2016 fantasy, light novel adaptation in 12½ episodes:
AniDB.
Six people find themselves in a monster-bashing fantasy world, without
memories or resources. vt Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash.
Yes, in a way this is another "thrown into an RPG" story: but as
with 2015's DanMachi, that's just the way the world works, and it's
not explored at all. As a new arrival in the world, you get to become
a Volunteer Soldier and fight monsters to earn a living; no other
career is open to you. Dungeons come in levels because that's what
dungeons do. None of our heroes makes any effort to get their memories
back, apart from a vague wondering why it is they enjoy cooking or
some other non-adventuring activity.
The story, though, is much more about the relationships between the
characters, and the effects of constant combat and friends getting
killed. Character X was the rock that held the group together, but
nobody noticed until he died, and now character Y has to try to do his
job. It's all pretty straightforward, but well-handled, and much more
interesting than endless battle sequences would have been.
The show is visually distinctive in its backgrounds; they're done in a
watercolour style, with ink outlines that don't quite match the
coloured shapes. This is lovely to look at, even when it's being a
backdrop for carnage. Characters are more standard in design,
shuffling up the usual elements and pulling them out in recognisable
patterns.
There's a surprising amount of fanservice, particularly with the
second half's title sequence lingering on the female characters, and a
bonus half-episode all about attempting to spy on the women while they
bathe; it isn't at all a good fit with the tone of the rest of it,
which is much more about creating working relationships and building
trust than anything else.
The usual light novel conversion problems are apparent here: huge
chunks of material are obviously missing, and plot threads are started
and then go nowhere. At the same time the pace can be pretty slow; if
you don't come to like the protagonists' personalities, there's not
much else to encourage you to watch.
Not a great show, but enjoyable within its limitations. No sequel has
been announced.
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