Review of The Rising of the Shield Hero

A Review of Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari (The Rising of the Shield Hero) Season 1 Wow! An Isekai with actual fleshed out backstories, solid plot and character development, and deals with intense issues? I must be dreaming! Although it has its faults, The Rising of the Shield Hero is indeed a rarity amongst its other Isekai titles in that it has none of the common Isekai tropes. It has zero ecchi elements, a slight harem, limited comedy, but operates much more similar to a shounen than an Isekai. It’s not very often that I get on the edge of my seat and actually feel emotionfor the computer generated pixels on my screen. But in this case, I have laughed, cried, and cheered on these heros through this emotional rollercoaster. There is something to be stated about the similar effects that being falsely accused in this day, time, and has on a person to the effects that the protagonist Naofumi faced. After being falsely accused of rape, he is cast out and hated throughout almost the entirety of anime. Although, I do think that Naofumi should have voiced out that he was innocent right from the get go to whoever would listen. As Fitoria said “If you don’t defend your innocence, people will continue to think you’re guilty” or something like that. I think every single person fell in love (in more ways than one) with the character of Ralphtalia. A half-raccoon with a full heart, she captivates the hearts of the audience and provides the strong female protagonist that we all love and adore. Honestly though, she is probably one of my favorite female protagonists in the anime world.

Plot was entertaining and action packed. Although the themes were a little one-sided and flat. Even though the characters has some development, it was interesting to see that in both life and anime, some people never change. 9/10

Sound-wise, the anime tried its best. It was interesting to have angelic voices singing in English in the background while important moments were happening but also a little awkward at times. I feel that a more instrumental composition could have sufficed. OST, opening and closing songs were both great (“Just fight it out!”) 8.5/10

Character development was on point. 10/10

Overall enjoyment and score: 9.5/10