Ousama Ranking: Yuuki no Takarabako

It's the return of the sign language Prince Bojji the GOAT once again! Just not what you expect from this time...

I mean clearly, the main parent story that aired and lasted for a consecutive 2-cour between Fall 2021 and Winter 2022 to really rush the manga (because of its chapters which are filled with short panels), it was, and still is to this day, in my opinion, a triumph to Wit Studio and the staff under then-debut director Yousuke Hatta's dedication, in terms of capturing mangaka Sousuka Toka's childlike storytelling that has everyone captivated and cheering on the underdog of one of the most underappreciated, ... to a master juggernaut of a show back in its day. And now, there is a new Ousama Ranking anime, and you should rejoice...right? However, it's just not in the same wavelength as you would expect, but I reassure you, it's the same Ousama Ranking that you like and/or love from the main series.

The new anime, dubbed Ousama Ranking: Yuuki no Takarabako a.k.a Ranking of Kings: The Treasure Chest of Courage, it's not Season 2, but the adaptation of the culmination of the manga's side stories. Basically what that means that this show is a direct canon to the main series and provides kind of a "behind-the-scenes" look on how and why do the characters in this show think and do the way they did in the main series. In a TL;DR sense, it allures and showcases the same expectations from the main series that does not feel like its presence has shrunk ever since the year's gap between the parent story and this "spin-off filler" series. And it is to my eyes, a great addition that's akin to a cake's in-between icing that adds more flavour and substance to an otherwise great show to begin with. As an example, for one, getting to understand what's on the characters' minds and psyche of the things they do at the moment of the main story's worldbuilding and development, it just simply oozes fascination, more than just questions and answers to an already subtle plot.

That said, Wit Studio under director Yousuke Hatta comes back to wield the side story anime, and it's still pretty much Ousama Ranking under the shell, with all of the fascinating artwork and choices of animation that impresses the same way, just like its main cousin. And while Aimer's ED is just plain beautiful to listen to, PEOPLE 1's OP is just fine, not on the levels of Season 1's OP maestros of King Gnu and Vaundy, but decently good.

If you like Ousama Ranking to begin with, I don't see why this show isn't as good as the main series already is. It's additional fuel for entertainment, and this IS good entertainment while we wait for the eventual Season 2 (if there will be any once the manga has caught up to the anime and progressed further).

Good stuff all around.

This is a tough one. Ranking of Kings itself is one of my favorite anime of all time; but it was noticeable from the first episode that this was not the same. It jumps from side character to side character, and plotline to plotline, rarely ever giving the viewer anything relevant to what made the first season special. There were a few genuinely great episodes thrown in here that continued the plot or supplied important context, but there was a large amount of pointless filler, as well. I almost dropped this at one point.

A better idea than making this a full pseudo-season would have been ... to make a special or two where they included the good ideas that they clearly had, and eliminated half-baked and fillery ones. It would have made it look a lot less like they were just trying to throw anything out there to tide us over until the true season two.

Ooofie, I think that's a very effective way to describe how this 10 episode collection of Ousama Ranking related side stories comes off as; While it can be really enjoyable to spend some more time with the characters outside the drama and plot of the parent series, it really had me wondering… “Why”?
Why did this need to happen?, were people so starved for Ousama Ranking content that 10 episodes of random shenanigans that happened off-screen was really worth our time? The answer is no. A BIG no.

This is NOT season 2 of Ousama Ranking, so don't get discouraged from watching the main show over ... this spin-off's rating or reviews.

So it's a 10 episode journey through different moments of the show, mostly on what happened alongside those moments. Which range from showing us how Ouken, a mayor villain of the show's first season, came to be, to episodes where the entire show's continuity and established world are disregarded to tell cute and wholesome stories. The problem is; these stories do NOTHING, they don't change how decisions the characters make come off, don't give any more information about a character's motivations or background, and it doesn't have anything to say about the world. It occasionally does one of these, yes, but it's rare and won't be likely to really affect the main show in the long run.

Couldn't we have gotten a look at the broader Ousama ranking world? Other kingdoms or characters who won't get as fleshed out in the manga series or the anime? New original stories? When it doesn't work, it feels like a wasted opportunity to really get into many interesting topics of the series, instead, it's just reestablishing things we've already seen. And when it works, it's not telling anything too new, just expanding on old ideas again.

The Characters? None get arcs because there is no overarching plot. This also makes all of them less appealing.
The Animation? Not as clean as the main show's because they evidently have less budget and fights hint at conflict, which this spin-off avoids at all costs.
The Music? Uninteresting.

If you're a certified Ousama Ranking enjoyer like me, check out the show with freedom to skip any story you don't care about, you'll miss nothing on almost every story told here. You'll like this show more than the average person if the flowers and spice and the everything nice is enjoyable to you.

If you just like ousama ranking or lower, then skip this, it won't be worthwhile.