Fire Force’s Stone Pillars Arc is a Neat Conclusion to Season 3’s First Cour

Previously, we have seen how the anime’s surprisingly underwhelming adaptation did not improve Fire Force’s important Obi Rescue Arc, an arc that was supposed to set up the final saga of the series.

Here, we have the other half of Season 3 Part 1, showcasing the darkest and most twisted parts of Ohkubo’s overall work.

St. Raffles Convent Arc

This arc is adapted into Episode 55: “Sleeping Truth” and Episode 56, the latter divided into Part A: “Holy Mother of Darkness” and Part B: “The Knight King’s Great Adventure”, released on May 16, 2025 and May 23, 2025 respectively.

Both episodes merge as part of two arcs, with Episode 55 concluding Obi’s Rescue Arc (Chapters 175-197) by adapting Chapter 197: “Farewell” and Episode 56 adapting the start of “Arthur’s Adventure Arc” (Chapters 202-205) at Chapter 202: “The Knight King’s Grand Adventure”

This arc is one of the darkest in the series and the anime does an incredible job of making it far, far darker with its many changes, turning it into a horror anime episode.

The crest of the Holy Sol Temple alter as roots cover the cross that is now heart-shaped.

For instance in the manga, we see the kids eat the food and then the thought of a bug comes after the chewing whereas in the anime, it is more elaborate.

First, we see the kids drawn in pastel painting form, eating their meals like usual, then as the food slowly enters their mouths, the image of an ant pops up like in the manga.

Later, we see more images of the Convent turn real ugly.

Its true shape is that of a garden, which explains the flower-related names and how all of them ended up victims of Spontaneous Human Combustion through Bugs from Adolla fed to them each day.

Nuns in prayer are full of “white holes”, showing their disfigurement from the inside because of the Bugs they have consumed.

The anime also makes an interesting, maybe bold decision for Sumire to not outright reveal that Iris is the Eighth Pillar.

While Episode 55’s chase scene has Haumea order the White Clad that Iris not be harmed, an order normally given for Pillars,

This act of “saving space” would help viewers as they will figure out alongside Shinra that Iris is the Eighth Pillar and Amaterasu’s Doppleganger in the upcoming Cour.

Arthur’s Adventure Arc

On the lighter (?) side, we get a side story of Arthur looking for a replacement for his Excalibur after Dragon destroyed it.

This arc covers Chapter 202: “The Knight King’s Grand Adventure” to Chapter 205: “The Holy Sword, Reborn”, via Episode 56, Part B: and Part A of Episode 57: “Holy Sword, Resurrected”.

Essentially, it is one full episode divided between two of them.

Considering how less important the arc is, there are less changes to the overall content.

Fire Force once again brings back the video game format that is tied to Arthur’s themes as a character living in his own world of delusions.

With how Arthur is written, he does feel like a self-insert player avatar.

Also that “Continued?” gives JoJo vibes since Fire Force and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure share the same studio.

To simplify the plot, Vulcan has Lisa and Yo, together with others in the area, to roleplay a fetch quest for the mystical orikalkum metal to reforge Excalibur for Arthur, who sniffs midway something fishy.

Along the way, Arthur, who seeks danger and adventure for his fulfillment, comes across his missing parents.

As it turns out, the couple not only abandoned Arthur as a child but had more children in the Nether.

While the cast and story feel frustration with how irresponsible Arthur’s parents are, Arthur himself remains satisfied and unfazed by everything, reminding us of both sides of receiving parental incompetence.

Stone Pillars Arc

Finally, we have the Stone Pillar Arc, which covers Chapter 206: “Connection” to Chapter 219: “Misdeed” but the anime has only stopped at Chapter 217: “Self-Unaware” via Part B of Episodes 57, Episode 58: “Advent”, Episode 59: “The Great Kaiju Battlefront” and Episode 60: “Madness of the Distant Past”.

The Titanic Infernal’s existence brings up an important question similar to Attack on Titan, as to where the Colossal versions of Doppelgangers come from.

While Attack on Titan has confirmed the Colossal Wall Titans are from actual humans rather than Ymir’s Paths sand golems, Fire Force has yet to answer this but considering what other Doppelgangers look like and that there are only eight Titanic Infernals, it is possible they could be people but controlled by the Evangelist to serve this spiritual purpose, which is to spread

We also get to see another Soul Eater reference, this time exclusive to the anime via the layout of a cut for Kurono vs the Giant Infernal by

On the sheet are the numbers, 42-42-564, the number to call Lord Death in Soul Eater.

This arc also marks Sho’s final decision to rebel against the White Clad, which begins in a funny way as he tries to avoid Mass like every Catholic kid ever but the other members keep meeting up with him until Arrow came along, being the only one Sho trusts with his change of heart.

The Most Horrific Twist in Modern Shonen

Episode 60: “Madness of the Distant Past” adapts Chapter 215: “Set Alight” to Chapter 217: “Self-Unaware”, quite a short run of chapters than normal, but our review will focus on Chapter 216: “Ancient Madness”, where the chapter title is from.

Faerie would come along to try and retrieve the Fourth Pillar, only for Sho to intervene, now confirming to the White Clad that Sho is no longer on their side while also revealing his Pyrokinetic ability to control Gravity and even create illusions.

It is quite an interesting fight as Time and Gravity clash.

Most of all, Faerie has an Adolla Burst, being the only non-Pillar with this divine gift, which explains why he can easily clash with a Fourth Generation like Sho.

This is how he is able to manipulate gravity.

Like Sho, he is able to affect atoms.

While Sho reduces the heat in atoms and stop time, Faerie increases their heat to increase mass and control gravity.

Thier powers were meant to oppose.

The most important part of the episode is something no one expected at the time.

Inca, the Fifth Pillar, would make an Adolla Link with Shinra, whose Lightspeed could see the past, and they enter the world of the past.

What they and the audience did not expect was how this world would be.

It felt…uncanny.

Wait, it is the REAL WORLD.

Photorealistic backgrounds, monochrome, humans that are shaped not with the details of animation but of life.

And Shinra himself slowly merging into this reality.

This immersion was only a double-page spread of Chapter 216 but the anime EXPANDS on the twist in many ways, adding multiple real-life still shots of Japan, then even some stilted real-life movement in black and white while Shinra loses his detail, as if he is too much of a carton character.

And this ends with a Scream pose but without the scream.

We even see a drawing of Shinra, as if the character was conceived 250 years ago, which could tie into a later episode where it was revealed that Shinra might be a human formed from the collective unconscious’ concept of a “Savior” (implied to be Jesus Christ).

And after this harrowing, mental experience, Shinra is unconscious for three months, leading to an unexpected, incredibly subdued timeskip

Thus, Cour 1 leaves with only 88 chapters left to adapt.

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