Taking Candy From a Baby” is one of those cases in which you can’t be mad at the show for messing with your emotions. The episode may be a little gross, but the ending is moving and very meaningful. It’s also a great testament to the show’s willingness to go where it’s needed most, to give us something that will move our emotional strings and push us to reconsider our own viewpoints on a topic that we’ve already made up our minds on. It’s not easy to do that. And the fact that the episode didn’t simply follow the same old storyline is a really good sign. While the episode itself may not be anything special, it’s that ending that makes it so memorable. There are some things that we, as a culture, are starting to acknowledge as a real problem. Candy in general is becoming less accepted in the United States as we consider the effects of it on our children. But where I grew up in Hawaii, people were already making this connection years ago. One of the things that kept this country apart in my childhood was the fact that many children were born into families whose finances did not allow them to provide enough nutrition to fill a child’s stomach. Instead of providing more resources to the needy, the system made it so they couldn’t receive a meal and forced them to fend for themselves. The story of the child stealing candy is nothing new, but how it affects the character here is unique. As the child approaches her, I couldn’t help but think about how bad life would be if I grew up like this. “We should give the parents a new baby. And a lot of money. They could be good parents again.” The child’s mother didn’t steal candy to feed her baby—she stole it to be able to provide her child with candy. In the background, you can see a family eating their dinner. We know they aren’t on the show, but there’s a part of me that wonders if that woman feels as guilty about what she’s done. She wasn’t looking to harm her child, and she was thinking of the family when she stole the candy. She never imagined the outcome for herself or her baby, and the fact that she was forced to explain her action to someone else reminds me that, sometimes, in order to give yourself a second chance, you have to explain yourself. The child knows the truth—“we don’t have money for food”—and is angry at both her parents for making her suffer, which causes her to act even more vengefully. This is about as close as we’ll get to a major event in this episode. There are no other real changes in the episode, but that doesn’t mean the episode doesn’t deal with some weighty issues. The most important scene is the brief exchange between the two fathers. At first, the tension between them looks unimportant—they’re just arguing over food. Yet as they argue, they reveal something really important: that they’re fathers. Their sons are on the TV watching them talk, and so we can see that this is a man raising his son. This scene is very rare on this show, which is great. Instead of showing us things through their typical lens of magic, this time we’re seeing a father raising a son. Aside from that scene, however, there isn’t much that you can get out of this episode. We got a few more characterizations, which were handled decently well, and some more laughs, which always make their appearance in a holiday episode. The finale was nothing special, but it was a really solid episode of the show. The ending was heartfelt, but the rest of it doesn’t need to be like that to be effective. A good holiday episode should remind us that there is more to the holiday season than watching a magical girl fight a demon god and trying to decide whether it’s more important to be happy or successful. We should celebrate good and warm things, too. There’s so much in this world to appreciate and be thankful for, and this episode reminds me that I need to start focusing on those things, instead of only the things that need to be fixed. This show still has something to say, which is why it’s still on the air. It’s a good thing, and I’m looking forward to whatever season 6 throws at us next. Note: This is a review of the show’s United States version. Our review of the first part of the final season is here, and our review of the second half of the season is here. Stray Observations: I love that the character behind this picture loves Japanese stuff. “She can keep that job if she still doesn’t want me to move to Hawaii.” “I’m going to have to fix it later.” “If we eat all this candy, the baby will be really nice.” “The most important thing is keeping her safe, though.” We’re not going to see anything about her life before this time. “My mom used to say that people only get a couple of wishes.” “If we’re going to end up with a baby, I want one that speaks.” “We’ve tried everything, but nothing seems to be working.” “This is a good thing. She’s a good thing.” “Why would a baby need a candy?!” Halloween Town I think you have enough in here. That woman really hates her job, huh? I have no idea what she does. I also have no idea how this picture works, but it’s cute. The ending was interesting, but I didn’t love it. “It’s funny, I don’t feel that anything has changed.” Fate’s Carnival—To the Town of the Evil God I’m actually surprised to see that there aren’t any pictures of kids here. I don’t get it. That doesn’t seem like a place you’d bring someone who is going through emotional trauma. “I’m not the one being a brat.” “I’m not your dad!” “I feel like people just don’t notice it.” “Are you trying to be like me? Are you trying to be like me?” “I’m not trying to be anything. And I’m going to die.” That was pretty harsh. “Your dad is dead.” This was an ok episode. The story was good, the character development was decent, and the humor was great. The whole episode felt very warm and special, with some solid emotional beats thrown in for good measure. I didn’t feel like the ending was anything special, which is a shame, but I enjoyed it anyway.