Series / GARO: The One Who Inherits Steel

Spoilers for entries in the Ryuga-verse continuity of the GARO series preceding this one, including GARO: Kami no Kiba will be left unmarked. You Have Been Warned!

"Do you guys know about HAGANE? It is a Makai Knight who hunts HORRORS, which are magical monsters that eat humans. Many of them wear a little-known armor called HAGANE. However, HAGANE is the origin of the Makai Knight. It all started here. This is a new story of the HAGANE Knights and the Golden Knight Ryuga Dogai."

—Zaruba

GARO: The One Who Inherits Steel is the 2024 installment of the GARO franchise set in the Ryuga-Verse.

The Golden Knight Ryuga Dougai is approached after his latest mission by a Makai Priestess named Koyori, who gives him an ominous warning: "The Gate Of Destruction is about to open." In order to prevent this cataclysm, Ryuga follows her to "Creacity," a Wretched Hive where even people with little evil in their hearts are being transformed into monstrous Horrors. His investigation of the city puts him in the crosshairs of the aloof Hagane Knight Souma Shirahane, the son of Creacity's previous protector that mysteriously disappeared three months ago...

The One Who Inherits Steel was released on January 11th, 2024 and was simulcast on the GARO Project Official Youtube channel, complete with English subs. The show aired every Thursday night on TV-Asahi and Tokyo MX at 22:00.

One could previously watch the official releases here, though only the first two episodes are available for public viewing as of April 2024; the rest currently un-listed.

This series includes examples of:

• An Aesop: The show has a few.
  • Humans Are Flawed...and that's okay. Mutsugi's Start of Darkness is the result of Heroic Fatigue stemming from an inability to save people; culminating into Black-and-White Insanity that states evil shouldn't exist at all. Ryuga and the heroes counter that the same desire that can stoke evil in people and create Horrors can kickstart positive growth too. Ambition and desperation can indeed lead to problems, but they're crucial to the human experience. While this does no favors to the Vicious Cycle between Humans and Horrors, the finite power of hope is preferable to a static World of Silence with no change.
  • Healing from trauma doesn't happen overnight. The crux of Souma's Ineffectual Loner tendencies is his desperation to keep the position of Creacity's assigned Knight warm for his father until he returns; the man's absence having turned the boy into a bundle of neuroses that's nigh-impossible to work with. Igusu's belligerent attempts to bury the issue only fuels Souma's desperation to make Godou proud by proving himself harder and if Ryuga hadn't arrived when he did, the arguing would've caused a tragedy. Instead of spewing legacy and rules at him, Ryuga engages with Souma on his own level with a gentler touch, which breaks through the Hagane's shell of edge and lets him embrace teamwork again. While the reveal of Godou's death hits the boy hard (and makes him susceptible to Inga-induced Mind Control), Ryuga nudges him into confronting the hallucinations of his trauma instead of burying them by playing the part of foe in reality, which ends up saving Souma's life and gives him the strength of heart to finally perform the Flash Sword Dance.
• Aesop Amnesia: Ryuga calls Souma out for combatting a Horror with no restraint, almost getting someone hurt. The boy clearly shows remorse and walks off embarrassed. In the following episode, he shows no concern for Obi's sprained ankle, narrowly stopped from knocking him out by Ron. He then justifies it by positing that because Horrors don't have restraint, why should they have any during practice? Nobody is amused.
• All There in the Script: The nature-spirit encountered in #6 goes un-named in-show. In the credits, it's given the name "Raul."
• Ancestral Weapon: Exploited, ultimately Defied. Mutsugi's corruption of Souma centers around urging the boy into following his subconscious desire to fulfill his father's legacy; convincing him unlocking the Gate of Destruction will let him inherit the Zango Armor of his own power. Both his Inga-infusion and the Seducer's influence force him to act on this urge, but Souma never inherits his father's armor. He starts and ends as a Hagane.
• Apocalyptic Log: What Ryuga hears on the phone in #5; emphasized in The Stinger. The speaker discovered that the Crimson Moon that occurs every 3 years is pertinent to the Gate of Destruction. That person was Godou and that Log was him notifying Mutsugi of the development...which she attempts to use for selfish ends.
• Asshole Victim:
  • Souma is clearly grappling with the trauma of both losing his father (who may or may not be dead) and the fear of possibly falling to Darkness if he fails to master the Flash Sword Dance; insistent on being an Ineffectual Loner as a result. However, he's so hostile to everyone else that peoples' faith in him is wavering - Igusu wants someone else to protect the city instead of him while the other Knights barely tolerate him.
  • The assistant to the businessman that was attacked in Episode 2 is shown in the following episode harassing a homeless man. Ryuga and company can only watch, bemused at their inability to intervene.
• Battle in the Center of the Mind: Souma's Inga-hallucination in #10 evolves into this, cycling through those he knows before settling on a specter of his dad. Ryuga realizes that the boy is mistaking him for Godou and rather than shout at him, encourages Souma to fight back instead. Souma proceeds to clash with the specter in a battle both mental and physical; Ryuga pushing him back in reality and Souma contending with "Godou" in his mind. The specter soon devolves into an Anthropomorphic Personification of Souma's insecurity, which the Hagane Knight cuts down.
• Berserk Button: Igusu presses Souma's at the end of #3 when his latest attempt to get through to the boy makes mention of a possible connection between the Gate of Destruction and Godou's disappearance. Instead of motivate/scold Souma like he wanted, it only convinces the boy that his dad's being accused and he draws his weapon on the man. It takes every ounce of willpower on his person not to attack him then-and-there; Mutsugi shaming Igusu for publicizing said rumor later.
• Big Bad: The closest thing to one so far has been the Seducer, who approaches people in distress and turns them into Horrors. #11 confirms it: The Seducer is the essence of the Forbidden Fruit, who used Mutsugi as its pawn to engineer its liberation from the Gate Of Destruction.
• Big Bad Wannabe: Mutsugi has been the primary mastermind of the show's events and successfully manipulated the heroes until #10, upon which the heroes start to turn the tide. The heroes manage to defeat her and the very Forbidden Fruit she ate reveals itself as the Man Behind the Man; hijacking the Priestess' body to become the Final Boss.
• Big Good: Ryuga is this to the Hagane Knights, being both The Mentor to Souma and the figure everyone in the cast looks up to. Godou also counts, given he's the primary force that prevented the Gate from opening three years ago and had a hand in both Ryuga and Souma's lives.
• Bittersweet Ending: Pivoting more towards "sweet" than "bitter." The Gate Of Destruction is re-sealed, Creacity is relatively safer and Souma has finally grown into a proper Knight. However, Mutsugi couldn't be convinced and had to be cut down along with the Forbidden Fruit, Souma has not inherited the Zango Armor and the Garo Armor has been so thoroughly tainted with Inga that Ryuga needs to purify it before he can use it again.
• Black-and-White Insanity: What Mutsugi's Heroic Fatigue grows into. After her saving someone gets other people killed indirectly, she comes to the conclusion that those with any evil in their heart whatsoever should be wiped out to protect those she deems good...which would come about by opening a blatantly-evil seal and letting the dark creatures inside ravage the world.
• Bludgeoned to Death: The scuzzy supervisor of Episode 2 has his head hammered in by the Horror-possessed construction worker he tries to throw under the bus for a con.
• Botanical Abomination: The Forbidden Fruit hijacks Mutsugi's body and transforms into an evil flower-monster to fight the heroes, strangling them with magical vines and using teleportation to get around its seeming lack of legs.
• Both Sides Have a Point: Igusu and Mutsugi are both worried about Souma but have different perspectives on how to deal with his aloofness. Igusu believes in Tough Love - To him, Souma has grieved for his father long enough and needs to put said trauma aside to do his duty as a Knight. Mutsugi is more understanding of Souma's emotional state and isn't as quick to judge him; noting that Souma is kinder than he appears and simply needs time to process things. In #4, the two concede that arguing will get them nowhere and Ryuga is brought in as a third party. During his talk with Souma near the end, he uses bits of both approaches and finally gets through to the boy.
• Bratty Half-Pint: Souma has an almost-limitless temper that overtakes him when the idea of working together with others so much as rears its head; his fear of being unable to live up to his dad's legacy and possibly falling to darkness a dangerous influence. This causes the rest of the Makai operatives assigned to the city no shortage of grief and is causing a schism between its two authority figures Mutsugi and Igusu on how to handle the boy.
• Break Them by Talking: Souma's Inga corruption in #10 manifests as specters of people he knows (Ron, Koyori and even his dad) belittling him for being a weakling at the end of his potential who should just resign himself to obeying Mutsugi's commands. Ryuga manages to get through to the boy, who literally cuts his own insecurities down and saves himself.
• Breather Episode:
  • Episodes 3 and 4 are solely Character Focus, much of it on Souma. #3 has no Horror and #4 has barely any combat.
  • Episode 8 is mostly a Flashback Episode detailing how Ryuga met Godou and learned the Flash Sword Dance.
• Broken Pedestal: #10 forces Koyori to engage Mutsugi in an attempt to prevent her from opening the Gate Of Destruction and save Souma. She tries repeatedly to get through to her old teacher; noticing that there's still good in her. However, Mutsugi doesn't budge, forcing the apprentice to come to terms with the fact that her elder's too jaded to be convinced with words alone.
• Call-Back:
  • When Ryuga transforms in front of Godou, he assumes the "Flight" form from Gold Storm Sho as proof that he's overcome his own inner Darkness.
  • In The Stinger of the finale, Ryuga takes out Rian's hairpiece from The One Who Shines in the Darkness, looking at it affectionately.
• Character Development: Between Episodes 4 and 5, Souma mellows out thanks to Ryuga's words. He arrives to help the heroes against the zombie forces with an elaborate plan; embracing the idea of teamwork at last. He clearly has a ways to go though, as he's unable to touch the Stone of Everlasting Darkness and is influenced by the Seducer at the climax of #9. In #10, Souma powers through the Inga-hallucinations by confronting his own insecurities; finally gaining a strong enough heart to successfully pull off the Flash Sword Dance in the finale.
• Chekhov's Gun:
  • The ringing phone at the end of #4. Not only is it the Gate that spawns the Horror of the following episode, but it's also broadcasting an Apocalyptic Log from Godou, who was searching for the Gate prior to his disappearance.
  • Igusu's sword is planted into a makeshift grave after his passing. Said sword becomes instrumental in the finale, allowing Ryuga to become a Hagane Knight after the Garo Armor becomes too tainted for use.
• Cliffhanger: Multiple episodes end on them.
  • #4 ends with Souma contemplating Ryuga's words and a sleazy scam-artist getting an entire building possessed.
  • #5 ends with the full Apocalyptic Log Ryuga heard over the phone - implicating the Crimson Moon and the Stone Forest as locations of interest relevant to the heroes' mission.
  • #8 ends with Mutsugi transporting Ryuga and Koyori back into the maze; leaving her to pursue an unknown agenda that involves both Souma and the Gate of Destruction.
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: The Three Blades don their Hagane Armors in #5, the eyes of their helmets different colors to distinguish them: Red for Igusu, Yellow for Obi and Green for Ron. Ryuga borrows Igusu's armor for the finale, which gets orange eyes.
• Complaining About Rescues They Don't Like: Subverted. When Soma arrives to assist the heroes in #5, Igusu is visibly exasperated. If not for the timely arrival of enemy zombies, he would've complained about it. He gets over it later after making an offhand compliment towards Souma...albeit without the boy there to hear it.
• The Corrupter: Mutsugi tries to get multiple people to see the world through her own cynical Black-and-White Insanity-based worldview and open the Gate Of Destruction for her. She only gets through to Souma with Inga-infused brainwashing (which he eventually breaks through) and Koyori's having none of it whatsoever.
• The Corruption:
  • The Gate Of Destruction's proximity to Creacity effectively amplifies a human's chance of being possessed by a Horror via The Seducer; even those who are typically too strong of heart to be compatible.
  • #4 reveals this to be an possible side effect of the Flash Sword Dance, as it relies on simultaneously weaponizing and purifying one's inner darkness. One of the reasons Souma's so reliant on his dad is that he wants a Mercy Kill if he falls.
  • Mutsugi feeds Souma Inga, which makes him hallucinate apparitions of his loved ones that all attempt to break his spirit.
• Curb-Stomp Battle:
  • #10 doesn't pretend that Koyori or the possessed Souma are remotely a match for their respective opponents. Justified however, given at least one combatant on both sides was holding back; attempting to talk the foe down rather than attack them.
  • The Horror used to seal the Gate of Destruction by Makai operatives of the past is an immobile mass of dragon-heads that are effortlessly dealt with in a single Combination Attack.
• Curb-Stomp Cushion: Koyori is outmatched by Mutsugi at every turn, though she does manage to outwit the Priestess at crucial junctures at least twice, something her elder even applauds her for.
• Cynicism Catalyst: Three years prior to the show, Mutsugi saved a man from a Horror only for him to go on to be a serial killer and take other lives. This convinced her that anyone tainted with Inga was a lost cause and that by opening the Gate Of Destruction to weed out and purge these damned, she could rid the world of Horrors forever.
• Death of Personality: When Mutsugi consumes the Forbidden Fruit and activates its power in the penultimate episode, some of the citizens in Creacity lose all cognitive function and become vegetables; indicated by their lack of irises. Once she's defeated the first time, they're returned to normal.
• Dangerous Forbidden Technique: Godou mastered one called the The Flash Sword Dance. The technique involves taking one's own Inga and converting it to positive energy for an attack, but can backfire and taint a Knight with darkness if not mastered; one of Souma's insecurities being his inability to master it and almost losing himself. It also has a companion: The Dark Flash Sword Dance, which Inverts the initial explanation and turns Light to Darkness instead. Ryuga and Souma use both variations on the final Horror of the show in a Combination Attack.
• Deadly Sparring: The second half of Episode 3 is one big practice-session for the Knights, with everyone else supervising. Souma's bout with twin Knights Obi and Ron goes well for awhile, until Obi sprains his ankle. Souma lets his anger overtake him and he almost knocks Obi out in that moment of vulnerability, forcing Ron to defend him. Ryuga chews Souma out for this overzealousness but the boy is unapologetic; surprised that Knights would hold back even in training sessions. He eventually apologizes properly.
• Decoy Protagonist: Downplayed with Ryuga. While Ryuga is a main character, The One Who Inherits Steel is focused more prominently on the Hagane Knights, specifically Souma. Ryuga's tied to a few aspects of the narrative, but is more passive than other seasons; being an authority figure looking in as opposed to the primary focus.
• Despair Event Horizon: #9 reveals that Mutsugi fell into this years ago after someone she saved went on to become a serial killer. She questioned the futility of fighting Horrors and snapped; deciding to open the Gate Of Destruction so she could purge anyone with darkness in their hearts and protect those she deemed "good." Godou sacrificed himself to prevent that.
• Disappeared Dad: The crux of Souma's inability to work with others. Souma's father Godou disappeared three months ago, right around the time the Gate Of Destruction started showing activity. It's unclear what his status is, but his absence has left a massive scar in Souma's heart. #9 reveals that Godou used the Zango Armor to re-seal the Gate three years ago after Mutsugi tried opening it; sacrificing himself to save the world from an influx of Horrors.
• The Dog Was the Mastermind: With no Foreshadowing whatsoever, Mutsugi teleports Ryuga and Koyori back into the maze after they reveal the entrance to the Gate Of Destruction; leaving her to forcibly corrupt Souma so he can break the seal on the Gate.
• Elite Mooks: The premise of the show centers around a group of heroic ones; much of the cast composed of generic Hagane Knights.
• Enemy Within: What Souma's Inga-possession in #10 manifests as. His addled mind is constantly confusing Ryuga for various figures in his life; all of whom either try to get him to submit to Mutsugi or verbally prod at his insecurities. At the home-stretch, his "opponent" takes the appearance of an Evil Doppelgänger, who doesn't last long once Souma finds the resolve to free himself.
• Et Tu, Brute?: At the end of #8, Mutsugi secretly teleports Ryuga and Koyori back into the Labyrinth of Arivis after the heroes discover the entrance to the Gate; working towards an unknown goal that involves Souma.
• Evolving Credits: As the heroes get close to the Gate of Destruction, it gets less obscured in the opening theme with each episode.
• Expy: Both Souma's motive and demeanor are reminiscent of the previous Ryuga-verse protagonist's issues: Both of them being Knights marred by father issues whose bouts of anger, lack of restraint and fear of turning evil both cripple their ability to perform their duty and erode peoples' trust in them. And just like Jinga Mikage, Souma ends up the Unwitting Pawn to a scheme involving the release of a seal that will flood the world with darkness per the whims of someone else. Unlike Jinga Mikage however, Souma has a more emotionally-stable support base (within which is The Golden Knight) that's perfectly willing to call him out when he lets his emotions dominate him. Souma also begins the process of growing from his mistakes around #4 and peaks his Character Development by #10, whereas Jinga doesn't come around until his finale and shatters from the trauma.
• Face–Monster Turn:
  • A plot-point. While this trope is universal for all Horrors in the franchise, it's especially urgent here - Even people whose Inga would usually be too low for Horrors to overtake are being transformed; likely due to the influence of the Gate Of Destruction.
  • The Horror of #5 enacts this on a building-wide scale, turning the workers there into a swarm of Inga zombies. Only one is unaffected and has to be escorted to safety.
  • #9 sees Mutsugi feeding Souma massive amounts of Inga (which gets him influenced by the Seducer) in order to force him to help her release the seal on the Gate. She succeeds.
• Fallen Hero: Mutsugi's quest to open the Gate Of Destruction and use it to weed out and purge anyone tainted with Inga stems from an attempt to atone for her saving a man from a Horror that would go on to kill other people; seeing herself as responsible for the lives he would take.
• Fighting from the Inside: The A-plot of #10 revolves around Souma learning to see through the Inga-fueled illusions of his insecurities and overcome his possession. He succeeds!
• Final Boss: The Forbidden Fruit possesses Mutsugi and becomes the last real enemy the Knights face. The Horror used to seal the Gate of Destruction is technically fought after, but it's a Post-Final Boss that's dealt with in a single Combination Attack instead of being directly engaged.
• Finale Credits: The credits for the final episode are imposed over a montage of major moments from the season.
• Final Solution: Mutsugi's plan to open the Gate Of Destruction hinges on the resulting chaos singling out those with Inga in their hearts; these undesirables to be purged to rid the world of Horrors forever.
• Flashback Episode:
  • Much of #8 is Ryuga meeting (and training with) Godou in the past.
  • Two-thirds of #9 is an exploration of Godou and Mutsugi's quest for the Gate of Destruction and the latter's fall to evil.
• Forbidden Fruit: A literal one is sealed by the Gate Of Destruction; being an Ancient Artifact that grants omniscience to whoever takes a bite of it.
• Generic Doomsday Villain: The Forbidden Fruit possesses Mutsugi, but has no real motivation beyond finishing what she'd already started to cause chaos.
• Heartfelt Apology: In #4, Souma doesn't just simply apologize for drawing his blade on Igusu but outright gives up his weapon to Mutsugi and nearly exiles himself. Koyori thinks it was a bit much. He starts #6 with a more professional one that puts the two mentors at-ease.
• Hellgate: Creacity sits right atop the Gate Of Destruction, which is cited as the first Gate Horrors ever used to enter the human realm. Being this close to the Gate makes almost anybody susceptible to possession, even those typically stronger-of-heart; which The Seducer exploits to create Horrors. Mutsugi's plan hinges on opening it to unleash the potential legions inside and consume the Forbidden Fruit at its core.
• Heroic Fatigue: #9 reveals Mutsugi's been suffering from this for a long time after someone she saved from a Horror went to be a mass-murderer; wondering what the point of fighting Horrors is. They eventually cracked and tried to open the Gate Of Destruction, forcing Godou to sacrifice himself to shut it back; hence why he's gone.
• Hero Killer: Unintentional example. Mutsugi's attempts to open the Gate three years ago forced Godou to undo her plan by sacrificing himself to become the new seal. Her reaction afterwards makes clear it was not how she wanted things to go.
• Heroic Sacrifice: Godou disappeared three years prior to the show, his whereabouts unknown. #9 reveals that he sacrificed himself to become the new seal of the Gate Of Destruction following Mutsugi's insane attempt to open it and purge those tainted with Inga.
• Hijacked by Ganon: The Forbidden Fruit overtakes Mutsugi after Ryuga defeats her the first time, possessing her to finish what she'd started and become the Final Boss.
• Hold the Line: The Plan in #5 involves the heroes enacting this to prevent a Zombie Apocalypse from hitting Creacity - The Haganes keep the zombie-tides at-bay while Mutsugi erects a barrier to isolate the place; Ryuga staying with her as the last line of defense. Souma's arrival reverses this plan: Ryuga finds and terminates the Elite Mook while Souma and Koyori lure zombies to Hagane ambush points. It works!
• Humans Are the Real Monsters: Downplayed. #9 shows that Mutsugi entered this mindset after she saved a man from a Horror, only for him to becoming a serial killer. Her plan is to use Souma to un-do the seal Godou placed on the Gate and open it to flood the world with Horrors; revealing anyone with Inga in them so she can kill them to protect those she deems worthy.
• Humble Goal: In #4, Ron says to Obi that he's perfectly happy with his station as a Hagane Knight. The burden on them is already immense; the titled Knights like Garo have it worse.
• Hypocrite: Mutsugi in #9. Her plan is to open the Gate Of Destruction and use the ensuing chaos to detect and purge anyone tainted with Inga to protect those she deems pure. Her method of doing this involves overwhelming Souma with Inga until he's influenced by the Seducer into "following his desires". This ignores the fact that her plan to rid the world of Horrors involves flooding it with Horrors.
• Internal Deconstruction: In a similar way to GARO: Versus Road. Versus Road emphasized the social disconnect between The Makai and the real world by putting aspects of Garo in a "realistic" setting; shining a spotlight on the persistence to move beyond tragedy. The endgame of The One Who Inherits Steel analyzes the Vicious Cycle that stems from the franchise's core premise in a more "on-brand" way, spinning it for the positive by showing that the same desire that can get people possessed is what enables humans to grow.
• I Just Want to Be Special: The waitress near the end of #6 dreams of getting onto the stage with other dancers and clearly has some dancing talent. However, degrading comments from one of the dancers puts her in the ideal mental state to get herself possessed by a Horror. She eventually does get to dance on-stage thanks to the kinder dancer Marie. However, a bout of stage-fright ends up the final nail in the coffin and the possessed girl ends the episode rearing to attack.
• "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: #10, for both battles. Koyori and Ryuga struggle to save Mutsugi and Souma from the Despair Event Horizon and The Corruption respectively. Ryuga succeeds in getting through to Souma, but Koyori is forced to accept that Mutsugi can't be talked down.
• Ineffectual Loner: Emphasis on "Ineffectual." Souma's desperation to "hold" the position of Creacity's assigned Knight for his dad until he returns results in a distant, moody man with a Hair-Trigger Temper and way too much to prove. Despite being the strongest Knight of the bunch, his inability to work with others makes operations unnecessarily difficult; especially if he's emotionally-compromised. By the time Ryuga shows up, the other Knights have had it with Souma's angst and their leader is clamoring for the boy to be replaced.
• Inferiority Superiority Complex: Godou's disappearance has instilled one in his son Souma, whose desperation to protect Creacity until he "comes back" translates to an unwillingness to work with others and a Hair-Trigger Temper. Ryuga arrives in Creacity right as these issues are reaching their peak.
• Jerkass Has a Point: For all of his hard-lining of Souma, #8 reveals that Igusu was correct in his assumption that Godou's disappearance was related to the Gate's activity.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold:
  • Souma. He clearly wants to protect people and live up to his dad's legacy. But he worships his dad's image to an unhealthy degree and the twin traumas of nearly falling to Darkness while trying to master the Flash Sword Dance and his father's sudden disappearance has resulted in a egotistical man that tries to take on every burden himself and push people away. It takes Ryuga to finally get through to him.
  • To a lesser degree, Igusu. He's not humoring Souma's grief over his Disappeared Dad; his mentality easily summarized as "suck it up and move on." However, once Souma is out of his funk, he's quick to treat the boy better and as he's dying, entrusts everyone else with Godou's legacy.
• Killed Off for Real: Igusu is gutted by the Horror of #7, charging the others to continue Godou's legacy.
• Kiss of Death: Those on the cusp of Horror possession this season are visited by the Seducer, who entices them into surrendering before giving them a kiss, which symbolizes their conversion.
• Limelight Series: The Hagane Armors are typically used by titleless Knights serving as the "commoners" to the unique Knights in-comparison; only being been used in fights where Makai Knights are heroic Mooks to demonstrate the power of the Horror at-hand. In One Who Inherits The Steel, the majority of the cast are Hagane Knights; one of them even being a plot-crucial main character. Even The Hero has taken an off-hand mentor role so far, serving as a distant Big Good as opposed to being the star of the show.
• Living Prop: A long-haired homeless man gets a few cameos throughout the show, usually as the victim of harassment meant to demonstrate what a Wretched Hive Creacity is. He eventually becomes one of the victims of Mutsugi's Death of Personality spell.
• MacGuffin: A few.
  • The Stone Of Everlasting Darkness resides in the Forest of Eyes; being the key to the Labyrinth of Arivis that houses the Gate Of Destruction.
  • The Forbidden Fruit is an artifact sealed inside of the Gate Of Destruction that's rumored to grant omniscience to anyone that eats from it. It's also sentient and influenced Mutsugi into seeking out the Gate.
• Magic A Is Magic A: In the finale, the Garo Armor is tainted by the Forbidden Fruit's Inga, which Ryuga weaponizes against it by performing the Dark Flash Sword Dance. However, the Armor is still tainted - making it unusable until Ryuga can purify it. Souma had the foresight to bring Igusu's Hagane-Ken, allowing Ryuga to borrow the late Knight's Hagane armor as a workaround.
• Making the Choice for You: In #9, Mutsugi keeps pleading for Souma to willingly go along with the ritual to unlock the Gate Of Destruction unlike his father...while waterboarding him with Inga to purposely corrupt him into doing it anyway.
• Meaningful Name:
  • Official sources list the woman with red hair as "Seducer." The Seducer's corruption of others into Horrors reeks of romantic undertones and ends with her giving the hijacked a kiss. She's also the spirit of the Forbidden Fruit, which grants those that consume it understanding - much like the Biblical artifact of the same name.
  • In the finale, Ryuga borrows Igusu's sword and becomes a Hagane Knight to work around the disabling of his own armor. He is The One Who Inherits Steel.
• Mental Health Recovery Arc: Souma's Character Arc involves Ryuga helping the boy overcome the trauma of his dad's disappearance by nudging him into helping out instead of simply begging him to get over it like everyone else has, which eventually wins Souma over and causes him to open up. When Godou is revealed to have been Dead All Along and that Mutsugi wants to use Souma to undo his Heroic Sacrifice to enact The Purge, Ryuga helps Souma navigate through Inga-infused hallucinations of his loved ones by playing the part of "enemy" in the real world while encouraging him to persist verbally, giving Souma the confidence necessary to cut the specters down and regain his sanity.
• The Mentor:
  • Ryuga takes up this role to Souma this season; both Mutsugi and Igusu proving inadequate for the job. Despite a rocky start, Ryuga ultimately proves to be the only one capable of communicating with Souma on equal footing (in-part due to his relation to Godou) and ends up guiding the boy through various instances in the latter half of the show. Most notably, he ends up teaching Souma how to see with his mind's eye, which allows Souma to free himself from Mutsugi and the Seducer's mutual ]brainwashing.
  • Godou Shirahane was this to both his son Souma and, briefly, Ryuga; having taught both of them the Flash Sword Dance and entrusting Ryuga with Souma's welfare.
• Mentor in Sour Armor: Deconstructed with both of the major Hagane mentors.
  • Igusu is an abrasive, angry and outspoken realist that seems to care for Souma, but has no interest in humoring the boy's grief. He'd much rather Souma come to terms with his daddy issues right away and lose himself to his duty as protector than overcome it; even suggesting Ron replace him if he can't. The outspokenness ends up doing more harm than good: He has an outburst in #3 wherein he not only writes Souma's father off as dead but vaguely implicates him as a cause of the Gate's activity. This goes exactly as expected and almost gets him attacked; the boy's hidden soft side being the only thing preventing a fight. He's called out for contributing to the boy's stress.
  • Mutsugi by contrast is quiet, passive, level-headed and more understanding of Souma's emotional immaturity; even calling Igusu out for his lack of understanding and expressing similar worries to Ryuga in-private. However, this isn't out of empathy, but apathy. Mutsugi had long-since crossed the Despair Event Horizon since Godou's disappearance; having been the one that inadvertently caused it. All of her support during the show was in service of getting Souma closer to the Gate Of Destruction so she can coerce him into undoing his father's Heroic Sacrifice and open the Gate - intent on flooding the world with Horrors to enact The Purge on those she deems damned.
• Mind Control: In #9, Souma is flooded with an ungodly amount of Inga by Mutsugi during her ritual, turning him into a possession-candidate for the Seducer. The episode ends with him about to attack Ryuga.
• Motive Rant: Mutsugi has a few, but #10 lays her position bluntly:
  Mutsugi: We protectors exist to protect people from Horrors. I believed that was what it meant to bring peace. But has it really?...There are evil people, yet to be possessed by Horrors, committing crimes and victimizing others. We must think of the future and wipe those people out.
  Koyori: That won't solve anything....You're crazy.
• Mugging the Monster: Invoked. The Horror-host of Episode 2 was an innocent businessman that gets mugged and left for dead by a group of gangsters. The Horror-creating force takes the man over and he promptly eats his attackers.
• Nature Spirit: One is encountered in the Forest Of Eyes in #6. It creates a body for itself via enchanted eye-covered leaves and looks more like a decrepit old man than a spirit embodying nature. It challenges Ryuga and Souma to a duel, but is more playful than hostile. After some prodding, it keeps its promise to lead the duo to the Stone Of Everlasting Darkness.
• Negatives as a Positive: #11 sees Mutsugi trying to convince Ryuga of the permanence of Inga and the Vicious Cycle the battle between man and Horror causes. Ryuga doesn't deny it, but espouses that the same Inga that can get people possessed is the source of all desire and the way through which people can grow.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero:
  • Igusu's outburst towards Souma at the end of #3. It was supposed to be a Tough Love speech meant to put the gravity of Souma's immaturity into perspective. However, he sprinkles into the dialog his own assumption that Godou's disappearance is directly linked to the Gate's activity; causing the boy to read it as an attack on his dad's pride instead and draw his weapon on him. The following episode starts with Souma restraining himself and recognizing his overreaction while Igusu is appropriately called out by Mutsugi for adding fuel to the flames.
  • Three years prior to the series, Godou discovered that the Stone Of Everlasting Darkness could pave the way to the Labyrinth containing the Gate Of Destruction during a Crimson Moon. He ended up telling Mutsugi about this, who had just crossed the Despair Event Horizon and attempted to enact a genocidal plan to purge the world of those she saw as evil, narrowly stopped by Godou's Heroic Sacrifice...Which has been endangered thanks to Ryuga and Souma finding the Stone and unlocking the Labyrinth again in the present.
• Once More, with Clarity:
  • #9 begins with Koyori telling Ryuga that she saw Mutsugi activate the magic circle to teleport them away on purpose, the scene from last episode playing again with Koyori's face in-shot.
  • That same episode also re-contextualizes the Apocalyptic Log Ryuga discovered in #5, revealing that it was Godou telling Mutsugi of his quest to look into the Gate of Destruction; him unaware of her own plans for it.
• Only in It for the Money: Exaggerated with the Horror of #5 - a scammer with such wonderful motivational quotes like "If you don't want to be trash, then make that money!" He ends up getting the whole facility possessed and the resulting zombies are just as money-hungry.
• Opposed Mentors: Souma has two - Mutsugi, who's more understanding of his father-issues and is giving him time to work through them and Igusu, who'd rather force Souma to move on and obey his duty than acknowledge complicated feelings. It's Ryuga (who uses elements from both teaching styles) that manages to break through Souma's shell.
• Our Zombies Are Different: The Horror of #5 has the ability to enact a mass-possession of businesspeople, turning them into a horde of demonic rage zombies. The Knights mobilize to prevent them from breaching their building and attacking the populace.
• Out of Focus: After Igusu's death, Obi and Ron are limited to the occasional fleeting cut-away and have no bearing on the events of the endgame; though an apparition of Ron briefly pops up in #10 as one of the specters tormenting Souma.
• The Plan: In #5, Souma comes up with one to help Hold the Line against the Inga zombies: Souma and Koyori lure zombies into manageable swarms, at which point Koyori uses her magic to displace the zombies to premeditated points in the building the Haganes can ambush them from.
• Post-Final Boss: The Horror used to initially seal the Gate Of Destruction is dealt with after the Forbidden Fruit's destruction. It's not especially mobile and Ryuga and Souma take it down with a combined Finishing Move.
• Posthumous Character: Godou Shirahane disappeared three years prior to the show, yet said absence is having ripple effects on the present; most notably in his son Souma.
• Power Parasite: The Horror of #7 is one, having stolen Koyori's Madou Brush and Igusu's Hagane-Ken to become a Magic Knight. It's thankfully slain before it can get any stronger.
• The Power Of Potential: In #5, Mutsugi questions why Ryuga is going so far out of his way for Souma that he's willing to potentially endanger their operation by waiting on him. Ryuga sees the potential in Souma to surpass his father; having given him a pep-talk just before arriving. He's later proven right: Souma's teamwork with Koyori is instrumental to The Plan to quell the zombie horde.
• Present Absence: Godou disappeared three years ago, yet his absence has greatly splintered the Hagane sect Ryuga works with. Souma Shirahane's personality has taken a massive downward spiral, which has dented group-morale and has the leader of the Knights of Agora so sick of it that he wants the boy to shape up or ship out; advocating for his demotion. This in-turn has sparked in-fighting between said leader and Priestess Mutsugi, who couldn't be more opposed to how Souma's being treated. Even worse, Igusu's assumption that Godou is dead was absolutely on the money and Mutsugi was the indirect cause of it.
• Punctuated! For! Emphasis!: The English subtitles provided on YouTube put names, places and terminology in all capital letters.
• The Purge: Mutsugi's plans for The Gate of Destruction amount to this: By opening the Gate, she can reveal anyone with Inga in their hearts and kill them to protect the pure.
• Recurring Element:
  • Those transformed into Horrors see a featureless woman with red hair, whose kiss shackles them to evil.
  • The class-divide between the Hagane and titled Knights like Garo comes up a lot. Ryuga's humble nature has kept this on the side of optimism so far.
  • Meta-wise, yet another villain wants to wipe out evil/Horrors entirely by doing something dark that will blatantly endanger people.
• Remember the New Guy?: Godou is a character only referenced this season, yet Ryuga recognizes him as someone very close; having even mastered the Knight's Signature Move. #8 elaborates on this relationship, revealing that the two met sometime after GARO: Gold Storm Sho.
• The Reveal:
  • #6 revolves around one - Specifically the confirmation that Souma's father Godou was investigating the Gate Of Destruction.
  • #8 has two: Igusu was correct that Godou's disappearance was linked to the Gate of Destruction. Mutsugi has also gone rogue for her own agenda, which involves Souma somehow.
  • #9 reveals that Mutsugi went past the Despair Event Horizon and tried to open the Gate of Destruction; forcing Godou to sacrifice himself to seal it back. That's why Souma's here: she wants him to release the seal by forcibly inheriting the Zango armor.
  • #11 ends with the revelation that The Seducer was the sprit of the very same Forbidden Fruit Mutsugi was after; having influenced her actions since the start in the hopes of implanting itself within someone. It hijacks Mutsugi's body and becomes the Final Boss.
• Satellite Character: Koyori is defined exclusively by her connections to Souma and Mutsugi. She knows Souma enough to give Ryuga his backstory and is confirmed to be Mutsugi's direct apprentice...making the clash between teacher and student in #10 all the more tragic.
• Same Plot Sequel: To The One Who Shines in the Darkness: Ryuga is once more sent to an isolated city in the middle of nowhere to investigate a dangerous conspiracy related to the propagation of man-eating Horrors; all whilst dealing with the various divides and struggles of Makai operatives whose ability to work with him varies greatly. And much like that season, involves the manipulations of a very-human villain forcibly transformed into a Horror for the heroes to deal with after their scheme fails.
• The Scapegoat: The second Horror-host of the show was a construction worker that was helping a sleazy supervisor fudge numbers for a money scam. The higher-ups catch wind of the faulty numbers and the supervisor pressures the worker into taking the blame to save his own skin. Not a minute later, the worker is turned into a Horror by the Seducer and turns on his conspirators.
• Sealed Evil in a Can: The "Gate of Destruction" being the Can. Episode 3 reveals that the Gate is sealed in its own Can: The Labyrinth of Arivis, which only the Stone of Everlasting Darkness can open. Mutsugi summons Ryuga to the city in the hopes of preventing said Gate from spilling open and swarming Creacity with Horrors. Turns out she wants to open that Gate; having been influenced by The Forbidden Fruit locked within.
• Seal the Breach: The season's premise revolves around closing the very first Gate Horrors ever used to enter the mortal world. Later events in the story reveal that Mutsugi wants to re-open the Breach in an insane attempt to cleanse the world of Inga and Horrors; Godou having sacrificed himself to invoke the trope three years prior.
• Secret Test of Character: The pursuit of the Stone of Everlasting Darkness. A capricious forest-spirit challenges Souma to a game of what's essentially battle-tag. While he eventually learns to see things with his "mind's eye," he's still too emotionally immature to touch the Stone. Ryuga however, can.
• Shout-Out: The first Horror on-screen is one to Sadako, being able to travel through screens to taunt her victims.
• Signature Move: Souma's father had one in the form of the "Flash Sword Dance." Ryuga was apparently taught this slash by Godou, which irks Souma to no end.
  • #4 reveals there's a reason Souma has yet to master it: The move relies on weaponizing one's inner darkness and purifying it at the same time. An attempt to execute it almost caused Souma to fall to Darkness and the trauma of it haunts him to this day.
• Start of Darkness: #9 espouses on Mutsugi's backstory, specifically how one of the people she saved became a serial killer and let her down; becoming the Cynicism Catalyst that caused her to fall off the deep end and try to open the Gate Of Destruction; forcing Godou to sacrifice himself to re-seal it.
• The Stinger: After the credits of the finale, Ryuga takes out Rian's old hairpiece and looks at it before travelling onward once again.
• Tough Love: Deconstructed. Knight Igusu is a proponent of it in contrast to the Priestess Mutsugi. He has effectively written off his disappeared friend Godou for dead and is convinced that Souma needs to either force himself to move on or step down and let someone emotionally-stronger take the city's helm. He's trying too hard in this regard and the show doesn't hide it: His attempts to nudge someone else (namely Ron) into being assigned as Creacity's protector aren't subtle in the slightest and his outburst towards Souma at the end of #3 only drives the boy further away instead of motivate him like intended. Mutsugi calls him out the following episode for using his dad against him and the two realize that a third party needs to approach the issue instead.
• Unwitting Pawn: The heroes have been these to Mutsugi since #1. Their work in finding the Gate of Destruction has been in service to her attempts to open it and flood the world with Horrors to satisfy her warped sense of justice. She herself is this to the Seducer/ The Forbidden Fruit, who influenced her attempts to crack it open the first time around.
• Utopia Justifies the Means: Mutsugi plans to end the Forever War by releasing the Gate Of Destruction and letting anyone even slightly corruptible by Inga get killed off, eventually rendering the Makai Order obsolete as there will no longer be Horrors. Disregarding how many people this would kill and also being Blatant Lies by a greater villain, Ryuga answers that even if Inga never disappears, he will believe humans can overcome their darkness.
• Villain Has a Point: In #11, Mutsugi re-affirms her viewpoint that the battle between humans and Horrors is a Vicious Cycle that will never end to justify her intended purge. Ryuga doesn't deny that Inga will always be a problem, but frames it as being Necessarily Evil to the human condition; as desire is also what motivates people to survive.
• Weak-Willed: Souma is an insecure boy with a chip on his shoulder with No Social Skills seeking validation from a Disappeared Dad. While Ryuga helps him ease the worst of these tendencies, he's yet to fully move past them; making him vulnerable to Mutsugi's Inga-corruption in #9. He Gets Better.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Souma is intensely loyal to his father's legacy; much of his aloofness the result of him taking the burden of Creacity on his own shoulders to make his father proud until he returns. Even after becoming a better team-player, Souma takes any mention of him very seriously and Mutsugi tries to entice Souma with this during her ritual corruption of him in #9, which gets the boy influenced by the Seducer.
• Wham Episode: #9 is the episode that ties nearly everything together, explaining the nature behind both Godou's disappearance and Mutsugi's fall from grace, which resulted in the former's death; setting up the events of the show.
• Wham Line: At the end of #8, when Souma protests against Mutsugi teleporting Ryuga and Koyori away.
  Mutsugi: Remember why we are here.
• Wham Shot:
  • Ryuga picks up the phone in the haunted office of #5...clearly recognizing the voice on the other line. The next episode reveals it was Godou.
  • Mutsugi and Souma approaching the Gate Of Destruction in #8 and seeing a statue in the likeness of Godou's Makai Armor.
  • #9 ends with Souma and Ryuga standing in parallel, the former being possessed and about to attack him.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Souma is called out multiple times for letting his insecurities turn him into an Ineffectual Loner; almost every instance nearly getting someone hurt. Igusu's outburst in #3 is where this reaches breaking point: He inadvertently implies that Souma's dad isn't just dead but may potentially be at the forefront of the Gate of Destruction's activity. Souma, already known for his daddy issues, interprets this assumption in the worst possible way and actively draws his blade on the Knight; barely resisting the urge to strike. Luckily, the two leaders of the troupe realize they've done enough damage and get Ryuga involved, who's way more successful at getting through to the boy.
• Wretched Hive: What's seen of Creacity is a city conquered by its vices (par the course for Garo): Gangsters operate openly, shady deals are numerous and barely-hidden and homeless on the streets are hazed by passersby. People are also turning into monsters, even those that theoretically shouldn't.
• Your Mind Makes It Real: Subverted. The Stone of Everlasting Darkness can only be handled by approved Knights that can perceive the item with their minds. Souma's inexperience prevents him from doing either. Ryuga on the other hand...

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