Recap / The Vision Of Escaflowne E 26 Eternal Love

• Ambiguous Situation: Was that really Van on Earth in the final scene? Or was it just Hitomi's imagination?
• Back for the Finale: The spirits of Van's parents, Balgus, Folken, and Naria and Eriya appear as Hitomi's departing Fanelia and Gaea. It shows thanks to her efforts and impact, they're all at peace now.
• Be Careful What You Wish For: Dornkirk's Fate Alteration Engine grants everyone their wishes...and apparently everyone's wish is to fight each other rather than have peace like Dornkirk had envisioned.
• Bittersweet Ending: Zaibach is defeated and the Fate Alteration Engine deactivated. Allen gets Celena back and Gaea begins rebuilding. But Hitomi returns home to Earth and leaves her pendant with Van, preventing her from returning to Gaea again (though it's heavily implied their love for each other can reactivate the Pillar of Light).
• Didn't See That Coming: The outcome of the Fate Alteration Engine and the Zone's activation is not what Dornkirk anticipated or expected.
• Did Not Think This Through: Dornkirk was so focused on creating the Zone of Absolute Fortune that he didn't consider the logistics or repercussions of the Zone trying to grant so many conflicting wishes simultaneously. It's also implied this is one reason why the Atlantean Fate Alteration Engine originally failed millennia ago.
• Grand Finale: Of the series and the TV branch of the Escaflowne franchise (as the Movie would be set in a seperate continuity).
• Heroic Rematch: Played for serious drama, as Allen and Van, under the influence of the Zone, fight each other again for the first time since Episode 3 (and for the fate of Dilandau/Celena). Whereas Allen steamrolled Van last time, Escaflowne now holds its own against Scherazade in their rematch. Allen even notes that Van's become a much better swordsman over the course of the series.
• History Repeats Itself: The activation of another Atlantean Fate Alteration Engine backfires as badly as it did the first time (and is only stopped this time around thanks to Van and Hitomi).
• Killed Off for Real:
  • Jajuka and Dilandau (at least in a sense, as he reverts to Celena permanently).
  • Kinda with Escaflowne itself. Van removes its Energeist, deactivating it and ending the Blood Pact he made in Episode 2. That being said, the armor's left intact, so there's nothing to stop a future King of Fanelia from acquiring another Energeist in the Rite of Succession and bringing the Guymelef back online if it's needed again.
• Rule of Symbolism: Van removing Escaflowne's Energeist in the penultimate scene. Deactivating Escaflowne obviously symbolizes Van putting down the sword and embracing peace. But more, Van's role in the story began with the acquisition of that Energeist during the Rite of Succession; if he hadn't, he'd never have been transported to the Mystic Moon and would never have met Hitomi. So, removing the Energeist brings his story full circle and concludes that journey.
• Shapeshifting Excludes Clothing: Once Dilandau reverts to Celena again, his Zaibach uniform once more becomes noticeably baggier on her now-more slender frame.
• Spirit Adviser: Again, Dornkirk sticks around to see his endgame play out (and fail). Folken's spirit also briefly manifests to give Hitomi encouragement for getting through to Van.
• Villainous BSoD: Downplayed, but Dornkirk has a subdued version as he realizes the Zone of Absolute Fortune is not working the way it he'd intended.