HannahCN
Well-known member
So, I just finished the Rising of the Shield Hero, and boy was it a good trip.
First off, yes, it's an isekai, and yes, it has isekai tropes. The story starts in an extremely isekai (which I might as well start using as an adjective in this review) manner, where Naofumi is whisked away to a fantasy world upon finding a mysterious book in the library. Said world has mysterious creatures, incredible magic, and pretty girls.
But this is the starting point for nearly any isekai these days. I've watched a lot of them, and I've found that 'isekai' has become less of a general genre and more like a way to start off an anime - after that, it all depends on what you do with it. And very certainly, a lot of isekai have done a lot of different things with it. KonoSuba and Kemono Michi (same writer, so I'll group them together) had a world that was tropey as hell, but to date I've not laughed harder with any isekai, perhaps any anime. Gate tried to explore what would happen 'for real' if our world were to discover a true isekai world and be able to access it, and while it perhaps didn't always do the best job of it, it was certainly a novel concept, which made it a lot more enjoyable than it would have been if it were any other isekai. Ascendance of a Bookworm tuned down the conflict almost completely, and ran with sweet instead. And I could continue on and on. Of course, there are other isekai that just relied on the popularity of the trope and were not nearly as enjoyable (looking at you, Cautious Hero, and your good ending only excused some of it). So, with all of that being said, what is Shield Hero's 'thing'? Why should you watch it instead of another of the admittedly many , many isekai out there?
First off, for the largest part of the show, our main character Naofumi is *not* a lauded hero. He isn't regarded fondly by friend and foe as a savior or the prophesied hero, rather he is a despised outcast. He is looked down upon by lords and peasants, he isn't offered any aid whatsoever, and no one wants to have anything to do with him - to the point where the nation's church believes him to be a literal devil. Coupled with the fact that being unable to use any weapons except for shields due to being the Shield Hero, he can't even defeat any monsters to get stronger.
This brings us to the second part of Shield Hero I really liked: it is not afraid to get a little rough at times. It features slavery, racism, executions, religious wars and torture, and it gets downright uncomfortable with it at times. Mind, this isn't how the show is at all times, but they're driving elements of a pretty well-thought out larger story that is, admittedly, mostly character-driven.
So I am saying this show is perfect? Of course not. While I can't point to anything that was specifically 'bad' about it, it uses a lot of isekai tropes as crutches, and so if these bother you in other shows, these will bother you here. There's nothing really special about the magic and skill system - what uniqueness it has in that aspect comes from the fact that Naofumi is the shield hero and relies largely on his allies to win his victories. Does it have a harem? Why yes it does! No they're not a bunch of lolis who are all fighting for the MC's affection (not all are even romantically interested in him), but there are several female characters throughout the show who all have some form of affection / interest for Naofumi.
But these are things which are pretty much standard to any isekai. Rare is the isekai who doesn't rely on *some* of these tropes, and when it doesn't, we get stand-outs like Youjo Senki / Saga of Tanya the Evil (which, admittedly, had some other faults).
So should you watch Rising of the Shield Hero? It all depends on what you want. It's a really great isekai, but tbh, if isekai is not something you enjoy, maybe look elsewhere. In my own rating system, I'd rate it a 7, possibly 7 & 1/2.
A final note: Rising of the Shield Hero is not actually complete. A second and even a third season are almost certain from what I've heard, but it ends at a nice break point where the characters get some rest and look to the future. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Well, it's... not complete. But on the other hand, nothing was rushed either. So you make the call.
To all going to watch this (and in the end, I do kinda recommend you do): enjoy!
First off, yes, it's an isekai, and yes, it has isekai tropes. The story starts in an extremely isekai (which I might as well start using as an adjective in this review) manner, where Naofumi is whisked away to a fantasy world upon finding a mysterious book in the library. Said world has mysterious creatures, incredible magic, and pretty girls.
But this is the starting point for nearly any isekai these days. I've watched a lot of them, and I've found that 'isekai' has become less of a general genre and more like a way to start off an anime - after that, it all depends on what you do with it. And very certainly, a lot of isekai have done a lot of different things with it. KonoSuba and Kemono Michi (same writer, so I'll group them together) had a world that was tropey as hell, but to date I've not laughed harder with any isekai, perhaps any anime. Gate tried to explore what would happen 'for real' if our world were to discover a true isekai world and be able to access it, and while it perhaps didn't always do the best job of it, it was certainly a novel concept, which made it a lot more enjoyable than it would have been if it were any other isekai. Ascendance of a Bookworm tuned down the conflict almost completely, and ran with sweet instead. And I could continue on and on. Of course, there are other isekai that just relied on the popularity of the trope and were not nearly as enjoyable (looking at you, Cautious Hero, and your good ending only excused some of it). So, with all of that being said, what is Shield Hero's 'thing'? Why should you watch it instead of another of the admittedly many , many isekai out there?
First off, for the largest part of the show, our main character Naofumi is *not* a lauded hero. He isn't regarded fondly by friend and foe as a savior or the prophesied hero, rather he is a despised outcast. He is looked down upon by lords and peasants, he isn't offered any aid whatsoever, and no one wants to have anything to do with him - to the point where the nation's church believes him to be a literal devil. Coupled with the fact that being unable to use any weapons except for shields due to being the Shield Hero, he can't even defeat any monsters to get stronger.
This brings us to the second part of Shield Hero I really liked: it is not afraid to get a little rough at times. It features slavery, racism, executions, religious wars and torture, and it gets downright uncomfortable with it at times. Mind, this isn't how the show is at all times, but they're driving elements of a pretty well-thought out larger story that is, admittedly, mostly character-driven.
So I am saying this show is perfect? Of course not. While I can't point to anything that was specifically 'bad' about it, it uses a lot of isekai tropes as crutches, and so if these bother you in other shows, these will bother you here. There's nothing really special about the magic and skill system - what uniqueness it has in that aspect comes from the fact that Naofumi is the shield hero and relies largely on his allies to win his victories. Does it have a harem? Why yes it does! No they're not a bunch of lolis who are all fighting for the MC's affection (not all are even romantically interested in him), but there are several female characters throughout the show who all have some form of affection / interest for Naofumi.
But these are things which are pretty much standard to any isekai. Rare is the isekai who doesn't rely on *some* of these tropes, and when it doesn't, we get stand-outs like Youjo Senki / Saga of Tanya the Evil (which, admittedly, had some other faults).
So should you watch Rising of the Shield Hero? It all depends on what you want. It's a really great isekai, but tbh, if isekai is not something you enjoy, maybe look elsewhere. In my own rating system, I'd rate it a 7, possibly 7 & 1/2.
A final note: Rising of the Shield Hero is not actually complete. A second and even a third season are almost certain from what I've heard, but it ends at a nice break point where the characters get some rest and look to the future. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Well, it's... not complete. But on the other hand, nothing was rushed either. So you make the call.
To all going to watch this (and in the end, I do kinda recommend you do): enjoy!
