REVIEW: ‘Fire Force’ Season 3 Episode 19 — “Those Who Fight Back”

Fire Force Season 3 Episode 19, “Those Who Fight Back,” sees Amatarasu unlocked, and the next phase of The Great Cataclysm begins. But before the story marches into the future, it takes a deep look into the past of two of its long-standing antagonists, Charon (Hiroki Yasumoto, Megalo Box) and Haumea (Rie Kugiyama, Banished from the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Country).

The episode’s opening scene is a deep dive into Charon and Haumea’s shared history. We’ve always seen Charon as the protector and support for the girl beleaguered by the thoughts and emotions of all those around her. Now, we get to see where this devotion began, and the sympathy and violence that forged it.

Fire Force Season 3 Episode 19‘s focus on this duo creates complicated feelings as it plays out. Lots of questions are left in its wake, leaving one to wonder whether Haumea’s pain had to be as torturous as it is, or whether choices were made to facilitate this hardship, to ensure her devotion to bringing about The Great Cataclysm. 

The opening flashback produces impactful emotional moments in Fire Force Season 3 Episode 19.

Perhaps the hardest moment to accept at face value is when Haumea peers into Charon’s mind. Prompted by her protector to do so, she finds nothing but unconditional love for her. Throughout the entirety of this flashback sequence in Fire Force Season 3 Episode 19, this is the only positive emotion she ever senses. 

Now, we can all agree there is a lot of negativity and evil in humanity. However, for this to be the only moment she detects anything positive feels impossible, suggesting that something else must be interfering with her reception. If people were truly as universally negative as that, you wouldn’t need The Great Cataclysm, because we’d have done the job ourselves years ago. 

This overemphasis on Charon’s positivity is another instance of fiction’s need to make characters singular to an unreasonable extent. That they must stand alone in whatever way that makes them special in the moment. Would it have really lessened Haumea’s suffering if she had heard some good thoughts, just that they were drowned out by the force of the negative? Or if Charon’s love for her wasn’t unique, but just felt more present and certain than any other she’d experienced before? 

Fire will consume everyone, but first…back to Giovanni.

Despite some flaws in its execution, Fire Force Season 3 Episode 19‘s flashback creates a powerfully emotional moment that perfectly leads into Charon’s last stand as he succumbs to a constant barrage of fire. Hearing him say goodbye to Haumea, even as she cries out in pain from feeling her guardian’s passing, is a powerful moment, even though the pair are trying to end the world. 

Meanwhile, within Amatrasu, Vulcan (Taku Yashiro, To Your Eternity), and Lisa (Ayaka Asai, Zenless Zone Zero) face off with the Giovanni-possessed Yu, struggling for a way to save their friend from the monster’s clutches. 

There is one detail in this moment that must be talked about. The choice to layer Giovanni’s (Yutaka Aoyama, The Elusive Samurai) and Yu’s (Shoya Chiba, Platinum End) voices over each other for this moment. Aoyama and Chiba manage to match the pacing and cadence of their deliveries perfectly, creating the feeling of two voices speaking for one person. The mixing does a great job of making sure both voices come through as well, allowing them to be heard in equal measure. 

The mixing of Giovanni’s and Yu’s voices delivers apt possession and a strange eeriness that works.

While Vulcan and Lisa are powerless to save their young companion, hope is restored thanks to the timely arrival of Arthur (Yûsuke Kobayashi, Octopath Traveler 0). The character shows surprising skill as he swiftly assesses the situation and delivers a perfect strike to slay his foe without harming the innocent boy. As a Knight King does. 

The presentation of Arthur in Fire Force Season 3 Episode 19 is interesting. While his skillful swordsmanship imbues him with a certain majesty in how it is delivered, the show doesn’t try to make that all of what Arthur is. Even as he strikes a heroic pose, he is shown standing tall, a cape fluttering in the breeze; he still has the same vacant look in his eyes that says this is Arthur, and he will wander off again if you don’t tie him down. 

Arthur is both heroic and distant in Fire Force Season 3 Episode 19, offering interesting dichotomies.

This approach to Arthur is far better than leaning too hard on the wholly noble image one might expect here. By not erasing his other elements, he is allowed to continue being Arthur. This is just Arthur at his best. 

With the flames spreading over the world, Fire Force Season 3 Episode 19 delivers an emotionally charged episode. Its exploration of its villains and its presentation of the unfolding crisis in the now are both excellently handled, leaving plenty of urgency in its wake as the march towards the finale continues.

Fire Force Season 3 Episode 19 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.

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