*Nitsuj is relaxing in his living room while playing Ghost of Tsushima. Out of nowhere his mouth gets duct taped and a bag gets thrown over his face blinding him. He attempts to struggle but soon hears a gun click*
(???): Don’t try to resist if you value your life. Now stand up and put your hands behind your back.
*Nitsuj does what he’s told and stands up putting his hands behind his back. His hands get zip tied behind his back*
(???): Good. Now come with us.
*Nitsuj gets dragged out of the house and put into the trunk of a car. The car takes off and drives for 10 minutes before stopping. Nitsuj gets pulled out of the trunk and bought into a house where he goes down a flight of stairs and gets put into a chair. He soon has the bag and duct tape removed and sees Isis and Seras sitting in front of him and notices that he’s in the basement of the Jack Bros.*
(Seras): Hi Nitsuj.
(Isis): Hi.
(Nisuj): Isis! Seras!
*Nitsuj looks to the side to see that his kidnappers were the Jack Bros.*
(Nitsuj): What the hell, you guys scared the shit out of me!
(Baron): Sorry. We were told to retrieve you discreetly by these two ladies here.
(Corbin): We even drove around the block to fool you into believing you were somewhere else.
(Seras): We never told you to kidnap him. We just wanted you to bring him here without attracting attention.
(Nitsuj): Why’d you guys bring me here in the first place?
(Seras): Because its review time and we need your help.
(Isis): Remember how I said awhile back me and Seras were a project together? Well, that was Goblin Slayer.
(Seras): Based off a light novel written by Kumo Kagyu under the same name in 2016 and still going to this day, Goblin Slayer is just what the title says it is. A story about an adventurer who goes around slaying goblins and nothing else.
(Isis): Now goblins are nothing new. They’ve been around for years and seen as one of the most common monsters you can expect to find in any fantasy show or game you play. Sometimes they’re presented as weak foot soldiers and other times they’re presented as dangerous individuals with huge bodies or intelligence that rivals a human.
(Seras): The series was a hit with mangas and even a second light novel spin off being written quickly after the novel’s release and in 2018 the series’ popularity reached the point that an anime was made. The anime would be done by the masters of dark fantasy White Fox (Arifureta, Re:Zero, and Akame ga Kill) and was met with excitement leading up to its premiere only to quickly be seen as controversial and disturbing by the end of the first episode.
(Nitsuj): Yeah, I remember that. Hell, a lot of people were so outraged by it that they completely dropped the series after the first episode. Some even going as far as calling it the worst anime ever made along with outrageous allegations such as whoever watches this anime is going to Hell and anyone who likes this anime is a sick pervert who likes watching people get raped. Really guys?
(Isis): But those that stuck around were treated to a fantastic gritty story and we’re here to tell everyone about it. Sadly, thanks to the controversy surrounding the first episode a lot of people tend to get unhinged and do or say some pretty stupid stuff, so we’ve taken the precautions of conducting the review in a more discrete location.
(Nitsuj): You think the Jack Bros. house is discrete?
(Seras): Who’s gonna come near the house of two sexual predators?
(Corbin): Hey, those charges were cleared in a court of law.
(Isis): Whatever you say OJ Simpson. Don’t know why I said that, but I got to stick by it. Whatever you say OJ Simpson.
(Nitsuj): Owning it.
(Seras): Now let’s starts this goblin slaying fest. This is Goblin Slayer.
Opening and Ending Theme
(Isis): So the opening song is “Rightfully” by Mili. This is a song that falls outside the norm of your typical opening. It’s slow and peaceful which doesn’t match the series at all, but near the end begins to speed up and accomplishes it’s mission of getting you hyped for the anime. Truth be told, I actually think the slow tempo sets the mood up for this anime as you are just entranced by Mili’s voice.
(Seras): The ending is “Gin no Kisei” by Soraru. At first I really wasn’t feeling this song, but after the third episode I started to enjoy it. The whole song perfectly matches the ambiance of the slayer’s character. A person who is going through so much pain mentally and emotionally that no one can begin to know what he’s going through. However, despite the pain he continues to keep moving forward following the path he has set for himself. Will that path lead him to ruin or freedom is any one’s guess, but it’s a path that he intends to see to the end.
Episodes 1-4
Our story begins with a priestess whose name is unknown so for the sake of this review we’re going to call her Hikari (Seras: Get used to this folks. (Isis): The author of this series isn’t the best at giving people names as you’ll see throughout the review) voiced by Yui Ogura (Athena from Campione). Hikari has recently become an adventurer and gets roped into joining three more rookies (a swordsman, mage, and female fighter. Progress) on a quest to slay goblins. She has her reservations but agrees to join them on their quest where they don’t take the time to properly go over tactics, get the right equipment, or even get to know each other so that they understand what their roles are and just go into the goblin cave (Isis: Oh my God they’re gonna die. It’s not even funny). Once they enter the cave it doesn’t take long for them to fall into the goblins’ trap as they become surrounded by goblins on both sides. The mage gets stabbed in the chest (because the swordsman and warrior decided to go on ahead and leave their spellcasters defenseless. Idiots), the swordsman’s sword is too long for the cave so he can’t swing it properly and it gets knocked out of his hands by the cave’s ceiling (Seras: Asinine) and he gets mauled by the goblins, and the fighter gets attacked by a hobgoblin who breaks her leg and then she gets raped by a bunch of other goblins (scene here: https://youtu.be/Bb1JwgPwoL8). Hikari tries to escape with the injured mage (Seras: Leave her she’s already dead) but the goblins catch up to her and just when it looks she and the mage are about to meet the same fate as the fighter (death by snu-snu) she gets saved by the high ranking adventurer known as Goblin Slayer who I am going to call Guts (Isis: Why? (Nitsuj): Because a badass monster slayer deserves to be named after a badass monster slayer) voiced by Yūichirō Umehara. Guts puts the mage out of her misery by killing her as she’s been poisoned and there’s no helping her even with Hikari’s magic. Guts ventures deeper into the cave to slay the rest of the goblins with Hikari following him for support (that, and she’s afraid to be alone). As they venture deeper, Guts reveals all the traps she and the other rookies missed and says that this horde of goblins is being led by a shaman (Seras: Which is basically the equivalent of a mage/strategist in goblin culture. (Nitsuj): Impressive. You sure know your goblins. (Seras): In order to defeat one’s enemies one must first know them). They make it to the heart of the cave where Guts and Hikari work together to take out the goblins. Hikari blinds them with a light spell which allows Guts to rush in and take out the shaman pissing off the other goblins that they run after him with the hobgoblin falling for the oldest trick in the book, tripping over rope. This allows Guts to kill the hobgoblin, splash the other goblins with gasoline, and light them on fire killing them off. They find the fighter who’s still alive (but her adventuring days are over. (Seras): Raped by goblins and traumatized for life) and even some kid goblins who Guts decides to kill because they’ll grow up to seek revenge as well as adapt to the tricks that they just saw. Sometime later we see the fighter in a carriage going off to a temple and Hikari deciding to continue being an adventurer and becoming Guts’s partner in the field (scene here: https://youtu.be/LI7m85OEW5U).
Episode 2 is a rather chill episode (which I like to think is what they were going for after the events of episode 1). We take this time to get to know Guts and why he’s the man he is today. We see that he lives on a farm with his childhood friend Cow girl (because she has big ol’ titties. We’re calling her Momo) and her uncle where he pays rent in order to stay and the uncle doesn’t seem to like him as he knows that Guts has lost it (Seras: Yes, yes he has. But given what he’s been through what do you expect? Scene here: https://youtu.be/1ZcfSoaByr4). As the episode goes on we see that other adventurers view Guts as an outcast because all he does is hunt goblins (Seras: It’s not a badass title or name for a reason) and we get flashbacks where we find out that when he was a child, his village was attacked by goblins who killed everyone and even raped his big sister right in front of him before they killed her. Guts survived thanks to his big sister hiding him (Isis: Too bad she couldn’t stop him from watching the goblin rape) and Momo survived because she was in the city for a trip. This event left a mark on Guts that he swore that he would spend his life finding and killing every goblin out there so that nobody else would go through what he did (wow, they actually gave him a valid reason as to why he does what he does. They took everything away from him all in one night and he could do nothing but watch. I could honestly see a normal person going the same route if this happened to them). Throughout this episode we do get our daily dose of goblin slaying as Guts and Hikari attack a goblins’ fortress where Guts uses fire arrows to light the place on fire and Hikari uses her holy magic to trap them inside where a majority of them burn to death (Isis: Feel his hatred goblins. Scene here: https://youtu.be/eWY-3vKRMWc). After the credits we see a traveling singer who sings about Guts which catches the attention of an elf girl who becomes interested in him.
In episode 3 we find out that the elf girl (Isis: Fae) voiced by Nao Tōyama (Chiho from The Devil is a Part-Timer) is traveling with a dwarf (Seras: Suzuki) voiced by Yuichi Nakamura (Grey from Fairy Tail) and a lizardman (Ryu) voiced by Tomokazu Sugita (Yusuke from Persona 5) who are all high-ranking adventurers and have been employed by their respected races to prepare for war. We find out that the demon lord has returned and as a result, all the demons are rising against the other races. With a battle with the demon lord in the foreseeable future eminent, the races of the world have partnered up to combat this threat against them (Seras: Pbbt, who cares about that crap, where are the goblins?). They’ve come seeking Guts’s help in taking out a large goblin nest near the lizardman domain which he accepts without consulting Hikari (scenes here: https://youtu.be/lIcw-zJCeQY and https://youtu.be/yIVHv0uY5qU) who receives some concerning words from a sorceress (of the sexy kind) who warns Hikari that Guts is dense and that she should decide for herself if she wants to continue working with him (Isis: I don’t see why not. She’s basically the Robin to his Batman. Scene here: https://youtu.be/N12UbWm65A8. (Seras): I cannot stand the way that woman talks). As Guts is about to head out he gets stopped by Hikari who’s a little upset that he was going to leave without consulting her and tries to tell him this (don’t bother, he’s as dense as a diamond but at the same time badass that you can’t help but love him for it) but it flies over his head and she can’t find herself staying mad at him for long. She says she’s going with him and together with Fae and the others they head out on their quest. At night, they set up camp where we get to know them a little. We find out that Fae is 2,000 years old and became an adventurer in order to see the world since she’s been cooped up in the forest her whole life (Yume: I totally get her. (Nitsuj): Uh, Yume what are you doing here? (Yume): Making an obligatory cameo appearance. See you guys later, enjoy the rest of the review *Yume walks up the stairs to leave the house*). For Suzuki it’s basically the same thing and for Ryu, he wants to use this opportunity to raise his rank in the hopes of one day becoming a dragon (Seras: And then kidnap a princess). As they continue to talk, Fae gets drunk and the conversation becomes about goblins (Guts’s favorite subject) and where they come from. Each one has different tales such as them coming from an underground kingdom, being born from the mischievous deeds of children, to even coming from one of the moons of this world and attacking others out of jealousy and envy (scene here: https://youtu.be/4rjufADdbW0). They finally get some rest and the next day arrive at the goblin’s nest where they take out the watchmen to begin their quest (scene here: https://youtu.be/8uoBXJuRzO8. (Seras): Let the fun begin).
We begin the goblin slaying in episode 4 as Guts and the others enter the goblin’s nest. They manage to rescue an elf girl who was captured and raped repeatedly by the goblins but managed to maintain her sanity (scene here: https://youtu.be/AJ8Vj2xQS4o). Using Ryu’s summoning magic, he creates a bone soldier and carries the elf girl out of the dungeon to the nearest elf settlement for assistance. They continue through the nest with Fae taking point to look for traps and watchmen (or watchgoblins in this case) until they reach the heart of the nest and find a number of goblins (Seras: Alright, cue the Doom music). Rather than take the goblins on directly, they instead combine the spells of Hikari and Suzuki to put the goblins to sleep and then kill them one by one (scene here: https://youtu.be/JYMk0_PhtrM. (Seras): Damn it, I wanted more gore. But I give them credit, that was a smart move on their part). After they get done slaying the goblins an ogre appears revealing himself to be the leader of the goblins and a servant of the demon lord (Isis: You aren’t a goblin, get out of here). So they fight the ogre in a raid-like style of combat (too bad they only have two real close range fighters. They need more tanks). Guts gets hit hard but gets back up and uses his secret weapon, a scroll that transports the current from the bottom of the ocean that just slices the ogre to pieces and allowing Guts to deliver the finishing blow as well as insult by saying the ogre’s threat level is lower than goblins (Isis: Oh snap. Scene here: https://youtu.be/eKKlfu-7yoM). With this, their mission is a complete, and they get a ride back to town with Fae vowing to take Guts on a real adventure (one filled with laughs and fun time. (Seras): Slaying monsters is fun).
Episodes 5-8
(Sears): Episode 5 has nothing going on. If I’m being honest the episode pisses me off because they skip over an entire arc, motherfuckers. The whole episode is composed of different side stories and events such as Hikari moving up a rank, Guts acting as an observer for an adventurer’s promotion interview where it gets exposed that he found treasure and hid it from his allies which is not allowed and as a result he gets demoted and almost banned from the guild for his actions (Isis: He was gonna try and do something but with Guts there he thought otherwise. Scene here: https://youtu.be/-IY0l-EeTCQ). The main story of the episode seems to be focusing around this boy and girl adventurer who are trying to retrieve the boy’s sword that he lost in the sewers when they were fighting rats (Nitsuj: Rats that are the size of cars. Seriously, I thought New York rats were big. (Isis): Yeah, but the biggest rats of all are in D.C. *Seras high fives Isis* (Nitsuj): My girl). The sword got eaten by a giant bug and they manage to get it back following the advice of Guts to use a club and bash the skull in on rats and bugs until they got the sword back (scenes here: https://youtu.be/GnbXDnCci6o and https://youtu.be/hCsslC-DXwo, be sure to deep clean that sword buddy). At the end of the episode, Guts receives a request from someone famous and high ranking. Also, the guild advisor and Fae have feelings for Guts (Nitsuj: The man is building a harem but is too dense to realize it).
Episode 6 picks up the excitement as Guts, Hikari, Fae, Suzuki, and Ryu travel to Water Town for Guts’s quest to slay goblins (scene here: https://youtu.be/TqLk-6sWYrQ. (Nitsuj): They are seriously underestimating that man’s hatred and creativity when it comes to killing goblins). The person that hired Guts is the Sword Maiden from the Church of Law and one of the legendary heroes who defeated the previous demon lord. She says that goblins have been appearing from the sewers and killing people (I guess they ran out of turtles to kill. That’s right! The goblins are members of the Foot Clan from TMNT. Tell me you wouldn’t want to see that crossover) and since the army is too busy dealing with the demon lord’s army, it falls on adventurers to rectify this situation (Isis: Well she chose the perfect man for the job. Scene here: https://youtu.be/Gf0sQbUJsfw). They go down into the sewers (Nitsuj: Urgh, smells like poo gas. (Isis): So basically, Ikkitousen? (Nitsuj): Yes). Where they find some goblins and begin killing them but the goblins surprise them by using boats (Nitsuj: Pirate goblins? (Seras): They’re after One Piece as well). They manage to counter this attack and toss the goblins overboard (scene here: https://youtu.be/HJEtwV_PdWk. (Isis): Walk the plank you scurvy sea rats) where they get eaten by a swamp dragon (Isis: I’m pretty sure the correct term is alligator. (Nitsuj): Yeah but swamp dragon sounds way cooler. Scene here: https://youtu.be/b5WStXS3QWU). Gut gets the idea to lure the other goblin ships to the swamp dragon using Hikari’s magic and it works. The goblins get eaten up by the swamp dragon and the group retreats for the time being where Guts starts to wonder who taught the goblins how to use ships (Nitsuj: Someone with too much time on their hands. *Seras and Isis stare at Nitsuj* My hands are clean of this mess. This time at least). He comes to the conclusion that the goblins are being led by something way stronger.
In episode 7, Guts and the others once again venture down into the sewers (Nitsuj: Great, more poo gas) where they get trapped in a room and the goblins release poisonous gas on them. They manage to plug up all the gas holes and prepare themselves for the goblins who will bust in to fight them. They barricade the door and have Hikari use a spell to keep them safe as goblins break through (here’s~ gobby) and a fight ensues as we see the goblins are being led by a goblin champion a goblin that carries the height of an a hobgoblin, the strength of an ogre, and the intellect of a shaman (Isis: Scary). Guts and Ryu attack head on while Fae and Suzuki attack from afar. Things were going well until Guts takes a nasty hit and begins coughing up blood (tends to happen with broken ribs). With Hikari worried for Guts she loses concentration and her spell falls apart which leaves the group open to the goblins swarming them with Fae about to get raped, Ryu and Suzuki fighting for their lives, and Hikari getting her arm bitten by the goblin champion (Nitsuj: It’s episode 1 all over again). Guts somehow gets back up, jumps on the back of the goblin champion, and begins choking it out with some hair he got from a dead body (can we just a moment to appreciate how badass that is? This guy, despite coughing up blood, and possibly having broken ribs is trying to kill a goblin twice his size by choking it out). Guts almost succeeds in choking out the goblin champion until he lets his rage get the best of him and just punches the goblin in the face ripping out its eyeball. The goblin champion retreats, and the other goblins are so scared by the menacing aura of Guts that they run away in fear (Isis: Even an animal is smart enough to know when facing death). They manage to heal Hikari (Nitsuj: The healer needs healing. I feel like there’s something wrong with this picture) but Guts not so much as he passes out from blood loss (scene here: https://youtu.be/z0FjgzX35xA).
At the start of episode 8, Guts wakes up in a bed with a naked Hikari by his side (Nitsuj: Hey-oh somebody had some fun last night. I knew there was some sexual tension between those two) and the Sword Maiden walks in where she reveals that she also shared a bed with him (Nitsuj: Hey-oh, double the fun with some maidens). We find out that the Sword Maiden and Hikari used the spell Revive to save his life. A spell that only works if you share the bed with a virgin (Nitsuj: They ain’t pure no more. (Seras): Are you done? Cause you are on your way to a superkick party). They both get dressed just as the others come in and go out to eat together (scene here: https://youtu.be/If6FlWvs-Lw). After lunch, Fae, Suzuki, and Ryu go back into the sewers for more exploration while Guts and Hikari go to get new equipment and make repairs getting some alone time together where they eat ice cream (Isis: She truly is too good for him). The others return where they reveal they stumbled upon a room with an evil eye guarding it and can’t get pass it. Guts fills the room up with flour dust and has Hikari use protection to contain the flour explosion to kill the evil eye (scene here: https://youtu.be/QDF3guyHRIo) where they discover that it was guarding a magic mirror.
Episodes 9-12
(Isis): Episode 9 is a good a straightforward episode. The group finds that the magic mirror works as some kind of gate which transports the goblins to the sewers from some other location. The remaining goblins in the sewers attempt to retake the mirror and a fight breaks out between them and the goblins. We get some good fighting as Fae snipes from afar, Guts goes David and Goliath on the goblins, Suzuki supports Guts by giving him rocks (Nitsuj: It was a big rock), and Ryu and Hikari attempt to remove the mirror off the wall. Eventually, the Goblin Champion appears and Guts heads out to face him directly (Seras: Round 2). Guts manages to stall him long enough for Ryu and Hikari to get the mirror off the wall and use it for shelter as Suzuki brings the ceiling down to crush and kill all the goblins (scene here: https://youtu.be/hsVb312XEII). The plan works as they kill all the goblins (never underestimate the power of rocks I guess) and they get rid of that mirror so no more goblins can come through (Nitsuj: Couldn’t we at least pawn it off for a quick buck?). Guts goes to report to the Sword Maiden where we find out she set all of this up because she wanted everyone to see just how dangerous goblins can be. Being a victim of goblin rape herself, she knows just how cruel and evil these creatures can be. In fact, she’s actually afraid of them and just wanted someone to come to her rescue (scene here: https://youtu.be/aJgoQgGsVUk. (Seras): She choose the right man for the job. Welcome to the harem). After finishing his report and getting paid, the group leaves the next day and heads home.
Episode 10 is a slow and relaxing episode. The only thing of worth we get from this episode is that the demon king is dead (Nitsuj: Defeated by three loli-looking girls) but his army is still on the loose.
In episode 11 Guts discovers goblin tracks outside of his home (scene here: https://youtu.be/MGYvSf1v67U, so they’ve come seeking death? Best to give it to them). He tells Momo to run because this isn’t just a few goblins, it’s a whole horde of goblins that number hundreds and to top it all off they’re being led by a goblin lord the highest ranked goblin there is who is a born leader. While the numbers don’t really bother Guts (Seras: If anything I’m sure it makes him hard), it’s the location that has him worried. If they were fighting in a cave, he would have the advantage, but because they’re battling in an open field and have the numbers advantage, these odds are not in Guts’s favor so the best thing he can do for now is get everyone he cares for to safety and buy them time. Momo refuses to leave (Nitsuj: Did you not just hear him woman? Goblins. Coming. Death. Rape. Somehow profit) as she doesn’t want to relive what happened last time (Nitsuj: Last time? Last time you were far away while everyone- oh okay I get what you’re saying now) and knows he can find a way to win (scene here: https://youtu.be/QrJoMlvS8oI). Sure enough, he does have a way to win but it requires the help of all the adventurers from the guild to help him. At first they say no because for one it’s just goblins and two, there’s no reward in it for them, but once Guts offers up everything he has including his life and the receptionist opens up a request on his behalf (Nitsuj: Benefits of having a harem. (Isis): A shame he’s too dense to see it), they all agree to help him out (scene here: https://youtu.be/cr0JxaRnDPo). That night, the goblins attack with riders, meat shields, hobgoblins, and goblin champions galore (Seras: A paradise for anyone who enjoys a little gore. You can slice, you can kick, you can punch till there’s no more. Did you know I was rhyming? If so get to liking? Dr. Seuss is the method in which I am using. So I’ll go a little more for my own amusing. The goblins will arrive with their heads held high. Only to realize they’re about to die. For Guts has arrived with an army of adventurers. Through his thinking and strategies they’ll become the victors. The moons are out and the sky is clear. The time to slay goblins is truly here. The die has been cast so make your move soon. For the time of death is all but soon. I am the reviewer. I speak for the writer. *Nitsuj and Isis clap for Seras*). Guts pretty much predicts what the goblins were planning and comes up with the perfect strategies to counter their ambush and ambush them instead. Because of this, they manage to defeat the riders, spellcasters, and foot soldiers as well as rescue the meat shields. The hobgoblins and goblin champions appear where the veteran adventurers charge forth ready to fight. As for Guts, he leaves the small fries to the others and instead goes for the goblin lord himself (scene here: https://youtu.be/_JY9Wp6I8hk. (Nitsuj): Fear him. Recognize him. And remember him. For when he arrives you know you will stare down death).
In the final episode we get to see Guts take on the goblin lord. We actually do get to learn about the goblin lord and see his past such as how he was spared as a baby (big mistake) only to kill the adventurer who spared him and went on to slowly grow up where he killed, raped, pillaged, raped, learned and. . .raped (Nitsuj: Yeah, there was a lot of rape in his upbringing). Guts and the goblin lord face off where he puts up a good fight but seeing as how he’s not used to fighting goblins in such a head-on approach (Seras: Yeah surprisingly he’s kind of a sneaky fighter). Despite getting his shots in, the goblin lord gains the upper hand, but Guts stalled him long enough for Hikari to trap him between two walls of light. He tries to beg for his life but Guts says no and stabs him in the neck to kill him instantly (scene here: https://youtu.be/xBQju0_IAgc). The other adventurers take care of the rest of the goblins and they celebrate like kings as their reward from Guts. Of course Hikari asks for a different reward (Nitsuj: I knew it! That girl is dirty) and instead wants to see Guts’s face as her reward. He complies with her request and even though we don’t get to see his face, the rest of the cast does and their reactions are great (scene here: https://youtu.be/ml7O4kTWhaU, he’s a heartthrob. (Seras): Well duh). We end the anime with White Fox promising the return of Goblin Slayer (https://youtu.be/oWTBHxlz0XE?t=14).
Final Thoughts
(Nitsuj): Now does this really seem like a bad anime? This anime was incredibly good and a great watch with good strategies, planning, characters, and action. While I can understand the first episode being unsettling for people, that shouldn’t be the reason to write off the anime as terrible.
(Seras): The character of Guts is one of a tragic character. He is slightly crazy and obsessed with goblins but given what has happened to him it’s understandable why he’s the person he is today. His backstory is sad as he lost everything and all he could do was watch and nothing else. While Guts may not be the strongest or most overpowered character, he makes up for it by being incredibly smart and knowing everything about the opponents he’s about to face. Plus, it’s badass to see him go into rage mode. Speaking of rage mode, his rage mode might just be one of the best rage modes out there because it doesn’t rely on some hidden power or required conditions. He just goes into rage mode whenever he reaches that boiling point when fighting his opponents. He’s essentially Doom Guy if he hunted goblins.
(Isis): The rest of his team members are an interesting group as well. Hikari is a sweet girl who continues to stick by Guts because she feels indebted to him for saving her life, but also because she’s worried about him as she can sense his pain and wants to do whatever she can to lighten his load and if possible bring him some semblance of peace. I also did like the relationship between Fae, Suzuki, and Ryu. Even though they were thrown together by their respected tribes the banter between them is great as they act like adventurers who have been friends forever. I like how they each have their own personal goals they’re trying to reach and the friendship and respect they build with Guts is good. Just like Hikari they’re all in their own little way they’re trying to help Guts. The goblins themselves aren’t the strongest characters here, but the anime does a fantastic job at making them the most frightening because of what they can do in groups and how they’re able to learn and grow. It makes you reevaluate your thoughts on them and makes you wonder if even the most mindless of creatures can become dangerous when underestimated or left alone for too long.
(Nitsuj): The animation is decent. Not one of White Fox’s best but it does match up with the atmosphere of the anime and they do a good job incorporating the CGI of Guts and the goblins. I think a lot of animes could learn a thing or two from them. The fight scenes are gory, violent, and simple. There’s no over the top explosions or spells being used. It’s just adventurers relying on their skills and determination to defeat their opponents and walk away alive. The strategies and tricks that Guts uses in battle are smart, cool, and show us that even though he’s a little crazy he is smart and a tactician when it comes to fighting.
(Seras): The music is across between music you would hear in standard fantasy animes mixed with heavy rock music that honestly sounds like it should be in the Doom game. The big complaint that everyone has with this anime is that it leaves out a lot of stuff and even skips over an arc in order to reach a good stopping point in the anime. I hate when studios do that.
Final Score
(Nitsuj): So my final score for Goblin Slayer is a 8/10.
(Seras): I have to give it a 7/10 for skipping over an entire arc.
(Isis): I’m giving the anime an 8/10. An enjoyable watch for those who like dark fantasies. This brings our combined scores to a 25/30 and gives us an average score of 8.3 which going by our system gives us a final score of 8/10.
(Nitsuj): For those of you out there who are blatantly calling it a bad anime because of what they did in the first episode, get over it and watch the anime fully before shunning it. The second season hasn’t been announced yet, but a movie has been made and we’ll definitely check that out when we get the chance.
(Seras): Until then, thanks for reading.
(Isis): We’ll see you next time on Project Nitsuj.
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