WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Episodes 1-2 of Fena: Pirate Princess, now available on Crunchyroll and Adult Swim.
In Fena: Pirate Princess, we're quickly introduced to the titular white-haired maiden who gets lost after an attack at sea separates her from her father. It turns out she's Fena, daughter of the elite known as Franz Houtman and a regal who's been thought dead for decades. Luckily she's rescued from servitude in the first two episodes, but while we're privy to a slew of warriors sworn to protect her, the most interesting characters in the anime thus far aren't even soldiers.
They're none other than Salman and Otto, friends of Franz who are loyal to the throne and have spent years trying to locate the princess. In the premiere, we see them in a bar on a mysterious island where Fena washed ashore after the attack on her boat, and it seems like they're going to purchase girls at a brothel.
However, they quickly break into the place, knocking out the workers who'd taken Fena to be deflowered by an arrogant diplomat. She's shocked and wonders if it's a ruse but quickly remembers their faces from her youth. What impresses her is their dedication in going undercover as they make it clear she's like a daughter to them.
It gets even more comical when they flee, running into trouble on two occasions because they can't read the escape route in the night. That's right, Salmon and Otto are blind as bats -- even with light around -- so they stumble into their oppressors twice on the colonized base. Thankfully some mysterious masked soldiers help save them, without the trio even knowing what's going on.
It's truly hilarious and helps to balance Fena: Pirate Princess' bleak action-packed tone, as Fena is comforted knowing jokers like these are basically what's left of her family. When they eventually jump on a boat and ship off, they come across another shady island in Episode 2, but this time, they sense it's filled with allies. They end up meeting Sanada Yukihisa, who confirms he had operatives working in the shadows to help them get Fena out, and he also owes a debt to her father.
Salmon and Otto bond with Yukihisa too, but under the layers of comedy they all share, there's real PTSD. You can tell this duo knows some secrets of what Franz wanted for his daughter, and possibly why he was attacked and his crew slain. Fena reciprocates this care and caution, making it clear they'll someday be rewarded for all they've done.
Unfortunately, they're too old to make the trip as Fena uses clues her father left behind to find a place called Eden. But the way Salmon and Otto are bawling their eyes out and hugging her, we can see them tracking the ship down to join the mission in time. There's a lot of history to mine in Fena: Pirate Princess and she definitely wants them to tell her everything, which could ultimately hold key intel not even they realize they have.
Fena: Pirate Princess airs Sundays on Adult Swim and premieres the next day on Crunchyroll.
