First Impressions / Hagure Yuusha no Estetica / Series Introduction

Episode 01:

OP Sequence

OP: 「Realization」 by 飛蘭 (Faylan)
Watch the OP!: Streaming ▼

「強くてニューゲーム」 (Tsuyoku te Nyu Gemu)
“A Strong New Game”

What do you get when you bring together RPG elements and fanservice? A child named Hagure Yuusha no Estetica! Corny jokes aside, it’s true though. All the main aspects of a typical RPG are here (more on the fanservice later). We have a rogue hero who comes out of nowhere (another world) to save the day: Ousawa Akatsuki (Okamoto Nobuhiko). We have the queen in distress: Listy El Da Sherfied (Satou Rina). And last but not least, we have an evil demon lord to defeat.

Wait, what’s that? You’re asking me why you shouldn’t just play an RPG instead of watching Estetica? Well, it’s because of the twist added in by creator Uesu Tetsuto. See, rather than giving us some stereotypical story we could find in pretty much a thousand places, he starts the series AFTER everything’s said and done. The demon lord’s already been defeated, the land saved, and the hero’s mission accomplished. It’s time for the hero to go back to his own world, chock full of leveled up powers, a naked woman in his duffle bag, and hands that can strip off the lingerie off any female in the blink of an eye.

And well, that’s pretty much what the first episode was about in a nutshell. For the most part, what we get is a prologue of sorts, where we get some quick introduction to some of the cast members and a set up for the main story line. And well, as ridiculous as this first episode was, I couldn’t help but find myself entertained at the end of it all. For one, our main hero is anything but the definition of boring. As the one who defeated the demon lord, he’s already darn strong, and doesn’t hesitate to do whatever the heck he wants. And that’s exactly the kind of protagonist I want running this kind of show, however seemingly cliche it is. Sure, the great hero ain’t THAT awesome, as he gets abducted and forcibly enrolled in the organization known as BABEL, but seeing as it’s how the author wants to progress further in terms of plot, there’s nothing wrong with this development. If anything, making Akatsuki somewhat less overpowered is something that should serve as a nice source of plot development and entertainment in the future.

As for what BABEL is, it’s being described as a kind of institution for protecting and controlling people who have transferred back from other worlds—people who all possess their own unique powers. And as demonstrated by scenes in the OP/ED, as well as the aptitude examination battle with the Student Council President, the BABEL environment will at least give us some nice treats in terms of action and battle scenes… if not also some mystery and intrigue in regards to the inner workings of the organization.

But, that’s enough about our grand pervert and BABEL, as I reckon I’ll find plenty of other opportunities to talk about them in the future. Next up is—no, I’m not up to the gratuitous uncensored scenes and other related fanservice yet, although the person I want to talk about is involved in quite a bit of it. Next up is a quick discussion about our main heroine, Ousawa Miu. The daughter of the demon lord, she is entrusted to our rogue hero due to his fighting prowess, and also ends up in BABEL as well. Aside from some brief mentions of the potential destruction she could wreck in the wrong hands, we’re not given much else at the moment, but it’s definitely something to watch for. The series seems a bit light-hearted at the moment, especially in regard this this, but this should be something that gradually develops into something more serious as the series goes on. In the meanwhile though, I know at least some of the viewers will enjoy the fanservice that comes with her, her kick ass skills that let her easily dispose of the instructor in charge of the aptitude examination, and her overall likable demeanor. Oh yes, did I mention she’s also voiced by Hikasa Youko of K-ON! fame?

And now last, but not least… the obligatory discussion about the fanservice. Personally, I’ll admit that I’m not too fond of shows that go overboard with their fanservice, as an excess tends to detract from the overall experience in my view. Coming into the show, I was warned that there would be a fair amount, so I’ll admit that I was a bit worried that Estetica would be one of those shows that go overboard with that aspect. In the worst case, I feared it’d make it so I wouldn’t want to cover the show at all! But while the first episode did offer quite a bit in this department, it thankfully didn’t detract much from the overall experience at all. And mostly it’s because the more serious scenes (the battles) were pretty much devoid of any real fanservice aside from a panty shot or two and the usual “jiggling”, which is how it should be done. It doesn’t change the fact that some of the fanservice scenes were pretty ridiculous and over the top, but at least it worked in the scene it was in, and provided some moments of laughter and entertainment.

Overall, Estetica seems to be pretty much as advertised at this point. It’s an action/fantasy mixture that combines elements you’d see in an RPG, as well as quite a few helpings of fanservice. If you’re into shows of such genres, I reckon this is one show that won’t disappoint in that respect. Those that aren’t that big of a fan might be less inclined to watch, especially those that don’t like watching shows with a fair amount of fanservice. However, it might still be worth a watch either way because of how it gives us a story that’s more of a post game/New Game+ rather than the typical, cliche story of a hero rising up to defeat some ultimate enemy. It’s a story that like Divine said in his preview, “gives the author the freedom to take the story in almost any direction”. As such, Estetica’s not something that should be written off immediately even if you don’t like the first few episodes. Though, from the way the story’s developing, it does seem like we might be in for the long haul, as it doesn’t seem like there’s anyway this series will end with only one cour. But, as that’s still unconfirmed, I’ll just leave it at that. In the meanwhile, here’s some NSFW…

Full-length images: 15, 16.

 

ED Sequence

ED: 「愛のせいで眠れない」 (Ai no Sei de Nemurenai) by 美郷あき (Misato Aki)
Watch the ED!: Streaming ▼

Preview

Episode 02:

「聖水の絆」 (Seisui no Kizuna)
“Bonds of Holy Water”

After going through the second episode of Hagure Yuusha no Estetica, I couldn’t help but the list of rules for Fight Club. Sure, I’m already violating the first rule by talking about it, but really, they might as well have named the episode “Ousawa Akatsuki”—because, well, he was pretty much the focus of most of the episode. Think about it:

  • Rule 1: You don’t… sneak up on Akatsuki in the middle of the night, especially if you’re a female. The results may be unpleasant. Trying to mention his deceased sister will NOT help your case.
  • Rule 2: You don’t… bother Akatsuki with nonsense like him being in your seat, because Akatsuki takes any seat he dang well pleases.
  • Rule 3: You don’t… go starting fights with, challenging, or trying to punish Akatsuki. Because he’s a boss. If you’re a male, you’re likely to end up being thrown through a door. A female? Well, I think you can expect to say good bye to a piece of your lingerie. And for everyone’s sake, don’t try going to get it back either, because you’re probably just gonna lose the other piece while you’re at it, as well as some of your pride.
  • Rule 4: Akatsuki doesn’t give a darn whether or not you’re part of the Student Council, or any club for that matter. Don’t go brandishing your credentials and expecting him to care.
  • Rule 5: Akatsuki believes in equal treatment for all (if you’re female). Embarrassed because you’re locked in a room and need to go to the bathroom? No worries! He’ll make it so the other gals in the room also need to, so you can all go at the same time! Everybody gets embarrassed in the end, and everyone wins (more like only him, but you get the point)!

    • Moving on, we get introductions to the other members of the fairly large cast. First off, we meet Izumi Chikage (Ueda Kana), the girl that happily welcomes you to class and later gets found seducing other gals in the PE supply room. She’s then followed by Nanase Haruka (Inoue Marina), the Student Council member who emphasizes green in all senses of the word (in her hair, as well as certain undergarments) and topped off with another green haired gal in Doumoto Kuzuha, the class rep (of course voiced by Hanazawa Kana). But, in the end, these introductions are barely the focus this time around though, as Akatsuki and one other element takes most of the airtime this episode.

    That last element? You guessed it: pure fanservice. You’ve seen glimpses of it already in some of the picture links I’ve already put up there, but that was pretty much only a portion of the fanservice that was given this episode… for better and for worse. And well, I say the latter part because the fanservice was as ridiculous and thus as entertaining as the first episode, so that was a slight positive—but it’s also a negative this time around because of the sheer amount that was put in and the ridiculous scenarios that had to be made to do so. I’m as much as a fan of these inclusions as the average fan, but it definitely felt like a lot of the episode was purely of the fanservice variety, rather than moving along the plot at all. In fact, I’d have to say the only plot development we got from this episode was the progression of about a few hours worth of time in the Estetica universe, which makes me worry a little bit. Granted, this might be a little nit picky on my end, so I won’t go saying too much extra about my qualms regarding the exceptionally gratuitous scenes (especially the shower ones).

    What I do have to say though, is I’m not sure if this large amount of fanservice to plot ratio is something that’ll be conducive towards blogging of the series. Meaning, the series is entertaining and all, but it’s starting to feel like Estetica’s more of a show to be watched for fun, rather than something to be also talked about on a weekly basis. I can potentially see a future where all I’m talking about are the perverted exploits of our rogue hero and well, as fun as that sounds, that’s not quite what I want to be doing. I’ll probably continue covering this series for a little bit longer, but I’ll say it now before hand just in case: there is a likely chance I may drop coverage of this series in the future.

    I know some (if not many of you) reading this post will be disappointed at this, and I for one don’t like the idea of dropping coverage of a show early on—but like what Guardian Enzo said in his decision to stop blogging Kuroko no Basuke, it just seems likely I won’t be able to give the series the blogging coverage it deserves due to the manner it presents itself and the calm pace it takes. If it were one cour, I’d think a lot harder about finishing it up, but it seems more than likely it won’t be just a one cour. But, guess we’ll see. 😀

     

    Preview

    50 Comments

    2. BOOBAGE~~~!! BOOBAGE!!! Not one, but TWO shows in a season??? huh? What the heck is going on around here at RC??

      People can only remember and thank HighSchool DxD for starting this recent trend at RC (sure these out-and-proud boobage has existed loooong before HDxD, but only since HDxD that they’ve started to appear again at RC recently).

      As for the show… it’s got nothing on HDXD. Let’s say I am not sorry that it may get dropped. Sorry that there may be one less boobage at RC, though!

      worstof2012
      Reply

    3. Watched it, had fun watching it, then was “Oh it ended? Next!” at the end. Too little happened and a whole episode went by…

      Will this be 12~13 eps? I’m afraid of the future…

      Rydin
      Reply

    5. Alright guys, we are here, witnessing a legend in the history of anime. the day where the best protagonist of all time is born, the day where you enjoy harem anime like never before, the day where anyone faps regardless of the circumstances…BRACE YOURSELVES, FOOS, THE DAY HAS COME.

      WekWek
      Reply

    6. just finished reading vol.1-7 a few days ago… all I can say about this series is that… god, the fan service is sure strong with this one… but I have got to admit, LN author sure knows when to use fan service… almost every time Akatsuki does something perverted on woman, there is a legitimate reason for it…

      as to the story, the beginning is a little slow because they need to introduce all the Akatsuki harem members important characters… but once it starts the Queen arc, it gets really good (for those of you who like that distressed and tsundere queen, you will see her again if the show has a season 2)

      and lastly about our rouge hero… Akatsuki is powerful… so if you have an issue with a lead character that seems invincible, it might take a little while for you to get used to this… but Akatsuki is awesome and his power is ridiculously strong in both combat and being perverted 🙂 he is now my favorite perverted main character.

      ps. the anime seems to want to underplay Akatsuki’s power level (at least he did better during his exam with prez in the LN)

      pps. Zephyr, thanks a million in making this post!

      jrj
      Reply

      2. well, she will make cameo appearances if the anime doesn’t cut them out… and to add the prize for that arc, all the awesome maids and an high elf hottie will also be there…

        ARMS, you better sell some DVD/BD so we can have the phoenix cell arc…

        jrj
        Reply

        1. I have not encountered any English translation of this series…
          for Chinese translations though, vol. 1-7 are done… vol.8 is not, and vol.9 Japanese is coming out soon…
          if you want the LN series translated in Chinese, find me in IRC channel and I can send you links 🙂

          jrj
          Reply

    8. We’re only on episode 2 and in a single episode we had attempted sleep-rape, a lesbian make out session and three of the female leads peeing themselves in front of the main character?

      The heights (or depths) this show could reach in a full season may be incomprehensible.

      Qwert
      Reply

    9. I think first 2 episode is just to attrach viewers after that it should be normal with fanservice but u gotta admit at least this anime didn’t give us another wussy virgin male who’s not even brave enough to hold a girls hand, that juat annoying to watch. Here we finally have a real man that knows what he want and not too afraid to act upon it. As long as hes not some stuck up male character I have no problem with him, I mean hes strong and all but he doesn’t really start fight only end it when someone push him.

      Benz
      Reply

      1. Got that right! I’m so tired of shows that have perverted male leads but when the moment of reckoning comes they chicken out, at least this guy knows what he wants and goes for it.
        On another note…man, this show sure has a lot of fanservice. Don’t get me wrong, I watched both seasons of Seikon no Qwaser and Sekirei uncensored and i have no problem with it, but its just scenes like the beginning of ep 2 (the bed scene) that make me think -_-…really…did I just watch that happen? Along with…”Oh my god I wish I was her right now!!!” *coughs* anyways…gotta love the fact it has a good male lead.

        Chris Marshall
        Reply

        1. *okay,well after watching ep 2*
          Gotta give props for this guy and the fact that he’s a respectable guy ^_^, making himself the center of hatred for those three just so they can be friends. And I guess the fan service isn’t that bad, I mean already I’ve seen what I’ve just seen in Seikon (the whole pee thing) so its not shocking…I just hope they start with the plot sometime soon.

          Chris Marshall
          Reply

    12. The show is fun, the protagonist is truly a threat to all womens in BABEL. These two chapters are slow and focused on presenting what would be the essence of the show. I hope to improve from the next advance in the development of history. If not, at least give a few laughs as the season ends.We must be positives

      Shadow74
      Reply

      1. Yeah how can he drop this because it’s “too much fanservice for him” but keep blogging Muv Luv which is based off of an EROGE! Biggest hypocrite move i’ve ever seen if he does drop it.

        Haseo
        Reply

        1. As much as I respect your individual opinions, I’d like it if you kept it within the confines of the merits of the series itself, rather than comparing it to other unrelated series, just because I’m covering it. But since you guys seem content to do so, here are some counterpoints:

          First, Muv-Luv may be based off an eroge, but the amount of actual eroge present is a million times less than the fanservice I’ve seen so far through two episodes of Estetica. Sure, there are some sex scenes, but they fit within the normal confines of the VN genre. Also, some of the exposure in terms of nudity is actually given a reasonable explanation in the games, rather than Estetica, which is pure fanservice.

          Second, blogging Muv-Luv is not in anyway related to me blogging Estetica. I may be blogging it at the same time, but there’s no “instead of” or “because of” involved. I’m not dropping Estetica to blog Muv-Luv, or anything of the sort. So you can’t go relating the two.

          Third, for all your seeming hate for the Muv-Luv series, if you haven’t actually played the original games from which the anime is based on, I’d suggest you do so before immediately calling it “bullshit”. There’s a reason it’s one of the top rated VN’s of all time. Sure, Total Eclipse is a side story and it’s not known yet if it’ll be good or not, but I’m entitled to sticking with it because I loved the original games and the franchise as a whole. Not to mention the fact I’m entitled to my own opinion, which is anything but hypocritical I might add.

          In the end, I’m not debating which show is better, nor am I saying that Estetica is bad. I’m also not saying that the reason I’m contemplating dropping it is explicitly due to the excess fanservice. What I am saying is that from what I’m seeing so far, it seems like it’ll be a mix of Akatsuki kicking ass and fanservice. It’s entertaining to watch, but not something I can write great, unique posts with, because then I’d be rehashing everything every week, and no one wants to read repetitive stuff, nor do I want to write repetitive stuff. Thus, it’s not just purely because of too much fanservice, but more of its effect on the uniquity and quality of my posts. If anything, it’s only a possibility based on what I’m seeing right now. If by all means, the plot picks up regardless of the amount of fanservice, you can rest assured I’ll continue with the series.

          Zephyr
          Reply

    18. I’ll have to admit that this show undoubtedly succeeds in entertaining me. Yes the ecchi is explicit but as mentioned in the blogpost, placed in the series in way way that it won’t hurt the plot. Sad too say, that’s quite rare these days (frowns in the general direction of some other shows this season).
      Speaking of the plot, I like how the show doesn’t play all its cards in the first episodes. It keeps me wondering what happened before in the alternative world, what Babels objectives are (the real ones ofc, not the marketing talk) and why the princess comes to earth with the hero at all (opportunities enough in the alt. universe I would imagine without the murderer of your father..) I just hope keeping us in suspense, isn’t just caused by a lack of answers and ultimately we’ll end up with an anime full of plotholes. *fingers crossed*

      Arntor
      Reply

      1. well, the author starts the series with a mind set of “post-RPG story”… since most RPG ends up with beating the final boss (demon lord in this case), he wanted to provide an “after story”… that is why the back story is not shown early on… but in the Queen arc, or the alternative world revisit arc, you will get more than enough info about that adventure…

        Babel’s true objective is training the people who traveled to other world into soldiers… but since the anime haven’t formally introduces “COCOON” or “bloody twilight” (both related to Babel), I can’t really say too much here (plus right now the newest arc that deals with them is not all translated yet)

        As to Miu coming with Akatsuki to the other world, a simple answer is that this is the last wish of her father… but the specific reason is given in the Queen arc as well…

        If you ever wants to know more specific spoilers or plot, just find me in the IRC channel, I will be happy to share all I know about this series 🙂

        jrj
        Reply

        1. Thank for your kind offer but I’ll have to decline 🙂 I would like to see how the plot will develop further and be surprised 😉 But it’s a relief to know that there are answers and the series isn’t just piling up questions that are barely paid any attention to later on (Lost anyone?)
          Seems to gonna be a fun ride!

          Arntor
          Reply

    19. The title of the show might as well been “The Hero Who Didn’t Give a F**K”
      Daughter of the demon lord tries to murder you in your sleep?
      sexually assault her while being half asleep.
      Bully comes in and ruin your comfortable seating position?
      Kick his ass and make him feel how it is to be bullied.
      Student Council calls you to reprimand your behavior?
      Steal Vice presidents underwear. while she’s still wearing them. while being fully clothed.
      class representative embarrassed to pee her pants?
      make other girls piss with her with your awesome ki altering powers.
      most bad-ass MC since Akuto Sai from Color Wars.

      Free
      Reply

    20. I agree with Zephyr here, from a watching POV it is good entertainment and all – watching Akatsuki being a total badass and doing whatever he wants, even to girls.

      From a blogging POV though it isn’t as easy given the nature of Estetica. As mentioned the current fanservice to plot ratio is rather high at the moment so there isn’t really much to discuss/analyze considering that the pacing is “slow” and the plot is barely picking up at this point.

      My honest opinion though, explicit fanservice aside, Estetica actually does have an interesting set-up and plot going for it (as a non LN reader). Akatsuki himself is such a pimpster that Ise from DxD or Tomoki from SnO don’t even come close to his level of perverseness (and I’m tired of seeing weak male leads in harems). In simpler words Estetica does have the potential to break out from the typical “boobage” shows such as Boku H, but don’t expect too much regarding that.

      One last point – this show does seem to be one-cour since the official anime website http://kichiku.tv/product.html does seem to indicate 6 BD of 2 episodes each. Credits to belatkuro for pointing that out.

      LightnDark
      Reply

    21. “HIS PERVERTED SKILL IS ON PAR WITH NEGIMA’S JACK RAKAN. I THINK THEY WILL

      GET ALONG WITH EACH OTHER IF THEY MEET EACH OTHER.”

      I guess you can this type of character once in a while. Akatsuki is definitely strong,

      a powerful pervert with “Silent Stripping Skills”, a huge-ass sword or a demon sword

      { which he’ll receive it in the future episodes }.

      I even thought that this series will have 20+ episodes. It’s a bit sad to have it 12-13

      episode series.

      Ken Sanders
      Reply

    22. As this is an ARMS production, I more or less expected this level of ecchi. And as with most ARMS productions I really do like it!

      https://randomc.net/image/Hagure%20Yuusha%20no%20Estetica/Hagure%20Yuusha%20no%20Estetica%20-%2002%20-%20Large%2005.jpg
      Is it me or does Myuu’s upper body look a bit off? Either her head looks to small or her neck looks too thick or her shoulders are a bit too broad…
      Anyways, the rest of her body makes up more than enough 😉

      J-Luke
      Reply

    23. 2eps of this already more going ONORE Akatsuki really like do whatever he wants & get away like yea screw all rules i do what i want in any way.

      yea sure sleepwalking attack on myuu give mention sister but his real little sister is gone so attack cue clock bash.
      first day of school take any seat, beat up a bully, get called student members council, steal more undies with pwn’d big green hair.
      yea gym time oh Rin Tohsaka’s voice is a lesbian cue door lock.
      small green kana need toilet yet ONORE Akatsuki also make lesbian & myuu also toilet time too.
      cue all 3 girls get WET after which 3 form alliance to stop DECADE aka Akatsuki.

      Indeed really main guy really sure do whatever he wants & get away with hmm more what make him like that?

      ONORE Akatsuki
      Reply

    30. The main character reminds me of Sunabouzu from Desert Punk but more badass. One of the rare anime where I see the main character dominating every female characters he sees not giving a crap.

      Vince
      Reply

    32. I love this show and it would be too bad if RC drops covering it, but I respect Zephyr’s decision nonetheless if he drops it, after all its his own time and effort he puts into doing it. However, if you do decide to drop it, will there be any chance that the other author’s will pick it up in your place?

      Also is this show slated only for one cour? Come one, good shows lately arent even more than one cour like Korezon, while others that are not so good like Hyouka (I do like it, but I prefer others with more interesting story) gets like 21 episodes. I really dont understand. I mean Hyouka just has random cases and no overall plot really (it’s similar to Detective Conan, but at least that series has an overall plot of the main guy trying to get back to normal), and the reason why I like watching Hyouka is because of the characters and I expect character developments especially in the romance department, but I still would prefer it to be one cour instead. I really hope that this series will be 20+ episodes.

      Ryner
      Reply

    33. The reason why I love this series is that it presents a “rare” type of anime where the main guy is incredibly strong and seemingly invincible, since we are always presented with weak, perverted but easily nose-bleeds type of main guy from the beginning and levels up/powers up in the end of the series. I only know a handful of animes where the main lead starts off as being strong, at the back of my mind, I recalled Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou that is very similar to the show, a strong lead that gets into perverted situations and the series has its share of fanservice as well.

      Ryner
      Reply

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