Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets The Wise Wolf – Season 1 Episode 19 Recap & Review

God’s Unseen Hand and Wolf’s Unseen Heart

Episode 19 of Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets The Wise Wolf begins with Marc and Lant discussing Lawrence’s situation. Marc hopes Diana will help Lawrence with his issue. Otherwise, Marc argues things won’t turn out well for Lawrence. Lant eavesdrops on someone talking about pyrite prices and tells Marc the prices keep escalating. 

Marc informs Lant about what Amati must do to obtain the money needed to pay off Holo’s debt. Meanwhile, Lawrence waits for Diana to show up and worries she made a deal with Amati. Lant and Marc discuss what Lawrence will gain and lose if Amati wins. Lawrence panics and Lant greets him. Lant tells Lawrence someone wanted to buy some wheat using pyrite.

He tells Lawrence it’s 250 coins worth of material so Lawrence supplies Lant with goods. Lant heads to a specific location and remembers Marc’s words as he goes. Meanwhile, Lawrence panics and approaches someone. Lawrence sells some pyrite to the gentleman. Then, Lawrence departs from the stall. Lawrence wishes he had Diana’s 400 coins worth of pyrite in his possession.

He wants the price of the product to crash. Lant returns from his trip and hands Lawrence the 250 coins worth of material. Lawrence grabs the gift and says he’ll wait for Diana’s representative. Before Lawrence can make his next move, another buyer enters the fold, throwing a small wrench in his plan. Lawrence says he’ll have to wait for Diana’s representative.

Diana’s representative arrives. She tells Lawrence that Diana can’t fulfill her promise to Lawrence. Lawrence tells Lant to tell Marc that his plan failed. Lant tells Lawrence not to give up. Lawrence understands. He asks Lant to spread the wheat rumor around town. Lawrence sells his pyrite to someone and Holo does the same seconds later. 

Everyone starts selling their pyrite afterward and Amati is left defeated. Later, Lawrence tells the audience Amati didn’t lose too much financially. Lawrence hands Amati some things and a man tells Amati he shouldn’t have tampered with another gentleman’s woman. Later, Holo tells Lawrence she wanted to crush Amati’s spirit in a better fashion. 

Lawrence apologizes and lists what he’s apologizing for. He learns that Holo bought the pyrite from Diana. Holo confirms she fled the event for a while to obtain Diana’s pyrite. At the same time, Lawrence was concerned about some of Holo’s other actions. He lists what those were. Lawrence was scared Holo was going to side with Amati.

Also, Lawrence brings up the marriage contract Holo signed in a previous episode. Lawrence realizes she signed it to encourage him to take action. Holo and Lawrence argue briefly. Then, Lawrence tells Holo that he wants to continue traveling with her. Then, Lawrence asks Holo how she convinced Diana to sell her the pyrite.

Holo says she told Diana to invent a story that Yoitsu may still exist somewhere but Diana refused. Then, Holo says she remained hidden somewhere in Diana’s home. She confirms she eavesdropped on Lawrence’s pyrite discussion with Diana. Diana wanted Holo to confirm the depth of Lawrence’s resolve. Holo tells Lawrence she knows Lawrence asked Diana if it’s possible for humans and pagan gods to become a couple.

She tells Lawrence she doesn’t mind if they become a couple. Holo retracts her statement seconds later. Then, Holo tells Lawrence Diana isn’t a human. Holo argues Diana is a bird who can transform into a human. She tells Lawrence that Diana fell in love with a traveling monk but the monk grew suspicious of Diana’s aging process.

Holo tells Lawrence that Diana and her lover split off. After that, Holo tells Lawrence she wants to return to Yoitsu. The episode ends with Holo and Lawrence attending Kumerson’s festival. 

The Episode Review

Lawrence felt the pressure in this week’s episode of Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets The Wise Wolf. From skyrocketing pyrite prices to the bad news Diana’s representative shared with Lawrence, many folks will empathize with Lawrence’s emotions in this one. Losing someone close to you over something trivial as a sale would leave anyone uncomfortable. 

Thankfully, Lawrence found a way to defeat Amati. Again, it’s all thanks to Holo and the trust she and Lawrence have for each other. Also, this episode deserves kudos for explaining Holo’s methods and why she chose to support Lawrence. On that note, it’s great seeing Lawrence apologize for his actions as many folks weren’t pleased with Lawrence’s proceedings. 

Moreover, the tidbits surrounding Diana’s bird origins were interesting. It shows viewers that Holo isn’t the only individual in this universe with transformative abilities. It’ll make some folks speculate if the Moon-Hunting Bear that allegedly destroyed Yoitsu can transform into a human too. Only time will tell on that front. 

But all in all, this was an informative, tense, and slightly emotional episode. While most of this arc’s content was challenging to follow (occasionally), the resolution is satisfying. I’m excited to see what awaits us in the next story arc considering the original 2008 anime didn’t cover it.