Mashle: Magic and Muscles – Season 1 Episode 8 Recap & Review

Mash Burnedead and the Wolves of Magic

Episode 8 of Mashle: Magic and Muscles begins with the mysterious hooded figure from Lang Dorm stealing a gold coin from someone from Orca Dorm. Meanwhile, Lance plans to locate Lang Dorm’s location to swipe their gold coins. Lance hands Mash his Adler Dorm robe to help Mash remember the dorm he’s a part of.

Lemon tells Mash and Lance to follow her to see Tom, who isn’t as upbeat or passionate. He tells Mash and the others that he mysteriously woke up in a hospital bed and feels like he temporarily can’t use magic. He speculates someone may have drained his powers. Lance realizes other students are in hospital beds. Tom says the others are going through the same problems as himself. Lemon gives Mash a good luck cream puff charm to keep him safe.

Lance and Mash patrol the academy at night. Finn and Dot join the fray. They spot Lemon but realize it’s a puppet iteration of her. Mash and the others track it down and find a dead end. Dot and Finn hear a creepy creaking noise and freak out. Lance uses his “disclose” spell to reveal a secret door on the floor. Mash uses his strength to open the door. They follow the path and find an ancient duelling ground. One of Third Fang’s accomplices arrives and says he plans to eradicate them for intruding.

This boy tells them to wager coins and challenge him if they want to proceed. Dot challenges him out of jealousy of his good looks. Meanwhile, we cut to Mr. Wahlberg speaking with someone at the Bureau of Magic. This person tells Wahlberg that six of death row’s most notorious inmates from Hecatrice escaped thanks to Innocent Zero. Meanwhile, the boy taunts Dot during their fight. He claims to be stronger than Silva. Dot outsmarts this person and defeats him despite the odds.

Mash and Lance get whisked away to different rooms, while Finn and Dot get sent to the same room. Lance meets the Third Fang of Magia Lupus, Wirth. Dot and Finn meet the Fifth and Fourth Fang, Love, and Milo. Mash meets the mysterious person who saved Olore and Anser. He’s the Second Fang of Magia Lupus, Abyss Razor. Abyss tells Mash he can’t use magic but has his reasons for being here. The episode closes with Mash and his friends preparing to fight their enemies.

The Episode Review

After Abyss’s introduction in the final moments of the previous episode, it made sense we’d learn of his motives sooner than later. We can expect some thrilling fights with Mash and his friends fighting the different fangs of Magia Lupus. Hopefully, these opponents provide a better fight than the enemies we’ve received in the show so far. Mostly, it’s been an easy bout for Mash and the others, so it’d be great to see them pushed on the ropes for once.

The fight between Dot and the lackey was engaging, though. While Dot may act childish, viewers will like seeing him pull one over his adversary. It gives him some redemption for failing to defeat Silva a couple of episodes ago and shows he can be just as strategic as Lance. It’d be great if the anime gives Finn similar treatment. He’s shown to be the weakest among our cast based on his nervous persona. This upcoming battle with Love and Milo could help change fans’ perceptions of his character like today’s episode did for Dot.

Another aspect of this episode that’ll intrigue audiences deals with Wahlberg and the person at the Bureau of Magic. Innocent Zero might be a person to keep on one’s radar based on what we know. It’s possible that he or she will be the next villain Mash and his friends will be fighting after they finish their ordeal with Lang Dorm. It’s best to expect the anime to make small nods to Innocent Zero down the line, though. Overall, this was a good set-up episode of Mashle: Magic and Muscles.