REVIEW: ‘Fire Force’ Season 3 Episode 25 — “Hero’s Tale”

Fire Force Season 3 Episode 25, “Hero’s Tale,” explores the world remade by Shinra (Gakuto Kajiwara, Romantic Killer), as Haumea (Rie Kugiyama, Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX) and those who choose death are asked to reassess their paths. Once the last vestiges of the old world are gone, it’s time to explore a world where life and death have less meaning. 

The bulk of Fire Force Season 3 Episode 25 is devoted to explaining how the new world made by Shinra is different from the one that came before. With Haumea initially unconvinced that things won’t simply descend back into despair, we get a solid block of exposition in the wrap-up’s opening, explaining how things are different while showing where many of the show’s familiar faces have found themselves. 

All things considered, Shinra’s plan for his new world makes about as much sense as one could expect. His solution of lowering the value of life, so people don’t despair about dying and instead live more freely and embrace adventure and excitement, delivers a solid face-value solution. Though a bit of deeper thought can easily start revealing cracks in its facade. 

Fire Force Season 3 Episode 25 spends much of its time explaining the new world made by Shinra.

While the core plot is only surface-level good, Fire Force Season 3 Episode 25 continues to deliver some great final moments for its characters. Haumea gets a fantastic scene with the newly resurrected Charon (Hiroki Yasumoto, Megalo Box), allowing her stalwart champion to finally see her smile, with the weight of humanity’s despair not weighing it down. It’s a touching moment that feels strong enough to break Haumea’s overwhelming fear of the world falling back into despair and to choose life for herself instead of endless suffering. 

But the best moment in this episode belongs to Sister Iris (Mao Ichimichi, Granblue Fantasy: Relink). She and the rest of the Adolla sacrifices are not initially restored to life. Since they choose death with Haumea, they are given the option to return to the new world. As a doppleganger, Iris has a real struggle with whether or not she should exist, especially as Amaterasu’s choice is revealed. 

As someone always dedicated to hope and compassion throughout the series, Iris’s struggle in these closing moments hits hard, as she now needs the hope she has so often given others. That the push she needs comes straight from Amaterasu creates the perfect vehicle to reassure Iris of her doubts. A beautiful and touching moment. 

The choice to live or die is presented in a fascinating way in this finale.

With the new world’s final pieces in place, Fire Force Season 3 Episode 25 spends the back third of its time with an epilogue look at what many of the cast do with their lives after the restart. These moments deliver some fun and a few chuckles as the characters hunt down some of the abusdities Shinra wove into his new Earth. They come together to deliver an enjoyable, if forgettable, send-off for some of the series’ characters. 

The weirdness of Shinra’s new world is best captured through Fire Force Season 3 Episode 25‘s visual design. The sun now has a huge smile, and the buildings are all rendered in an odd, comical style. The cartoony nature of the world surrounding the characters feels like the perfect accompaniment for Shinra’s more relaxed creation. 

Given the way the last couple of episodes of the series played out, it seemed likely that this final episode would be a trash fire of nonsensical concepts. However, given the setup it had to work with, Fire Force Season 3 Episode 25 delivers a solid wrap-up for the series. It crafts an acceptable solution to the cycle of despair, while also delivering a couple of fantastic character moments. That it did better with its plot than recent entries, and managed to hold onto the great personal finales that have been the season’s strength, makes it one of the better entries we got this run. 

Fire Force Season 3 Episode 25 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.

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