Forum - View topic(The) Rising of The Shield Hero (TV).
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Edjwald
 Posts: 1134 |
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Yup, and Nadia seems pretty fun so far. Here's hoping the next arc doesn't introduce a CG animated giant armadillo of destruction and spend about four episodes dealing with it... |
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DuskyPredator
 Posts: 15466 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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To be honest, I kind of think that Nadia is cooler in her thicker orca form than in her standard more normal form. Maybe it is just that larger body shaped women who are meant to be still sexy, feels so rare in anime.
If she is joining the cast, it kind of hit me that might be more than an adult compared to the others where we have uncomfortable still feels mentally like a kid, literally a baby that was just hatched, and I know that there is something with Risha. |
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2850 |
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S2 #3
The series pacing does it no favours when viewers are looking for exposition and character development. The White Tiger siblings are the focus for this episode, but what little airtime they get doesn't tell casual viewers much more than they're potentially very useful combat assets for Naofumi if cultivated and they are relevant to the storyline beyond being just a special pair of villagers he bought back from Siltvelt. What little time there is does try its best to show a pair of hard-done siblings in the best possible light, and both of them will fight and die for Iwatani if the need calls. The Yggdrasil potion Chekhov's Gun being used in this way was honestly a surprise for me though. It's been a while since viewers see Iwatani the feudal lord, which was fleeting in itself in the previous season. Unlike the other three Cardinal Heroes who wander the lands without too much of a long-term plan, being landed and with many who rely on him for security and shelter forces Iwatani to utilise the guild management skills he honed in game worlds long before he ended up in Raphtalia's world. Unlike virtual management, even roleplaying a landed lord is tough work with long hours and little support despite his best attempts at setting up physical and human infrastructure. Even with royalty backing him up, he knows he's up against it especially when random slavers take every opportunity to invade his holdings. I didn't mind this week's action, as the episode itself lends itself more to what little adaptation it can do for the source material which is focused on narrative and exposition at this point. Viewers know he has a means of teleportation, but referring to previous seasons would be necessary to find out the exact mechanics. I noticed Fia wasn't with them, so he must have kept her back or decided there wasn't enough time to bring her along and the five of them would be more than enough. I don't think there'll be enough episodes to look deeper into the disgraced Staff Hero's background beyond that quick summary from the queen, but the main story needs to be filled in with the airtime allotted to it. Time to see what the hapless Spear Hero is up to. |
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smurky turkey
Posts: 1933 |
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It is still very doable to keep track of the story, but the pacing is very brisk and they are shortening or ommitting more than a few things. You could always google something or read up the wiki, yet the danger of spoilers is always there.
As for the episode itself: man, the shield hero really has to deal with a lot of shit. It is not as bad as it was in the first season thankfully, dangers like slavers and hostile nobles are still very much a thing though. Given that the other heroes are mia, it might not be the best idea to antagonize the last cardinal hero you have left. If he said fudge it and went to the one country that would properly/fully support him, your country would need to fend for itself. |
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Edjwald
Posts: 1134 |
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I've got no complaints about the way the story is progressing thus far. It's safely passed the three episode marker without seeming rushed, incoherent, or boring (to me at least) three qualities that the show displayed like a parade flag last season. The shield hero seems pretty well established in his redemption arc, which is nice to see, and honestly, I hope it lasts a little longer.
Like I said in the Faraway Paladin thread, I like anime about building territories. Also, I take it the king's irrational hatred of the spear hero in season 1 was because of something that happened to his sister via the demi-human kingdom? And maybe the way he doted on and spoiled little miss sociopath was some kind of overcompensation for his loss? |
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DuskyPredator
Posts: 15466 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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Just going to say, that in the same episode that Naofumi bought an expensive slave from a trader, worth quite a bit because of the race, he had to fight off raiders who were going to sell the kids off to slavery. I have no idea if in series there is an understanding that the very money he spent in playing along with the slavers, would in turn get funnelled back into making more slaves and destruction.
That is among the worst elements of a point in buying a slave, it funds more slavery. There has to be a point of zero tolerance of a system, otherwise you would be just as culpable. I would have thought at the least Naofumi would want to learn everything he can from the guy that was selling beast people as slaves, demanding compensation from anyone putting their protection on him, and punishing anyone who would buying slaves from the raiders. |
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smurky turkey
Posts: 1933 |
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Good lord, my opinion of the other three cardinal heroes was already exceedingly low, but this episode managed to lower it even further. Be it the sword or spear hero, they are utter trash, if not for the fact that they are needed to save the world, Naofumi would be best of leaving them in the trash.
Someone also needs to kill bitch, she will only cause more chaos if left alive. |
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2850 |
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S2 #4
Even if the adaptation is going at a lightning pace, the animators have certainly picked choice areas in which to slow it down and give viewers entertainment. The first half isn't too noteworthy, but the second half with the reunion of two of the three other Cardinal Heroes certainly delivers in laughs. Again, we viewers have no idea how the face behind the Murder Clown ended up at Naofumi's domain. Filo took to her quickly (as she always does with anyone who isn't a pervert or overtly hostile) but Naofumi understandably doesn't trust someone who tried to kill them in an underground colosseum. Just about everyone is giving him the eyes for his decision, but given how stubborn he can be it'll be a while before something else convinces him to rescind his original decision. Most of the episode is actually on the Spear and Sword. As rapid as the last season was, it didn't really give the other three much camera time as Naofumi had to do most of the work by himself and with his companions. Unsurprisingly it means they've not really developed much as their egos have taken significant bruising, with even the Sword Hero's signature moves not even making a dent in Naofumi's (currently cursed) body. The Spear Hero gets a taste of what Naofumi experienced at the start of the franchise, while the Sword is now the latest victim of Malty's scheming. Amazing how short human memories are when it comes to public humiliations, although the question on how she got rid of that slave crest needs to be answered as it's important to the main storyline. Despite how the second and third seasons have been adapted, I find it noteworthy that Malty has been reduced to a minor villain after all that Shield Hero has been through in his main quest. Until the Queen mentioned her, Naofumi hasn't given any thought about Malty at all as his thoughts are with far more pressing matters than the source of his burning fury which powers his double-edged abilities. Although back to her old tricks, she can't really do anything to Naofumi any more without her previous position as royal princess. If she is trying to do harm to those who "wronged" her she'll need external help as her manipulation doesn't work beyond one Hero at a time. |
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Edjwald
Posts: 1134 |
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Yah, it's two steps forward, ten steps back with those clowns. I was a bit disappointed - not with the episode (because it was entertaining) but with the cardinal heroes. I seem to remember the sword hero being the most reasonable of the three stooges, but here he's completely being a coward and hiding from any kind of self-examination. The spear hero has always been annoying. Watching him become a deranged degenerate was still more annoying than amusing for me, but seeing his douche baggidity being recognized was gratifying. Naofumi was a bit disappointing too. His reasons for not trusting strangers is well established, but even if he thought the murder clown was an enemy, he should have talked to her to suss out her motives. "Hey insanely dangerous person who I think might be a foe. I'm going to treat you like crap and leave you hanging around my territory unobserved while I leave..." As for Malty...she's clearly found some other backer with impressive powers if she can eliminate the slave crest. Which means she's messing with the cardinal heroes with that backer's approval. I suppose it could be that cult/church from season 1, or another kingdom, or even other heroes from other worlds who want to sacrifice Naofumi's new home for the sake of their own since we've seen a few of those running around loose before waves. Any of those possibilities is alarming. How many days was it until the Phoenix thing again? |
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2850 |
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S2 #5
Murder Clown making a reappearance so soon was unexpected, as was the means she employed to keep up with Naofumi and company. He's always been excessively cautious, but even he has to acknowledge that someone who's stronger than the three of them together (cursed or not) is better to have an ally rather than as an enemy. If that shot of her being left behind together with Nadia for village defence is anything to go by, she's trusted enough to be left alone in the village under light supervision. The ambush at the start was also a surprise, but it rammed home the point which was made at the end of season one: Naofumi and his three compatriots are on the lower end of the power scale in a universe full of artifact-wielding personages and they're considered prey for those Heroes who have given up on beating the waves the "proper" way. Raphtalia getting past one after her curse was dispelled gives a rough idea of how strong they are: the ambushers were there as avatars yet could summon meteors and dispel magic at will. Murder Clown's intervention decisively tipped the scales, but if this level of invader is going to join the massed waves of monsters then Naofumi has his work cut out for him. I wonder what kind of role the younger White Tiger Atla is going to play. Although her brother was doing most of the heavy lifting during their debut, she's now capable enough to incapacitate him despite a visual handicap. Her significance to the Staff Hero is again reinforced in that short scene, so viewers might not be seeing the last of her just yet. Ren used to fight as a mercenary in season one, so Malty having turned him means playing the bandit lord isn't much of a career change. Both him and Motoyasu appear to have evaded the attentions of unsavoury otherworldly invaders for the time being due to their weakness compared to Naofumi and company, but they are still part of the Four Cardinals of this world who are responsible for beating back the waves whether they like it or not. Naofumi has to beat some sense into them, and he'll have to do it without backup as he's dispersed his raid party. Pacing is still ridiculous, but I thought this episode did a better job than previous weeks at somehow delivering a decent summary of a lot of content without feeling too rushed. I'm not going to check what was skipped as I'm not invested enough to want to read the novels, but more episodes like this would make the impression I'm watching Cliff's Notes of a lot of novels crammed into one quarter a lot less unwelcome. |
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smurky turkey
Posts: 1933 |
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A fun episode, yet it does feel rather strange to see two random mooks give the shield party a run for their money. I get that they are still cursed and thus weakened, but their opponents did not seem to be wielding special weapons/artifacts. Instead they used powerful magic and seem to posses higher stats, which kind of raises the question what all the fighting/grinding for the past 2 seasons was for.
As for the other ''heroes'', we now have pedo/stalker hero and bandit lord hero duking it out. Lord only knows what the bow guy is up to, maybe he has become a serial killer or something, at this point nothing would surprise me. |
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Edjwald
Posts: 1134 |
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Wow, things really went from bad to worse here.
If I was Naofumi, I think I'd be more worried about the queen of the ..what is Filo's species called again? I keep thinking of falafels. Anyway, I'd be very worried about the bird queen who said she'd exterminate all of the cardinal heroes if they couldn't get their act together. That must have been in season 1 since I remember it. And the cardinal heroes not only don't have their act together, most of them can't even act solo. If the sword hero is a bandit, and the other world ex-heroes aren't aware of him...does that mean Malty isn't working with extra dimensional forces? Or are the extra-dimensional forces scattered? I really hope the Murder Clown isn't playing some sadistic double game. Given her poor connection, I guess she's an avatar too, and it looks like whatever equipment or magic she's using isn't as good as Hoodlum A and Hoodlum B. That seems to support her story a bit, I guess. I'm sure I should know, but I don't...what are the specifics of the curse mentioned? |
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2850 |
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S2 #6
Now that I think about it, this is the first time in three seasons casual viewers see into the background of someone other than Iwatani. Short of reading the Spear Hero comic spinoff, we don't know anything about the other three Cardinal Heroes beyond what they're like to Iwatani and his terrible impressions of them. This episode goes some way towards fixing that hole, even for just a week's airtime. So Sword Hero Ren gets a taste of what Iwatani felt way back at the start of season one. It's says a lot about Malty that she doesn't even stick around for long to further put him down because she's desperate for resources herself, compared to how she used her position to absolutely bring Iwatani into the depths. Coupled with the disappointment everyone has for Cardinal Heroes who aren't the Shield Bearer, it makes sense thematically that Ren resorts to the same Curse series which bought Naofumi time before he could legitimately earn the strength he needed to overcome his trials. As far as Iwatani is concerned, Ren relying on the Curse series is better than a Ren with no equipment and no companions so what time he has can be spent training him up into something passable. If Motoyasu was telling the truth, there's hope for Ren yet. If Ren does have two of the seven sins to draw upon for his double-edged skills, then Motoyasu probably just has the one: Lust. The colour of his spear tip leads me to think he's relying on that Sin even now, just that Iwatani hasn't realised it yet. Motoyasu must bring luck though; the powerful assassins from last week were so overconfident about their chances of success they dispensed with their usual avatars and invaded in the flesh. Turns out sneak attacks work just as well, with Raphtalia cleaning up afterwards. Eclair might be a terrible steward, but Iwatani won't think less of her now that the fruits of her training are on show. She was always good with a sword, which was why she joined his fief as the weapons instructor. Combined with the martial arts prowess from the other expert in the fief, she's capable enough to defeat even Ren provided the disparity in stats is made up. Iwatani will be relying on her to get Ren to a passable standard for the next invasion, as it won't be just a Phoenix they have to contend with if the invaders are any indication. There are still lots of characters show in the OP who haven't made their bow yet, and the series is probably going to get all of them in one or another despite the limited airtime. This episode wasn't too bad in what it was trying to accomplish, but it's a shame there won't be more like these because of the enforced pacing. |
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smurky turkey
Posts: 1933 |
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Well, we indeed got a lot of information about Ren. It did not change my opinion about him and his actions all that much though. If he improves himself and eventually becomes a valued ally, fine, but as of now I have no positive things to say about him. The same goes for the loli hero who is probably usuing the cursed power of lust. One can only wonder how much of a mess the bow hero is.
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Edjwald
Posts: 1134 |
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All I can say is that I dozed through or partially skipped episodes from season 2, and this season I'm right on top of it. It says a lot about how annoying the Spear Hero is that I'm willing to give Ren a chance to redeem himself, but I wish the Spear Hero would just go away even though he was sort of the hero of this episode. Or at least the Deus Ex Machina.
I guess the archer is next? Kind of makes me cringe wondering what he's been up to (or what depths he's sunk down to). Still don't really recall all the details about these curf (<--that's a curse nerf) debuffs, but how weak should the sword hero be now that he just used about six or seven of them in a row? |
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