Slime Tensura

This Little Girl is a Problem

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

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime S4 Ep 3 Review

I’m pretty sure I’ve talked everyone’s ears off about how much I hate Witch, AKA Bitch, Whore, and formerly known as Malty S. Melromarc. She’s everything wrong with elitist mindsets rolled into an ugly package that’s so easy to despise. The good news is that she also matches Cersei Lannister in terms of idiocy, so if you know her game, it’s easy to beat her. Can you imagine if Witch was as smart as she thinks she is and how screwed the world would be? Well, Rimuru may not know it yet, but he might have just made an enemy out of someone with the same mindset and the competency to back it up: Mariabel Rozzo.

Mariabel of Greed

So, the OP and ED for this season of Slime Tensura have put a lot of emphasis on the girl known as Mariabel. In anime, that typically means that they’re important to the plot. Plus there’s also the fact that we’ve seen Mariabel always hanging around her grandfather, AKA the one who orchestrated that stunt with the merchants in the last season. Their plan was to con Rimuru into a situation where he’d owe them a favor, but he was too smart for that. It’s not the old man that’s the problem, though; it’s Mariabel. She’s a reincarnator like Rimuru.

Whereas our lovable slime was a working man on Earth, Mariabel was the opposite. She was born into the upper crust of European aristocracy, and she did not let her gender get in the way of her Littlefinger arc. She spent her entire life amassing wealth and power from the shadows until she ruled Europe from behind the scenes! The anime even implies that she profited off World War I, AKA the most pointless war in human history. That’s how you know that she’s evil. And she managed to die of old age, before getting reborn in the Tensura world as a baby princess. And she got a terrifying unique skill to boot: Greed.

Remember how Rimuru has that unique skill, Gluttony, lets him eat and gain the abilities of anyone he wants? Mariabel’s Greed lets her use other people’s desires to brainwash them. And the more the target wants, the easier it is to control them! By the time she was out of diapers, she had already brainwashed most of her house, until finally she became the right-hand of her grandfather, Granbell Rozzo, the thousand-year-old founder of the Kingdom of the Siltrosso and, like I said, the puppet master behind that merchant stunt!

Rozzo’s ultimate goal is, at first glance, actually pretty noble. He doesn’t want normal humans to live in a world ruled by monsters and Demon Lords, so he’s been pulling strings in the west to create a place where humans can live in peace. And Rimuru’s idea of a world where all races can live in peace is getting in the way of that. Hence the whole scheme with the merchants. And while I don’t entirely get it, I’m pretty sure the Rozzo’s and Yuuki are the ones funding Team Green Fury, AKA the guys cheesing their way through the Tempest Dungeon. So, they have to be dealt with.

There’s just one problem: Rimuru, Veldora, Ramiris, and Millim’s avatar bodies suck!

Avatar Team PWNS CHUMPS

We saw how the newly formed Avatar Team got their butts whooped at the end of the last episode, but this episode gives us an even better look at why. Not only are the Demon Lords and Veldora weak in their artificial bodies, but their teamwork stinks! They’re so used to being so OP that they can solo everything that they don’t know how to fight in a team. So while Kurobe makes them some sweet armor, Rimuru has them go through some intense training. Since they’re basically operating like the typical RPG team, they also have to learn teamwork. Which is good, since they could stand to learn that.

Rimuru’s plan ultimately works, and the timing couldn’t have been better. Green Fury was about to beat the 49th floor. So it was time for the admins to assert their authority.

I have to admit, it was nice seeing the Avatar Team put a stop to Green Fury before they could ruin everything. Hopefully, they can patch things so that no one else can use that exploit any further. As a gamer, I understand how much that sucks, but it’s better to win without resorting to cheap tricks like that. Good riddance, Green Fury!

The real problem, though, remains Mariabel. With her family’s plan with the merchants having backfired and Rimuru suspicious of Yuuki of the Free Guild, Mariabel’s going to change tactics. She plans to invite Rimuru to the West to the Council so she can get him alone and try to use Greed on him to turn him into her puppet. Little does she know that she’s grasping at straws, because a.) Rimuru is our protagonist, and has that protagonist plot armor; b.) he’s Rimuru. He’s got GOAT status. He’ll be fine! In fact, I say he should accept the invitation just so we can see him embarrass her! But that doesn’t make her less of a threat. She managed to kill the merchant who organized that fuss under Souei’s nose!

I Give “The Avatar Team is Formed” a 3.5/5

Some Lowlife Power Gamers are Ruining the Dungeon

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

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime S4 Ep 2 Review

You know what the hardest thing is when it comes to developing video games that are getting constantly updated? Having to one-up players who find exploits and ways to cheat. It’s like a never-ending battle between players and game developers, because every time one problem gets solved, another gets exploited. The reason why I’m bringing this up is that Rimuru has just found a new problem to deal with regarding his nation’s Dungeon. Two problems, more accurately.

Hinata almost Ruins the Dungeon

So the good news is that ever since installing Masayuki’s suggestions to help adventurers, the Tempest Dungeon is starting to turn a profit. The save points, rest stops, and the inn are raking in the dough. Masayuki even managed to clear the 30th floor, albeit he did it in a way that reminds of something that Buggy the Clown or Mr. Satan would do.

I know that his special skill, Chosen Hero, makes everyone think he’s that guy, but this level of hype is ridiculous. But that’s not the problem. Rimuru wants Masayuki to do well so it makes the Dungeon look good and brings in customers. The main problems are Hinata almost wrecked everything, and that there’s a team that’s using an exploit to clear the bosses.

Firstly, we have Hinata. After the Crusaders started using the lower levels as a training ground and got their butts handed to them, one of them mouthed off that Hinata couldn’t handle it. So she took that as a challenge and just went on a massive tear like she’s Sung Jinwoo. She wasted the bosses on the lower floors, killed all the dragons Millim caught, and then just chilled at an inn on the 95th floor just to troll them. Veldora beat her, but Rimuru refuses to give her the prize money.

This is what I meant when I said how games like this need to be constantly updated. A dungeon like Rimuru’s needs to be balanced and ensure that the participants have a fair chance of winning, while also making sure that it’s not too easy. First things first, Rimuru decides to give Adalmann some cool new magic.

Freaking Power Gamers!

The real issue, though, is this new party, Team Green Fury. They managed to catch up to the progress of Masayuki’s team, not by being that good, but through an exploit. Apparently, by using a combination of them and the return whistles (escape ropes) to exit and re-enter the Dungeon, they can gather party members far past what should be the limit. In other words, they’ve made a party of dozens capable of clearing the Dungeon bosses…by save scumming and zerg rushing.

Look, I’m a gamer. I have used tactics like this before. I know other people do this. But there has to be a limit to how much players should be allowed to exploit without ruining the challenge. And then they managed to beat the 40th floor! If that keeps up, they’ll reach the lower floors, find the bosses are wrecked, and the Dungeon will be ruined. This calls for admin intervention!

Rimuru’s ultimate solution is a pretty cool one, albeit it copies the concept behind the Avatar films and Pixar’s Hoppers. He, Veldora, Ramiris, and Millim, who just got back from tort-training Gobta and Ranga will put their souls into monster avatars, and crush them on the 49th floor before they wreck everything. It’s a good plan…if they didn’t get their butts handed to them. In a surprising twist, it seems the three Demon Lords and one True Dragon are way weaker in their avatar bodies. Which means now they have to train!

So these last two episodes have been pretty lowkey as far as stakes go, but that’s not why people like Slime Tensura, I think. They like it because of the humor and world-building. I’m looking forward to seeing how Rimuru deals with these borderline cheaters, and I hope we get some more action soon.

I Give “The Dungeon Evolves” a 3/5