Review of The Rising of the Shield Hero

*Mild spoiler warning* - because I don't think I can explain why this show is a 4/10 without delving a bit into the happenings, although I'll keep them to a minimal. I think what hurt the most was the exceptional potential this show had to be excellent. The setup is actually great - a hero who is supposed to 'fight' with only a shield. And then on top of that, he is wrongly accused by royalty, and hence shunned. This makes for a stellar platform of development and character/world building. What I wanted to see - and perhaps this is why I watched it to thevery end, that hope of getting some good moments whatsoever - was a struggle to the top. I wanted to see logical changing of minds, facts being used instead of rumors. And I wanted the characters to be smart enough that when faced with such facts, they actually think and start to change.

The three other heroes existing gives chance for some very interesting interactions. At first I thought that one hero was actually the one behind the false accusations, which would have been interesting to see a so-called 'hero' actually inkling to the side of evil and cunning. I wanted to see one of the other heroes slowly begin to trust in the Shield hero, not only coming up with his own conclusions and perhaps looking into it himself, but also with the Shield hero's own persistance.

Instead what happens is a complete frenzy of chaos and broken story-telling, with some heroes appearing to be smart, but then the next scene are scathing, and then the next scene again appear to be thinking things over, and then they're right back to hating. On top of this, the Shield hero does absolutely nothing to try and prove his innocence. It's such a confusing set of one step forward, two steps back, with a kick to the left and a jump northeast that I gave up on having the heroes developed at all.

It may have even been interesting if the Shield hero had taken it upon himself to play the evil character - as he starts off doing, in fact. And we have a very antagonistic protagonist. And perhaps someone - a certain slave girl - helps him remember what being the 'good guy' feels like. But no, he's a good guy when the story needs him to be, and a 'bad' guy for a second here and there. It's so confusing that again, I gave up on this story-line as well.

Another instance of potential was the slave girl herself. Again, it could have been interesting if she was very distant and scared of everything - as she was at the start. If it took more than just half an episode to win her over, if there were several scenes of innate goodness of the Shield hero that finally, slowly, allowed her to open up and trust him.

Not only does this slow, intricate development never happen, apparently she had been raised with the idea of worshipping the Shield hero from the start. And so the Shield hero never had to even try, just tell her his title and bam, she is in love with him. Which, let me point out, should not have led to love, simply idolizing. But it can't do that the main, cute, tenuki slave girl not fall for the brooding protagonist.

All this potential lost, and we are only on episode 3. My goodness. What sealed it for me was when the Shield Hero was pointlessly dueled against one of the other heroes. After almost going berserk mode (again, how great would it have been that his berserk mode have led to actual annihilation of a city, making him an ACTUAL antagonist in the eyes of everyone, and hence even harder to clear his name) the slave girl calms him down after he curses and screams at her. Oh but my bad, she is unconditionally devoted to the Shield Hero.

What annoyed me about that scene was the incredible likeness to the one in re:zero, where the protagonist *RE:zero spoiler, skip if you haven't watched it, because it is ACTUALLY worth watching* has a breakdown, and the heroine calms him by having him sleep in her lap all night. In re:zero this made complete sense. The stress he went through was extreme, and the audience could see it. And the heroine, in her comforting silence, just hears him out and lets him unload. *end RE:zero spoilers*

What happens in Tate no Yuusha is this:
He is shunned by the capitol, sure. But he gains a doting slave girl, catering to his every whim. He saves a village, who is grateful to him. He honestly leaves the capitol very soon, and is away to not feel it too much. At least so it would appear to the audience. And yet he fears intense hatred, blaming his shield - which by this point has saved him countless times. And this causes his berserk mode, which of course slave girl reverses, in much the same way Emilia does in Re:zero. This almost direct copy is what made me drastically change my opinion and lose all respect for the show. It isn't even the copying of the scene that bothers me, it's the horrible execution of it.

And finally, we have the last nail in the coffin. The chicken girl. Yes, you heard me. The Shield hero buys an egg, it hatches into a giant chicken that transforms into a cute little girl. And this little baby chicken - wait for it - falls in love with the shield hero too.

*facepalm*

After this, the show was irredeemable. I think at this point, the main question remains: Why did I watch this to the end?

I'm still wondering this myself. I think it was probably because I liked the character designs. I like drawing characters myself, so I learn a lot from well drawn characters in motion.
Mainly, I think it was the incredible score it has on MAL. Although slightly off sometimes, MAL scores are usually somewhere in the ballpark, and an 8+ score automatically means SOME sort of amazing-ness is to come. And so I had this undying hope that a good scene would pop up somewhere.

It didn't.

Not one scene stood out, not once was there some good character development, never was there a smart execution of a plot twist. The only passable part was the clearing of the Shield Hero's name, but in no means is this show watch-worthy for just that scene alone.

In summary, Taate no Yuusha was a cacophony of chaotic characters and jumpy storylines, lacking any sort of consistency, and seemed to be written by a 13 year old (if a 13 year old DID write this, then it deserves the MAL score, I suppose). Events only happened for the sake of events happening, and any character that showed a sliver of being likable would do something utterly ridiculous in the next episode, effectively ending any sort of connection potential.

Don't watch this. Spare yourselves. If you want good Isekai, please refer to Re:zero or 'I was reincarnated as a Slime'. Thank you.