Mushoku Tensei: Isekai Ittara Honki Dasu

Jan 20, 2020

Tsudow

Recommended

Preliminary (58/? chp)

Finally decided to write a review on this in celebration of the anticipated anime announcement.

The isekai, which original material(light novel) is said to be the start if the genre itself, the king that gave birth to all of the majority of shitty isekais you see every new season.

Isekai, shut-in, shunned by his own family, all his friends left him though some tried to help but ultimately failed, having dropped to the lowest point that a person could possibly get. Until the arrival of truck-kun, whom gave him a one way ticket to another world.

Being born/reincarnated to a couple of adventurers as Rudeus Greyrat with ...

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Jan 16, 2020

Zoomingale

Recommended

Preliminary (58/? chp)

The first and most important thing is, please do not forget that this is a manga adapted from a Light Novel. People here tend to give bad ratings only because they do not seem to be able to read the exact same things they did in the LN.
You cannot expect the same! Please ignore those reviews.

Mushoku Tensei was one of my first mangas from the "Isekai" genres and I fell in love with it.
No bullshit harem building, no super overpowered hero, no crazy abilities just a man who dies and gets reincarnated as a baby to loving parents. With knowledge from the old ...

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Mar 21, 2021

Tsrorst

Recommended

Preliminary (70/? chp)

Until now I've never had the pleasure of reading such a wonderfully crafted story with equally well rounded and lovable characters. The world building is fantastic and carries with it magnitude by how it effects the main characters, which I've found lacking in other stories in the Isekai genre.
Moreover, the art really compliments the character's personality. While it may not be the most stylized, it really is pleasing to the eye. Character development in this story is something I've adored from the beginning, and no other manga has immersed me so deeply into the lives and emotional troubles ...

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Mar 22, 2021

Jocloberson

Recommended

Preliminary (69/? chp)

If someone criticizes me for having given a 9, it is because I read the manga and thought it was very good, the anime is not there yet
Rudeus is not the best character, but he gets better with time (based on the manga)
Eris is the best girl
Paul is a bastard who should take it in the ass
If I were the creator, I would leave Eris as the sole interest of Rudeus, but if the creator decided he would have a harem, there is nothing to be done.
SPOILER AHEAD: I thought it was really stupid of Rudeus to forgive Paul so easily. The misunderstanding between Eris ...

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May 25, 2021

DxrkWolfx

Recommended

Preliminary (72/? chp)

*Review from a web novel reader*

Story: 6
Art: 7
Character: 5
Enjoyment: 6
Overall: 7

TL:DR - Manga - Watered down story, characters reduced to tropes, replaces plot with slapstick comedy, but the only medium you can see visuals until the anime gets fully adapted
Read Web Novel for best story and character development so far
... Anime is likely to be the best out of the 3 mediums after its fully adapted

I first got into Mushoku Tensei through the anime, interested in how good the characters, world building, and overall great use of "tropes" that nowadays are very saturated and bland.

Looking to read more I started reading the manga from the beginning (assuming it was the source) and was surprised to see the absolute lack of detail put into the story and the characters. I originally attributed this to just the studio taking creative liberty to build on an already existing story.

As I went through the manga I started to see inconsistencies and was confused on why. After researching I found out that the original was actually a web novel published a few years back. After reading just the prologue, it was clear how badly adapted the manga was.

For the first few chapters the manga isn't so bad with nothing more than cut down content (albeit a lot of it) which is understandable due to it being an adaptation. But starting with the first time we see conflicts between characters, the personalities are completely changed from being complex human like personalities to watered down tropes erasing all the character motivations and insecurities shown in the web novel.

Much of the plot in the middle chapters of the manga (chapters 28 -54) is changed significantly removing all significant events in between the major plot points and replacing it with generic below average plot gearing more towards comedy and "feel good" op mc saves everyone with a press of a button.

If you're looking to read an epic on the redemption of a degenerate NEET and how he works to become a respectable person in a fantasy world, with complex characters in which the story goes in depth on their motivations and insecurities, you're better off reading the web novel (which is available for free online, i personally use the wuxia blog website).

But if you just want a quick read and don't mind the slapstick humor generic characters and plot then go ahead and read the manga.

Other than that the first season of the Mushoku Tensei anime has been adapted breathtakingly with some cut content here and there but is made up through the gorgeous animation, great voice acting, amazing sound design and most importantly sticking to the novel plot, so if you don't mind waiting for it to be fully adapted I would go for it.

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Feb 4, 2021

XEVIOUS_GOD

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (68/? chp)

This was my favorite isekai at the start, but now it's just super long, boring and feel like a big huge filler episode. Also this manga would have been way better without the isekai part. Just being a fantasy would be enough. I hate the character in his previous live, i can't relate with him and he's kind of a pedo, like jesus i get that you're horny but she's 11 ffs. I would have rated it a solid 8 overall if it wasn't for the horny side of the manga and the current state of the story.

The arts are really good, and i really ...

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Mar 15, 2020

Powerbank5000mah

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (5/? chp)

Not impressed even this is published 6 yrs ago. Like reincarnated and harem? Very cliche if you ask me. And theres no really an adult in this manga, all are mentally handicap imo. Mental age of 40 but stealing teachers underwear, kinda fuck up if you think about it. And then the harem of this show is just typical yandere tsundere,, what ever dere you can think of. I dont really know why so many people praise this thing. I just think this isekai just doesnt have any good premise, the character is blond like any other trashy isekai, Maybe because im too old ...

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Mar 27, 2021

n0thinglasts

Recommended

Preliminary (70/? chp)

Mushoku Tensei is a fun read with great characters, great world building, and breaks typical manga norms and story moulds in a mostly good way. While there are many good things about this story, it also suffers from horrible plot progression.

The characters are great. Without getting into spoilers, many of them are memorable and go through real trials that are relatable. The biggest thing of all, that so many stories fail to deliver on, is real actual meaningful progress, in personalities, attitude, and capabilities, this manga does that well. Overall it is very enjoyable to watch these characters and follow their growth.

With one one good ...

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May 14, 2018

Aidenlittlefire

Recommended

Preliminary (38/? chp)

i dont recommend reading the manga. read the novel, light novel or web novel. wb is fully translated.
but anyways, first thing is how the manga pushes about 25 books into a couple chaptes, and by doing this, skips alot of IMPORTANT details. the other part is the atmosphere, the wb successfully made a serious, dramatic comedy. and introduced the plot and foreshadowing perfectly, while the manga is kinda like, "how d'ya like this arc... what about this?". the manga is more comic and just less serious. also, i dont like the art. the manga is much mroe full of cliches and stereotypes of the ...

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Feb 11, 2021

Cat_of_Anodyne

Recommended

Preliminary (68/? chp)

I’ve read “Mushoku Tensei - Isekai Ittara Honki Dasu” a number of times over the years, and been aware of it since it first started being translated into English. I even gave the novel a read once and was mesmerised by how garbage it was (light novels, whether a feature of the translation or otherwise, unanimously have poor writing). Each time I’ve read “Mushoku…” I’ve come away with a different impression, and it’s likely due to the relative importance I’ve placed all it’s disparate elements in my mind. On one hand you have an engaging fantasy story with some good ideas and competent execution, ... on the other hand you have the sex based comedy which can be rather tedious1. Having just read the 68 chapters back to back, I think there is enough content now that the more irritating elements of “Mushoku…” don’t stick out as much.

Light Novels and their adaptations are extraordinarily inward looking – a pot-pourri of various ideas and themes, at this point of unknown origin because of how many light novels exist with similar qualities and their incestuous reverence. So no, if you are coming to “Mushoku…” for “originality” or “creativity” then you are looking in the wrong place2. But, if you are looking for a story that takes it’s story elements and gives them a decent amount of breathing room, and has a plot that is wide in scope with relevance for the inhabited world, then I think you should give “Mushoku…” a try. I primarily refer to the magical disaster arc here as I was impressed with ground covered and the credence given by the story that this event was a big fucking deal with a large impact on the world. We even get some powerful moments of emotion and character development, even if it does feel like it’s all subsumed to the goal of making the MC seem like the best thing since sliced bread. The setting does remain rather undeveloped, which may have been a requirement for having the characters travel across a continent in good time, but the author clearly has a mind for scenario and the branching impact of action (e.g. first entering the adventurers guild, reuniting with Paul, the parallel adventure of Roxxy etc…). This is all occurring on the backdrop of lore that is typical for a fantasy setting, and strangely convoluted at points, but still present enough that there is some suggestion as to where the plot could move forward. If someone could explain to me why “saint” is a lower tier of mastery then “emperor” that would also be appreciated lol…

My primary issue with “Mushoku…” at this point may be intimately linked with it being a light novel and thus, being a bit of a mixed bag. In the current arc, what on earth is going on? The tonal whiplash from dour fantasy adventure to whacky school high jinks has been palpable. I still can’t work out how seriously the MCs impotence is being taken by the story, which may be one of these things that just translates better in the novel itself. With the update speed, I do worry that “Mushoku…” will exhaust those that have a lesser interest in it’s comedic chops and want to see the resolution of the broader mysteries in the plot.

In conclusion, “Mushoku…” is decent. It lacks coherency, which may be part of it’s charm, and it’s very much an adaptation of a light novel (for all the good or ill that means to you). But when the story gets going it’s an enjoyable fantasy adventure with some quality scenario writing and snappy premise. Let’s just hope it’s ends within 10 years lol.

Find below my responses to comments made in other reviews. I didn’t want to bog down my opinion on the manga with broader points about criticism and fiction.

1. I find moral stargazing in fiction relatively tedious. While there are interesting debates surrounding this subject, and I believe that an opinion on a piece of media can be coloured by whatever side one lies on, most people do not have the ability/haven’t thought enough about said issue to really justify them fat thumbing their keyboard. Does the presence of a character who sexualises minors mean that said work condones real world sexual abuse of minors and is thus, immoral and possibly also illegal? Can context change this relationship or is it black and white? What is the readers and authors stake in this engagement? And so on with the bellyaching… I feel this is important to address because it seems to be one of the primary reasons for people reviewing this manga very negatively. Personally I find the MC gross in a great many ways, which is why on previous readings I’ve come away with a poor impression of this series, but I also think there is a lot to like once the pseudo-comedic sexual foliage has been raked away. I would also like to note for the puritans in the room that this manga is one of the few to actually represent a blossoming young romance and takes it from infatuation to “love-making” in the good old Christian sense. Yes, it’s “depicting minors” but it also has a sex cursed 1000 year old elf who apparently has some taste for pubescent boys and goes to magic school to get her fill of it... The main character also develops “incurable” impotence at 15 (?) years old after his perceived rejection… In the context of manga and anime at large, this is pretty standard for the harem/ecchi tags, if not relatively benign. If your problem is with this creepy 30 year old NEET being a pervert in his new 10 year old body (while being 40 mentally), then welcome to the club of people that have recognised this as being weird for all isekai protagonists since the beginning of time… Ultimately you can come down on any side of the issue you want, I just wish commenters would leave higher quality points about it, to at least show the capacity for thought.

2. “originality”, “innovation” and Deux-ex Machina… I mentioned this before but it is far too common for my liking that rather than attempt an explanation of perspective on a series, reviewers will commonly utilise nebulous and quite stupid criticisms and slogans that are community sanctioned. “Real reviewers talk about “character development”, “pacing” and “originality” so I will too!” without the recognition that many of these terms are completely meaningless without context, or possibly even down right dumb. After all, please find me a series that is totally “original” or “innovative”. To bring this to the relevant argument I’ve seen on this “Mushoku...” – was the magical disaster that brought about random teleportation of all characters in the story a plot device for an “adventure”? Was it valid to do so, or was it trite and cheap? Was Bilbo Baggins being the first name on Gandalfs mind in the Hobbit a plot device for adventure? Was it valid to be so, or was it trite and cheap? Ultimately your answer to this will depend, but I think laying it out in this way demonstrates just how asinine the question is in the first place, as any and all plot points could be seen as artificially created for the sake of making a compelling story. But when is it right and when is it wrong?

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Aug 14, 2021

JohnTBrooke

Recommended

Preliminary (74/? chp)

I've heard a lot of buzz about Mushoku Tensei since the anime came out and stole the hearts of anime goers everywhere. Where the anime community had voiced this as one of the greatest Isekai stories out there. Truthfully told, I was not at all sold at the reception of Mushoku Tensei, which after having read about 30+ chapters of the manga before the announcement of the anime, I dropped it. Now that I've gathered my time to once again revisit and re-evaluate this story, I have to say that I was probably wrong to have evaluated it so quickly. Still, that doesn't necessarily mean ... that Mushouku Tensei is the best out there.

What makes Mushouku Tensei stand out in the sea of Isekai stories of overpowered protagonists steamrolling the world as if it were a sandbox RPG with the console command on, is that Mushouku Tensei knows how to tell a story. For one, unlike other poor Isekais out there that I've subjected myself to (it's my hobby to try to find good Isekais for some reason), where the protagonists somehow found some way to elevate themselves to the highest level as quickly and easily as possible, the protagonist of Mushouku works his way to achieving his level of success. Furthermore, the author has taken the care to pace the story nicely where plot situations have proper set-ups and payoffs and there is an appropriate amount of time given to flesh out his characters in midst of their predicaments. It also helps that at times, the characters here have a refreshing amount of depth to them at times, notably the protagonist, Rudeus who suffers PTSD from his past life and how those traumatic experiences re-enter his life whenever he experiences similar situations in his Isekai life, and the protagonist's Isekai father, Paul whose womanising has a dimension in his life, seemingly having affected him in the past and in the present. (Paul's infidelity is not particularly well-done, however, but that's another point) I also like how the story has some interesting twists and turns that depart from the typical Isekai formula that we see today. Though they aren't thematically poignant, they kept the story fresh and interesting. While others have trouble with the casual sexualisation of the characters, personally while I do find it rather appalling, I think that if you are reading light novel adaptations and the like, this sort of thing is pretty much unavoidable with very few exceptions. Though I don't condone it and think it's really childish, I've gotten used to ignoring this sort of thing in my Isekai, harem anime/manga and light novel media.

This certainly makes Mushouku levels above the mediocre Isekai stories which for the most part are tropey power fantasies with abnormally quick pacing, flat characters and uninteresting and typical story developments. Still, that doesn't change the fact that Mushouku Tensei is a power fantasy. It is at heart, attempting a redemption story of a once Otaku shut-in who had once given up life in his original world, and is given the opportunity to rebuild his life and aim toward living his life to the fullest. While it certainly should be noted that Rudeus got to where he's at because of hard work, it should not be ignored that the very fact he was given a second chance in life, one which he was fortunate enough to be healthy, talented in magic, born in a relatively peaceful and well-off family is by itself an incredibly unrealistic fantasy where the scales weighed heavily in his favour. And there isn't anything wrong with that! Being a power fantasy doesn't make a work bad, in fact, Mushouku Tensei succeeds at being a power fantasy simply because it doesn't feel like one. It layers sufficient difficulty (though not difficult enough for them to outright fail which is why it's a fantasy) to the characters' journey, allowing them to work to grow and develop their status and place in society.

Still, perhaps what Mushouku Tensei is very poor at doing is writing character conflicts beyond its usual scope of 'I had a bad time on earth PTSD'. It is particularly noteworthy that the chapter that made me decide to drop the manga, around chapter 30+, where there is the development of a conflict between the protagonist and his father which I shall not go into detail so as to not spoil the story, but it was at best, incredibly forced, rather nonsensical even after it had been explained, and rather quickly resolved. Usually, I would ignore such developments in badly written Isekais stories, but Mushouku Tensei has the aspirations to push for these more meaningful narratives and exploration of the human condition, and so its inability to properly develop this conflict in a logical and believable manner (particularly when the story had actually nicely set-up tensions between the two characters) was particularly jarring, disappointing and gave the rest of the reading experience a sense of pretentiousness, where it felt like the author was out of his depth. And delving deeper in, despite its attempts to tell a darker story with psychological consequences (as seen with the PTSD), Mushouku Tensei is reluctant to probe deeper into its character's psyche and explore the inner depths of the human condition. For instance, an example is: *the paragraph below is a spoiler so avoid if you don't want to read it*

Paul's adulterous relationship with his maid during his wife's pregnancy which resulted in the maid's pregnancy. It's a very messy family situation that was resolved rather easily through Rudeus' powers of persuasion aka 'protagonist' skills. Still, while the effects of his adultery could be felt in the family situation very briefly (and resolved rather quickly and easily too I might add), the psychological consequences felt by Paul's wife, though touched upon, such as her feelings being betrayed, were resolved by Paul's now unconvincing show of love to his wife (as he had betrayed his wife) and were not explored in greater depth. What about her own feelings of inadequacy after the adultery? How did she reconcile her faith (she believes in some goddess of pureness where monogamy is king) after her husband had been unfaithful? The answer is, of course, love solves everything. For a lesser story, I would probably roll my eyes and accept it as it is, but for Mushoku's narrative aspirations, I find such a development too simplistic in its view of the human condition. Also, I would argue that although Rudeus' PTSD moments are at times, powerful, insightful and earnest, I think it is to the story's detriment that it did not go deeper into the nihilistic depths of existential hopelessness that it implies that the character went through. *End of spoilers*

Essentially what I'm saying is that for a story that tries to dive into the deeper psychology of its characters, exploring to an extent, the human condition and all of its flaws and glories, it really only touches the surface.

At the same time, despite its rather misogynistic narrative, Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari exists. That story fulfils a similar position that Mushouku Tensei fulfils in the 'properly written' Isekai story. The shield hero too went through much suffrage to achieve his degree of success. While Tate no Yuusha eventually succumbed to a comfortable harem, power fantasy Isekai narrative, something which I admit Mushoku is better for as it has not yet reached that inevitable point (I see you harem set-up), Tate no Yuusha's opening chapters, where the protagonist was subjected to deep hatred, hopelessness and trauma, was not only believable but deeply affecting, perhaps more so than Mushoku's briefly rendered portrayal of trauma.

All in all, Mushoku Tensei is a well-written power fantasy that will certainly keep readers entertained as heck. But, its aspirations of depicting the human condition (other than the societal PTSD that I think is well done and believable) may be superficial at best. Still, I don't think Mushouku Tensei can be called the best because it isn't the only Isekai that has managed good writing as a power fantasy. Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari fills the spot as well. Other than those, while not particularly dark, Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy is particularly entertaining in how it slowly develops the world, lore, has insightful detail with its character interactions, and interesting dynamics with the intertwining factions and how they are to eventually meet the overpowered protagonists' group, and Kumo desu ga nani ka is great too for just having one of the most charismatic and entertaining protagonists in Isekai media period. Personally, I think the greatest 'Isekai' still has to go to Konosuba to indulge in and be boldly self-aware enough to make fun of this cannibalizing genre of wish-fulfilment and casual sexualisation.

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Feb 23, 2021

POKOLOV

Recommended

Preliminary (69/? chp)

No soy un lector de manga habitual, sin embargo el anime de es este manga me llamo mucho la atención, te engancha muy fácil y aunque no profundiza en temas sociales, retrata de forma correcta la sociedad medieval.

Rudeus es un personaje que llama mucho la atención, no es el típico princeso que teme encuentros eróticos con las mujeres, de hecho el le huye a estos eventos a causa de su avanzada edad, sin embargo a medida que avanza la historia, se ve un desarrollo de personaje muy completo en cuento a sus sentimientos "románticos" hacia otras mujeres.

En general me ha gustado mucho este manga, no ...

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Sep 10, 2023

Account_Name

Not Recommended

Preliminary (10/? chp)

[More info about my review style can be found on my profile]

▶Summary and recommendation: -----------------------------------------------------------------
Mushoku Tensei: Isekai Ittara honki desu is a manga for people who believe Andrew Tate deserves a redemption arc.

That is the review. That is all.

▶Story: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MyAnimeList however require a bit more before it lets you publish a review. So here is a bit more:

...

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Mushoku Tensei: Isekai Ittara Honki Dasu
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation
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