Review of Banished From The Hero's Party, I Decided To Live A Quiet Life In The Countryside

Well, this is surely a series aiming for a very particular niche. It's basically a story about two outcasts who once were involved in god-appointed hero's quest to destroy the demon lord and his armies, but fell out of their roles and found themselves yearning for a quiet life at the fringes of civilized world. Gideon, brother of the hero, becomes outclassed by her other companions in martial prowess and is convinced to leave, in a way that makes the world presume he died on a scouting mission. Rit, a princess of a small militaristic kingdom, is driven out of her country due to successiondispute and uses her warrior skills as a travelling adventurer. When their paths cross again, they seem to only wish to stay with each in peace, but slowly, their past starts to catch up with them.

This series is cliched, really slow and set in a fantasy world with BS RPG mechanics that decides people's destinies, often against their wishes. The writing is very average and the story progresses at snail's pace. If you feel these might be major issues for you, you'll probably die of boredom watching it. On the other hand, the slow, gentle story and slow burn romance are definitely the point here and can be decently satisfying to follow. And even with that slow pacing, the series menages to resolve the hero plot in a surprising way, wrapping up what seemed like an unsolvable conflict with a satisfying conclusion.

Honestly, with slightly better writing I would consider this series a hidden gem. The core ideas are more than good – Gideon's blessing being an all-rounder that is extremely versatile, but lacks unique, flashy skills and is thus underappreciated until people feel his absence is a great starting point. The backstory of his relationship with Rit is well-concieved, making their affection believable. The conspiracies they face are okay, along with the whole plot of hero's blessing being more a curse and a burden. It's just all realized in a pretty mediocre manner, with uninspired dialogue and juvenile romantic tension straight out of teen drama. Thankfully the humour is appropriately toned down and the chill vibe dominates the story outside of few dramatic moments, making it all very pleasant to follow if you're in the intended audience. Just, it easily could've been much, much more than this...