Isekai Cheat Magician
Genre: Isekai, fantasy
Studio: Encourage Films
Hello mis amigos.
Welcome to another entry
Here I am, putting myself to date, reviewing isekai that I should have reviewed months ago. And now, it is time to seal this old wound.
This entry here is a bit special, because I read some other reviews, giving a pretty low score to this anime I am reviewing now. But, since it is always important to have your voice, I decided to watch this anime anyway, and have my own thoughts,
Having said that, here is…
And before I continue, I want to always remind you to keep yourselves safe, do not forget to have good hygiene and eat well, because COVID-19 is still out there, being a very dangerous and unpredictable disease you must be always careful about.
Now, let’s go with Isekai Cheat Magician.
PREMISE
Based on the light novels written by Takeru Uchida, and illustrated by the renown Nardack, Isekai Cheat Magician follows the adventures of childhood friends Taichi Nishimura and Rin Azuma, who, in allisekai fashion, are transported to another world by a magical circle that appears beneath them, the new world is called Altia. Immediately they are attacked by a dark unicorn with an obsidian horn. And after being rescued by some adventurers and register as such, they realise that they have an amazing power unlike anything seen in Altia.
Now, with the help of Magicians Muller and Lemia, both Taichi and Rin must become great magicians in order to find answers of who transported them to Altia and why. Isekai Cheat Magician was released in 12 episodes, on July 2019, by Encourage Films, the studio behind Senki Zesshou Symphogear, and as June 2020, there is no news of any OVAs or second season. Nevertheless, one thing that I really want to point out is that opening song, Panta Rhei, performed by Myth&Roid, is wonderful.
Now, there is something to keep in mind about Altia. There are two types of Magicians, one are the normal magicians, who cast spells based in the elements of earth; Fire, Water, Earth and Wind, and must form a pact with the spirits in order to make spells. The other types of magicians are the Unique Magicians, who, aside from using the force of the spirits directly, can also alter Time-Space and make summonings. From what I saw in the second episode, the Unique Magicians are also considered sorcerers.
While Rin is able to manipulate all of the elements, being a Quad Magician, Taichi can «cheat» these rules.
There comes the name… Isekai Cheat Magician.
The series is directed by Daisuke Tsukushi, who directed some episodes of series like Amagami SS and Date A Live.
STORY
Now, as much as I adore the art of Nardack, I am not going to mention her or the novels, for if there is anything that I learn from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and its novelisations, is that the movie must always be self-reliant. And as such, I must focus just in the anime.
And this is where I started to struggle, because indeed there is a lot to say about Isekai Cheat Magician… and most of it is negative. If you read my previous entries about Hamefura, Tensei Slime and Princess Connect: Re Dive, you will remember that I said that isekai genre will always surprises us with its creativity, as long as it is in the right mind. Well, there is hardly anything that stands out in the first episodes of Isekai Cheat Magician. Both the story and the isekai troupes are in autopilot. I found it pretty standard, taking every single element we already have seen from other isekai anime.
- There is a big danger in another world.
- One hero from Japan is summoned.
- He/she joins to a Guild.
- There is a mentor that trains the hero, or a goddess for that matter.
- Turns out that the hero is overpowered.
- He/she is an harem.
- Some adventures defeating evil, or the Demon King
Honorable mention – Idilic soundtrack and the multiple races.
Isekai Cheat Magician follows this scheme pretty well, but aside from the rules of the magicians, there is nothing that makes it unique, even the main characters are so baisc, but I’ll talk about that later.
Another problem is that when the episode needs to go slow, it goes fast, and when it needs to go fast, it is slow… SO DAMN SLOW. Case in point, when Taichi and Rin start their training; at the beginning, it goes well, it is well-paced and you start to root for our main protagonists; however, the next scene, you feel like…
Am I missing something?
Perhaps I am being too harsh, but after seeing stories like The Rising of the Shield Hero, and Arifureta, you appreciate more the possibilities of isekai, the multiples perspectives; but I feel that Isekai Cheat Magician is not one of them, and I quote a very important sentence from Angry Video Game Nerd from reviewing Tom Cruise’s The Mummy with Nostalgia Critic:
«It follows every modern trend without creating anything unique.»
I don’t know if the light novels are the same. I sincerely doubt that, but I wasn’t very satisfied with this adaptation, even the animation feels like a copy from Danmachi or Goblin Slayer, in lightning, in colour scheme, the night feeling, the day feeling. Also, the battles are pretty boring.
Ok. I am not saying that every isekai has to leave an everlasting impact on us. I am saying that it should try to do something to stand out, in either characters or story. Well, Isekai Cheat Magician at least has some coherence and world-building, unlike In Another World with my Smartphone. (Seriously, that concept is kind of ludicrous.)
But like I said, I am being very harsh. I will watching the other episodes… or die trying.
CHARACTERS
Furthermore, I wasn’t very invested with Taichi and Rin. They are so boring. We know that they are childhood friends, but we don’t know anything else about them. I think Rin is part of the tennis team, but that is really never explored. I have to admit that their design is pretty decent, both look good, in both school uniforms and magicians uniforms, but sadly, we never got deep in their pasts. If the series didn’t any mention about them growing together, I will be happy with that.
Many will argue that Subaru, Kazuma and Naofumi were similar; they are layabouts, otakus and shut-ins from their families, but even before being transported to their worlds, we have a solid glimpse of who they truly are in the real world, and they evolve physically and mentally. I don’t think Taichi and Rin will have the same construction.
Also, Muller, in terms of design, is not different from any mentor or adventurous blonde elf, with green-themed clothes.
Yeah. I know that the High Elf Archer has green hair, but you get the idea.
But, if there is one character that perhaps I say stands out… its Lemia.
Aside from her relaxed personality, very reminiscent to Vanessa, from Black Clover, her outstanding beauty makes her interesting. But, makes me feel guilty for praising her looks like that.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, Isekai Cheat Magician might be entertaining if you are looking for a pretty standard isekai adventure who definitely follows the troupes of the genre and ensures some fun, but if you are looking for a story like The Rising of the Shield Hero or Arifureta, perhaps this is not the one for you.
Or try to read the light novels; the art from Nardack will never bore you.
Well. Review is finished. And you know what that means… Time for me to disappear.
Jainituos Presents 