Slime Time Live is set-up as the typical Isekai power fantasy, where an audience stand in dies so he can be reincarnated into a magical land where his total loserdom is actually a source of immense power (along with his literal immense power). I've seen a few criticisms of this show just stop at this description, as if that alone is damning, and I think that's the wrong way to approach this enterprise. To paraphrase Roger Ebert, "A show is not about what it is about. It is about how it is about it."
And the how is the crucial thing, because Slime Time Live (at least in the beginning) uses the basic Isekai foundations and hits the beats well without taking itself too seriously. While the show dips its toes in the drama well (to admittedly so-so results), it generally keeps its tone light and even tongue-in-cheek. This is greatly communicated by the visuals. Not only is the animation consistently well-done (and well above par compared to most of its contemporaries), but Studio 8Bit continually includes great little visual touches and artstyle shifts. The studio's efforts reflect what seems to be genuine enthusiasm for the source material, and it really gives the whole production a big boost.
Another of the show's boons comes from its main character. Where a lot of these protagonists come off as vapid husks, Rimuru has enough personality to make him a decently compelling lead, and I think part of that comes from the smart decision to make him a decidedly older man (and not just deaging him either, a la Death March). His manager-like approach to problem solving whatever issue happens to be in front of him, and the way it attracts an increasing load of responsibilities like any real workplace, is a fun twist on the aimlessness often exhibited by Isekai protagonists. It's my understanding that Rimuru's VA is a relative newcomer to the industry, but she manages to infuse a lot of personality into the character through her performance. It's hopefully an auspicious start to a great career.
Slime Time Live also benefits from its supporting cast. No one here is particularly deep or original, but the show puts in the work of developing the side characters enough to keep them from feeling one-note. Take a personal favorite, Gabiru. The incompetent blowhard is a well-worn character archetype, but I really appreciated the little touches (how his well-meaning yet sycophantic soldiers build up his ego across the arc, how he justifies his coup of the kingdom, how the strategy he employs against the orcs is actually sound and he is undone because no one informed him of their ability to assimilate the dead, etc.). None of this was necessary to tell the story, but there's still a level of thought that is just missing from most other seasonal Isekai cash-ins, and if we're being honest, a lot of other seasonal anime in general.
Now, all this being said, the show is certainly strongest in its first cour. As Slime Time Live goes on and the plot starts to expand, its tongue-in-cheek sensibilities start to get a little drowned out under the escalating world-building and increasingly perfunctory threats. That's a fair issue to take umbrage with. However, I also think it would be unfair to say that the show's charm is lost entirely, or that the gradual regression to the genre mold completely counteracts the strengths of its first half. Heck, even as just another entry in the Isekai genre, Slime Time Live is still better crafted than most of the cheap, effortless, and disposable trash heaps that are its contemporaries.
Seriously, if you want to see what a "1" looks like, go watch Death March. Or better yet, don't do that at all, and just take my word for it.
I love dunking on trash, especially of the Isekai-variety, so it's not like I don't get the appeal. However, I think there's also a zealousness to be the first to dunk, and to dunk the hardest, so much so that it can tempt us to not really contemplate the show right in front of us. Complaints about elements like, say, Ranga quickly getting over the death of his father at Rimuru's hands might have more merit in a self-serious dramatic series (like Overlord), but that's not what Slime Time Live is. Watching anime isn't a Space Jam; you shouldn't have to stretch so hard to get your dunks. It's a very easy way to miss out on the better qualities of what you're watching.
Overall, Slime Time Live is a capably-executed entry in the Isekai genre and a perfectly enjoyable show on its own merits. If you don't have any fondness for this type of story, the show probably won't convince you, but it at least has enough personality and fun touches to give it some charm. Give it a watch; if you're not careful, you might just enjoy it.
And so ends my review, aka "That Time I Wrote 1000 Words Defending A Show I Thought Was Just Fine."
