Alright, so I’ve been quite mixed with Isekai Cheat Magician as there are times it feels formulaic and other times kind of boring. Episode 4 though ramped things up with our first “real” battle which tested our warriors in a proper way. Plus, this fight was pretty bloody! Taichi was tasked with fighting our “farmer” (Cassim) who reveals he actually is a mage with a powerful elemental summon. Rin and Myura partnered up to battle Grammy and this new threat showed she loves any challenge. The two girls had a better time battling our strange magical assassin but Taichi struggled with his opponent as we learn the elemental being was invincible to physical attacks and left Taichi’s physical focused magic useless. Luckily, Taichi near death gained a new power in the form of the voice we’ve been hearing since episode one. While Grammy and Cassim escaped both were left damaged beyond words (CASSIM LOST AN ARM!) which means they will be back. Overall though, Isekai Cheat Magician surprised me by being pretty dang impressive this week and I’m going to keep watching now in hopes this series only goes up from here.

Bell and his friends set out for their impossible task in this War Game - to effectively storm the castle and take out Hyakinthos, the captain of the Apollo familia. Though they have three days allowed to complete this task, the Hestia familia surprises everyone by starting their assault as soon as the time begins. Thanks to the combined efforts of all his friends, Bell is able to reach the top of the tower in no time, and by remembering the training he was given from Ais just days before, he manages to overthrow the Hyakinthos and win the game!

This was the build-up we’ve all been waiting for, with everyone giving their all to help Bell! We got to see Ryu, Mikoto and Welf in their element, with Lili providing a complete surprise as she disguised herself and caused confusion behind enemy lines. Despite all the odds being stacked against him, Bell defeated the Apollo familia in such a short time! After all Hestia’s group has been put through already this season, it was nice to see them have such a solid victory. And their new mansion is a nice bonus, though it seems a little big for the notoriously small familia, even with their new members. I was definitely surprised that the fight was over so quickly, but if the rest of this season is as epic as that battle sequence was, I can’t wait to see what comes next for Bell and his friends!

Tsukasa killed Senku! ...Well, sort of. He broke Senku’s neck and left him for dead in the last episode, but this time Taiju and Yuzuriha cleverly deceive the “strongest primate high schooler” with a gunpowder blast and escape with their friend’s body. While Taiju tries to revive Senku, we’re treated to a flashback of our intrepid scientist’s first days in the new world.

True to the survival/crafting theme of the series, Senku starts his journey through the stone world as a naked, powerless plebeian who has to rely on his ingenuity and improvisational skills just to stay alive. And while it’s definitely entertaining to see the normally unflappable Senku fail spectacularly at making a friction fire and chasing after a deer, it’s even better when he figures out how to make tools and traps from his surroundings to accomplish these tasks without brute strength. The nearby animals’ commentary about the “weird shiny monkey”, as well as the hilarious RPG-style text boxes that mark Senku’s milestones, tie the whole flashback together as a silly, yet triumphant start to the Kingdom of Science. From this bare bones beginning, Senku is certain that he’ll build a society that can one day reach outer space! He’ll just have to come back from the “dead” first...

The girls all find themselves facing different challenges as they take their first foray into romance. While Kazusa, Hongou, Momoko, and Sugawara all come across some drama in their love lives, things are looking up for Sonezaki. After receiving Amagi's report on why he wanted to date her, Sonezaki took it and made some corrections, while also agreeing to go out with him. Overjoyed with the response, Amagi shouts with joy from the roof of the school and Sonezaki runs off blushing.

This was by far the best episode of Araburu Kisetsu no Otome-domo yo. so far. We got to see all of the girls go through something serious in this episode. There was Kazusa's jealousy, Sugawara's strange past and her budding feelings for Izumi, Momoko's first date, and Hongou's exhibitionism. With all of that going on the episode ends in the best way possible with the wholesome romance between Sonezaki and Amagi. Although their relationship is fairly plain when compared to the others, it is still nice to have these moments to give us a break from all of the drama going on with the other girls. Hopefully, as we move forward, we get to see a nice balance between all of these different types of romances.