Synopsis
Season 1 of The Rising of the Shield Hero came to an end on Jun 26, 2019 and it certainly went out with a bang. Season 1 ran for 25 episodes at around 20 minutes a piece. The anime featured lead protagonist Naofumi Iwatani as the Shield Hero (voiced by Kaito Ishikawa in the Sub) and, as you probably guessed, his rise to becoming a great Shield Hero. If you are wondering if The Rising of the Shield Hero season 1 is worth watching hopefully this review will give you some insight.
The Rising of the Shield Hero Anime Review
As with any good anime review, I am going to try to hit all the major points here and do The Rising of The Shield Hero justice in an unbiased way. The anime is one of my all time favorites, so many apologies if it seems like I am showing any kind of favoritism at any point. I will try my best to give an unbiased and fair review. I loved season 1 of the anime and have watched it multiple times with different people through and through. If you find yourself asking “Is The Rising of the Shield Hero worth watching?” I am here to try to answer that.
To start off the review, this show is very well done. Like, VERY WELL DONE. The character development lead character is top notch enough, let alone the supporting cast. While it is technically another one of those “born in another world” anime, at no point did it feel like a repeat of something I had already seen. There are no cliches here. Watching the anime is a breath of fresh air for the genre. The story line is spot on and is as original as it gets. Regardless how timed the “born in another world” genre has been, the anime is surprising and exciting every step of the way.
The lead character, Naofumi Iwatani (the Shield Hero), is very unorthodox compared to other anime of the genre and at times could even be seen as an anti-hero of sorts. As a result of this, it is somewhat hard to give a review based on other anime characters simply because he is so unique. Although the anti-hero concept isn’t anything new to anime, Naofumi is unique and conceptually an incredible addition to anyone’s “favorite anime character pool”. His development throughout the story is incredibly distinctive compared to most recent popular anime protagonists (antagonists?) and is definitely entertaining, to say the least. His dwindling loyalties are a major driving point in the story and offer a creative way to grow a character from the ground up. He faces many obstacles that he must overcome to push forward, both physically and mentally, and faces resistance every step of the way. At no point in the story is his next move 100% clear. This is something I have come to appreciate as an anime connoisseur. His interactions and the process of him meeting his party are a gem in themselves and in my opinion is enough to warrant the anime being worth watching.
The supporting characters are a fantastic addition to the story and have a way of coming about that is unique to the anime. The supporting character’s development is done very well and just enough to appreciate them without overshadowing or crowding the main character’s spotlight. After all this is the Shield Hero’s story (it is called “The Rising of the Shield Hero” for goodness sake). Most every protagonist in the anime is lovable with a healthy personality to boot.
The antagonists of the story are fairly dynamic and it is difficult at times to distinguish the true threat. Although this may seem like a negative, it is done very well and leaves room for a healthy amount of mystery. The antagonists character development is okay but the show lacks a true need for anything “deep” in that regard.
As far as story line goes, this anime definitely holds true to the hype. While the story does start slow (as many anime do), the progression is very well paced and leaves no room for dull space as there is always a next step in the adventure. There really is no stalling or slow points and there is enough content going on in the world around at any point in time to keep the audience entertained.
The animation style is very well suited to the anime and the character expression is done well enough to allow for a connection to the characters mental state. One of my biggest things when watching an anime is the facial expressions. The facial expressions in The Rising of the Shield Hero are quite good. Not to the caliber of The Promised Neverland in my eyes but they are high quality and add to the story in a very healthy way.
All in all the show is very well done with a great story and healthy character development. If you are looking for a breath of fresh air look no further than The Rising of the Shield Hero. It is definitely worth a watch and holds its own against the best of them. I hope this anime review has been helpful to you if you are thinking about if it is worth watching!