Have you ever heard of Poe’s Law? Here’s a little definition if you haven’t, Poe’s Law is that without a clear indication of the author’s intent the parody of something extreme can be mistaken for the real thing and if a real thing sounds extreme enough it can be mistaken for a parody. Kage no Jitsuryokusha ni Naritakute falls exactly into this, if I wasn’t told like a dozen times by multiple people in social media groups that talk only about Light Novels and other places then I would fail to know that this thing is supposed to be a parody, after all, it plays
...
every single cliché on it so completely straight that I don’t know what is supposed to be the parody in here.
This anime is claimed to be some sort of parody and even more bafflingly a deconstruction of isekai that makes fun of all OP MC tropes, but the idea of a parody is to take certain aspects of a work and imitate it in an exaggerated or comedic fashion, the thing with this anime is that it takes itself extremely seriously, from the liters of blood being spilled every time a battle happens to the multiple episodes where there isn’t a single joke in them, and the tropes presented across the anime are, as I said before, played completely straight. It’s no different than watching every other isekai that comes out every season because it looks and feels exactly like them. And I don’t get where the idea of it being a deconstruction is from, this anime has every single trope used in isekai out there, with no change in the normal execution unlike what an actual deconstruction would do. But what’s worse when it actually tries to make a token effort to be irony poisoned by pointing out almost every time an isekai trope is being used and played straight, but let me tell you something, just because you are saying that a certain trope is happening doesn’t stop it from being the same thing as always. So this anime is just the same isekai you see every other season, just knowing that it is using the same tropes as every other isekai, but without doing anything clever with that knowledge, since it won’t go out of its way to not play it straight. If you want to see a series that is actually a parody and a deconstruction of the isekai genre at the same time, then go and watch Konosuba, even if I’m sure a lot of people who are here already watched that one, yet even a rewatch of that anime is more worth your time than watching this one.
The humor is bad, like so bad that I can’t believe they are supposed to be jokes, and even when they are executed well enough, the sheer repetitiveness of them will wear them off extremely quickly. One of the worst offenders of this was in episode 7, do you remember that scene in the fence tournament where Cid “fights” against Rose? Well, that scene has this joke that when Rose attacks Cid, he is thrown in the most ridiculous ways he can, to me that scene wasn’t particularly funny, but wasn’t bad enough, the bad part came after that, the joke was repeated again and again and again and again to the point that it was just a pain to watch. I don’t think that even if you laughed at it the first time you would have enjoyed it by about the 5th time it got repeated in the very same scene. Besides this is also weird with Cid’s character, he doesn’t want to stand out and to be a mob character, but then he goes and stands out again and again making this big clown show that obviously makes him stand out no matter if it is as the idiot that got beaten like a pulp. This is even more jarring to me because I later checked the manga, and while I still have a lot of issues with it, its tone and presentation was a lot better than here in the anime, making me wonder why the hell is the anime trying to be so serious when the source material embraced being absurd, as this adaptation is honestly so somber the times they do attempt a joke, it just sticks out like a sore thumb.
Shadow Garden are a bunch of non-characters, it’s like they don’t exist, they aren’t people, they are plot devices that help Cid do whatever, from gathering information from who knows where to being stupidly strong for the sake of being strong. Like I cannot even remember who most of them are, I can remember Alpha since she had screen time alone and we learned some stuff about her, then like 10 episodes later I could recognize who was Beta since she got an actual character across those episodes, even if ironically Alpha lost her time in the limelight at the same time. But my problem with these girls is not remembering their names, Greek letters aren’t something difficult to remember and I’m guessing that’s why the author didn’t bother to give them actual names, it’s these girls are complete non-characters, sometimes when they appear again I wouldn’t know who they are if they weren’t wearing those outfits everyone in Shadow Garden wear, after all, they aren’t characters I can recognize because they aren’t written to be recognizable, I couldn’t even tell which hair color each of them has or a single personality trait, there’s nothing memorable at all about them because they are never used as anything but a plot device galore.
An anime with a better execution at making an organization with only-girls for who knows what reason (actually, the reason is pretty clear, just look at the ending song video) and that turns out they are very strong too is, and I can’t believe I’m saying this given how the writing in that series is, Sekai Saikou no Ansatsusha. That series was written by the clown known as Tsukiyo Rui, the same man behind Kaifuku Jutsushi no Yarinaoshi, and it had the process to recruit them all, seeing their training and gave them an actual character even if it just a generic waifu characterization that you would find in other isekais. What happened with Shadow Garden? Well, they just started to exist in episode 2, it was only Alpha and then suddenly there was a bunch of girls that came out from who knows where, they seem able to do literally anything, they one-shot the enemies they face and are able to investigate every single minimal thing they are asked to. I can understand Alpha being strong since it was explained she is descendant from a hero, but the others? They are strong because of the slime suits that they somehow are super mega experts at using even if it this is said to be a super advanced thing just about no one else can do. If Tsukiyo Rui of all people managed to write the same thing as you but in a more competent fashion, then you are definitely doing something wrong.
The opening isn’t special, actually, the vocals seem like they were sung when the singer didn’t want to get heard by other people so he recorded it in the background of a room, and the video is simply weird, specially because it isn’t about anything in the series, as it mainly features the girls of Shadow Garden in modern Japan. I had to ask what the opening had to do with the series in some LN group and I was told by people who read the novel that even they didn’t know, the opening is actually very random aside from the parts where Cid is featured. The ending song is nicer and it is sung by a different member of Shadow Garden while featuring a pic of the girl in question, the pic is fanservicey, nothing wrong with that, but when I see the video I have to ask to myself “who is this girl again?”. The animation is fine, it knows how to make the flashy light look good even if fight scenes are lame because the MC is super OP and can’t be defeated or even get to put any effort in the battle.
I was wondering if the series would ever address again what happened in episode 1 as that one actually had an interesting set up and a girl with an actual character alongside Cid, sadly the anime just decided to ignore everything that happened there, which was the thing that finally made me drop the series to a 1 rating, because the only interesting part of the series wasn’t addressed at all, and even now I think that Nishino is more memorable than every single member of Shadow Garden combined.
PD: The best joke in the series is that the first 3 episodes are so haphazardly put together, you can start the series with any of them, and all are equally able to serve as an episode 1.
Thank you for reading.
Alternative Titles
Synonyms: Shadow Garden
Japanese: 陰の実力者になりたくて!
More titlesInformation
Type:
TV
Episodes:
20
Status:
Finished Airing
Aired:
Oct 5, 2022 to Feb 15, 2023
Premiered:
Fall 2022
Broadcast:
Wednesdays at 22:30 (JST)
Licensors:
Sentai Filmworks
Studios:
Nexus
Source:
Light novel
Duration:
23 min. per ep.
Rating:
R - 17+ (violence & profanity)
Statistics
Ranked:
#2732
2
based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity:
#334
Members:
637,931
Favorites:
14,761
Available AtResourcesStreaming Platforms | Reviews
Filtered Results: 290 / 356
Sort
Your Feelings Categories Feb 15, 2023
Have you ever heard of Poe’s Law? Here’s a little definition if you haven’t, Poe’s Law is that without a clear indication of the author’s intent the parody of something extreme can be mistaken for the real thing and if a real thing sounds extreme enough it can be mistaken for a parody. Kage no Jitsuryokusha ni Naritakute falls exactly into this, if I wasn’t told like a dozen times by multiple people in social media groups that talk only about Light Novels and other places then I would fail to know that this thing is supposed to be a parody, after all, it plays
...
Feb 15, 2023
I will admit I always wanted to be that one plain-looking guy who at crunch time managed to fight off bad guys bare-handed, steal their weapons pull off some sick reloads and headshots while my crush watched me save the day, and goes doki doki!!
There are two kinds of adults, the first are embarrassed by their childhood self and will surely cringe at the statement I made above If not report it xD and the other who still have a child hidden inside them, unable to let go of all the cool power moves and ninja signs the affinity one might have if they are ... Oct 19, 2022
I came into this series having read the manga and avidly anticipated what was my favourite satire of the most saturated genre in anime. It's easily evident from minute one that this series does not capture the same tune as the manga attempts to; a lot of the jokes, though present, are toned down or played in a way that better resembles the classic isekai 'cool mc' without any of the irony. A good example would be Cid's knife toss in episode 2, which was a really well-done gag in the manga, but is quickly glossed over during the anime's run.
The thing is, I ... Oct 20, 2022
TL;DR: This anime is indeed a unique isekai comedy. Its comedy focuses a lot in the way characters interacting with each other and how the main character thinks and behaves.
If you: - want to laugh by enjoying the foolishness, recklessness, and absurdness of a Chuunibyou "Delusional" high school boy in a fantasy world, - are not paying attention/being critical on world logic so much - enjoy a sprinkle fan service of some 2D anime girl body shots, then this show is definitely for you. [Story: 8/10 , Characters: 9/10, Art: 9/10, Sound: 8/10, Enjoyment: 9/10] ... Feb 1, 2023
People argue about whether this is a parody, a deconstruction, or just bad. Here's the basic premise from the first few episodes.
A kid with a very specific delusion about being an unkillable overpowered anime character, secretly ruling the world from the shadows trains in martial arts and larps in front of people. Then he gets isekai'd when he gets hit by a truck. He gets reincarnated into a world with magic, becomes powerful, and hides it while doing things in the background just like his fantasy. He's really doing this, and the world is played straight too, meaning the people interacting with him. The early part ... Nov 2, 2022
Don’t listen to the reviews trashing this anime based on the first episode, this Really is an anime that should have a score much higher (edit: at the time of writing I believe it was rated less than a 7). The first episode is a bit confusing, I did not know what to think at first but I’m at episode 5 now and it’s REALLY good. It just takes a couple episodes to understand what’s supposed to be serious and what’s meant to be funny, once you see what there doing, you realize it is a smart well thought out anime. It has hints of
...
Feb 15, 2023
Trap anime of 2022.
There are entries that just don't worth the time and effort to write a review on. Despite that Eminence in the Shadow is particularly belongs to this garner. I’ve made an exception with it and shed some light over this gloomed garden. Visually it looks good, I would give it an upper (7) or (8) to the animation. I don’t know however why the animation quality suddenly dropped to (4) after EP 18. Sounds, pretty average. There were no one ost that stick into my ear. And yes, average means (5). Characters, there are so many characters. ... Oct 21, 2022
After watching the manga a while ago, I was excited when the anime adaptation was announced .Athough I saw that the source of the anime would be the ln. After ep 1 was released I was confused in the way it started, I also realized that it was a little darker and the comedy was different from the manga, although I didn't dislike it.
Btw after I saw in a post of a facebook group of this anime, a screenshot of a comment from the director of the anime, who said that they had decided to start the anime in that way to show us how ... Oct 20, 2022
Yo
Yes this isn't Redo of Healer. Nothing can hold a candle to that, just don't expect that and everything will be just fine. This is an anime, an isekai anime none the less. It isn't Overlord either, it is, well whatever it is. It is good. Good. Yes. It is good. Because it is good you should probably watch this. Do recall this is not as good as Redo of Healer. However on the goodness scale it is still at 10. Ten out of what? Ten. Ten. Ten times A day I would watch this anime if I could, just like how ten times a day I ... Feb 15, 2023
Stop me if you’ve heard a line like this before – “It’s just like in a manga / anime!”
Being meta is more in vogue than ever. Ever since DreamWorks took it upon themselves to poke fun at the Disney company and the Disney brand with *Shrek* back in 2001 and became a monumentally-successful franchise financially, animated film had more or less entered the realm of metacommentary. It didn’t take long for Disney to follow suit; starting with *Enchanted* in 2007 and then expanding that into the soul-sucking exercise of their live-action remakes of the recent years (if not also including choice lines in others like ... Feb 15, 2023
Eminence in Shadow is a satirical tongue-in-cheek deconstruction of the isekai genre that’s a fun departure from the incessant stream of fantasy/isekai shows these days.
I believe those that call Eminence “generic” or “edgy” have completely missed the point of the series. It’s supposed to be over the top and cringe in many situations. It’s quite literally poking fun at traditional isekai tropes and cliches and giving us a meta commentary on them. Cid’s ambition to be a background shadow broker and a mob character at school which ironically leads to him becoming a central figure in this world is the entire point of the ... Jan 23, 2023
It's not often that I review anime that I drop. Typically, I wait until I finish a series to review it. However, this is a frustrating series that I feel I need to review but I also have zero desire to actually suffer through 10 more episodes. A friend of mine recommended this series after the Youtuber Mother's Basement hyped it up as a subversive dark comedy and brilliant parody of shitty, isekai power fantasies. Eminence in Shadow or "ES" as I'll refer to it from now on uses a lot of tired tropes and cliches. It's fully aware that it's doing so and intends
...
Dec 30, 2022
0 Points, dropped it. (Unless there is something huge I'm missing that actually makes this show good, please DM me and let me know because I gave it a 3 ep test and went further ahead to 5eps on 2x speed but it was still horrifyingly bad)
You can keep scrolling, or if you are curious go ahead and read my thoughts below: I watched up to end of episode 5. My experience is similar to most of the other reviewers in the early eps, It starts Pre Isekai, we are introduced to the characters including the MC. Get some development, pairing up to be interesting I ... Nov 26, 2022
So, Here I am embarking to write one of my very few reviews for "the Eminence in Shadow", mostly bcoz there rn't many reviews of people who r up to date with it, & most reviews I see r blatantly negative which I think is Unfair. [ SPOILER FREE REVIEW ]
NOte: The story has violence, bloody scenes r shown without restraint. So, Delve into it while expecting that. Plot: 8/10 So, the Eminence in Shadow is An Isekai. It is an Isekai which keeps true to the most used tropes - Overpowered MC, Harem & obviously the indispensable, Lovely - Truck Kun!. A Normie ... Feb 15, 2023
"In order to be the best, you have to know the worst." - Someone probably
I have watched many, many isekai, from the smartphone one, to the one with a loveable group of 3 girls (blue, yellow, and red) and 1 guy (death by the 5mph tractor), all the way to the one who dies over, and over, and over, and over... So I think I have experienced a very wide spectrum of what is good and what is bad. This is the story of the least generic overpowered main character who wants to be the most generic overpowered main character, written by an author who ... Oct 30, 2022
Most of the other reviews of this I've seen are overanalysing this. This very clearly isn't trying to do anything meaningful; you're not gonna get the kind of depth that you might from some of the big budget shows currently airing, but that's the point. It reminds me of KonoSuba in that it takes Isekai tropes and adds a self aware main character, who is constantly making fun of and engineering said tropes, which is where the entertainment comes from. If it's not your thing, it's not your thing. Don't expect anything deep out of it, watch it for the parody that it is, and
...
Feb 18, 2023
When I found this anime I saw lots of people saying it was a guilty pleasure type of anime so I didn't really think too much about it and just left it but what brought me to this anime was the "I am atomic" scene and I thought it looked pretty good so I decided to pick it up however I quickly found out why people thought it was a "guilty pleasure" anime.
1- Story Its story isn't bad though it isn't all that amazing as we have the protagonist who made up a story that turned out to be true and from that lie came his ... Oct 20, 2022
The Eminence in the Shadow is probably the biggest disappointment of this Fall season. It is really sad to see an anime failing to establish the genre it is supposed to be. As a manga, it has pioneered a new genre of comedy that other popular manhwas and manhuas have since then followed. In this setting, the protagonist thinks he is making random stuff up and everyone else is guilable for believing them, but they actually turn out to be true. In my opinion, it would be incorrect to classify this as an isekai anime, in a similar way that One Punch Man is not
...
Nov 4, 2022
(Edit: My beliefs did 180 at the end and actually liked it but won't change my prelim review. But I didn't like it as much to write a fresh review. Stop pinging me)
Maybe I am too boomer to understand what this show is supposed to accomplish in the post-Isekai Ojisan era. Is it really a satire to isekai? No doubt it is not a run of the mill isekai but where is it poking fun at isekai though. MC has delusions of grandeur, okay. He peddles a lie about a malicious illuminati to his harem, okay. But the illumaniti exists, okay. Here have this girl who got assaulted ... Oct 25, 2022
Hey Isekai fans, this is a candy for you... Pilot in my experience is one of the best introductions in to reincarnation I have seen. Mc is great, Plot is funny / captivating, phasing so far is amazing and artistic style/ scene editing is on point.!!! Cant wait to see if it can hold up this for whole season. As far as the 99% bad reviews go = they all complain that Manga is better, and for all I know that might be the case - (I haven't read it), but..... If u just compare these 3 episodes with
...
|