Recap: Kassim makes his move, aided by the mysterious man in the mask. As Alibaba faces him down his old friend, Aladdin and Ugo meet in a dream.

Dragonzigg’s Thoughts: An important part of the appeal of any show is its ability to keep you on your toes and surprise you, and that’s what I got out of this episode of Magi, which was slightly weaker than the last few top efforts, but keeps the plot moving along in a very agreeable way with some unexpected new developments.

Let’s handle the Kassim strand first, as it’s to some extent simpler and more easily understandable  Yes, using mind control on the crowd is something of a cop-out after the realistic way the show has handled complex political ideals, but it’s also a simple and easy way to get the entire situation to satisfyingly erupt into chaos.  It’s good that Kassim is finally outed as a pure villain as well – I don’t mind characters who teeter on the edge of good and bad, but they do need to pick a side eventually.  Kassim does so with style here, and his monstrous transformation sequence might be the goriest and bloodiest bit in Magi yet. Great direction there.

The Masked Man continues to intrigue and baffle. His objective is outlined a little here – he aims to ‘reverse the flow of fate’ – but we’ve still no idea where his colossal power, seemingly greater even than that of the Magi, comes from.  There’s also the fascinating sequence where he ‘absorbs’ the Banker’s rukh and turns him back into what appears to be a Russian doll. Were they allies? Was the Banker just an avatar for the Masked Man all along? At least we know he provided the Fog Troop’s magical weapons and has therefore been in this for the long run. The OP suggest he’ll be joined by two new accomplices. Personally, I can’t wait to see a bit more of this guy.

Finaly, there’s the most potentially intriguing, but also most clumsily executed plot arc, the Aladdin/Ugo one. I’m hesitant to lay into it too much because it’s really rather lovely looking and has some fine interplay between the two, but it’s a little mystical and obscure for my liking. Aladdin wasn’t Ugo’s master all this time? How did they meet in the first place then?  I get the whole idea of sending the young boy on a ‘spirit journey’ but it’s not my favourite type of story and could result in an awkward deus ex machina if it plays out how I think it might. On the other hand, it was a touching scene between the two, and while I have my doubts Ugo is really disappearing from the story for good, this wouldn’t be a bad signoff.

In short, this is something of a transitional episode for Magi, but it’s a tribute to how good the show is that it’s still more engaging, interesting and downright enjoyable than pretty much anything else out there. Next week should be a barnstormer.

Random Observations

• The Masked Man says that he “will not allow those in the palace to do as they please”. This presumably is the same palace Aladdin is headed to. Since the Masked Man aims to reverse fate, does that mean this Palace is occupied by those who determine destiny i.e. Gods?
• On that note, aren’t we normally rooting for the character who’s aiming to change fate? It may be poor translation, but I’m not sure how I feel if our supposed enemy is in fact battling against his destiny, because I LOVE that kind of plot.
• In a nice little touch, Kassim is in the ending credits now his monster form has been revealed. A rare instance of smart spoiler avoidance.