Mcsuper

This was truly an unexpected gem of the Winter season. It was a surprisingly funny, yet emotional and epic anime for sure. It takes a while to really pick up, but once it does, it never looks back. Studio C2C have been quietly doing a great job with some of their recent works, such as Majo no Tabitabi, Tensei shitara Ken Deshita, and now this anime, which showcased some very impressive and sharpened animation and fight scenes that could make some of the elite studios quiver in their boots just a little bit. I think this show nails tonal shifts very well, and it kindof reminds me of Golden Kamuy, where one scene they could be making the lewdest of lewd jokes, but the next scene, people are being murdered. It’s really quite something. The story isn’t very special, as it’s about a Handyman called Saitou, reincarnated into another world where unlike in his original world, the people treat him with much more respect, and he feels more needed. He uses his handyman skills to help out his party with lock-picking, opening treasure chests, a lot of practical things. The first few episodes are very comedy-based, with somewhat disconnected skits to introduce the characters, and while some of the jokes hit real good, it was definitely the weakest part of the series. It shifts into a more plot-based story after that, and boy, it really got good after that. It went through a full 180, but it worked out in the end with some very meaningful and emotional backstories, along with some solid character writing in the process. It doesn’t hold back in any way, whether it’s the jokes, the action, or even the gore. The cast is quite the goofy bunch, but they’re a very solid cast of characters. Apart from Saitou, we have an old magician who forgets his spells every so often called Morlock, a healing fairy called Lafanpan, and a strong Knight in Raelza. Their interactions can be comedy gold, but can also be very emotional. They’re a very tight knit party who clearly care about each other, and form great friendships and relationships that made for great dynamics. The side characters and antagonists also were decent, as each character had a certain degree of depth, some more than others, and it’s always a breath of fresh air when the villains have a backstory of their own instead of just being evil for the sake of being evil. The animation is good overall, but when the plot gets serious, the animation goes up to another level. Some of the fight scenes were very well animated, and got me on the edge of my seat with how epic they were. The OST also accompanies the atmospheres very nicely, although the OP and ED weren’t all that great. Overall, this show encompasses goofy and epic all in one package, and if there was one isekai besides MagiRevo that I would recommend people to check out, it would be this one. Genuinely, one of the better shows of the season, and it came as a very pleasant surprise. Do give this one a chance.

KANLen09

You know what? If there is a studio that I can trust being assigned to produce quality Isekai shows in this day and age, it's C2C: the studio's name moniker of "Challenge 2 Challenge" is truly a fitting name for the studio itself, challenging itself by pumping out some great Isekai/fantasy shows of the last few years. Seriously, fuck grinding levels. Fuck OP protagonists. And furthermore, fuck harems. Because for all intents and purposes, other than MagiRevo being the top Isekai for me this Winter 2023 season, mangaka Kazutomo Ichitomo's Benriya Saitou-san, Isekai ni Iku a.k.a. Handyman Saito in Another World, it's the slice-of-life adventure comedyfantasy Isekai show that I never thought I've needed until now, being to me, the best sleeper hit of the slew of many Isekai shows, and the show that's one of the most underrated ones that you should ought to pay most attention to this season. Let's cover from the bad to the good sides of the show, and also extending to its manga counterpart. Written by Kazutomo Ichitomo, Benriya Saitou-san, Isekai ni Iku a.k.a. Handyman Saito in Another World is yet another Isekai fantasy show like the many that came before and after it, and the manga itself is presented in a 4-koma a.k.a 4-panel page (like most CGDCT works) format, essentially short stories that don't make for a cohesive story. But when you consider the world at large, it makes sense since there's a lot of POV sequences pertaining to the main squad of Handyman Saitou and his party of mercenaries. Though there is not much of a story to tell, there is a semblance of a plot that starts with the Japanese handyman Saito himself being summoned to another world, he's designed to do just one thing and one thing only: he's professionally skilled in appraising and repairing items and picking locks. That's the sole reason why the series' title is as such. Where the show shines, it's in the characters involved in what is supposedly a normal endeavour to explore the fantasy world and form the world-building all at once. Obviously, the weakest link is Saitou himself, the young handyman from Japan, who's feeling inadequate in his job despite the skills developed, and in his dejection over getting fired by his unappreciative boss, accidentally gets himself Truck-kun-ed into the fantasy world, where he was taken in by an adventuring party. With the supposed party members' personal quirks hindering their performance, Saitō begins lending them a helping hand by carrying essentials, picking locks and giving them vital reminders, this makes him indispensable to the party he's attached to, finding a sense of purpose that's better than his old life back on Earth. Saitou's party consists of the main figher warrior Raelza, the moonlight fairy Lafanpan and the old geezer mage Morlock. For Raelza, she is the adopted daughter of Morlock, for she was found as a slave girl when he took her in. And despite her strong image, she detests long, slimy creatures, and especially has a self-consciousness, since she has a crush on Saitou, but is admittedly too shy to even confess to him. For Lafanpan, she is the fairy who has healing powers, but this all comes at the cost of charging fees in gold coins from even friends and allies. This has a reason though, because her fairy race was cursed by the Goddess of the Moon to be shrunk down to size, so the gold coins amount to sacrifices made to ensure that the promise is kept. For Morlock, he's the strongest power-fest of the party, but this comes at the cost of his STM, forgetting incantation spells, other than the usual case of elderly bad and breaking bones, and the all-too-familiar womanizer trait. Overall, great diversity amongst the main party, which bar more often than not, bring some hilarity across the table, together with the side cast...which can feel like a lot. Take for example, Franlil and Ninia. The high-elf with the human cleric assistant, both are rather weak with underdeveloped magical abilities, but work hard to measure up to strength for the troubles that come after that. Also, I find it funny that the cleric is all in for Yuri undertones with Franlil, which again, adds diversity in the character cast. Not a single character feels wasted in this "side story" plot that when all comes together, makes for a show that celebrates the adventurer life at its most unglam, yet heartwarming to sit all the way through from start to finish. Throughout the years, C2C is the studio that I can trust when it comes to Isekai/fantasy shows, the most noteworthy being Fall 2020's Majo no Tabitabi a.k.a Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina, Summer 2021's Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy, and the most recent being last season's Tensei Shitara Ken Deshita a.k.a Reincarnated as a Sword. The past 2-3 years was what I feel like the studio has finally found its stride in producing some of the most memorable shows (that is all except PuraOre! Pride of Orange, that idol show was a mistake). Directed by Majo no Tabitabi's director Toshiyuki Kubooka, whom this show is his 2nd Isekai/fantasy rondo, I can feel safe knowing that this show has been done great, and the upcoming Shangri-La Frontier's anime adaptation (also by Kubooka) will be more of the same. The OST, however, feels like a hit or miss. Teary Planet's OP "kaleidoscope" and Konoco's ED "Hidamari no Saido" are songs that I have a mixed reception about being the show's theme songs as it kinda fits and not to varying degrees of suitability. Not to say that these songs are bad, but I kinda wish that there're other songs that would fit this show better and proper. It's the run-of-the-mill Isekai/fantasy, yet it's also Dungeons & Dragons-ish, and that to me, is a marriage made in Isekai land that I seriously didn't know I needed. The show has been a delight overall, and it's just sad that it's very underrated, even flying under the radar for most of the season. But I implore you, if there is an Isekai you NEED to watch this season, make sure it's this one, and it'll set you right in the comfort of your own couch potato with tons of laughter.