Princess Principal Episode 3 (Review)

By: EyeSpyeAlexI'm back with this week’s latest episode of Princess Principal! This week provides us with less back story, and more spy missions. For that, I am eternally grateful. While I do love a good backstory, I love acts of espionage more. Missed my review of the first two episodes? Catch it here!The main focus of the episode is to retrieve a set of Commonwealth currency plates from an Albion   plane. The Duke of Normandy plans on using the plates to create excess currency to cause an economic disaster in the Commonwealth. Dorothy and Ange are tasked with retrieving the plates. The two use the Princess to gain access to the plane, and Beatrice tags along to keep the Princess safe.Both Beatrice and Ange end up on the plane to retrieve the plates. As they search, the two must rely on each other to keep the other safe. For Ange, this means saving Beatrice from drowning. For Beatrice, this means manipulating her voice to have the guards leave the area the two are trapped in. Together, the duo reach an understanding and acceptance of the other.For a spy show, there's a big focus on romance. Both Beatrice and Ange have feelings for Princess Charlotte. This becomes obvious to the both of the, by the end of the episode. However, there's no sense of competition, and no declarations of winning the Princess’s heart. Additionally, the Princess ignoring Ange’s pleas to run away together is a sure sign of a one-sided infatuation. It was refreshing to see a relationship not end with a competition, and to see the crushes normalized and not fetishized. Hopefully the Princess isn't a heart breaker and someone ends up happy.On top of the spy action and romance, we also got to see some steampunk style! Beatrice’s special ability that allows her voice to change is due to a mechanical voice box. Her father - a typical mad scientist - decided that the best way to test his inventions was on his family. While it resulted in a sweet ability for Beatrice, it also led to years of bullying. My hope is that after Ange and Dorothy continued to treat her like a normal girl, Beatrice will come out of her shell. It would be cool to see her embrace her ability and become a spy.Princess Principal continues to exceed all expectations I have for it. Each week it's had an interesting episode, great plot twists, and realistic characters. I am excited to see how this show progresses.New episodes of Princess Principal stream on Saturdays on Anime Strike.[yasr_multiset setid=11]