The Rising of the Shield Hero Season 3

Episode 8

While I still think Ren is probably being downplayed, it's nice to get the catalyst for his character development. One of the biggest things he was confronted about was when he killed a dragon and nearly caused a plague in a town because he thought it was a video game boss that would despawn. He left behind a carcass that could cause long-lasting effects on the environment. The same dragon is brought back as a threat and a defining plot point, more or less highlighting Ren's involvement. More direct involvement would be good, as the show is too subtle about that. It would've been nice to hear the townsfolk comment more on Ren.

Regarding Wyndia, I have mixed feelings about her suddenly being thrust into the spotlight because I don't even remember where this character came from. I know that she's been a part of Naofumi's nation for a while and has experienced taming monsters, but the extreme focus she has gotten here is almost distracting. It's not nearly as distracting as randomly finding out that her father is a dragon because it makes me question dozens of different things, like how biology works. There were probably discussions in the original light novels, and we're just getting the CliffsNotes version of her more significant involvement here.

The connection between Filo, the cursed shield, and the dragon was explained so quickly that I'm still questioning what is happening. Atla suddenly can heal despite being established as a strong combat fighter. The glitching game interface is starting to feel unnecessarily annoying since the solution existed two episodes ago (fix the curse by using a simple debuffing spell). I'm glad we're getting some literal and figurative action after things have been relatively low-key for the past few episodes. Still, this episode feels like a side plot establishing the status quo and abilities that aren't fully exploited. Overall, things turned out to be relatively okay.

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The Rising of the Shield Hero Season 3 is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.