Tensui no Sakuna-hime

Story 8/10
Animation 7/10
Characters 9/10

The anime adaptation of *Tensui no Sakuna-hime* is a delightful, underrated gem from the Summer 2024 lineup. Based on the beloved game, it manages to capture the same cozy, immersive atmosphere that fans of the original are sure to appreciate. As someone who has spent time with the game, I can confidently say that the anime delivers a faithful experience with some minor changes that enhance the story without detracting from the charm.

The heart of the anime lies in its tranquil and relaxing vibe. Much like the game, it transports you to a world that feels warm and inviting. The standout moment ... for me was the recreation of the iconic rice planting song—a favorite scene from the game that they beautifully integrated into the anime. Hearing it again was nostalgic and rewarding. For those who loved the song in the game, its inclusion in the anime is a special treat.

The character development throughout the series is solid. The narrative may not push many boundaries, but it's simple and enjoyable, allowing viewers to connect with the characters as they grow. Each character, especially Sakuna, is brought to life with heartfelt voice acting, which adds depth to their personalities and helps immerse you even further into the world. The voice actors, directors, and the entire team deserve major credit for bringing this story to life with such care and detail.

In terms of animation, while it’s not groundbreaking, it is certainly pleasant and complements the overall tone of the series. The art style captures the essence of the world, with its soft, earthy colors enhancing the feeling of peace and serenity that flows through each episode.

As a player of the game, I was overwhelmed with emotion during the finale. I felt so happy, and even had a few tears fall from my eyes. The dramatic storytelling and beautiful execution in the final episodes left a lasting impression on me. I love this adaptation so much and sincerely hope many people discover this hidden gem. It’s a perfect mix of heartfelt moments and character growth. I truly recommend *Tensui no Sakuna-hime* to every single person out there.

Ultimately, *Tensui no Sakuna-hime* is a lovely watch. If you’re in the mood for something cozy, with great character development, good storyteling with multiple emotions mixed, this anime is a perfect choice. The faithful adaptation, gentle pacing, and charming world-building make it a series that deserves more attention. Highly recommended for those who enjoy slower-paced, heartwarming anime.

Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin - Man, I wish I'd experienced the game before coming into this anime, because it has done the COMPLETE opposite for me to WANT to play the game now.

If you'd ask me on how anime adaptations from games have fared for the last few years or so, I will tell you pretty much that's it's better to play the original games that inspired making anime out of it, because the adaptations were more or less hits and misses so much that there's no incentive to ever want to experience the games for themselves. Like the masses, I have quite the ... history when it comes to watching anime adaptations that never lived up the hype of the games themselves, but the fair few that did were CyGames's offerings of Uma Musume: Pretty Derby, and especially Princess Connect! Re:Dive of which its initial Spring 2020 season (that was right around the COVID-19 pandemic) impressed me so much to experience the mobage, I'm glad I eventually did after that...before Crunchyroll would shut down the service in April 2023 (for the global market), which I'm still salty at.

But not to worry, because this Summer 2024 season has brought us yet another joy of an unexpected adaptation: Tensui no Sakuna-hime a.k.a Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin, developed by Edelweiss and published by Marvelous (XSeed Games in North America) in November 2020, got its anime produced by P.A. Works, that's directed by Masayuki Yoshihara, the director for the Uchouten Kazoku a.k.a The Eccentric Family series, and written by the maestro that is series composer Jukki Hanada (which you ARE guaranteed to get a quality anime with his name attached) that any anime he does, is an instant watch.

Adapted from the game of the same name, Tensui no Sakuna-hime is a 2.5D side-scrolling, hack-and-slash farming simulator that's all about the rice-harvesting, supported by a cast that is as unique as they come, and scenarios that reflect the many elements that culminate in what is a very faithful adaptation towards the game itself. The plot about the spoiled brat that is Princess Sakuna being served her due when a group of humans tried to infiltrate their way into the Lofty Realm where the gods reside, only for the harvest goddess to stumble her way to keep the humans off-limits from a sacred place to invoke chaos around its passageway, leading to the head goddess of Lady Kamuhitsuki thereby banishing her alongside her dragon familiar Tama and the same group of humans to an island that's filled with demons as a temporary substitute to call home, until arrangements are made to be able to send them back to their world.

For starters, the anime adaptation is such a feels trip of a ride, adapting the same tranquil and cozy atmospheric vibe of the game, from its initial worries of Sakuna and the band of humans that she's in charge of and taking care of them despite her hard-headedness, to the rice-farming segment that just exudes all the joy and warm-hearted feelings, that you can't help but be transported into its world that's so inviting and experiencing the vibes of such a simple, but hearty plot/story to go by. Those who've already played the game know these feelings all too well, but it's the anime-onlies (like me) getting introduced into Sakuna's world that naturally sucks you in hard, and it's even damn near impossible to get out of. It's definitely a guilt-trip, especially if you're the emotionally deep-end kind of person like I am.

The colourful cast of characters in the game are many, but the main theme is centred around the series' titular MC herself. As I've already mentioned, Princess Sakuna herself is a lazy couch potato who just wants the others (like her fellow friend and Princess Kokorowa) to treat her as such, but it's really through VA Naomi Oozora that the true extent of her character is revealed to be like so, and the same VA that voices Uzaki-chan wa Asobitai! a.k.a Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out!'s main central female MC of Hana Uzaki, is, dare I say, a perfect fit for Sakuna's character who likes the extravagant and doesn't like to deal with the hard work, and she'll make you pay for it with her insisting annoyance. With the anime being a character-driven story at the same time, there may be no one leader in the band of humans, but Tauemon, Myrthe, Kinta, Yui and Kaimaru, accompanied by the island's only protector of otter Ashigumo and the enemy of their band that is Ishimaru, every character gets their moment to shine through the open-endedness of the medium, which is one of the strongest suits of the show that is paid very close attention to fleshing out the anime side of the game as much as possible. This is especially the case for Sakuna, who experiences character growth, turning from a selfish to a selfless and sacrificial person, seeing everyone as valuable people that she spent the fair amount of time getting by, growing rice and singing the game's iconic Rice Planting song, as well as eliminating demons of nuisance alongside Ashigumo, who investigates the Isle of Demons that's connected to his tribe. Massive props for keeping the game-to-anime experience as authentic as possible.

Of the 3 P.A. Works shows in this Summer season, I've got to hand it over to this show for being the bright and gorgeous, almost pleasant feeling that perfectly captures the vibe of the game translated over to the anime, though Mayonaka Punch is equally just as good, if not on a different roster being of the dark and gritty vibe. Regardless, this is a valiant effort from a studio that has consistently wowed the audience with quality...if you forget the nonsense that was Na Nare Hana Nare a.k.a Narenare: Cheer for You!.

The music is even better and matches the game's vibe with its melancholic take despite its action fantasy. It's no surprise given the experience of yet another veteran working for the show: music composer Yoshiaki Fujisawa, and like Jukki Hanada, is the face of reassured quality to match. I may not have heard much of Ikimonogakari (barring that Yozakura-san Chi no Daisakusen a.k.a Mission: Yozakura Family's 1st Cour OP is the most recent song), but what I can tell you, is that "Hare!" is definitely the pop rock duo's best song to date, and a song that, more than it being my favourite OP of the season (in a season of disappointing OPs), it fits perfectly into the show's rhythm naturally. It's the same story with Little Glee Monster's ED with the calm and traditional feels, and I couldn't be happier for this.

All in all, Tensui no Sakuna-hime a.k.a Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin is more than just a commercial success of a game; its anime adaptation is even more underrated, replicating the subtle gentleness of a world so busy with things happening left and right, that its simple and cozy moments are the definition of a slow-paced, but heartwarming show that'll hit you in the feels indefinitely for a faithful adaptation. It's IMO the best of the 3 P.A. Works shows for the Summer 2024 season, and you opt NOT to miss this one, now that the time's right to binge and (possibly) experience the gane for yourself when all is said and done.

RICE! RICE! RICE! WELCOME TO THE RICE FIELDS, MOTHERF**KER!
Most of the time is only about RICE and how to growing it. I expected there to be more battles, but no... RICE!

The anime is good especially when you want some variety and a break from the animes you've watched before. As I joked above, most of the time it's about rice and growing it on an island full of monsters.

Story: Okay but there are times where they do the same thing. And that's why it got boring, well the last episodes got interesting I would have dropped it. I don't know if the story ... of the game itself is any different and interesting than the anime, because I haven't played it. I've noticed it's been years since they've arrived on the island and nobody's aged, which is strange even the baby has not learned to speak.

The art is good, nothing to argue about.

First things first, I LOVE the game this Anime is based on, so I review from a point of comparison and focus less on character and story progression.

Tensui no Sakuna-hime is a game adaption of "Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin" which is a mix of 2D Hack 'n Slay and 3D Rice farming while containing some RPG elements like the crafting of clothes and weapons. However, as you may know Anime adaptions of video games are kinda a gamble - there are great ones like Persona 4, pretty solid ones like Valkyria Chronicles, and such disappointments you regret you ever watched it (I'm looking at ... you, Corpse Party). So which type is Sakuna-hime? Well, let me explain.

If you played the game, you will notice the producers of this Anime didn't just played it as well, they LOVED it! You have the same outfits and voice actors of the characters, the mountain pass, the fields, the cabins are perfectly adapted as well - hell, they even sit in the same order while eating diner. You have some of the comments Sakuna uses in the game like when she steps on the watered field. On plus, every episode contains some information about rice and its planting.
So yeah, they didn't produced this Anime just for the sake of it, you can feel they put their heart in it!

But as I pointed out in another review, an adaption can - but doesn't has to - be close to its source material, so how about the changes?
Well, in the game you have a lot of fighting to explore the island and collect materials, but here, they kept out a lot. On the one hand it's understandable that you can't focus too much on the fights if you only have 13 episodes to tell such a wide story (24 to 26 episodes would have been better), but therefore it's kinda hard to feel all the pressure Sakuna is going through at the beginning of the story. I mean, yes, there are some short fight scenes, but it's only mentioned and not really shown that she has to do so like every day while also planting the rice.
Furthermore, some chronological orders were changed, but not really for the better - the story about Kinta, Yui and the Crane for example takes place in the later game but here it's in the first half of the Anime which let to lose some impact. The same problem occurs within the last episodes with the drama around Tama which they cramed in only one episode instead of building it up in the middle of the story and fulfil it near the end. Therefore it also lacks of impact. Oh... and a similar issue is there when it comes to the volcano and Kokorowa-hime.
Also, there is no mentioning what will happan to all the characters after the end of the story like you had in the game.

However, that all is complaining at a high level since you have a lot of effort put in this Anime and I just can repeat myself that 13 episodes are way too short for such a wide story. That's why when I saw there will be an Anime adaption, I thought they would do 2 seasons to capture everything. So my biggest criticism is just that the Anime is too short, which leads in my opinion to the problem, that the first half feels more like a kind of slice of life and the second part like it forced the rest of the story to happen (even if I wouldn't know the game).
The art is solid and nothing special, but THANK GOD there is no shitty CGI in it! The music is just on top! Most of the time you have the music of the game, which let you feel home if you played it, and the OP and ED just fit perfect and send you good vibes - especially the OP.

In Conclusion, this adaption is solid to great. This Anime has a lot of heart and effort in it and let you feel everything from joy to concern to hope. The only weakness is that it's too short and would has need more episodes to capture everything and to keep a better pacing. But either way, you will have a good time watching it.
If I wouldn't know and love the game, I would say it's just a solid 7 and recommand, from a perspective of a game adaption an 8 or maybe 9 with little mixed feelings.
So, since we unfortunately don't have a 7.5 rating, I round up to 8 and recommand ;)

A pretty chill anime with a really chill vibe. As someone who thought I'd drop this on the first episode, I ended up keeping up with it--if only because I enjoyed the art style and vibe to it.

There's nothing particularly special about Sakuna: of Rice and Ruin. It's one that requires patience and being able to get past the first episode where it gives a terrible first impression between the character introductions and the fact that the main focus of the games, the plot itself, /the rice/... is super CGI. Something that can be a big turn off for a lot of people, me ... included. But it was only the rice? Sure why not.

Regardless of this first impression, I found myself feeling comfortable with the overall art style and the cozyness with it. I enjoy the ending theme song most of all. Most of your beginning cast of characters aren't very likeable at the start and they don't really grow on you until much later. And even when they do "grow", it's very minimal. A lot of what I really wanted to see and learn, you don't really get to until the final few episodes. Of Sakuna's actual fighting plot, the enemies, finding things out about her parents... the real meat of it you'll find in those last episodes.

Before that however? This anime reminded me of my childhood days where I'd turn on the tv and a pokemon cartoon would be showing. Because it's very much like watching a children's show and the way the character's personalities are is very akin to those olden days of watching cliche anime like that.

The anime isn't bad, but it's not great. It's average at best, and truly is enjoyable... sometimes. I'd go into this with tempered expectations.

It's most unusual for an anime to be about, and involve a topic, that the target audience already knows. A first line that makes you think "Well, I don't know how to plant rice, so that sentence is wrong".
I'm not talking about planting rice.
But this story isn't about planting rice alone, of course they plant rice and sometimes fight demons as the synopsis says, but that's assuming that planting rice isn't an activity humanity has done and improved on for ages, a span of time so long that took decades of arduous progress and development until the current state which doesn't even remotely resemble any ... of the techniques you actually see in this show, but if there's 1 thing that was necessary for that to happen, it wasn't ingenuity, or creativity, invention, progress, all of that comes after.

I'm talking about patience.

This is a story about patience and hard work, simple as that, and those themes are replicated into almost any facet of the story and characters, excluding developments that specifically occur to discuss the other side of the coin involving too much patience, or conformity, which I won't discuss because it involves heavy spoilers, just know this is one of those shows that argues against it's own messages and themes to truly dismantle them into a genuine exploration of the topic. -This is what good writing looks like, beyond storytelling and logic, even a bad story with a good thematic heart creates an outstanding product.
I can confidently say that this is one of the best videogame anime adaptations.

Sakuna's characters are honestly VERY annoying at the start of the show, they complain too much, they don't do anything but loaf around, and they actively act against their current situation. Being that 4 of the 6 main characters are children (albeit one of those a god), it's expected for you to hear them whine and display a lack of responsibility. THIS DOESN'T MEAN THE CHARACTERS ARE BAD, IT MEANS THEY HAVE A LOT OF SPACE TO DEVELOP.
I'm absolutely tired of the 2024 anime landscape where characters have to start off already strong, yes they can throw a ball 1000 meters with no training, yes they have effortlessly ridden the world of a horrible menace, but in the end, all it takes is for them to be immediately likable, and for secondary characters to constantly remind the audience about the character's supposed "weakness". Development for these characters is then forced and unnatural, where the writers simply create the illusion of progress without actually letting it feel earned.
Sakuna is not that show, in a breath of fresh air, these characters actually develop throughout the story into important roles for the survival of the group, they all get past their biases and past mistakes/incorrect assumptions. Come episode 12, I realized this show could make me emotional for the characters even with no more than those 12 episodes, because I've seen them grow and can compare the difference between their original selves and their new, better selves. I was happy and satisfied to see these characters grow with a real journey behind them, unlike the characters from most modern anime who use their "appealing personality" to carry their entire arc.
THIS is how Sakuna rewards patience. The characters grow slowly and steadily, mimicking the rice harvesting process, which is a ridiculous theme-story connection, but only a show about planting rice could do it successfully.
Not only that, but even if you remove the growth aspect of the equation, this show's characters have pretty simple yet interesting backstories, one of the characters is a 3 year old who has regressed to their 1 year old self due to severe trauma, and I think that is insane, trust me when I say that's far from the only surprise this cast has in store.

Being an adaptation of a videogame, the story is admittedly a little awkward, while I didn't feel it to be rushed at all, the plot has a lot of holes that are clearly explored in the source game and not in the show, it seems the writers preferred to focus on the great characters, losing some of the story in the process. I am more than fine with this, because as I already mentioned, this character driven show does that aspect spectacularly. The story too, is quite simple, Sakuna the brat is banished to the island where her parents met, so she can clean the island of demons while planting rice, because she's a harvest goddess so well cultivated rice increases her power. It's a simple premise and the execution isn't far off either, the first half of the show dedicates it's time to the story of the crew learning to harvest rice, with a few character-grounded episodes in between, while the later half explores the necessary steps to go deep into the mountain to destroy the evil demon within. The simplicity of the story is one of those aspects I find agreeable, so if you are reading this to figure out weather you want to watch the show, consider the story itself is simple, with the characters being the focus. That doesn't mean this story isn't emotional, I was genuinely surprised at how much the show managed to deliver emotional beats. Similarly, that doesn't mean the story is senseless, I was just less often surprised at how much plot points interconnected, tho I must confess they are often thematically relevant in discussing the virtues of rice farming as well.

We love us some fantastic animation, and I cannot say this show has "fantastic animation". I lean more towards "golden", it rarely feels unfinished or unpolished, but I won't pretend the most ambitious shot in the show isn't in the opening. It has some CGI rice, which off putted a lot of people out of watching the show at the start, but it's honestly not a big deal as the CGI doesn't play off the 2D animation too much, it's easy to dismiss it to the background because it's unimportant.
Where the show truly shines visually is the designs. HOLY are some of the designs in this show great! The main cast all has a different build and palette, which is one of the elements that originally attracted me to this show, watching the character of Tauemon be chonky next to an overgrown baby truly shows the range. Then you got the demon designs, including the absolutely cute bunnies and other animal monster creatures that are inspired by Yokai, I can say some of those design are a little uninspired, including a recurrent enemy that just looks like a Stalmoblin straight out of breath of the wild, but any important design tends to shine a lot more and express a ton of personality, that totally makes up for the mid-budget animation. This of course also applies to the general environment design of the game giving everything a pretty unique sheen as well.
I also appreciate the large amount of bunnies and unnecessary details that bring a lot of charm to the animation, despite it's limits.
I think sound is pretty much awesome. It's not the peak of sound design, but it doesn't stay short. Great soundtracks, and generally good voice acting, tho I imagine some people would be bothered at some of the squeaky voices and accents.

Ultimately, this is a show I'd rate pretty highly on characters and themes alone, all those aspects play off within eachother, making a satisfying watch that rewards those willing to get past the initial appearance of the characters, because they are an absolute highlight in a landscape where stories rarely dare to make through development without resorting to storytelling tricks.
It has souch an appealing and tranquil vibe but knows when to turn away from it to deliver on the experience, I believe it transmits the experience of growing rice through it's story, phasing and atmosphere, truly one of the biggest anime recommendations I can give!

Okay...who was expecting this? Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin is a video game that came out in 2020 and became surprisingly popular. I bought the video game at a random GameStop because it was on sale for cheap, though I haven't gotten around to playing it yet. I really ought to remedy that. But the game was so popular that PA Works decided to adapt it into an anime, which aired from July to September of 2024. Hell, the game was successful enough that there's not only going to be a second anime season, but a whole new sequel game that's currently in production. But ... this review is just going to be for the anime. I figured I'd watch this as a means to familiarize myself with Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin before playing the game, and...it's alright. I like the anime okay, but like most game-to-screen adaptations, it suffers from the fact that it's a 12-episode anime trying to adapt a game that's 30-50 hours long.

In the far eastern corner of the country of Yanato, it has been believed since ancient times that there are two worlds in this land: the world at the top where the gods live and the world at the foot of the mountain where humans live. Princess Sakuna, a high-ranking deity who lives in the world of the summit, was born to a war god and a fertility god is a spoiled brat who would rather spend her days lazing around and drinking than doing any work herself, wasting the grains her parents had stored like a trust fund kid. One day, due to some strange circumstances involving a group of humans that wandered into the Lofty Realm, she is banished from the city of the gods and sent to Hinoe Island—an isolated island inhabited by demons—accompanied by the humans in question. In a barren land where there is barely enough food for the next day, she cultivates the soil, grows rice, and sets out to defeat the demons. The humans who have stumbled into the world of the gods and the novice fertility god begin their rice-husk-filled communal life together.

As far as its production values go, Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin's anime is fine. The backgrounds are detailed, the character designs are faithful to their game counterparts, the fight scenes are well choreographed, and the actual animation is decent. It'd be pretty hard to adapt the game's thick linework and unique style into animation, but for the most part, it does its job well with what it has. Honestly, compared to another PA Works anime, Nanare Hananare, Sakuna's production values are far superior. At least Sakuna doesn't go the route of giving everything and everyone gaudy colored outlines that make everything look radioactive and a literal assault on the eyes. The execution of stuff like that really makes a world of difference in either making or breaking a show. Yeah, I couldn't resist taking the potshot at Narenare. I have even less to say about the soundtrack. It's fine, it does its job, I don't know if it reuses BGM from the games or not, but I did like what was there. I like the ending theme better than the opening theme.

Speaking as someone who hasn't played the game, I'm sad to say that the characters definitely suffer from the transition from game to anime. Honestly, the characters are pretty bland and are only memorable because of their character designs rather than their personalities, and even when they do get development, they stop being relevant after they change a little bit and don't get to do anything anymore. Now, to be fair, it's impossible to compress a several hour long game into a 12-episode anime, so of course a lot would have to be left on the cutting board. But the writing around the characters sometimes feels so haphazard that it feels like they change personalities whenever the plot feels its convenient. For example, at one point, Sakuna finds Kaimaru nursing a demon's injuries, and she gets angry and tries to kill the demon...and seconds later she's like "Nah, I won't kill you after all because I forgive you and don't want to continue the cycle of hatred." Even though beforehand there was nothing that indicated that hatred was even a running plot thread, so it feels less like Sakuna is actually developing as a character and more like the writers putting stuff in her mouth because they wrote themselves into a corner and hastily slapped a random Deus Ex Machina together. Even without knowledge of the game, the characters' development feels really rushed. I like that Sakuna is forced to grow from being a spoiled brat to someone more capable, that's actually one of the anime's strengths, but the other characters are made to be bum rushed through their development, making any growth they receive have less impact. Oh, and the villains are so generic and laughably cliche that I can't even remember their names.

That's not even going into how strange the plot gets, and I don't mean that in a good way. One episode goes into Yui's backstory...and suddenly introduces aliens that come right the hell out of nowhere, contribute absolutely nothing to the narrative, disappear, and nobody so much as comments on it, or they only mention it nonchalantly and move on to the next thing. I'm sure the game goes into it, probably, but the anime treats this whole thing like a Big-Lipped Aligator Moment and makes no effort to actually explain just what the hell these aliens are! Plus, their whole existence just raises a ton of questions that are never answered: Are all the demons on the island just weird aliens? Is the “Lofty Realm” not a divine realm for gods but just some advanced civilization posing as them? Are these places even on the same planet?! You can't dump aliens into my medieval fantasy farming show without some kind of elaboration! This whole bit was just so baffling and out of nowhere that it made me wonder just who the hell thought that was a good idea. Speaking of, the second half of the anime starts to go off the rails as it rushes through important plot points and doesn't really try to give them any real gravitas whatsoever, cutting out important bits from the game for the sake of getting through the story. For example, at one point Sakuna finds out that her friend Kokorowa has been conspiring against her and confronts her about it. The anime just has the two of them talk and it's played for some needless comedy, while in the game, it's a full-on boss fight. There's also all the later reveals about Kaimaru, which just absolutely scream Deus Ex Machina, and they're just as bad as they sound. Also, the anime has a pretty huge continuity error that I'm surprised nobody caught: One episode states that it takes three years for Sakuna and her friends to rebuild their destroyed home and fields...yet the characters are never shown physically aging. For Sakuna this makes sense since she's a goddess, but everyone else is human, and you'd think they'd physically grow up a bit, with their designs changing over the course of those three years, but nope, they look and stay the same, even Kaimaru, a toddler. Like...what? How did this get past quality control?

In the end, Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin, for all its effort, is yet another addition to the pile of middling to bad video game adaptations that don't manage to do its source material justice. That said, it did get me curious about the game, so it's got that going for it. But I recommend skipping this one, especially if you like the game in question. It's still better than the incoherent mess that is Nanare Hananare!

Game adaptations are definitely an interesting medium. One way or another, they're very loose adaptations of their game counterpart due to the game in nature being a completely different experience -- usually spending tens of hours to complete. How does one adapt those hours of gameplay into a mere four hour adaptation?

Mobile games, in my experience actually tend to have the most success. Surprisingly, the production value of mobile game anime adaptations tend to be the highest, with a solid plot that the original game might not have been able to produce in it's mobile medium. Examples can be Rage of Bahamut Genesis (only season ... 1 let's be honest here) or Magatsu Wahrheit: Zuerst.

Tensui no Sakuna hime? It's a console game. Still, I don't judge. The first six or so episodes were good, especially the first 3 or so. It's about farming on a remote island, with a main character that acts spoiled, but slowly comes to age as the story progresses. Whether it be doing minor chores, taking on major responsibilities, or acting as a mediator, Sakuna-hime goes from a pampered spoiled god to someone that is shouldered with a bit of responsibility as a Goddess of Harvest. Sakuna-hime is a great character that's multifaceted and experiences many dynamic changes due to the challenges and hurdles she's forced to confront.

However, that's where all the magic stops happening. When the show becomes less about character development and farming, then it starts going downhill. Suddenly, a show about farming and developing land and character interaction becomes some third rate shounen anime about beating the evil god. Of course, this theme about demons looming around is certainly a theme that was always behind the scenes, but to so suddenly only focus about fighting was a wrong move. You're subject to the most one dimensional villains with self-righteous dialogue from Sakuna-hime and the rest of the cast that it's sickening. Yet another cliche-filled dialogue about how "we have to stop the cycle of hatred," and yet none of the main characters are forced to make a difficult moral decision. Rather, despite letting go villains and evil-doers constantly, the issue resolves by itself. By "forgiving everyone," Sakuna-hime and her people are able to still easily be absolved of any consequences due to plot armor. The final boss is similarly boring plot armor fights where feelings and sentiments are more important than the fight itself.

Additionally, I never said that the side characters were good. Tama is good just because he's mentoring/a close companion of Sakuna, but the rest of the characters -- especially the human ones -- are extremely cliche. Kinta was supposed to be a reclusive, polemic yet perhaps misunderstood or kind character that could have been explored a lot more than it should have. His whole arc with Yui kind of makes sense, but it just seems quite rushed and there's not enough exploration into the character relations afterwards for me to care. In fact, after Kinta's and Yui's character arc, he kind of just becomes a completely different character, which is to say he becomes a nice and generic side character that never contributes to the plot again. Tauemon, Myrthe, and Kaimaru are also similar in that there are some surface level descriptions of all of them, none of which are going into depth, and they also similarly contribute literally nothing to the story other than sometimes functioning as a plot device to a Hero's Journey.

If all of the human characters were likeable, the slice of life farming with some fights and magical happenings could have carried the entire show for 12 episodes, but unfortunately that would require good writing capabilities. Instead, if you slap an already failing cast of side characters and shove them away to make way for a generic and below average shounen show about beating the big bad boss guy, it's still slop, but you can get away with the terrible writing you had in the initial half of the show.

Art was fine, probably above average definitely when it comes to character design, details, and renders, but it was quite obvious that 90% of the budget was focused on the first few episodes where the visuals were quite a few notches above the latter parts of the show.

Overall, an uninspired anime adaptation that could have been great if it focused on character development and better writing.