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Spastic Minnow
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Joined: 02 May 2006
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Location: Gainesville, FL
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Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2024 4:31 pm
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The main question that could possibly be answered was whether or not anyone knew anything about the Black Knight. From what we've seen, I guess it's not known? But... he hasn't asked. They've warred before, did the Black Knight never really show up before? That's odd, isn't it?
In the very least, knowing that there is an extremely powerful foe that is a serious threat to the heroes would serve as a warning to the standard soldiers to stay away from them. So, the first ones that came across the Black knight wouldn't try to attack, they would retreat and inform the others where they are and that only the strongest should attempt to engage them.
It would and should have completely changed the strategy of the fight.
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smurky turkey
Joined: 30 Jan 2022
Posts: 2052
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Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2024 4:36 pm
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I would argue that having seen a very realistic vision and having been told information that said vision has a chance of being a prediction of the future is enough to do more than just keep it to yourself.
As for using the information, it makes clear that the heroes trying to fight the knight in a conventional way is going to result in failure and their death. Knowing that is enough to strategize, having a healer close by to help for example would be the minimal countermeasure to take. Or have more soldiers there to make retreat possible for the heroes since they are rather valuable and can not be lost.
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Blood-
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Joined: 07 Mar 2009
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Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2024 4:43 pm
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I don't argue any of the points you've both made but by the same token for the reasons I've pointed out I don't think labelling Usato an obvious dunce for not speaking up is entirely justified. I think the show provided enough wiggle room to infer why he didn't say anything.
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Edjwald
Joined: 03 Aug 2017
Posts: 1183
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Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2024 8:04 am
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I get where you're coming from Blood. Like I said, I like this show, and I'm not suggesting throwing out a whole big bowl of banana pudding just because I found a piece of garlic in it. It's just that I'd rather put the piece of garlic aside and try not to think about it than swallow it and pretend the piece of garlic is an M&M.
Let's put this in context. You find yourself in an isekai world full of magical things that would have been strange in your world. A woman from an other than human race tells you that she had a vision of a hunchback dressed all in red hacking your best friends to death with a huge battle axe and that only you can do something about it.
You later find out that people from this race often have prophetic visions.
And you do absolutely nothing.
That's basically the situation here.
I don't think Usato is a dunce. Ironically, if he were, I would have fewer complaints because the show would make more sense. When I said earlier Usato wasn't using his brain even a tiny bit, I phrased it that way because he has a brain to use. I went on to say that the charitable option was that Usato was refusing to think about the vision or dismissing it as just a dream because it made him feel powerless and yucky. That is a very human reaction.
But as Smurky pointed out, it doesn't seem very in keeping with Usato's character. To go with this option, you have to mentally squint.
I really think this is another case of the author not being too detail oriented at action and suspense type stuff.
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Blood-
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Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2024 8:39 am
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Again, I agree with your points which I view as taking a moderate view of Usato's failing. I was reacting more against the idea that not speaking up was, like, the dumbest, stupidest, moronic-est thing evar.
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Edjwald
Joined: 03 Aug 2017
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Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2024 3:21 pm
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Blood- wrote: | Again, I agree with your points which I view as taking a moderate view of Usato's failing. I was reacting more against the idea that not speaking up was, like, the dumbest, stupidest, moronic-est thing evar. |
Yah, I knew was rehashing a little bit. Just trying to bridge the two sides a skosh.
(Y'know, it's almost as if my sweet words of reason didn't bring enlightenment just from being repeated like a Buddhist mantra or something...)
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smurky turkey
Joined: 30 Jan 2022
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Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2024 3:27 pm
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In the end I think it comes down to the writer being a lot better at slice of life moments and training arcs rather than the actual conflicts/battles. That is not to say the war has been bad so far, but it is not a highlight of the show either.
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Blood-
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Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2024 4:38 pm
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Actually, I'm not bowled over by the handling of the slice of life/training stuff either. This title started pretty strong for me but then kind of meandered into not terribly interesting territory. Needs more foxkin, imo.
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Edjwald
Joined: 03 Aug 2017
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Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2024 7:10 am
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Blood- wrote: | Actually, I'm not bowled over by the handling of the slice of life/training stuff either. This title started pretty strong for me but then kind of meandered into not terribly interesting territory. Needs more foxkin, imo. |
Sort of sounds like we're coming to the same evaluation grade from different directions. Me, I was all prepared to declare this one of my favorite new anime for the year after the first two episodes, but that enthusiasm has waned a tad. I still like the show a lot, but if I were making a report card for the anime, it would go something like this.
Creating likable characters = A
Coming up with new slants on old genres = A
World Building = C (it's a pretty standard isekai world with a paramedic unit)
Consistent, logical plotting = D (It's bad, but I've definitely seen worse)
Exciting action = C
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Blood-
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Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2024 9:28 am
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Um... you forgot one category
Cute Foxgirl levels: F-
Also, just curious given your A grade for coming up with a new slant on old genres... in your opinion, what are these new slants?
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Edjwald
Joined: 03 Aug 2017
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Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2024 3:52 pm
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Blood- wrote: | Also, just curious given your A grade for coming up with a new slant on old genres... in your opinion, what are these new slants? |
For me, the magic paramedic unit was a pretty unusual slant. Having the main character be support while the two heroes get groomed for heroing was kind of interesting too.
And while there was the Great Healer anime not too long ago, this anime's take on a healer hero seems different. I thought using his healing power to make tearing muscle repair faster so that he could tear more muscle and heal it faster in a loop in order to condense workout time and effect was pretty genius.
The inversion of the classroom trope was nice too. For some reason it's become a staple that when classmates get isekai'd, the loner protagonist becomes an outcast and everybody else (except possible a romantic interest) is a sociopath. My Instant Death Ability is the latest example.
If a god or goddess summon an isekai hero, it's 50/50 whether or not that god or goddess is on the up and up. But it's become standard that when a kingdom summons heroes from another world, the kingdom is almost always corrupt. Here, the kingdom is almost naively good.
Rose also seems pretty fresh as a mentor type. I mentioned this once before, but the closest I can recall seeing a mentor like her was the Fruit of Grisaiaa ages ago, and that female mentor was an assassin, not a healer turned fighter turned back to healer again.
It just all combined to feel pretty fresh to me.
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smurky turkey
Joined: 30 Jan 2022
Posts: 2052
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Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2024 1:42 pm
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Agreed, the show has a lot going for it, far more so than the average isekai dreg we get every season. This week's episode in particular is a culmination of everything Usato went through and for once the post victory flashback actually felt deserved. It was also not a perfect victory, they healed all they could but lots of soldiers still died. As for the black knight, healing magic canceling out her magic goo is something I am okay with, especially since Usato still had to beat her up in order to win, it was not like healing magic just ended the fight. Without all the training Usato would have lost.
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Spastic Minnow
![](/bbs/phpBB2/images/subscriber-silver.png) Bargain Hunter
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Joined: 02 May 2006
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Location: Gainesville, FL
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Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2024 3:39 pm
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I guess it sort of made sense. Can't reflect healing, and even if his attacks were reflected, he'd heal them in a loop.
Still a mess of a battle scenario. I'm realizing that part of the problem was the thriftiness of the production. The battlefield had no character, it was all just a giant bland flat barren field. They went from one barren field to the next- very easy to animate against. The Black Knight wasn't defending high ground, the snake wasn't moving up from a valley, the camp wasn't in a defendable cavern... it was all one giant dirt field.
Yay! we've defended dirt valley!
I guess that now that the Black Knight has been captured, she can be developed as a character now, as she was just a boogie-woman in the fight. Curious to know if the armor was destroyed or was dispelled solely because she was rendered unconscious.
I guess the last episode will deal with a little of that, maybe Usato will finally admit that he had a premonition that helped him... or maybe he'll continue to keep it quiet and use the girl as a secret that only he'll use, protecting her from being exploited. Which can develop into a nice thing... but doesn't change my feeling that he was an idiot for keeping it secret. The girl didn't ask him to keep it secret, she gave him no reason to do so and I still think that it would have been wiser to strategize with her premonition in mind.
But I guess I might watch more if the show continues.
Although... can you really "heal" a fist-shaped hole in a person's chest? Good Job?
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b-dragon
Joined: 21 Apr 2021
Posts: 468
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Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2024 3:59 pm
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The idea of a "Healing Punch KO" seems...kinda nonsensical to me. I mean, the knockout would only really happen as a result of trauma to the gray matter, ie brain damage. So if he's healing the damage literally as he's doing it, he shouldn't really be able to be knock out a foe, as best I understand.
Admitted nitpicks aside, I thought the fight looked fine, even if the "war" looked bad due to the empty environs and lack of background action. And the conversation with Rose afterward was basically pitch perfect.
Regarding the prophecy issue- I think part of why its irritating for some is that there was a much better way for events to play out like this, and still have people act somewhat in character- Have him tell Rose, before the battle and then ask to be put front and center, with his friends. And she tells him no, and assigns him a flank. We're fresh off her backstory; her being very protective matches what we've seen previously, and her history. No one needs to hold the idiot ball.
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Yttrbio
Joined: 09 Jun 2011
Posts: 3653
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Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2024 5:34 pm
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Aside from being sensicle or not... did I miss something? When was Rose a pacifist, or opposed to killing? Healing Punch KO is a torture technique at best, why would it be something she would think to teach for the battlefield?
So much of the writing seems like very poor ways to address how afraid it is. Afraid the audience wouldn't get it (but solved by literally saying the title of the show), afraid of making the heroes seem useless (but solved by just throwing a side detail "they won some other fight" rather than actually making them useful). That's why it's so irritating... there's plenty here to work with, but the writing is terrified of letting these elements stand on their own.
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