Reviews

Jan 25, 2021
Preliminary (4/12 eps)
Hearing the synopsis of this anime, I was excited. It sounded like an interesting premise that I have always wondered about in videogames. The issue was the story and character design.

If you want to turn your brain off and watch anime fighting I guess you could, but if you want an interesting story with characters that develop over time and change, this isn't for you.

The crux of the issue is that the story is committed to keeping the protagonist Lloyd ignorant of his strength. I can tell without finishing, each episode will be him doing something "spectacular" while staying completely unaware of his superiority. If anything, he may discover at the very last episode that he is actually super strong, but I bet based on what I've seen so far, they will hint at it and then surprise surprise, he misses it again.

It's cringe-inducing. He isn't a likable character. He spends each episode talking about how weak he is, is practically brain-dead, and his dream of being a soldier is weak af.

This is more of a rant now, but since I've been so harsh I feel it's necessary to give an example of how they (not the producers but the light-novel writers) could have made this with interesting characters and an exciting story. Give the mc goals that aren't straight altruism, it's boring and unrelatable. Maybe revenge or a rival, it quickly establishes a long term goal, creates overarching conflict, and expands on the world (why does he have a rival? was he too weak and let someone die and their family blames him? etc...)

Now, with a character that has conflict that needs to be overcome, give him a reason that he needs to leave to achieve it. Rather than "to be a good solider and help people" he is "running away from a painful past" he could be "in search of a solution (item or person) that could undo the damage" or maybe "exiled, being hunted, and in hiding".

The thing is, he can still stay ignorant to his strength, at least for a little while. maybe he assumes everyone is hiding their strength, and doesn't trust them, staying quiet and reserve and on-edge. Once he sees people's best though, he can't stay ignorant, he needs to grow and part of that growth is to gain self-respect.

With all that power he has, does he become the villain? falling into temptation? Does he ignore the basics and then everyone outclasses him because he was too cocky and presumptuous of his strength? Does he hurt people on accident, and become an outcast in the world? Deemed a criminal?

The point is, you need a complex character that undergoes challenges that make him question who he is and why. You want something with change and movement because it creates drama and is exciting. The same OP hero that spends all day/night belittling himself isn't fun, its a cringy slice-of-life in a fantasy suit more closely representing the harem/echi genre. It's a waste of time to watch, I had more fun writing this than seeing that.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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