Angel Beats!: Episode 12

This was one weird episode. In the course of a few minutes, most of the members of the SSS disappear. Afterwords, Otonashi, Hinata and Ayato are attacked by the smoke monsters, gaining the upper hand in battle when the remaining SSS members arrive. While I felt it was a bit convenient that the whole entire main cast chose to stay and fight the smoke monsters; their entrances were both memorable and refreshing. (Ooyama actually does something, and TK beats up an insane amount of enemies with awesome dance moves while continuing to say
incomprehensible babble in English.)

Meanwhile, Yurippe begins to venture into the guild in an effort to kill god, a task that seems very improbable to solve even with the use of guns. Seriously, when going after god himself, don't you think that it will take more than a few gunshot wounds to subdue him?

She then regroups with Hinata, Tenshi, Otonashi, and Ayato, where she then runs off to confront god while Otonashi and the others hold off the black smokes.

The "god" character is very disappointing, as he turned out to be some bland character who is surprisingly forgettable for the supposed main antagonist of the series. I was hoping for a character that was, at the very least, interesting. Thankfully, the ending to the episode was very interesting, making me very excited for the next episode. I was also surprised that the power of love was the reason why the smoke monsters appeared, as the person who was experiencing love for someone who wasn't in the afterlife was to never disappear, therefore prompting "god" to eliminate that person's soul via the black smoke.

The writing in this episode was a bit poor, as a flashback moment and the confrontation with god had characters talking in a very philosophical and unrealistic manner. Yurippe even ad libs a speech in front of a freakin' classroom! Since when did these kids become philosophers all of a sudden!

Overall, this episode may have moments with poor dialogue and an anti-climactic antagonist, but the ending to the episode, the action scene with TK, and the triumphant return of the main cast make up for it. Hopefully, episode thirteen will not fail in delivering a satisfying conclusion.
Rating: Great
Rating System:
Excellent
Great
Fair
Poor
Horrible