Rising of the Shield Hero Episode 2: The Tanuki Slave (With Plyasm)

Another week, another pair of episodes, and we’ve swapped up the shows this time! That’s right, if you want to see my take on Episode 2 of Dororo, you’re all gonna have to skedaddle your beautiful tushies over to Plyasm’s blog for that!

Well, this set of episodes was honestly no less good than the first, for both shows. Shield Hero in particular was quite fantastic for me, as someone who has been following the source material for… I don’t even know how long. 8 years, maybe? Ever since the webnovel was still releasing, and way before it was announced as a Light Novel series, anyways. Let’s just get this off my chest right now… I ADORE RAPHTALIA. Honestly, she’s one of my all-time favorite characters… and finally getting to see her voiced and animated was enough to actually make me cry. But enough about my sentimentality. Let’s get to the questions, eh?

The handsome and witty Me

The wannabe hobo blogger

Look at this face. How can you say no to this face?

What are your general thoughts for this episode?

Another great episode of Shield Hero. Man, it might sound like an exaggeration, but this episode was seriously fantastic. It kind of has to be said, but Raphtalia is one of my favorite characters… EVER. Seriously, I just love her so much… and the Anime has made her more adorable than ever. With her in the mix, the beautiful visuals from MAPPA, and the absolutely GORGEOUS soundtrack by Kevin Penkin, this episode was a fantastic ride, from start to finish.

Very nice. I enjoyed it alot, and the episode ended on a very nice climax and resolution at the end. And, to top it off, Kevin Penkin’s soundtrack just made everything so, so much better, and it was well complimented by the great animations. Can’t wait for the next episode.

Kevin Penkin is basically a legend in my books, honestly. I screamed for joy when I heard he was doing the soundtrack for this show.

Did the episode fit your expectations, and in which ways did it differ from it?(If it does)

Did the episode fit my expectations? Consider expectations blown clean out of the water. Putting voices to the characters i’ve known for so long… I gotta admit, I was tearing up during that last scene, down in the cave.

Definitely, yea. The episode gave me all the things I expected to happen, but with extra details, even. Might have to do with how the manga I read itself is an adaptation of the light novel, but eh. Still, it was very nice to see everything again, from Raphtalia and Naofumi’s first encounter, to their daily interactions, to their growths.

Good stuff. Very good stuff.

How does this episode compare to the source material? [Only for stuff seen/read before]

Comparing the episode to the source material… it compares really well, actually. It’s a bit faster paced, of course, as most adaptations are, but we still got plenty of time with our two main characters as they worked to overcome their individual traumas, together. The first volume of the light novel is one of the best volumes, in my opinion, and everything they’re doing so far absolutely does it justice.

Well, like I said earlier, the source is definitely very well adapted here, with interesting details being added on top. Not much else to be said here.

They missed one of the cutest Raphtalia moments, though. Makes me sad.

Which scene do you think other people would react to differently?

Considering the show’s already generated quite a bit of controversy… there’s probably gonna be even more, most likely stemming from Naofumi’s use of slaves. But, having read the source material, I kind of know what kind of a person he is… it’s kind of a necessity for him, at this point.

Probably to Naofumi’s treatment of Raphtalia. It might seem questionable to most, especially with ordering her to kill despite her having extreme PTSD about it. To me, however, this just seems like Naofumi’s way of getting her to heal and get over it. Sometimes, it doesn’t help to simply let the problem slowly go away, especially not if the person is suffering night after night over it. Confronting the problem head on might be a good solution.

Tough love treatment of the little tanuki girl. She turned out all right, though.

Which character did you like the most this episode? Have they done anything in particular/changed?

As much as I love Naofumi… Raphtalia easily takes the win this episode. Good heavens, they somehow managed to make her even more adorable than in the source material, not an easy feat by any means. Her traumatic past has left her with scars as deep, if not deeper than Naofumi’s, but together, they begin to heal each other.

Still Naofumi! I know Astral’s probably going to say Raphtalia because he’s just saying how she’s so freaking cute and stuff, but to me, it’s still Naofumi for me. Just as Raphtalia is getting her heart healed from being with Naofumi, Naofumi is getting his own heart healed by Raphtalia. You can see this distinctly from how Naofumi slowly warms up to Raphtalia more and more. His character growth has just been great ever since he got into this new world.

Honestly, they’re both amazing characters and I really love them both. It’s a tough decision between the two, especially as they really play off of each other in such wonderful ways.

What’s the high point of the episode for you and why?

The high point for me was definitely the confrontation with the dog monster. Seeing Raphtalia’s struggle between her fear and trauma, and her wish to save Naofumi was wonderfully done, and the incredible voice acting and musical score during the scene just made it that much better.

No debate here. Definitely the fight with the dog monster. Kevin Penkin’s OST just kicked in full force there, and faced with a tough decision, Raphtalia finally came to and decided to confront her own fears and kill it. The sense of urgency was great, and the gravity of the situation was also conveyed very well, through both the animations and the music. I love it, it’s just like Made in Abyss all over again.

Stealing my choice, eh? Mayhaps we need to add in a Plyasm Copycat Counter of our own, eh?

What can be improved in this episode and why? (a.k.a low point)

There were a couple points where it seemed the animation took a bit of a dip in quality… i’m not sure what that was about, but it bugged me a little. Maybe it was just my internet connection, though.

The animations, although very good, still has a few spots where it gets slightly subpar every now and then. It was noticeable in this episode, but it might just be magnified because of how good the rest of the show looked.

Oh, strike 2 comes around! Though it does say something that we both pointed out the same flaw.

Plyasm Copycat Counter: 2

What situation/decision/action is the most relatable to you in this episode and why?

I can really identify with Raphtalia’s fear of the dog monster. Having seen her family killed by a very similar creature, the toll that must have taken on her is immense. I’ve had times when i’ve frozen up due to past trauma of bad experiences, so I can relate to Raphtalia about that.

Hard question for this episode. I can only say that for this particular episode, there really isn’t much that is that relatable for me. Sad.

And a cop-out? Tsk tsk. Either you have no empathy, or you’re just lazy!

Pick a situation from this episode. If you were put in this situation, how would you have handled it?

I think that from Naofumi’s perspective, getting a slave was definitely the right choice. Everyone else was out to get him; he really needed someone who wouldn’t pose a threat to him or try to cheat him. Slavery might not be a very morally upstanding practice, but at that point, he didn’t really have a choice.

I would pick ordering Raphtalia to attack the rabbit. I’m not as much of a headstrong person as Naofumi, so I probably would not have forced her to attack the rabbit if she didn’t want to, and instead, maybe just keep farming the balloons instead.

I think the main reason he needed her to kill the rabbit was because he knew the monsters from the Waves were going to be much, much worse than just balloons and mushrooms. She needed to learn early on, or she’d just die when it came down to it.

Most beautiful scene?(screenshot)

I think the nicest scene for me was when Raphtalia was looking back at her memories with her parents. It may not have been the most beautiful scene from a purely visual point of view, but it sure did pack an emotional punch that was just lovely.

https://imgur.com/1RIUO3b
Gave me serious Made in Abyss vibes here, and just overall looks beautiful. This is part of the charm of an isekai, after all.

Some extra shieldy goodness

Well, another episode gone and done, and i’m just drooling to get more. This is bringing back so many memories, of when I read a lot of the original series while on a road trip with the family, a poorly translated webnovel that just captured me and has made me a lifelong fan. Kinema Citrus, I love you guys so much for doing this.

I’m just so glad that my high hopes for this show haven’t been let down. As many of you who I talk to more often are aware, I’ve been ranting about the upcoming of this show for MONTHS now, since it was announced, basically. It’s so, so nice to finally be rewarded in such a big way.

But hey, I don’t want to ramble on for TOO long… so i’ll ask, what do YOU guys think of the show so far? Are you enjoying it? What’s been your favorite part so far? Let me know down in the comments, I’d love to hear from you!! Thank you all so much for reading, and I’ll see you in the next post!