BillyCx

This has got the be my pick for the hidden gem of Summer Season 2021. A truly unique and entertaining anime going against almost all of the Isekai genre's Stereotypes. While the show did have a slightly mediocre first few episodes it really picked up it's pace shortly after and became the series i was looking forward to the most each week. First things first, my only real criticism for the show: The production feels really cheap. And while I am not sure whether this was intended or not by the studio, I won't sit here and pretend that it adds some sort of charm tothe show. It doesn't! The art and animation makes you think you are watching something from around 2007. It is another one of those animes where you can't tell if it has more than 2 soundtracks besides OP and ED (which are really good imo btw but more to that later) and while the music is sort of fitting to most scenes and adds at least something to the show, it is nothing to write home about. So if you are hoping for an Unlimited Budget Works production you will find yourself disappointed. Story: The premise of the show is that the Main Character Ninomija, after having achieved success in his own world, is suddenly teleported to another world and immediately turned into a corporate slave by a company that treats it's employees more like drones than sapient beings. His only light at the end of the tunnel: An incredibly cute and OP demon girl with an endless desire for food. The rest of the story is a harder to explain cause it is quite wild, constantly jumping around from one plotpoint to another with the only real overarching storyline being the MC's party trying to get out of the grasps of the evil corporation they are working for.It's a very goofy concept that clearly more intended to entertain than inspire and it does an amazing job at it as i found myself laughing at a good portion of the show while watching. I often found myself at the start of episodes asking myself if i missed something inbetween and exactly that turned out to give the show a lot of it's appeal as you could never expect what was coming next. Despite having it's focus on humor there are many scenes that are either cute, wholesome or even thought proviking. Characters: You rarely see an Anime with a lineup as diverse and loveable as Black Company. The Protagonist is one of the best Male MCs you will come by in the Anime Industry. He is witty, charismatic and doesn't want to take shit from anyone. His problem tho is that he is a weakling in an Isekai world that is ruled by evil industrialism that treats people as labor slaves. Making the Protagonist unable to get out of his predicament on his own. Luckily he ends up being accompanied by a Trap Wizard, an adorable and OP af dragon girl with an unsatiable hunger, a crazy Hero loyal to the evil company and a completely level headed lizard man that would most likely prefer minding his own business rather than being part of this story. Trying his best to act as a leader to this crazy group of people the MC sometimes manages to get things done while failing miserably at others, all while slowly establishing closer relationships with the party's members and having some fun on the way. The Opening of the anime is a very fitting one imo staying true to the goofy vibes that the show is mostly about. However, it is the Ending that is the cherry on top. As i don't want to take anything away from the experience i will have you look it up yourself. All i am saying is is that it puts the Love is War Chika Dance ED to shame. Ultimately i was debating whether this was a 9 or 10 for me and eventually ended up deciding on a 9 as the Anime does an excellent job in the important departments of Characters, Story and overall Entertainment but could have been even greater with a slightly better Animation und Sound usage. Regardless of that a clear recommendation for anyone who is looking for humorful Entertainment.

KANLen09

YELP, an Isekai about the pangs of working at a Black Company!? Come save me Work Jesus, for the glory of capitalism! We've seen shows present this topic before, most particularly and recently with Akane Shimizu's Hataraku Saibou BLACK a.k.a Cells at Work: Code Black, and it's what it is: the etymology of the term "black company" where it's typical practice to hire a large number of employees, exploit them to work large amounts of overtime without overtime pay with poor conditions, verbal abuse and "power harassment" (bullying) by their superiors, threatening them with disrepute if they chose to quit. And you can take all thatand consummate into this series: Youhei Yasumura's Dungeon Black Company, which explains how to get your way through a Black Company and rise up the ranks. And the best part obout it, is that everything fits perfectly into the scenario played out. Yeah yeah, it's an Isekai first and foremost, but this is one of the few enjoyable Isekai of the Summer season that truly hits all the right spots of a "rags to riches" success story of a rollercoaster ride. And nowhere do we spot this than from the perspective of Kinji Ninomiya, voiced by Katsuyuki Konishi, the same person who brought you Jojo Part 5's Diavolo and Gurren Lagann's Kamiya (and man, his voice absolutely fits the cunning, manipulative of a confident scumbag himself). If you've watched last season's Sentouin, Hakenshimasu!, both MCs Combatant Agent No. 6 and Kinji are very similar to one another: they play dirty with their "bad guy" despicable mindset, deal with their own evil organization with ulterior motives and manifesting similar comedy vibes (though I feel that Black Company does it better), and to top it up, they have loli partners/supports as well. The "riches to rags to riches" story that sees the NEET Ninomiya being Isekai-ed into a fantasy world where he has to start his work dominance over from scratch, and that's a pain right there. Along with the relentless obfuscating lesson of hard work and fellow workers that toll with him, it's a pain in the butt to having be overworked again by word from negligent superiors, and that's where Kinji got the single-best idea of all: to create his own Dungeon Black Company from within and slowly create a coup d'etat as his calvary charge of retaliation. But in order to create his own organization, Kinji's first strategy is just as important as the series' core progression: its cast of characters whom are comrades also fighting for the same poverty rights. The first worker that Kinji recruits is this crocodilian demi-human named Wanibe, who was his co-worker at the start of the series. And boy, these 2 bore the entirety of the starting phase of revolt against the Raiza'ha Corporation, which are doing the same thing that Ninomiya once did in his old, accomplished NEET life. From there, the dungeon opens its doors, and slowly but surely, both him and Wanibe hit it off to encounter monsters and fellow workers whom are suffering the same overworked circumstances, fight and recruit them to their side (like a dungeon for easy proposition to start the topple rumbling from within. The 3rd character of Kinji's crusade is arguably one of the most important characters, and is what helps and gives him trouble at the same time: the dragon girl that is Rim. As you would expect, Rim does act like the usual titular dungeon boss character, but you know Kinji, his cunning manipulation got the best of her, and she shapeshifted into a teenage loli just so that she can have meat, regardless of Kinji's finanical status. Rim does act on accord because she was the former Demon Lord of the Dungeon, but she got too lazy and bored, and handed the reins over to someone else just so that she could wander free on her own whim. Couple in the dubbed failure of a hero that is Shia and the magic tomboy that is Ranga, and these 5 people form the basis of Kinji's unusual adventurer party of the Dungeon Black Company, pushing their way through to the top and achieve Nirvana on Kinji's ultimate goal: to rule over others without having to work his butt. If you ask me, this is a sweet deal of a package that I'm willing to buy, because while the characters aren't as unique, but they're at the very least entertaining and funny to see their antics spread across the many layers of numerous battles both physically and mentally. It never gets old and stale, and in an Isekai of this calibre where I can sympathize with their sufferings, truly does an equivocal effect of using your brain to work smart, and not work hard. It's a fun Isekai show for sure, and what better way to top it off with the VAs which complement the characters so darn freaking well. Rim is voiced by Misaki Kuno, who has been the face of Nanatsu no Taizai's favorite talking pig Hawk, and seen as such, Rim is such a comical character who just doesn't care and gets what she wants by hook or by crook. Hiro Shimono acting as Wanibe with his voice being a veteran mainstay, and it's of no surprise at all. Everyone's favourite VA M.A.O voicing Ranga, and I swear if that's not the same voice that I heard with Tensei Slime's Shion, then she must've got a vocal upgrade. Rounding up the rag-tag crew is Megumi Toda with Shia, and it's been awhile since New Game!'s Hajime's voice was featured in an anime (alongside this season's Peach Boy Riverside's Meki a.k.a Carrot). The manga may be nothing, but the anime helped elevate the manga by a notch with such stellar VA performances. Likewise, Silver Link's generic Isekai production substrates have remained the same for a few years now, but to do some experiments with this show is a nice touch that's coming from in-house director Mirai Minato. But it's just the same that I don't really expect much of it anymore, and if it is produced decently, then that's all we need. The music though, if I were to compare the OST as a whole in this season, it's the sleeper kind of "it's pure unadulterated goodness". I've come to love both the OP and ED overtime that fits the tone of the show, but more particularly with the ED, because Humbreaders came back strong with their 2nd featured Anisong that is an upgrade when compared to Shin! Chuuka Ichiban S2's ED, and both songs evoke the sense of youth overflowing with fun. For those tired with the usual Isekai genericness that we got over the past few years, please, PLEASE, try out Dungeon Black Company. IMO it's way lot grounded and better than Sentouin, Hakenshimasu!, and it's the same crazed idiocy with the likes of KonoSuba's Kazuma if he were ever to get stuck in jobs that would have him procrastinating and whining every second without end. It's a strange, yet fascinating Isekai world, and I would not have it in any other way for the time investment of interests well spent, from being lost in the red to profiting much in the green.