Tales of Luminaria - Laplace Episode 1 Review: The Witch's Whim

All legacies are. They only satisfy the people passing them on.

 

To me, nothing interesting happened in this episode. It was just Laplace and Bastien going to a mine to find a rock. That’s it. That’s the story for this episode. It’s pretty forgettable plot-wise until the post-credits scene. I don’t hate it, but I can’t really talk much about this episode because of the lack of important things. I’ll try my best to still give a good review despite the mediocrity of this episode.

Let’s talk about some things I liked about this episode. I enjoyed the chemistry between Laplace and Bastien in this episode. One is full of secrets while the other is honest and always speaks his mind. They have such great chemistry. I seriously ship them after this episode. They bring out sides of the other than you’d never expect them to have. Laplace’s constant teasing and flirting made the usually stoic Bastien fluster due to embarrassment and Bastien’s straightforward personality always brings an annoyed side to Laplace that is different from her annoyance with Alexandra.

Another aspect of this episode I liked was Laplace’s gameplay. Finally, an archer that’s not crap! Celia and Maxime are very complex and hard to use. Although Laplace has her problems, she’s the easiest archer to use of the three. Her attacks mainly use energy balls that target the enemies. It’s pretty handy since it doesn’t require a second gauge or constant tapping. The only annoying thing is about her gameplay is that it takes a while for the balls to fill up and enemies attacking her can be a big hassle. It’s especially a hassle when enemies run up to her and attack her, interrupting the ball gathering.

Other than these two aspects, I didn’t really like everything else in this episode. Laplace is a mysterious character that hides more than she shows, but the episode did not utilize it well. All that was said about the deeper aspects of her character was at the post-credit scene where her disdain for legacy was finally highlighted. The rock she found is a key component to her death. She is an immortal character that wants to die, but since nobody can do it for her, she has to do it herself. Other than that, she’s pretty much an ass and a flirt. I don’t mind those aspects of her personality, however. It makes her stand out from the other female character who are more virtuous.

Bastien has a lot more screentime in this episode compared to his previous appearances in August Episode 1 and Falk Episode 1. I do like how he does get caught off-guard from his stoic nature, but I want to see more. Why is he like this? I want to know!

The voice acting in this episode is superb. Monica Rial voices Laplace here. If you are a Tales fan, you should know that Rial was in Berseria as Seres and Bienfu. YES, THE ANNOYING NORMIN WITH THE TOP HAT HAS THE SAME VA AS LAPLACE! Another voice actor fact is that her Japanese voice actress has also played a Tales character. I don’t believe she was credited, but Laplace’s Japanese voice actress, Umeka Shouji voiced Penelope in Crestoria. Isn’t that cool?

Christopher Sabat voices Bastien here. He does a good job here; so does his Japanese voice actor, Ryota Takeuchi. While Bastien spoke a few words in previous appearances, I do like how he speaks longer lines here. It gives him depth and makes him less robotic too.

I apologize if this review is short. This episode is not really interesting, so I didn’t have much to talk about. I’ll probably forget that this episode happened after some time passed. This was more of an episode that brought in more questions than answers and none of them are going to get one. All that came out of this episode is me shipping Bastplace? Lapstien? I will die for this ship.

Tales of Luminaria
Tales of LuminariaTales of Luminaria is an upcoming Tales of Series original title for iOS and Android released November 2021. The game was first announced during Gamescom Opening Night Live. Unlike the recent Tales mobile games, Luminaria has been reported to have its own original world with only original characters and no previous Tales characters, as well as an English dub. Unfortunately, the game has announced termination of service worldwide on July 19, 2022.

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About Grace 71 Articles
Grace is an aspiring novelist currently rewriting her novel for the umpteenth time. When not writing or playing Tales games, she stares at her laptop for hours, ruining her eyes in the process, and watching anime and Let's plays. She is also VERY scatterbrained.
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