Review of The Rising of the Shield Hero

I am unsure how I learned of this anime but good lord I am so glad I did. Everything about it is amazing. At first I was a little unsure because I thought it was going to be another stereotypical Isekai anime where the MC has a harem and it end up a trash anime. Oh was I wrong. The MC starts off knowing anything about MMO games or how those worlds work. He never understood what was going on. He also starts off with a shield, what is seen as the weakest of all of the weapons.He is ridiculed and shamed by those around him and, later, the entire country. Everyone spreads rumors and he is lower than rock bottom. He gets conned and robbed and is, basically, thrown to the streets. It is through his hard work and effort that he raises and, oh boy,it is hard for him. Because of his history with the world, he does not trust anyone and is very cynical. It's not until many episodes in that he actually starts trusting his companion. I have never seen an anime with these attributes and I can relate with the MC as well. Seeing this was SO refreshing and I loved every second of it. I watched and listening to the opening and ending for EVERY episode, which I hardly ever do (I will usually watch the first one then skip the rest.) The animation and art was stunning and effects mind blowing. The characters were well developed and I don't think I even saw a cliche anime trope either. Romance is hinted at but never carried out, which, again, seems rare for Isekai animes. I am rooting for a season 2 and will start reading the manga. I want to learn Japanese so I can also read the light novels too. I HIGHLY suggest start watching this if you haven't already! While we wait with anticipation for a season 2 I will be entertaining myself with other works from this director as well as animes similar to it. Another thing to note is I never write reviews for animes so the fact that I spent the time to write this also says how amazing this anime is.