Recommended
IT'S OFFICIAL! T H I C C thighs DO save lives! And with that, welcome to voraciously dumb fun, not to be taken seriously. I mean, where else would you get a story that has a character, who LOVES thighs, poses as the main hero, and gets to do everything that the Hero does? Only in mangaka Subaruichi's Yuusha ga Shinda! a.k.a The Legendary Hero Is Dead! will you experience that kind of insanity. And quite frankly, this does not have every right to be as good as it is, with its mindless entertainment that serves to fulfil the egomaniac in us that heroes can bejust, but also wacky as well.
Although the anime presents itself as a quarter and more of the completed manga (which ranges a total of 202 chapters in 20 volumes, serialised between December 2014 and December 2020), it is no doubt a show that presents itself as unhinged, apart from another show this season (i.e. KamiKatsu) that shows us that in dumbfounded entertainment, there's some fun to be had.
In a small village, rests one ordinary former by the name of Touka Scott. The ordinary, dishevelled-looking young man with a pension for thicc thighs to harass any girl and dress her up with stockings is a guy who lives for his entertainment alone. But when he gets involved in a situation where the Legendary Hero is killed by one of his animal-laden traps, Touka finds himself in a situation where he has to pose as the revered character Sion Breydan, crescent with the Sacred Sword, who sealed away the Demon King and his army in the typical fantasy world's war. Now, after some time, the Demon King's seal has begun to weaken, and the Legendary Hero Sion must be called forth to put an end to the war once again to save humanity from demons. But thankfully, there is Sion's partner in the form of necromancer Anri Haynesworth, who, after noticing the harrowing situation, extracts Touka's soul and stores it in this casket while Touka takes over Sion's body, posing as the Hero in the typical humans vs. demons' war.
In his conquest to defeat the Demon King once again, Touka is not alone in this journey. Accompanying him, along with Anri, is Yuna Yunis, the childhood friend of Touka's that she dreamed of being a mage growing up, but that her superhuman strength and absence of magical abilities frustrated her, more than Touka constantly harassing her with the thighs and stockings affair. Coincidentally, the girl who has feelings for Sion now has to deal with Touka taking over the Legendary Hero's body, where he is free to continue his thigh-loving exploits, but overall, she still has to deal with the actual plot. It's a case of a plot with THE plot, which happens so much in the typical fantasy world story, but while the execution can be hit-or-miss, it's generally regarded as a decent story overall.
First off, the plotline of the Legendary Hero being killed in a silly fashion, feels refreshing and is a sight to behold. Most typical Isekai fantasy stories start off in the same copy-paste summoned-to-OP fashion, but even if the show isn't Isekai, it's immediately clear that this is a parody of sorts that knows how to poke fun at the genre and isn't afraid to be nonchalant about it. Say what you will about Touka, but apart from the perverted thigh-ing side of him, he is generally a good character at heart, fighting for what matters to him the most. Same goes for Yuna, with her mage desire having to come to play in the unforeseen of circumstances. Sure, the side characters, from Sion's right-hand man Kyle Osment to Princess Marguerite Farom have no shame towards each other, but they feel every bit as unhinged as they come. Together, with Touka, Anri and Yuna, the conquest to defeat the Demon King is more than just quintessential, including the silly and stupefied jokes that invoke the ecchi and comedy in this action-adventure plot line that comes off not as bad as you think it is.
For much of the studio's reputation, Liden Films is the studio that is the "Jack of all trades, and Master of none". Sure, it's a decent adaptation of the manga, albeit with rushed development, it can feel like the anime is running through its paces against the manga quicker than anyone would've thought. To me, it's just alright with no complaints to be made, and on director Rion Kujo's part (which he has constantly been falling off this position from time to time), both the quality and quantity could have been managed just a tad better.
The music, though, is something else. I've long praised Anisong composer Masayoshi Ooishi for the songs that he brought to the table for shows big and small, and he came through again with "Shinda!", his newest head-bopping OP song to date. As Princess Marguerite's VA, Yurika Kubo may not have a strong presence despite being a veteran in the anime industry, but I've really gotta say that along with the OP, her ED is a bop too, which makes it two-for-two in the most unusual, but engaging way to not skip both songs in episodic succession. Honestly, I could tell you that the reason to watch this show is purely for the music aspect alone, along with the colourful visuals and animation that synchronize well with the songs (especially the ED with the daikons, the dancing leaves, and the jumping).
Yuusha ga Shinda! a.k.a The Legendary Hero Is Dead! is not a perfect show by any means of the word, but for what it is, I can appreciate this show for being a no-holds barred show to turn your brain off just for the sake of messy, character-stricken comedy that somehow gels together to create a good time. Only if you have free time on your hands, I do recommend this show just to take a beating of how comically bad, or good, Isekai shows have become, and especially in these kinds of times, parody shows like this are what we REALLY need in the charts now.
As McDonald's would say: I'm (not) lovin' it, but likin' it.
