Maybe I’m getting old. Maybe I’m just going soft. But as of late I find myself enjoying more laidback shows a lot, as opposed to the more intense shows. I really felt this sentiment when I just watched two shows back to back. I started by watching Beast Tamer and followed it by watching Blue Lock. I enjoy both shows, for different reasons.
Blue Lock is a show about soccer. A crazy guy has 250 strikers “locked up” in a large complex to compete to become the top striker. They can leave at any time so they’re not actually imprisoned or anything, but they’re there and they can’t leave the building while being a part of the project. It turns these kids very aggressive and very unlikable. It’s a fun show for sure and I’m very curious where it’s going to go, and I hope that some of the characters become a bit more likable as the show goes on. So far I only think Bachira is likable. It is a very original show though, I don’t think I’ve seen anything like it. And having Hiroshi Kamiya to voice another psychopathic weirdo is just the cherry on top. He’s still one of my favorite voice actors and instantly recognizable. Also the opening is by Unison Square Garden which I approve of.
Beast Tamer is a very generic, run of the mill fantasy show. You’ve seen a million of it before, you’ll see a million of it in the future. This show doesn’t reinvent anything and doesn’t throw anything crazy at you. It’s a show about Rein, who’s a part of the hero’s party but gets banished because he’s not useful enough. Sound familiar? That’s probably because it’s the third show with a similar plot I’ve watched and that’s with me already skipping a bunch of these when they don’t catch my attention immediately. But, originality isn’t king. You can have a story that’s been done before but refine it and make it your own. Hell, I’m writing an Isekai story that’s definitely taking inspiration from other shows.
What Beast Tamer has going for it is its characters. Rein is definitely a bit of a pushover, which I’m not a fan of, but he’s kind and he’s good at communicating. That last one is beyond most protagonists, so it’s a welcome trait in a character we’re going to spend time with. Kanade is his first companion and she’s a bubbly character but not in an annoying way. I’m not a huge fan of this character archetype so it gets grating to me fast. Kanade hasn’t annoyed me, but I think that’s also partly thanks to the second new party member, Tania, getting added rather quickly. She’s the archetypical tsundere character. I love it when there’s a character that’s tsundere, but they’re actually normal. Like, I mean no offense to most tsunderes, but a good amount of them are just mean. Bullying isn’t an attractive character trait. Well, to me it isn’t, but looking at the amount of people that seemed to enjoy Nagatoro-san I’m alone in this.
Quick sidebar, I couldn’t stand that show. Maybe it’s because I got bullied when I was younger, but that’s not attractive to me at all. I’d much rather watch a show like Uzaki-san, where the character is a lot more on the teasing side.
Putting aside my dislike of mean characters, Tania isn’t that. Sure, she has some arrogance and a heaping pile of pride, but she’s also introspective when she messes up. I found myself really enjoying the latest episode to a point where it kind of surprised me. Having likable characters might be a bigger positive for an anime than I’d like to admit. I do like slice of life shows a lot and they live or die on the characters in it, so it makes sense now that I’m putting it into words. I guess I’m just stating the obvious here, so don’t mind my ramblings.
Anyway, I just wanted to talk a little bit about the shows I just watched before going to bed. There’s some great shows this season that I can’t wait to review once the season is over. But for now, I’m going to finish up my anime for the day and go to bed. Goodnight and thanks for reading.
As I’m finishing up this post I’m starting to realize that my exhaustion from the last few months is really getting to me. It’s getting a bit hard to write a coherent paragraph. Maybe that’s a sign I need more sleep. Or maybe I should ignore that sign and keep staying up late watching anime. I guess we’ll never know.
Opal Kaharis 
I’ll say you’re definitely not the only one who feels that way about Nagatoro-san. Though I really like it, the first several chapters were hard to get through. I can really relate to the male lead’s struggles, and I do think the bullying softens into something different as time goes on, but I can also see why this series doesn’t work for some people. (Speaking of the more teasing style, Uzaki doesn’t work so well for me, but Takagi-san is my favorite of this kind of series out of all of them.)
I generally get what you mean here, though. I’ve found a lot more to appreciate in slice-of-life anime recently as long as it incorporates some comedy and/or compelling characters. I don’t always feel like watching something emotionally intense anymore.
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