Where the bug spray when you need it
Operation Capture Baba Yaga Castle arc is the fourteenth story arc in Soul Eater. Though both arcs happen within the anime and manga, the various events that comes after differ. , A small force comprised of DWMA students and Medusa's Faction infiltrate Baba Yaga Castle in order to assassinate Arachne and rescue their Kim, Jacqueline, and Crona. And the leading woman of the operation is: Medusa.In the anime, Death Weapon Meister Academy comes head-to-hand with Arachnophobia in a large scale battle in order to capture Asura. Meanwhile, Kid learns of Death's true intent with the demon tools and Medusa is locked into battle with Maka, Soul, Marie, and Crona as they battle to save a maddening Stein from her control.
"Operation Capture Baba Yaga Castle Arc" contains exmaples of:
- Berserk Button: Crona turns out to be this for Maka, as Arachne and Medusa find out:
- Arachne sees this in the manga as Maka goes in the mission to Baba Yage Castle to rescue Crona when she was told she kidnapped them (Spoiler: it was really Medusa)
- Medusa sees this in the anime when she tries to kill Maka, only for Crona to Taking the Bullet for her, making her mad enough to lose her mind to the black blood.
- Calling the Old Man Out: In the anime, Crona stands up to Medusa, telling her that they are done following her orders, mother or no, they are not going to hurt and betray their friends any more.
- Campfire Character Exploration: Crona and Marie share a scene around a campfire as they're on their way to find Medusa and Stein. Marie reveals that she still hasn't entirely forgiven Crona for tricking her into drinking Medusa's snakes so that Stein's madness is accelerated, and she's waiting until she makes sure that Stein is safe. (she later regrets saying this though)
- Cooldown Hug: Marie gives one to Stein after bringing him out of the madness via her healing wavelength
- Defiant to the End: in the anime, when medusa is finished off for good (maybe) by maka's genie hunter move, she says that the move may have been enough for her, but never enough for the kishin
- Dies Differently in Adaptation: Medusa was killed off by crona as part of her lan to make them the ultimate weapon. in the anime she was killed by maka's genie hunter the end credits of the final episode imply even then she might have survived despite she herself saying that she most likely couldn't survive being destoryed like that again after releasing the kishin
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: Crona gets this in the anime when they take a killing blow for Maka as she holds them ever so gently. Thankfully they survive and are given the surgery they needed from the wound by Stein later on.
- Deal with the Devil: Wicked Witch in this case. Medusa comes to the DWMA and surrenders to make a deal with to take out Arachne, giving them BREW to show that she can be trusted. In the anime she does this to get both sides of the conflict to destroy each other, in the manga she does this to take down Arachne so she can get her out of the way of her own plans as well as steal her body for herself, all while claiming she was only trying to get Crona back.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Medusa claims that she still loves Crona and doesn't want her child to be hurt by Arachne. Subverted as it turns out she herself kidnapped Crona and only lied to get the DWMA, especially Maka, to help her kill Arachne, her own 'sister', to steal her body for herself.
- Enemy Civil War: Medusa and Arachne have had a rivalry going on for centuries and Medusa and her followers will help the DWMA if it means Arachne will suffer
- Evil vs. Evil: Medusa vs Arachne, Wicked Witch vs Wicked Witch
- Heroic Sacrifice: Crona save Maka from a killing strike from Medusa at the cost of getting hit themselves in the anime. They got better, but its the thought that counts.
- History Repeats Itself: Medusa in the past is implied to have betrayed Arachne to Lord death, most likely because her experiments to create weapons had her sacrificing her own kind, leading to her hiding in the oldest golem in the first place. In the present she is betraying her again, this time to the DWMA, to steal her body for herself.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Arachne in both the anime and the manga;
- In the Anime, Her plan to make Asura fall in love with her works too well since Asura rushes to kill her as soon as he realizes that he cares about her.
- In the manga Soul uses her own madness-spreading web to cast the anti-madness wavelength and nullify her powers.
- Hour Glass Plot: When Maka and Crona first met in a church in Italy, they were fighting against her, gravely injured Soul, and then Stein armed with a death scythe parent (Spirit), came to save them from Crona and then Medusa so Soul can get the surgery he needs. In the Anime, Crona is the one who takes the killing blow to save Maka, and Stein (once brought out of the madness) wields another death scythe parent (Marie, who is a Parental Substitute to Crona), to save Crona from Medusa so they can get the surgery they need. Full circle, right there.
- Bonus points for Spirit and Marie being somewhat foils to each other and Medusa, see character page on death scythes for further details.
- Extra bonus points for Soul and Crona both being foils as well. Soul being more confident and laid back, and Crona being more nervous and withdrawn, yet both are completely devoted to Maka as she is to both of them.
- Hypocrite: In the anime, Medusa tries to point out how awful it is that Crona wants to kill their own mother when she herself betrayed Arachne, her own sister, twice now, hoping for her death at either the DWMA's hands or Asura's hands
- I Lied: Pretty much how Medusa cons Maka into killing Arachne to steal her body for herself
- Mama Bear:
- In the Manga; Medusa claimed that she only helping the DWMA take down Arachne to rescue Crona claiming they were kidnapped by her. She lied, unsuprisingly, as she kidnapped Crona herself.
- In the Anime; Marie plays this strait, becoming more worried for Crona's sake in the battle against Medusa, despite claiming she would only trust them after rescuing Stein, even going after Medusa after she said she would kill them. She and Medusa really are polar opposites.
- Mind Rape: Her Insanity Attack. By blasting others' minds with insanity, she took out Medusa in one blow and almost gained control over Soul (until Maka snapped him out of it).
- Offing the Offspring: In the anime, medusa tries to kill Maka, but instead almost kills crona due to them Taking the Bullet for her. She shows no real remorse or concern, even surprised that crona would die trying to save anyone.
- Only Mostly Dead: in the anime, Crona protects Maka from medusa's killing strike, getting skewered themselves. Stein after regaining his sainity, states that Crona's soul is faint but not quite gone yet and can still be saved
- Rage Breaking Point: Medusa has always been a great Arch-Enemy to Maka for some time due to freeing Asura, creating the black blood, and torturing Crona to the point of driving them insane, but seeing her 'kill' Crona when they pushed her out of the way of a finishing blow from her, finally makes her mad enough for the black blood to make her lose her sanity. This is the angriest Maka has ever been in the whole series, which is saying something since Maka basically has a Hair-Trigger Temper already.
- Rejected Apology: Marie doesn't accept Crona's apology due to Steins disapearance in the anime, but does say that maybe someday but now right now, and decides to go with them to rescue Stein as she doesn't trust them with something that important. she later on comes to regret being so harsh after the battle with medusa was over and Crona got severely injured protecting Maka
- Rescue Arc: the main motivation for Maka and Medusa is to rescue Crona from Arachne. Medusa was lying, but Maka was sincere. In the anime she also does this for Crona, only to help them and Marie defeat Medusa and bring Stein back.
- Sanity Slippage: Maka goes through this a lot quicker than most examples. Being driven to her Rage Breaking Point by seeing Medusa 'murder' Crona, the black blood quickly starts to take over her mind and Souls by extension. Were it not for Marie interfering, Maka would have been lost to the madness forever. (yet another reason why Maka is shipped with Crona, nothing else in the series ever made her mad enough to lose her sanity)
- Say My Name: Maka does this in the anime, when joining Marie and Crona in their battle against Medusa and a crazed Stein.
- Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: both Maka and Marie do this in the anime, marie to rescue stein when he runs away with Medusa as he falls into madness and Maka to save crona when they volunteer to go after Stein as well. Marie also does this in the manga, as does Spirit, Nigus, and Sid when they are ordered to arrest Stein when he is suspected of murdering Joe Buttataki.
- Shut Up, Hannibal!: Marie in the anime tells this straight to Medusa, having had enough of her lies.
- Taking the Bullet: Crona does this for Maka in the anime when Medusa is about to attack her. They then die, sort of.
- True Companions:
- Spirit, Nigus, Marie, and Sid all defy lord deaths orders to arrest him and allow Stein and Marie to leave death city to investigate who joe's real killer is to clear his name.
- In the anime; Maka decides to go after Medusa to help Crona and Marie rescue Stein from Medusa's control.
- Unstoppable Rage: Maka goes through this after Crona 'dies' to save her from Medusa's killing strike in the anime. She almost falls into madness from all the rage, being madder than she has ever been in the anime, or even the entire franchise. She most likely would have stayed in the madness if not for Marie using her healing wavelength on both Maka and Stein.
- Wizard Duel: Medusa and Arachne were set up for this, only for Medusa to be completely outclassed as Arachne makes herself one with madness. thankfully Maka steps in to beat her with Genie Hunter, a move that targets evil which arachne can't defend from in her current form.
- Villainous Breakdown: In the anime, when Marie brings Stein out of the madness, she starts attacking wildly and begins to panic.
