The Genius Prince's Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt

Episode 7

Before we get into the specifics of this episode, let's talk about the pacing of this series as a whole. It's quite clear that we are getting a somewhat abridged version of the Genius Prince light novels in this anime. There are so many twists and turns—and potential cliffhangers—that it feels like any of the arcs we've seen so far could have taken up twice as many episodes and still not dragged on. However, that's not to say the fast pace of this series is a problem (as much as I'd personally enjoy a more detailed telling of the story). I have a simple litmus test when it comes to pacing: “Do I understand what happened and why?” And the Genius Prince anime passes with flying colors. Between Wein's planning sessions and his sister's school lessons, all the necessary information is delivered in a succinct, easy-to-understand way. And while action scenes are short, we get just enough of them to feel like we get the payoff promised by the setup.

In this episode, we once again see that Wein's berserk button is a terrifying thing—not only to his enemies but to his friends and loved ones as well. Back in episode 2, Wein executed an ingenious plan to crush the Marden army after their ambassador insulted Ninym. The only truly irresponsible thing he did was put himself in danger by leading the assassination squad himself. This time, however, was quite different.

After the king suggested literally hunting those like Ninym for sport, Wein simply killed the king without any prior planning. As Ninym points out, it's one thing to commit regicide after you've considered all the angles and figured out the best way to do it. It's quite another to go by the seat of your pants. If not for Caldmellia assisting Wein for no other reason than to watch the world burn, he might not have made it out of the city alive—much less to the mountains where he could set up an ambush.

But while Wein's rage is clearly a double-edged sword, it also ties into the one question Wein can't seem to answer: “Why do all these things keep happening to me?” The answer is surprisingly simple—which is probably why Wein can't see it. Despite his keen mind and the logical way he interprets the world around him, he is ultimately ruled by his emotions—whether it is the anger he feels when Ninym is insulted or the camaraderie he has with Lowa that drives him to help her. If he truly wanted to, he could leave his kingdom and disappear. But while he dislikes the responsibility of being a ruler, he doesn't want his people to suffer due to his own selfishness.

The other major player in this episode is Zeno. Despite being a princess and the sole remaining member of Marden's royal family, she knows she cannot overcome the inherent sexism present in her patriarchal society. Even in a time where her people are united in spirit—i.e., rebelling against their southern conquerors—she has to hide behind her dead brother's authority just to keep her army together. Ruling her country in peacetime would be impossible. Either a new invasion would come from outside or a rebellion would occur within—unless, of course, she had the backing of a man so powerful that few would even think to try and usurp her.

And this is where we see that Zeno is far more clever than even Wein would expect. She plays into the perception that society has of her and wields it as a weapon. After all, what kind of big strong man wouldn't help a weak, defenseless princess trying to save her country? Wein has no choice but to accept to rule her country along with his own lest he destroy the personal image he has spent his life crafting—and thus throw his own kingdom into chaos.

All that said, it's clear there is another reason beyond solidifying her rule behind Zeno's decision to turn her country into a vassal state: When you watch a man kill the king of a powerful nation in his own palace, incite a civil war, destroy two enemy armies with minimal losses, quash a rebellion, and liberate an entire conquered country, you don't let that man escape if you can help it. She has seen the winning side and wants to be a part of it, turning Wein into an emperor in all but name in the process.

Rating:

Random Thoughts:

• A map with legible location names and troop movement arrows is a blessing from above.

• Now that Natra and Marden are one nation, Wein has not one new neighbor but three. He better send in some spies real quick or he's going to find himself in another snafu like the one in Cavarin where he was at a severe disadvantage simply due to a lack of information.

• It's kind of glossed over, but didn't Wein just start a holy war by killing one of the Holy Elite?

• It's good to see that Wein is at least embarrassed about his reckless actions—even if he won't admit to it.

• I wonder if Ninym knows Wein killed the king for her sake. I suspect she has some idea or she'd be laying into him even harder.

• Wein's escape plan was great. The middle path was blocked so he left a trail on the right path, nothing on the left path, and hid on the middle one. It was a risky gamble, but one that played into the egos of his enemies. Either they followed the trail of bags and thought they had him panicked or they assumed the trail was false and went the other way, thinking they outsmarted him.

• Confusion on the battlefield is a devastating weapon.

• I love how it's almost just a background note that Wein solidified his power base by killing off all the rebellious elements within his own Kingdom.

The Genius Prince's Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt is currently streaming on Funimation.

Richard is an anime and video game journalist with over a decade of experience living and working in Japan. For more of his writings, check out his Twitter and blog.