Yuusha ga Shinda! – 02

「偽の勇者」 (Nise no Yuusha)
“The Legendary Hero Impostor”

Nary two episodes in and I dare say I’m sold on Yuusha ga Shinda. Sure, it retains that old-school paint by numbers comedy flair, and oh yes it’s going to be conventional ecchi shenanigans galore – but half-decent setup and promises of fun often have their own way of carrying the day. Just a matter of taking advantage of those elements.

If the first episode and Touka’s own inclinations weren’t enough to highlight the main comedy driver of Yuusha ga Shinda, this episode should be enough to reinforce it. Girl got thighs? Thigh highs in reach? Then darling we have ourselves the perfect situation. While it’s basically a repeat of the usual ecchi fun and games, I got to admit I’m liking it thoroughly because it’s both so off the wall compared to the typical stunts and also somewhat more PG13. Getting down with the thicc-ness after all carries less lascivious connotations compared to the usual T&A adoration (caveat: for now), while Touka going out of his way to praise perfection is currently finding a way to leave me chuckling whenever it happens. And the best part? Bringing Anri into the mix as an aspiring watermelon crusher only ensures whatever comedic relief happens on this front will soon result in double the face smashing hilarity. Or, you know, Yuna doing the deed twice over.

What I particularly like as well is how quickly the tendrils of meaty story and worldbuilding are starting to appear. Although Kyle is basically your throwaway villain of the moment (albeit one who will definitely return at some point), there’s some nice buildup courtesy of necromancer origins both individually and as a whole. The magic crystal hearts for one thoroughly identify each of them as veritable demons worth hunting, while their isolation within literal Hell is bound to have bred certain hatred towards the luckier chunk of humanity. You can sort of see what’s coming: some necromancers are going to want to keep the sealed gate unsealed (whether to reach home or out of spite) and within that group are some with familial links back to Anri. The new hero’s party is thus bound to face some serious dilemmas in the not-too-distant future, dilemmas only made worse with Touka and Yuna not possessing the mana required to make up for what the old party had.

Question then becomes how Touka and Yuna get up to snuff, and in that we shouldn’t have to wait long for an answer. After all, any time the main party visits the capital fireworks and major developments are all but a guarantee.

Full-length images: 21