Rimuru

You Won’t Believe Who Rimuru Hires this Episode

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime, Anime Reviews, Crunchyroll , , , , , , , , , , ,

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime S4 Ep 13 Review

It’s been a good time for Tempest. With Maribel’s defeat and Yuuki laying low, Rimuru and his friends are free to relax and enjoy the fruits of their labor…is what I would like to say. Sadly, Tempest is getting to the point where the work is getting to be too much for who they currently have to handle. Speaking as someone who has experience with more work than one person can handle, I can tell you how disastrous this can be for morale. So, it’s time for some new recruits for Tempest! And as fate would have it, Rimuru gets some perfect hires without having to post a ‘Help wanted’ ad.

Firstly, we need to talk about the OP. With this being the second cours of the season, that means it’s time for the anime to receive a new OP. This way, its remaining up-to-date on what’s happening in the story. And this OP is one of the most enigmatic, with heavy emphasis on subdued colors or outright black and white, chains, and, it should be noted, Hinata and Chloe. Anime logic dictates that what’s going to happen in this second part is going to put a lot of emphasis on the two girls. Just something to think about.

Dino the Freeloader

So after Millim gets dragged back home due to shaking her duties for the umpteenth time, Rimuru decides to get back to work. You can’t exactly blame Millim, though. She’s so happy getting to play with Gaia after these millennia. Sadly, the Dungeon is the only place where it can survive, so it has to stay behind. In the meantime, the work in Tempest is starting to pile up, and Rimuru’s team of Veldora, Ramiris, and more are needing some extra hands to help with their work. As fate would have it, though, one seems to show up right on Rimuru’s doorstep.

This is Dino, and like Rimuru, Ramiris, and Millim, he’s a Demon Lord. However, that title might be stretching it a bit, even by the standards of Demon Lords in this series. Dino is known as the Sleeping Demon Lord and is infamously known as a slacker amongst the other Demon Lords. He doesn’t have his own home or domain to manage. He’s just been freeloading off of Guy Crimson, the oldest and strongest of the Demon Lords, forever. And Crimson finally decided to kick him out, only to dump the responsibility onto Rimuru. And it should be noted that Rimuru cannot refuse. Guy Crimson is far stronger than him, and could easily wipe Tempest out if he wanted.

Rimuru, being a hard worker, doesn’t want to have a freeloader mooching off of him, but thankfully, the problem solves itself. Dino takes one bite of the food in Tempest, and for the first time in forever, he’s motivated to do work. So, he gives him to Vesta the dwarf as his assistant. He’s literally been bribed by food. Honestly, though, it’s a good deal. Food and a roof over your head is a good motivation for working.

As for Veldora, he’s also wants an assistant, but his choice surprises Rimuru: Ifrit, the Fire Elemental.

I don’t Understand how Ifrit is this Way now

If you’ll recall, Ifrit is the Fire spirit that was sealed inside Shizu when she was summoned to this world as a kid. It saved her life, but she had to spend so much of it keeping Ifrit from going on a rampage that it led to her eventual death after Rimuru split them up. Naturally, Rimuru is not keen on Veldora’s request, but there’s a catch to it. After getting sealed inside Rimuru’s stomach, the flame spirit befriended Veldora and they kept each other company. Thanks to that, Veldora was able to help Ifrit chill enough to realize how much pain he caused Shizu and to regret it. Now he wants to make amends by helping Rimuru, and he’s already done so. He provided the salamanders needed for the Magitrain!

So, thanks to Veldora’s recommendation, Rimuru gives Ifrit a chance and gives him a new body to inhabit and renames them to Charys. For some reason, though, Charys can now change from man to woman whenever they want, getting stronger with fire or wind depending on their gender. I don’t know how this is possible, to be honest, but I think we should just roll with it. I’ve already seen a character in One Piece with the power to make people swap genders, so this is nothing to me!

This is a very slow and lowkey episode, in my opinion, as it revolves around Rimuru getting more help around Tempest. Ramiris gets even more helpers in the form of more Dryads thanks to the artificial bodies Rimuru is making, so that’s good. However, the real highlight is the ending as we cut to one servant of Rimuru that has been notably absent: Diablo. Earlier in the season, he said he was going off on a trip to find some worthy assistants for himself, so he’s gone back to the Demon Realm to do so. And he’s apparently bringing up to a thousand subordinates with him when he gets back. Rimruru is cool with it, but he has no idea just who Diablo has in mind. And I’m not spoiling it for you guys!  It’s going to make the surprise all the better! So, see you guys next episode!

Also, I really liked the new ED that’s based on a board game. It’s pretty obvious that, besides Rimuru, the other person playing the game is meant to be Chloe. And she’s on some sort of journey to find Rimuru. I’m not sure if you know this, but besides being her teacher, Chloe has a crush on him, something he’s well aware of (and wishes someone had said that to him when they were 18 or 20). It’s adorable for right now, but it seems like it might be more serious than we realize.

I Give “New Companions” a 3/5

That Time Gobta (Almost) Found Love in Slime Tensura

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime, Anime Reviews, Crunchyroll , , , , , , , , , , , ,

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Tears of the Azure Sea Review

I’m not sure if this is accurate or not, but I suspect that a lot of Slime Tensura fans were as upset as me when we found out there wasn’t going to be a new episode on May 1st. I didn’t even know the series would be on break! So, even I had told myself to not spend the extra money, I talked myself into going to see the new Slime movie, Tears of the Azure Sea. Unfortunately, the closest movie theater that had it in dub was too far for me to want to drive that weekend, so I found another movie theater closer, but with it subbed. Subbed or dubbed, though, the movie was still pretty fun to watch. Especially since it manages to give our boy, Gobta, something that he’s been wanting for a very long time.

Like a lot of movies of dubious canonicity to an anime, Tears of the Azure Sea takes place in the time gap between major events of Slime Tensura. In this case, the time between the third and fourth seasons of the show. The Opening Festival of Tempest finished a month ago, and Rimuru and his friends are looking forward to a much-needed break. So Elmesia offers to let them visit a famous resort island in her country, leading most of Tempest’s leadership and their allies to go on a giant vacation. But then Gobta runs into this blue-haired woman, Yura, from Kaien, a famous kingdom located under the sea, who is being pursued by evil forces. And from there, it doesn’t take long for the entire group to get roped in.

Gobta (Almost) finds Love!

Full disclosure here: this movie is pretty much about Gobta. Rimuru and everyone else are in it, but from the moment Gobta notices Yura following them to ask Rimuru for help, it’s pretty much his movie. At best, Rimuru is there to help provide support when fighting the bad guys. If that sounds disappointing to anyone, you have to remember that Rimuru is one of the most broken protagonists in all of anime. When a character is that overpowered, you either have to have them face threats that can push them further, or set things up so that their use is limited. Tears of the Azure Kingdom opts for the latter by having Rimuru only step in to face the threats that could kill everyone.

As a sidebar, they also do the same for Milim and Veldora by having them stay behind to guard the island. They could solve everything, but also wreck everything, LOL. And this is Gobta’s film.

If it isn’t obvious at this point, the fact that Gobta is the first of the group to meet Yura, as well as the one who spends the most time with her, means that she’s meant to serve as a love interest for the goblin. It’s not brought up that often in the main series, but if you watch the OVAs or the spin-off anime Slime Diaries, you’ll see that Gobta is the one in the group that really wants to find love, but whose behavior gets him slapped by the girls. And while they start off on the wrong foot at first, getting to run around the island whil avoiding assassins was a great way for Gobta to show off how badass he is. And when the ultimate big bad of the movie tries to use her as part of his plan to conquer the world, it’s Gobta who ends up saving her! Way to channel your inner Krillin, dude!

Too Good to be True

Of course, since this is a movie with dubious canon placement, though, we all knew that Gobta’s chance at love wasn’t going to work out. We were totally right, by the way! I don’t want to spoil how it ends, but here’s a hint: you know what happened with Sokka and Princess Yue in Avatar. Let that sink in.

As a film, there really isn’t much substance to Tears of the Azure Sea. The most that it’s got going for it is that its film budget allows for some really stellar action sequences, especially at the climax where they are fighting the big bad. Though, if you’ve watched a lot of anime, then you should know that when they make a film based on a popular series, it’s usually not going to have much substance to it. It’s more or less an excuse for us to see more of the characters do cool things. Off the top of my head, I can name only seven times the events of an anime film had an actual impact on the plot of the series, and all of them were from Shonen series. Yet these franchises keep pumping them out because we like seeing these one-off adventures so much. It’s fun! It’s a good way to kill time, too. Besides, it’s not like everything in the film is going to have zero relevance to the actual anime. There’s a post-credits scene that hints at the arrival of a new character to Tempest in the near future. So, there’s that!

Well, hopefully next week, we will get to see Rimuru confront the Western Council. I read part of the manga in advance, so I can happily say that things are going to get interesting real quick!

I Give “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Tears of the Azure Sea ” a 3.5/5

Great Rimuru has Returned to us!!!

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime, Anime Reviews, Crunchyroll , , , , , , , , , , , ,

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime S4 Ep 1 Review

RIMURU-SAMA, WE MISSED YOU!!! 😭😭😭

If you remember all my reviews of Mushoku Tensei, then you remember my concept of the Seven Summits of Isekai. They’re the series that I consider to be the pinnacle of the genre that has become so prevalent over the last decade. And while I still have a soft spot for Shield Hero and Mushoku Tensei, we here at the D&A Anime Blog are huge fans of one isekai above all others: That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime. It’s got an amazing world, great and lovable characters, and Rimuru might be one of the most OP, broken protagonists in all of fiction. So it is with great fanfare that we welcome back Lord Rimuru as we begin the first cours for the monumental fourth season of That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime!

It’s been a while since the Great Festival where the nation of Tempest made its grand debut on the world stage. And for Rimuru and his friends and allies, life couldn’t be better! His plans to build a magic-powered train system are progressing nicely. More and more humans are visiting or living in Tempest, making the idea of human- monster coexistence more of a reality. Rimuru’s beloved students are now attending class in Tempest and away from Yuuki, with Hinata serving as a guest teacher. And, as crazy as it sounds, Shion managed to make a tea he can actually drink!

All of it adds up to Rimuru being able to enjoy a happy and fulfilling life. Except for one problem: their new Dungeon isn’t working.

The Tempest Dungeon is Like Dark Souls

Despite all the advertising and work they put into it, too many newbie adventurers keep trying to take on the Dungeon. They’re getting lost, starving, or owned by even the most basic of monsters. At this rate, the Tempest Dungeon will be a financial flop! All of this is leading adventurers to lash out at the citizens of Tempest and say their Dungeon is unfair. Something has to be done, and it’s the kind of thing that a gamer can fix. A gamer like Masayuki.

Gamers Rule

I already enjoy the fact that the world of Slime Tensura has a lot of gaming mechanics, as that serves as the basis for a lot of isekai. However, it made me so happy to see the mild-mannered hero Masayuki come up with the solutions they need. Quick-save points, loot drops from monsters, tutorial lessons and rest stops! It’s everything that goes into making a good video game, and the best games are the ones that show you how to play without holding your hand.

Rimuru and Mjöllmile take it one step further. They put out ads saying that anyone who makes it halfway through the Dungeon or beats the whole thing will win a hefty cash prize.

Their little advertising campaign works perfectly. More adventurers start pouring into Tempest, eager to get the chance to win money and fame, solving the financial problems of the Dungeon. Though I can’t but feel like they’re overlooking one crucial: what if someone actually does beat the entire Dungeon? Getting past Veldora seems too absurd to consider, but if reading shonen manga has taught me anything, there’s always going to be someone who will wind up doing the impossible. They’re gonna have to eat their words when that happens!

That issue aside, as a gamer, I applaud what they are doing with the Dungeon. As a gamer, I can tell you that having a tutorial and training courses can mean the difference between winning a game or getting owned like a scrub. That, and I like the concept altogether.

Haters Gonna Hate

It’s not all sunshine and flowers, though. Whenever someone is riding high, there’s always a pack of haters ready to take them down. And Rimuru has been dealing with plenty of haters. Falmuth, Clayman, the Seven Luminaries, and now, the Rozzo family. Introduced during the last season, they’re a secret cabal thats trying to dominate the human world from the shadows loek they’re the Templars or Illuminati. And the Jura-Tempest Federation is getting in the way of that, so they’ve been trying to take them down. So far, their plans haven’t worked, but that doesn’t make them any less of a problem. Fortunately, this is Rimuru we’re talking about; he’ll be fine.

This was a good, solid start to the long-awaited fourth season of Slime Tensura. I know not everyone is interested in the more mundane aspects of world-building and just wants to see more fights, but it’s those aspects that make the series so entertaining. A lot of isekai only do the bare bones when it comes to developing their worlds, but Slime Tensura is one of the ones that is a cut above the rest. That, and its sense of humor and fanservice are pretty good!

I give “New Days” a 3.5/5