Nov 9, 2024
"Grandiosely generic and fantastically fair" is the one sentence I would use to describe The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule the World (Hyouken no Majutsushi ga Sekai wo Suberu). Its a high-school slice-of-life infused with harem and bits of romcom in front of a fantasy backdrop. Except when the backdrop becomes the main story and turns everything into a menacing fantasy world based on magic-as-science which forces its inhabitants to grow and improve to survive.
The show successfully blends enjoyable parts of different genres together without overdoing it and as such is a very welcome breath of fresh air.
However: die-hard genre purists that are either into fantasy/isekai
...
with constant level-ups and epic boss battles or are of the high-school slice-of-life/romcom type expecting lots of shy emotions and tender misunderstandings or those who need harem building to take center-stage might find this show to be too much of a mixed bag.
Because the world of Iceblade Sorcerer really has it all: high-school bullying because social status. Self-improvement sometimes because the next challenge is so much harder and sometimes just because why not. Demonic teachers and benevolent sifus. OP MC who must restrain his powers or else everyone around him is doomed. Except when he has to risk letting loose to save the day. Tragic backstory that did not stop MC from growing into a decent guy instead of a self-pitying slob or disgusting supervillain - because of help from his friends. Naive and kind to a fault MC who nevertheless is far from being a hopeless fumbling idiot - which is why, of course, all the girls fall for him. A harem, of both high-shool girls and adults, with the usual amount of fawning and doting - but at the same time meaningful and deep connections between characters are allowed to exist and develop. Meanwhile, in the world outside high-school, the situation becomes so life-threateningly serious that even the most goofy classmates and club members become supporters in ways that make sense, or are at least fun to watch. And where even gender-swapping becomes a valid tactic instead of a mere plot device.
Overall both character and plot development have a nice balance of just enough growth, reveals and twists to keep it interesting without becoming too complicated or confusing to follow.
A similar balance can be found in production quality: art style is solid and detailed enough to please but certainly not on masterpiece level. The world and characters, including enemies, as well as attacks are nicely visualized but the action itself tends to be static, with lots of dialogue. Music and sound effects are a good fit that add to the atmosphere. Fanservice is muted to the point of adding dispersion instead of assaulting the viewer (if you're craving for more then watch the regular ED at least once but definitely watch ED of episode 7).
Iceblade Sorcerer surely would have benefited from a boost in production quality to reach "really great" level - but, hey, that's the economy we currently live in.
All-in-all I absolutely recommend giving the show a try. For the non-purists out there it can provide at least a pleasant pastime and even the purists might experience something new to enjoy.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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