The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 22 Review

Raising a Sacrifice

The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 22 was all about Lizbeth’s plan to trade Philomela for Adam. As I’ll get to in the next section of this review, Lizbeth is obsessed with her son Adam. And so, she’s been working toward sacrificing Philomela to revive him.

But, why does she need Philomela for this? Why couldn’t she sacrifice any of her other followers? After all, she’s the head of the Sargant family. If she told one of her followers to sacrifice themself for her, they would. What makes Philomela so special?

As Lisbeth explains, she needed something that proves Adam existed. Though, it’s a bit unclear if that thing that proves Adam existed also needed to be the sacrifice. It’s possible that she needed something that proves he existed and a sacrifice. And if that’s the case, Philomela killed two birds with one stone.

Why do I say that Lizbeth may not have needed to sacrifice the thing that proves Adam existed, though? Well, Philomela was the backup plan. Lizbeth seems to have wanted to use herself as proof of Adam’s existence. But, she doesn’t count. Just because she exists doesn’t mean he did.

That’s not true for Philomela. As Adam’s child, Philomela can only exist if Adam also existed. And so, she’s the proof Lizbeth needed. Using Philomela as the sacrifice may also have simply been an easy way for Lizbeth to get rid of her. After all, Lizbeth hates what Philomela represents.

You’d think that Lizbeth would adore Philomela since she adored Adam. But, that’s not what we see. In reality, Philomela’s existence reminds Lizbeth of how Adam betrayed her. Philomela literally wouldn’t exist if Adam hadn’t betrayed Lizbeth and eloped with Iris. She’s a constant reminder of Lizbeth’s failure.

Irresistibly Adorable and Intensely Repulsive

Alright, so let’s go over Lizbeth’s obsession with her son. It all started before Adam was even born. Despite being the heir to the Sargant family, Lizbeth didn’t have an heir of her own. And, this seems to have been a major issue.

After all, why would she be named as the next leader of the family if she had no heir? That would mean the bloodline would die with her, which isn’t what you want. This resulted in others within the family treating Lizbeth like a failure. Sounds familiar, right?

In a lot of ways, Adam’s birth saved Lizbeth from going down the same path Philomela has. With his birth, Lizbeth proved that she wasn’t a failure and instead was worthy of leading the family. But, this also means that the most important aspect of Adam is that he’s alive.

All Lizbeth wanted (or needed) was an heir. Once he was born, as long as he stayed alive, Lizbeth didn’t really care about what happened to him. He already fulfilled his role, as far as she was concerned. And, we see this in how she didn’t interact with him for the first few years of his life.

She even described him as “intensely repulsive.” But, at the same time, she called him irresistibly adorable. And it’s at this point that her obsession with him began. Like many parents, she seems to have begun viewing him as an extension of herself.

This is why Adam’s betrayal hurt Lizbeth so much. She didn’t view him as an individual. She viewed him as a part of her. So, how dare he betray her? Lizbeth doesn’t want to revive Adam because she misses him. She wants to “get him back” and show that he belongs to her.

Philomela Wants to Live

Surprising absolutely nobody other than Lizbeth, Philomela decides that she wants to live. She realized that being a sacrifice actually doesn’t sound like so much fun. I mean, even if her father comes back to life, she won’t be around to enjoy it.

So, naturally, Chise decides to save Philomela. Even if Philomela wasn’t her friend, Chise would have done this; it’s in her nature. But, the problem is that Chise’s up against something very dangerous. Lizbeth’s spell doesn’t simply trade Philomela for Adam. It summons a deity, in this case, Carnamagos, to facilitate the transaction.

At least, I assume the monster we see coming down from the ceiling is Carnamagos. It looks like Carnamagos. And, we know that the Testament of Carnamagos included instructions for reviving the dead. It’s a pretty safe bet. But, also, this may be the first time we’ve seen Carnamagos referred to as a deity.

Anyway, Chise turns Isaac’s magic key into a hammer. Then, she imbues it with Ruth’s fire. And finally, she uses it to smash the magic barrier surrounding Philomela. She does all this not only because she needed to break the barrier, but also to protect herself.

At first, Chise reaches out toward the barrier and is stopped by Elias who warns her that it will suck out all her magic. And, as we know, this is what Carnamagos specializes in. So, Chise needed some way to breach the barrier without touching it herself.

Hooray! Philomela is saved! But, that doesn’t mean the danger is gone. Lizbeth is still there, after all. But, what’s likely a bigger issue is Carnamagos. Did breaking the barrier re-seal Carnamagos? Or did it free the monster? My money’s on the latter. But, the preview for the next episode suggests something else.

Final Thoughts

If you watched the next episode preview, you saw that Lizbeth appears to be Carnamagos’ new vessel. Did she allow this to happen on her own? Did Carnamagos force its way in? Or, is this the result of a rebounding hex? We’ll have to wait until next week to find out.

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My review of Episode 23 is available now.