A constant theme of this year has been ‘Sophomore Slump’. The idea that most second outings of anime do not have the same endearing charm their first seasons do. Not all anime suffer from this, but I’ve noticed that a lot of newer shows, without the large fanbases or strong light novels often struggle to keep that momentum going. I keep bringing this up phrase this year because I’ve noticed more than this year. And here we are again, will we see another slump, or will this one be triumph? Well after the cut let’s take a dive into the second season of *deep breath* Banished from the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside
If you read my review on World’s Finest Assassin, you might remember that I summed up the series with this video.
That was my reaction to a show that I had absolutely no confidence. I was absolutely floored that a show like Assassin wasn’t just good, but had great story, good characters and a forward momentum that kept things moving. Not perfect of course, but something that I quite enjoyed.
The same can be said for the first season of Banished, where I found myself deeply impressed by the relationship between Rit and Red, the spin on the hero’s journey and the lore put behind the idea of destiny, fate and the divine blessings. Yet by the end of that season everything seemed to be wrapped up in a nice little bow. Hell the two main characters actually had sex! So I was afraid that a second outing was just going to be 12 or so episodes of faffing around that has doomed so many other shows.
So it was to my great surprise that I once again found myself going to this clip.
Yes, to my complete surprise and shock, Banished from the Hero’s Party not only has a second season that works, but one that actually builds off and furthers the plots, themes and ideas from it’s first. While there is plenty of that faffing about that was always part of its DNA. There is equal amount of time spent on actually addressing the fallout of their actions, most notably with the idea of the hero’s blessing.
With Ruti now having earned her freedom, the role of the hero falls to a young man named Van. A character that I can only really say feels like he was plucked out of the 41st Millennium from Warhammer. While Ruti saw her hero status as a curse, literally destroying her humanity, Van sees the blessing as well… a blessing. The only problem is that Van lives by the rule of ‘might makes right’ and that anyone who would dare question anything he does, he is the hero remember, deserves to be put down. Death to the non believer! Purge the heretics!
This forms the crux of the major story arc this time. As when their paths eventually cross, Red sees it is as duty to try and save Van from himself and shape his hero’s path into one of mercy, understanding and compassion. It’s a good story arc, and neither Red or Ruti pull any of their punches in trying to make Van see the world from a different lens. It’s good stuff and credit needs to be put on the character of Van himself. While he is just a young kid, both the sub and dub play him as a ticking time bomb waiting to god off, a complete sociopath that truly believes what he is doing is right. It was something I was really surprised to see in this series. And honestly, it’s been great to see Banished really put time and effort into letting us know that these blessings are actually really fucking horrible for the people.
Aside from all that, the shows remains fun with a good cast of characters, a really genuine and authentic romance between Rit and Red, and a world that feels lived in, despite being very much ‘off the rack’ as so many other worlds of this ilk. Seeing Ruti adjust to her newfound freedom and discover her humanity is as cute and fun as you expect, and thankfully doesn’t fall into the same expected ideas and tropes, though some of them are there. The new cast adds good ideas, especially Lavender which feels like every idea of an ‘evil Navi’ put into one.
The second season of *deep breath* Banished from the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside is everything you want from a show of this type, with the quality that you expect. Instead of treading water and hoping that the reception from the last season will carry them over. The show decides to keep moving forward and address lingering plot points, introduce new ones and spend the time building the world instead of just giving up. I can’t help but deeply admire that and in a world where shows seem to becoming more and more lazy, it’s great to see that at least one series that actually cares.
Plus Rit has a fucking great set of tits.
Shallow Dives in Anime 