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「異世界の悪を我は斬る！」 (Konoyo no Aku o Ware wa Kiru!)
“I Shall Cut Through the World’s Evils!”
Now that truly went out with a bang. . Although I’m a tad sad we’re now seeing the back end of Skeleton Knight, there’s absolutely no denying this finale was all kinds of fun. Evil masterminds were clobbered; Arc got to show off even more ludicrous power; setups for future arcs were established; and – oh yes – reveals were had to the chuckle-worthy sounds of cute ninja girl noises. It was the perfect conclusion to a show which grew on me in a way I never expected, and while there’s no second season to look forward to (at least yet), I’m definitely happy with what we got. Now onto those impressions!
Final Impressions
If I had to sum Skeleton Knight up it would be fun. Pure and wholesome isekai fun. While true such labels have been tossed around like candy over the years for many different isekai series (especially generic slice-of-life varieties), Skeleton Knight is the latest example of how playing to the (sub)genre’s strengths and not delving into the weeds does wonders for overall impact and impression. The point of these series is to have fun, and by hell does Skeleton Knight do so.
The main thing which sold me on Skeleton Knight is Arc himself, or rather how Arc is written. The guy is the epitome of overpowered MC, but unlike a lot of contemporaries Skeleton Knight wastes little time with the nitty gritty. Pre-isekai backstory? The alternate world’s magic system and political structure? Hell the ossified state of Arc himself? Barely receive the minimum of attention before the bony boy is off galivanting through the wilderness and enjoying the fantastical sights. This approach lets Arc’s personality and quirks shine through: you quickly get an appreciation of his foodie side, you can easily find a chuckle in his child-like love of all things fantasy, and there’s rarely a moment where you don’t crack a smile at Ponta doing Ponta things over his shoulder. Skeleton Knight may lose out on some worldbuilding by sacrificing infodumps for lighthearted comedic moments, but given how well these moments turned out (especially when paired with the rest of Arc’s party) I strongly think the show was all the better for it.
Of course not everything was peaches and cream for Skeleton Knight. For all the strength of the series in slice-of-life-esque material it did stumble a bit in terms of more serious concepts. The use of slavery for example was a little dissonant at times, with certain scenes not really meshing well with the more upbeat moments following in their wake. While Skeleton Knight never fell apart over this (and indeed improved with them over time), it and the associated “behind the scenes” developments driving slavery in Skeleton Knight’s world could have seen better integration, if only to help better keep specific characters – e.g. Yuriarna and her brothers – and their relevant narratives fresh. Mind you steps were taken towards the end in rectifying this, but a second season is really needed to properly see the results in action.
Overall while Skeleton Knight won’t be seeing any major awards or likely getting many serious kudos, this is one isekai which shows the concept is far from being exhausted and is a series I’m very happy to have covered all the way through. No matter how generic or stereotypical any isekai might be, should it do as Skeleton Knight has done and emphasize entertainment over complexity it stands a very good chance of surprising even the most dubious of critics. As it goes to show sometimes a bit of stupid silly fantasy fun is all you really need to get something awesome.
I truly enjoyed this series. What overlord didn’t give so far I wanna see a different kind of adventure with skelebro and it matters not where the story runs off to. I wanna see what shenanigans the gang gets up to.
While I somewhat enjoyed Skeleton Knight as a put your brain in neutral and enjoy the girls, jokes, and big explosions experience, I don’t see how it can be compared to Overlord as far as world building and plot. Overlord examines the question of if you had the power to conquer the world and no moral constraints how would you go about it.
Kinda wonders if anything was cut or had original content?
The ending felt like they forced the reveal of Arc face to the ninja girl so it made me wonders if it was the same as in the manga/novel
They put some filler padding into it. Just using the manga chapters for reference, this ep. finishes off vol 4.
Chiyomi finds out about Arc in early volume 5 under different circumstances, but with a similar reaction to the episode.
The dragon in the op. isn’t filler either, just not relevant till volume 5 or 6. :3
I liked this Anime, and would watch an Second Season. We still have some “Bad Guys” out there. It was solid work. I fell very entertainment
Good Job
As an “counterweight ” here, they could let the Princess walk the wrong Light path. thinking she has divine Protection she forces her Luck then many times to earn again the Trust of the Angel…
“Seeking the graze of the Angel!” could goes wrong for her. Perhaps Arc in his “Full Uncurse” Face form could give her the false face of God…
Not always it is about the Dark sides that astray from their Path
or her Brother plays her like a fiedel perfectly with this Angel to use her like as his Puppet
Could also work. Then we have nearly Overlord level of story telling
The scene where Juliana Merol Melissa Rhoden Olav was meeting with Fangas Flan Maple in discussions about a political partnership really really channels Genjutsu Shugi Yuusha and I really enjoyed it. Don’t get me wrong I get a kick out of Arc dishing knuckle sandwiches, but seeing solutions being considered at a top level is really good.
Welp, now I am left hoping for another season.
OP skeleton on the light side of the force was much more pleasurable than I expected.
Keeping things simple was working great, but I would love some more grandscale maneuvers like we got from Julianna meeting Elf Elder. So far Arc was stomping minor nobles and hireling wizard, but there is entire Evil Empire eager to sink its claws into Julianna’s kingdom… And Arc might have to up his antics to new level…