Kuro no Shoukanshi

As a preface: I like isekai, I like shows where the MC is OP, I don't mind generic tropes or run of the mill characters or storylines, but none of those is what makes this show so mediocre and bland.

From the plethora of issues, a few...

1. Feels like watching an amusement park tour rather than a show.

The protagonist is constantly followed by the goddess that summoned him, this goddess interrupts the show every 30 seconds to tell the MC what to do, akin to Navi going "Hey link!!", it feels less like watching a show and more like watching a tutorial, any slight problem or ... question the MC has is swiftly answered by the goddess.

2. There is about zero plot to the show.

Of course it's going to get more story as episodes come out (hopefully), but at the base it's so devoid of personality that the synopsis for the show could apply verbatim to 50% of isekais. As of now, every episode out can be summed up to "the main character goes out and effortlessly adds 1 party member to his group". There's no overarching goal or ambition, nothing to strive to or progress towards.

3. Worst portrayed character growth I've seen in a shounen in Years.

For a show where the enjoyment is supposed to be the OP Main Character's power trip, the character growth is portrayed as poorly as you could feasibly do it. The MC learns a dozen skills off-screen, and I'm not exaggerating. Thus, battles VERY quickly devolve into just yelling appropriate random gibberish for skills, and winning.

The battles feel meaningless because the MC just has whatever skills he happens to need to win that battle, the author didn't bother thinking how the character could strategize and win against difficult enemies with their existing skillset, but rather just wrote some random enemies and then gave the MC all the tools to win easily, with no explanation or at least any bit of gratifying feel of growth from acquiring those "tools". Don't expect any sense of thrill or excitement, it does not seem like any battles are going to have much thought or depth to them.

You know when you see Goku training in a spaceship for 20 episodes and then he arrives to namek and kicks ass? It's awesome because the feeling of anticipation and hype, the uneasiness of the outcome, and the reward from all the effort that we saw him put in. Well this is more like Goku finding a portal to namek next to his bed in the morning, and shooting freezer with his newly learnt "Freezer destroying beam" which specifically destroys freezer-like beings, that he learnt off-screen of course and will never ve referred to again. That's how it feels watching this show.


The premise of the show could have been developed entertainingly, even if generic it could be fun, but this is just a garbage fire. The OP/ED are the best parts of the show.

Story: 2/10
Art 7/10 (actually decent, but there's some CGI fight scenes that look like cheap factory produced JRPGs)
Sound 8/10: possibly the best part of the show.
Character 4/10: generic but not in a good way, in a way that makes you want to skip the dialogues, cause even if you do you'll know exactly how every conversation went. Some characters are likable.
Enjoyment: 3/10. I don't see how there's anything enjoyable about the show, but at least it doesn't actively hurt me to watch it.
Overall 5/10. I'm being a little generous here but I think I can squeeze a 5 just because it's not TERRIBLE.

Black Summoner is...

...Basic Harem/Isekai at best, Thankfully a Good Measure Less Pervy than The Majority of The Genre. All in All there are some Redeemable Points, Though I have to give it a Just Under Average 4/10 For being just Another Filler Anime. A Placeholder that Isn't Quite Good Enough to be a Palate Cleanser. The Beach Episode of Anime...



---Pros---
1) Very Positive & Uplifting Vibe
The General Atmosphere is very Positive & Optimistic, Which is a Rare Trait in Modern Action Anime. I see this as a Particularly Rare Plus.

... 2) Quick Watch (12 Episodes)
The Action is Pretty Rare when it does happen it's Decently Animated. It Doesn''t have any Strong Comedic Moments, Though I did get a Couple of Light Chuckles out of It. It holds up Alright as a Background Show, I Wouldn't Recommend it as any kind of Serious Watch, It Excels as Background Material Though.


---Cons---
1) God Awful Pacing
The Pacing is like, How do I make MC Strong enough to rip The World in Half Barehanded? In 4 Episodes? While also making this Show as Slow as Absolutely Possible? MC goes from Who Am I?, Where Am I?, To "I am Level 50" in what feels like 30 Seconds with No Weight. Uninteresting enough to Make You Wish there was Any Action or Intrigue or Anything Exciting at All.

2) Shallow Dialogue/Characters
There Isn't any Real Depth to the Dialogue or Characters. More often than not Dialogue consists of Simplistic Back & Forths that You might see Equivalents in either Porn, or Cartoons targeting 7 year olds. They hit every single 'Girl In A Harem' Tropes.

3) Lackluster Animation
The Animation is at it's best when there is Combat (Which is pretty rare). The rest is alot of Still Frames & Slow Pans of Mundane Scenes.



The Ending is Just as I thought, (Not really an ending at all / A Played Out Cliche' that we all were expecting)
Could've Been Great, Just Another Clone - 4/10
(P.S. The Dub Is Awful)

It's On Par With...
- Banished From The Heroes Party (5/10)
- .hack//Sign (4/10)

If You Love It Watch...
- The Rising Of The Shield Hero (8/10)
- I've Been Reincarnated As A Slime (6/10)



1st Review, I Tried to Keep it Brief & to The Point.
Thanks for giving it a Read.

Lets get this out of the way, this anime is not for everyone, it's an isekai, it has the overpowered MC, and it has some harem elements to it too, if you hate those tropes, then you will hate this anime.

Now for the positives, if you enjoy isekai, if you enjoy an OP protag, if you like harem comedy elements in your anime, then you will enjoy this.
This is well made, has story elements, has enjoyable action and adventure to it, we actually have some time spent on developing the characters and fleshing them out, the characters have agency in their own story, it is ... fun, and most of all, it is actually good.

So yes, everything you want in an isekai adventure anime is here.

Now for the negatives.
There is a heavy use of CG in the action scenes and the style of the CG compared to the regular animation is different to the point that it takes you out of the moment as you are too busy focusing on the CG. It's basically video game graphics, and with whole scenes done that way, it's not good, it's not pretty.
I will also say there there are issues with the pacing, it is definitely rushed and cramming too much in there, yes they wanted an 'impact' ending, but if they saved the last two episodes for a future season 2 and spread the rest of it evenly, the pacing likely would have been improved.
It is at it's heart, nothing extraordinary and instead totally average, it doesn't reinvent the wheel, it doesn't do anything new or different to many of the other isekai that are out there, it is a solid entry, but as it doesn't try to stand out from the crowd, it will get lost and forgotten in the sea of the other isekai that are like it.

In conclusion, if you like Isekai, then you will find this a good enjoyable watch, it will easily pass the time, however it is nothing amazing, and nor does it try to be anything special.
Watchable, but forgettable.

It's your standard isekai with a standard protagonist, who isn't douchey or self-important, but loves combat.
I don't reccomend it because it's pretty mediocre, not particularly memorable even later on (I read the manga till ch 70).
If you like turning off your brain, then go ahead and watch it, it's not very complex plus the setting is familiar to anyone who's watched an isekai before.
While the characters don't just have really surface level attraction for the main character, they aren't particularly deeply written either, so of that's what you're looking for, most isekai won't do it for you (fan as I am of them).
As with most ... isekai stories, there isn't an end goal other than living out your life, battling strong people and getting stronger, and because the main party doesn't have a massive connection with the events happening to and around them, the story isn't memorable.

I stopped watching this anime Before I finish. The plot is normal, nothing interesting. The plot is predictable and almost the same as other reincarnated anime.The main character is too exaggerated.

This anime looks like the result of a copy of the anime in general. I'm sorry for the fans of this anime, but this is how I felt when I watched this anime.

I feel like I can guess the ending because the plot is predictable.

But all anime have advantages in the eyes of their fans. People's tastes are different, you can watch this anime if you are a fan of reincarnation anime, you can ... watch it if you like

Black Summoner is, yet another, other-world series. And I remain a fan of them. However, there needs to be something that sets them apart from each other. Something fresh. Admittedly, there are parts that this series does quite well though, and others, less so.

Story: Black Summoners brings us into your common MMO-world where we meet Kelvin, someone who realizes that has been reincarnated using a Summoner class. Inside his head, he is guided by Melfina, who basically acts an off-field guide. After very quickly learning the rules of this new world, his first order of business is gaining a ... new ally. The starting off point? A slime monster, who he names Clotho. From there, he continues his journey through this new world gaining allies, and leveling up character to the point where he gets disgustingly overpowered in a very short period of time.

One that sets this series apart from others in the same genre is that Kelvin is a ranged unit. This means he uses spells and summons as his main way to fight. This seems relatively minor to most audiences, but I felt like this provided a bit of a different perspective with the way he goes about his business. It's not a melee fighter or tank this time around.

As far as the story elements go, this felt pretty typical of the other-world genre and that the main character really has no idea how they got to this new world and they go around in this MMO to find out how to leave it. The story based elements simply aren't present and if not for the large cast of characters that he meets along the way, there wouldn't be much storytelling to be had. There needs to be more urgency in these types of series that makes it more interesting. Otherwise, it's simply us watching our characters play a game - which in itself, isn't terrible, mind you. Some of Kelvin's recruits have really nice backstories and even if their characters don't feel like the biggest effect on the party after joining Kelvin, it's nice that they get their spotlight with some strong storytelling there.

One of the big things they made sure to let the audiences aware of are in-depth stats of our characters - via the stats pages throughout the series and in the commercial breaks. These are really cool and detailed, but you quickly realize that they really don't add much to the story. It's a strange way to add more detail over other problems that the series had. One thing that did slow the pacing down a little was the massive amount of explaining that our characters did. I feel like they could have let the audience realize some of the growth of our characters just a little more than they did.

One of those problems? The series approach to Kelvin's party. They make it seem like being a summoner is a big deal and while he recruits monsters along the way, after the first two, they really don't make it feel like the rest were recruited from him being a summoner. This is obviously something that Rising of the Shield Heroes does well - it all feels natural. But the series doesn't link the summoner class to recruiting other members of Kelvin's party. This really bothered me because you're making the main character feel a whole lot less unique.

By the time you get to the end of the series, it feels like we've had a big boss encounter and there's more to be had, but the series just kind of ends. The series implies that there's more to come, but until something is confirmed, it's never a sure thing. Which is something a lot of anime do these days. We'll see if it continues. (6/10)

Characters: As previously mentioned, Kelvin is overpowered, and I'm not entirely sure why. The series implies it's due to the way in which he entered the world, but you'd think this would be more common if this was the case. Aside from that, Kelvin has a pretty straight forward way of going about his day, but he gets really cocky at times and it doesn't make for the most enjoyable experience. He's obviously a fantastic leader to his group though.

Melfina is a fantastically written character, both in terms of who she is, and her role in this series. It's not even that she's one-dimensional either - she is really into her role and shares that excitement with Kelvin. Much of how he learns about this new world is through her, and that driving info through her was a fantastic way of doing it. Kelvin's party in general are a really tightknit group who have the highest amount of respect for their leader. It creates a really nice group dynamic, but sometimes you wish there was just a little more conflict between themselves. As I mentioned earlier, some of the backstories to some of Kelvin's party members were well told and they all have their role to play when carrying out their missions.

Other characters in general actually grade out quite well. Black Summoner is a bit of an anti-hero series and there is an actual heroes party that is suppose to be looked highly upon in this world. That is, until you see the Heroes Party in action. They aren't the strongest group, but after Kelvin gets involved, you can see how it changes them. I really enjoyed this part of the series. Victor also opposes Kelvin's group and I also really liked that short arc. There's real purpose to doing what he's doing and gives his character much more than "big bad villain that wants to stop our hero". There's a ruling council that gets introduced a little later and you can tell that they are likely the end game to the source material. We got a sliver of what we can expect from one of them late in the series, but I really want to see what they end up being. (7/10)

Art: Oh boy. Look. Black Summoner, by itself, looks fine. There are obviously moments that are better here or there. But there are some fights that go into pure 3D and it looks terrible. At first, I thought it looked okay, but after the first one, it feels like we go into a different form of fighting and it looks so offputting. One of Kelvin's party members is actually drawn in 3D and stays that way through the entire series. I actually didn't mind this at all because it makes them stand out. That's when you can use CG. Not an entire fighting sequence. (7/10)

Sound: Black Summoner sports a decent OST with a strong OP and ED. Voice work was generally fine. Van Barr Jr. (Kelvin) sounded a lot like Vic Migogna at certain points outside of the obvious accent and it sounds decent in execution. Alexis Tipton (Sera) and Tia Ballard (Melfina) are unsurprisingly the best in the series as two talented VOs who have been around forever, especially with how much Ballard mirror's Melfina's high energy attitude. I didn't love Molly Searcy (Miyabi) here, she didn't sound like she was into it much, but this is relatively minor considering she only has a few lines in the series. (7/10)

Overall: Black Summoner manages to impress on certain fronts while being less impressive at others. That leaves it in this squishy middle where a lot of other other-world series are stuck in due to a lack of endgame vision and some shallow storytelling. Everything just remains okay and fans who've watched these types of series probably aren't getting anything terribly unsurprising. It's still a fine series, but will it continue, unlike the others? (7/10)

SEIZURE WARNING

This Anime, for the major fight scenes, is computer generated by placing a 2D art style onto a 3D frame which in turn runs the risk of animation that could cause seizures. This is also a process not everyone is fond of the end product of.

And that's the main reason for the mixed feelings when it comes to recommending this particular Anime and the reason for writing the review. Had this not been a factor, the seizure warning review would lean more towards recommended. On the surface, this particular Anime may appear to be a harem series. Still, in this particular case, the show ... tosses that on its head, for while the main character is surrounded by a harem of females, his party isn't completely a harem, but the platonic relationships he forms with his party are a primary focus. It's not just about the relationships he forms with his party but the relationships he forms with those outside of his party. Part of this comes from the fact he's turned himself into a blank-slate character as well.

On the downside, that may be a miss for some is this is yet another series with an overpowered main character as well as references to a demon lord, although there are ways that this particular series turns those on its head. Despite being overpowered, the main isn't a Gary Stu, and while it is true that his flaw isn't treated like a fatal flaw, his being overpowered is less about his own personal growth and instead about the growth of those around him, of those he forms bonds with as he progresses. There's also - and this isn't a spoiler as it's revealed in the first episode, the element of him attempting to hide his true nature from others as much as possible in order to retain his freedom.

Of course, there are also series that puts their own twist on those elements as well that can be argued as having done it better. Still, the charm of this series really lies with the individual characters and the relationship, so it's good not to focus on just the main character. As such, it will lean more towards a viewer who likes having a focus on interpersonal relationships over individual characters.

If you're considering watching this anime, it's essential to keep in mind that it falls more into the category of mid-season filler rather than a mainstream anime title. Therefore, it's best not to have high expectations for it. Instead, view it as a show to watch when you have some free time on your hands. While it may not reach the level of popular or highly acclaimed series, it can still be a decent choice for casual entertainment

*STRENGTH*
1. Now there are many Isekai animes where OP MCs are common phenomenon but this Anime is among the very few that balances the power given to ... the MC.
2. It is not something exceptional but each one of the characters stands out, have their own unique skills and much more which makes it interesting.
3. The story is also Good and does not make the audience bored.

*WEAKNESS*
1. The villains are not as strong as they should be.
2. The flow and plot of the story is not so smooth and crapy.

"BLACK SUMMONER"

Genre- Action, Adventure, Isekai, Magic, Fantasy.

Kelvin is our reincarnated MC in this anime. With his untimely death back on Earth due to a god's mistake, he is reincarnated as an adventurer in a new world, but unlike our other MCs that remember all about their past lives, Kelvin exchanges his memories for skill points so that he can maximize his new life as an adventurer.

Being an insane battle junkie that loves strong foes and new opponents, Kelvin hastily adapts to this new world. And having the skill of a summoner and a reincarnated hero that really boosts his abilities, he becomes a one-of-a-kind adventurer ... that really has it all. From a standard viewpoint, it is a pretty good anime that you can give a watch but, if you were to dive deep into its storyline, animation, and everything in between, this anime seems similar to those 100 Isekai anime that gets released every year. From throwing a shadow at 'Efil' even though she is the lead female protagonist to not revealing any of the backstories on Kelvin's past, this anime brings to you nothing but a cliche plot with bad descriptions of side characters.

Coming to the animation, this anime feels more like a troll than anything else, as it mixes the art of anime and 3D gaming. One moment you have them strolling, fighting, and adventuring deep into the unknown, and the next thing you know, the whole anime's been changed to 'Genshin Impact' with super bad lip-syncing and even worse fighting scenes.

This anime is recommended for every "FANTASY" anime lover.

Anime is nothing new, same old stuff. Weird story, not terrible but not great either. If I'm being totally honest, it's totally mid. Hard to watch sometimes, but in some parts it actually quite nice. In the end, it's your average isekai, generic isekai.
Characters in this anime don't feel polished, they kind of feel rushed out or copies of other animes. Some of the scenes just don;t fit in general. I understand that this is a show for those of the younger ages, so this show fits in with their tastes i guess. Reminds me of the bad shows and movies I used to ... love as a kid that, in the end, were only good cause of my developing mind.
Again it's not bad, but also not good. Just generic...

Storytelling broke down almost immediately at the beginning. With premise that he traded memories for skill points, but somehow still seemingly retain his personality and have understanding of concepts and knowledge specific to his previous life.

And after that we have no idea wtf he is going for. MC is just there and stuff happens. Does he want to conquer stuff/go on power trip in his new life? Nope. Maybe build harem and drown in depravities? Nope. Become popular/"Chosen One" and/or play out some of his heroic fantasies? Nope. If we use justification that he is "adrenaline(battle) junkie" that get off to battles than his ... behavior is inconsistent. He does not shy away from conflict when he get the chance but he does not actively seek battlefield. Author just do your generic run-of-the-mill isekai tropes without any purpose and keeps it as mediocre as possible.

You could argue that MC goal is the goddess. Thought, technically, he should have nominal interest in her as he have no memory and judging from their interaction so far, it is just wishful thinking that he have any goals (or desires) at all.

Trying to find something interesting in the story you will condemn yourself to suffering through this bland mess. Sadly, it still not bad enough to drop it after couple episodes if you had some hope for good story. It seems author often find ways to prolong this hope and masterfully avoid any interesting paths to explore to keep it as generic as possible.

For this Isekai the story is rather one note and passable but what has had me stay with the series is the English voice cast, I really enjoy Kelvin's character along with his summons. The amnesia angle is a throwaway element that should have not been included as it adds nothing to the plot and it feels really incomplete because of its inclusion.

I roll my eyes at another female character being a slave of the MC, like literally will any isekai hero do a actual heroic deed and kill the slaver, it is such a dumb way to add a new party member to ... the group.

My Isekai Life: I Gained a Second Character Class and Became the Strongest Sage in the World.

Don’t tell anyone this, but I have a secret, and it’s that I kind of like “Black Summoner”. I know I shouldn’t. It is a *sigh* light novel isekai with level systems that mean nothing to an overpowered protagonist, “ThE DeMOn LoRd” and “tHe HErO” archetypes, and the mc buys a slave who he unintentionally Stockholm Syndromes into loving him yet never does the bare minimal decent thing that is removing her slave collar. It also looks like shit a lot of the time. The animation switches between being ... animated to CGI that would look at home on the PS3.

Yet somehow this anime is… fun! Even though he’s an isekai protagonist Kelvin is kind of charming. Having nearly all his past life memories erased so he could boost his abilities upon reincarnation means that’s he doesn’t need to mope over his past lives baggage in a vain attempted to try and make him relatable to average loser who read garbage light novels to project themselves on other loser with harems. He's not perfect like I said, he still engages with slave traders, but watching him fight and actually enjoy himself is much more fun a character trait to watch than one would expect. The giddiness he exudes from creating stronger gear for himself and his teammates is fun too.
Speaking of, the teammates he surrounds himself with are also very fun. Sera the Demon Lords daughter and Gerard the Blackghost Knight are great and his slime partner Clotho is cute mainly because he doesn’t talk and theres only one of him unlike a certain other show that aired this season.

It is however a trashy *sigh* light novel isekai. The story isn’t all that interesting, every woman throw themselves at Kelvin the moment they see his staff and everyone worships the ground he walks on (even a literal goddess), but y’know what? I can’t help but think “Black Summoner” fun to watch. I can’t really say more than that. A lot of trash isekai has come out this year and sometimes you need to take a win when you can get it.

6/10 *It’s Okay*

A pretty simple isekai harem anime but its nice popcron fother.
I liked the personality of the mc that he wasnt a saint or someone in a ditch.
The only real problem that i have with this anime is that the bigger battle cenes look like cheap mobile phone adds.
PLEASE stop the trashy 3d animation especially for the mc.
If its a background character its ok but if in a battle with 3 characters the generic slime is the best looking there is something wrong.

Overall a nice watch if you are not looking for something to be invested in for too long and just want a quick and ... fun watch.

This is yet another isekai, male chauvinist style, low quality, turn your brain off, overpowered hero with a harem, young Japanese boy wet dream anime. It's not a rapefest and they keep the obsequious female servant fawning to a lower level, but it's no different than all the rest. Also characteristic of the subgenre, the main character is basically a generic black haired creep that laughs like an awkward teen, and is self-righteous and moralistic with a side streak of edginess and overconfidence. You won't remember or care about any of the characters or the story. The dialogue is basic and crude and so are ... the story plots. Like I mentioned before, the goal is for immature boys to live vicariously through the avatar of an overpowered, assertive, and faultless paragon that all the girls swoon over. Even the goddess who reincarnates him becomes his lover. There are no pretensions of anything more. If you hate this type of show, then you should turn back now. If you can ignore most of it, however, there are some fun elements like the magic, the cool looking 3D knight that follows him, and the general clean looking animation and battles, although sometimes they lean too heavy on the 3D video game cutscene territory.

Well I don't think many people will like my rating, but I've pretty enjoyed it.

Yes, it has really bad emotional connection to the characters, most of the progression is done "off-screen" but the fact that there is a lot of happening, still fighting better enemies while main character is getting somehow stronger is rather exciting then boring.

I'd say that if u want a really excting progression of characters or really complicated story, this is not for you. On the other hand, if u want to chill out, watch some overpower shenanigans and have a bit fun. It's definetly worth to watch.

7/10 is my rating.

this series is atleast a fun watch.
sadly they started the anime halfway in the story and basically skipped every since character building that should have come before this.
i can imagine people who have not read the manga don't really understand some stuff that is happening in the series and how they came to be.
my rating is based on the fact that i have already read the manga so i know all the backstory that happened this means i actually understand some things in the series that some people might have some trouble with or just plain don't understand.

tl:dr good anime but skipped the character building ... stage.

They made the MC look so cool and badass that it makes you sick to your stomach. It's like Kirito 2.0. The problem is that it's forced and not in a way like Overlord or Shield Hero where in the first one it was required for the plot and for the second the character overcame hurdles and difficulties to get to where they are. In this show, the character like a Mary Sue and things happens conveniently for them and it just isn't satisfying to watch, because there are no stakes and no occasions where you don't know what's going to happen or if the ... MC is in danger, the anime prepares you from the start that there will be no surprises.

The MC is OP, but again, not in a good way, but in a forced Mary Sue way and combined with the plot armor, you can't even feel if he is strong or not, because there are no stakes about anything and the character doesn't come through, he is automatically predestined to come through with little effort and in the end there is no satisfaction, things just happen, like the Disney Star Wars sequels.

Romance also feels forced and like a plot armor - one of the MC's harem confesses to him and the rest of his harem also fights for him. Also on a personal note, harems as a fan service in anime are pretty disgusting to me, especially when it's not even stated in the genres.



If you look at this concept as an outsider to anime tropes, this is contrived, stupid and disgusting and a waste of time. Still I gave it 6, because I had some snacks to eat while watching it so it kept me busy for a while, but I don't think I will watch a second season. These kind of things usually get worse as seasons progress.

From start to finish, the only thing that made me extremely uncomfortable was the attempt to put certain combat scenes in 3D, rather than pure 2D animation.

The main characters have personalities, even if at times they are predictable. However, not every reincarnated or summoned interacts with the other, showing an anime differential that is only one or the other.
The secondary ones, on the other hand, demonstrate certain usual cliches. Murder the protagonist, kidnap people, etc. This will always exist, like it or not, what differs is the narrative of the manga creator in the anime adaptation. Where many like to "complain" just to "justify" their ... time for watching something they didn't like or liked.

Even though it needed to have a little more combat (action), it was a good anime to watch. (Even though many criticize blindly without showing valid and sincere arguments about the anime.)

Kind of boring but okay. As usual MC receives unfair buffs from the start, but the difference is he then powerlevel so quickly while adding more members rapidly. It seems the author is confused whether to start from zero (like shield hero) or from max (like log horizon or overlord) so he decided to start from zero and reach max in just a few episodes. The MC is supposed to be a battle junkie but since he won every battle easily he never was in a tough spot to show that

Most characters are shallow since there are many of them and each can only have ... so much screentime, they have some kind of backstory and general characteristics and that's it.