Review of The Rising of the Shield Hero Season 3

Man, I remember when both the second and third seasons were announced after the first season concluded. I was still in the hype of The Shield Hero, no one can deny, that it had momentum back in the day, however, time was unforgiving, and it killed the excitement. Season two came by eventually, but it had not capitalized on the previous build-up, it was stale and boring and further segmented the franchise’s image as one of the forgotten. Thankfully, the third season did not hiccup. After the whole Spirit Tortoise arc, which was underwhelming, this season tackled a far more interesting point which revolved around thedisappearance of the Cardina Heroes.

Speaking on a visual plane, the season could not escape the modern animation paradox that consists of remarkable 2D animation that’s slowed down with a very mediocre 3D counterpart, it’s the Achilles’ heel curse of this series, much like many other Isekais.

Thankfully, I can speak better about the sound department in what consists of the opening theme which was a standout for this season. My compliments extend to the OST as well as the above-average voice acting.

Character development, or the lack thereof, is a significant shortfall in this season. Every other character that’s not Naofumi falls off immensely from standing out. I have seen more engaging wooden planks in my life it all feels like a lifeless one-world game where the only colorful character is the one playable.

I hate to say it, but despite this season being better than the last, it is definitely still not comparable to the first one and is a mixed bag in and of itself. I would find myself enjoying moments of it, but never the whole episode and that’s very problematic.

Overall: 6.3/10.