineering personality over anyone who slights him (most notably, stuffing all of Captain Obi’s weights in his locker and demanding that he give Shinra a raise). For his part, Shinra at least enjoys the free lunches.


Final Thoughts

Princess Hibana is a wacky, over-the-top character who nonetheless has an interesting backstory and is genuinely helpful to the main characters once she’s on their side. We just can’t get enough of her!

What did you think of our overview? What are your favorite Hibana moments? Let us know in the comments, and thanks so much for reading!

Enen-no-Shouboutai-manga-2-335x500 5 Princess Hibana Highlights - Enen no Shouboutai (Fire Force)

Editor/Writer

Author: Mary Lee Sauder

After the hard-hitting East Coast lifestyle hit me a bit too hard, I started pursuing my passion as a writer in my cozy home state of Ohio. Aside from that, I spend my time cooking, cosplaying, collecting anime merch, and being an improv comedy actor. I also love sneaking alliterations and stupid puns into my writing, so be on the lookout for them! 😉

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