The Legend of Vox Machina: Pass Through Fire (2x05)

KEYLETH MY BEST FRIEND KEYLETH. I love her so much. She was made to pass through fire! I'm weeping!

Cons:

Okay, okay, I loved this episode, but I do have to say this: people are always joking about Keyleth basically just... being the Avatar from The Last Airbender, and... yeah. The fact that her eyes glowed a solid white before she entered the Avatar State - I mean, became a Fire Elemental for the first time - didn't really help with that comparison. It's a little much, I'll admit. Still cool, but c'mon. I was thinking on this, and I think part of the problem was that while in isolation, Keyleth's big moment passing through fire was perfect and I genuinely adored it, it felt like a culmination with very little build. I don't know how they would have done this pacing-wise, but maybe one more scene in an earlier episode where Keyleth is talking about her Aramente, mentioning how she needs to figure out how to face it, would have led to this better. I also might have liked this better if her dad hadn't been around? This is a small thing, but I feel like we almost played our cards too soon, giving Kiki this glow-up, when her true culminating moment taking place with her people comes much further down the line. If they had maybe saved having her dad around for that later moment, that could have been cool.

This is a tiny thing but I don't like how Pike calls Grog "buddies" like... in the plural? Why isn't it just "buddy"? Drives me a little crazy every time.

I was not into Trinket peeing on Scanlan. I just... can't with the potty humor. Never been my thing. By contrast, Grog talking to Craven Edge while taking a shit was positively tasteful.

Pros:

But this is our first truly big Keyleth episode and I love it so much, despite maybe wishing it had been built up slightly differently. That flashback at the beginning... little Keyleth, and her mother Vilya going off on her Aramente... I cry. I will say this without spoiling anything, I guess, but I'm just... super happy that we're getting to see more stories told in the Critical Role universe, because... yeah. Because. Then there's Pyrah. We're not seeing it at its best, but I was so impressed with what we did have of it. The colorful animation, the fight sequence once again kicking ass, all the flames everywhere looking so seriously cool... plus the introduction of Keyleth's father, connecting with Allura and Kima again... so much going on, and as always, I'm impressed by how they fit it all in. If every episode was just three minutes longer, I think I'd be happier, but ah, well.

As I said, this is a Keyleth episode, but I continue to be impressed by how much all of our core characters get their moments to shine, and check in with their story-lines. Like Vax brooding about the Matron of Ravens, wondering what it all means. We see Grog still curious about Craven Edge, and we get cute buddy moments with him and Pike. Then there's Scanlan, ignored and pushed aside as usual, but also we see him have a fun little quippy subplot with Vex over the flying broom. There's room for so much, and I feel like even those unfamiliar with the campaign are getting the chance to really know this band of misfits.

The Matron of Ravens visuals get even more cool in this one! Vax's vision/dream, the undead emerging to attack... so chilling. Hearing his impatience with Keyleth, and the way he refuses to join in with the general group banter, it's really sinking in how much he's struggling with what's happening with him. This already hurts, and it's going to keep getting worse...

Kima and Allura did a smooch! We love it. Let's go lesbians! But also, I loved getting a glimpse of their backstory, having them fill in the gaps about Thordak and where he came from. I think that helps this episode from feeling disconnected to the rest of the main story. The hunt for Vestiges is already a side-quest for the dragon-killing goal, then diverting to Pyrah is yet another diversion from the diversion. So having it tie back in with the dragon story is smart, and it also gives us a chance to remember that Vox Machina still have allies back in Emon, even if Uriel is gone.

I don't even know how to describe to you how happy I was when Keyleth heard her mother's voice in her head, gained her strength, her confidence, and walked through fire just as she always should have done. This sequence replaces a whole-ass fight in the Fire Plane itself for all of Vox Machina, but I like how they kept the focus on protecting Pyrah, and then had Keyleth get the solo bad-ass moment she deserves. Seeing her turn into a Fire Elemental was so dope! Hopefully we'll get to see her use that in another fight, maybe against a dragon... And her little ceremony, completing that part of her Aramente, was such a beautiful visual too. I'm so proud of her I could cry.

Lots of little moments to shout out. I'm constantly impressed by the detail and love put into every scene of this show. Keyleth saying "we can certainly try" made me laugh so much. Vax's line delivery on Keyleth - when he thinks she's gone, that was really fucking good, and I think cuts through some of his depression about the whole Raven situation. Vex's joy at being up in the air on her broom was so fun! I know there's a lot of "discourse" about the broom from the original stream, but I personally love seeing it make its appearance, and I'm so glad she gets to have it now. Wondering how that favor she owes Scanlan will be used to hurt me later. Wink.

And then we get to Westrunn, where we see Umbrasyl holding court. A hoard of Barbarians are paying tribute to him... and then a certain Anna Ripley arrives, bearing news of Vox Machina's hunt for the Vestiges... uh oh...

First off, Umbrasyl looks AMAZING. I'm so impressed by the glow-up in the way the dragons look in season two, from what we had in season one. His design is so chilling, and so specifically him. If I'm reading the episode titles right, he's kind of our main adversary for the endgame of this season, and they've done a great job making him look properly menacing. And then there's Ripley. I still feel kind of question mark-ish about Ripley's involvement here, but I'm excited to find out more.

And that's that! Every episode of this show, I am just on the edge of my seat enjoying every second and getting ready to weep at the big moments. If someone listed out all the stuff that was going to happen in each episode, I feel like I would worry it was too crowded... and in some sense, yeah, as I keep saying, I do wish there was just slightly longer in each installment for catching our breath. But the other consequence of that is that every episode is so exciting, with so much to talk about, and I'm not complaining about that either!

8.5/10