Gosick Episode Twenty Three “Announcing Checkmate at Dyed-Gray Chess” –Review

After the opening credits, we see Victorique playing a one-person game of chess. She saying vaguely prophetic things and wearing a nun’s habit. The scene shifts to the city, and we get a note stating that it’s now 1925. We move to some kind of meeting about a war that’s beginning between Germany and Poland. (I would like to say now, pretend you have no awareness of the actual dates of World War II, it might keep your brain from breaking, but this is not a guarantee.)

We next see the king announcing that thanks to Jupiter Roget, Saubure will not be getting involved in the war. This is greeted with great enthusiasm by everyone present, up until the point that Albert de Blois interrupts. De Blois states that Roget is not doing any of this for the benefit of Saubure, but for the benefit of the Gray Wolves and the kingdom of Seyrun. He outs Roget as a Gray Wolf, which causes massive outrage. Albert puts forth his agenda, which is that Saubure should get involved with the war. Roget manages to escape before the crowd can lynch him.

(During this scene, Victorique is rather spookily predicting each event as it occurs.)

The next scene is a crowd scene interrupted by warplanes overhead and a frightened people running this way and that. One woman is calling for her son who has apparently gotten lost in the crowd, when she sees her son again, he’s holding the hand of a very small woman with long blond hair. (This is Cordelia, of course, who was able to keep the kid from getting trampled.) The little boy and the mother are united, and Cordelia says something cryptic and sad as the woman and child walk away. Both Brians try to reassure Cordelia, telling her they’ll protect her, but Cordelia tells them she has to protect Victorique. (Neither Brian is too pleased about that statement.)

Brian states that trying to rescue Victorique is impossible, but Cordelia has no intention of giving up.

We get a brief scene of Avril, getting ready to go back to England, and then we see Grevil who is acting as a member of the Ministry of the Occult, and asking the Superintendent General of the police for help. The head of the police force is kind of disgusted by Grevil and isn’t shy about acting like it. Jacqueline is also really unhappy with him, and tells him so. Grevil may or may not be upset by this, but chooses to fall back on the “just following orders” argument.

In the next scene, de Blois informs the king that he’s made arrangements for Saubure to ally with Germany. The king does not like the idea of going to war, but de Blois somehow twists everything around so that the king is agreeing with him. De Blois also manages to drive the king half out of his mind with guilt for the crime he had committed (which makes him that much easier to manipulate.)

Albert de Blois then goes to have a chat with his daughter, telling her about the role he intends for her (which is, be a figurehead intended to whip up support for the war). Their exchange goes from bad to horrifying as they argue. She reveals the origin point of de Blois’ obsession, and everything she knows about his plans and her part in them. Victorique attempts to be brave and hard, but is unable to defend herself from her father. (De Blois proves this by grabbing her, then biting her, drawing blood. The scene is pretty intense and scary.)

Meanwhile, Kujo is getting his butt kicked on a daily basis in the army. . Life is definitely not going very well for our Kujo, though he claims that he is not bothered because he is used to getting kicked. (He is so cheerful and brave about things despite being apart from Victorique. Heartstrings were tugged.) At one point in time a drill sergeant tries to take away the ring given to him by Victorique, but Kujo refuses to give it up. (There is some narration where they are both talking to and about each other, and I started getting weepy. I am a sucker for weepy romance; this is why I usually try to avoid it.)

We return to Victorique who has been given a Monstre Charmant costume to wear so she can pretend to be Monstre Charmant. She is sad, miserable, does not like the dress and thinks about Kujo and how he had promised to always be there for her. (But in a sad, miserable and romantic way, not an angry, bitter way.) Then Victorique hears a knock at the door, and Kujo’s voice telling her that he’d always be there for her, and her eyes widen as the door to the room opens. There’s a bright light, and another scene shift.

We see de Blois giving a speech about his plans for the war and the future of Saubure. In the crowd are a lot of rabbit-masked people. He declares that Monstre Charmant supports the war and Victorique, dressed in the costume steps forward…and denounces the war. Everyone freezes, and Victorique gives a speech and it becomes pretty clear pretty quickly that this isn’t actually Victorique at all, this is Cordelia. She does the big reveal and the scene changes again.

Victorique is in a carriage being driven by Brian. She is extremely upset because Cordelia and the other Brian (yes, they really are both Brian Roscoe) stayed behind to serve as a distraction so Victorique could escape. She shouts at Brian that they should stop, so he does. Not, however because he wants to go back, but because he very, very angry and blames Victorique for everything that has happened to her.

We go back to Cordelia, who is confronting Albert de Blois. The Brian that’s with Cordelia causes some explosions, which panics the crowd and turns everything into fiery chaos. Cordelia and Albert draw weapons, and Cordelia attacks like a very angry whirlwind, hacking and slashing at the much taller Albert. As they fight the scene shifts back to the other the Brian that’s with Victorique, who is furiously shouting at Victorique because he’s angry that Cordelia chose to sacrifice herself for the sake of her daughter.

Then we go back to the road where Victorique is. The Brian that is with her is pretty intent on trying to kill her. There’s a brief scuffle, and then we switch back to Brian and Cordelia who are fighting Albert de Blois and his Ministry of the Occult minions. Albert and Cordelia both die in the last moments of the episode, and then we go to the ending credits.


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