As someone who has watched a good chunk of isekais, I think it is safe to say that the formula has become pretty niche over the years: Guy reincarnates in a fantasy medieval world where swords cross magics with stupid broken abilities and he attempts to do some large-scale thing while scooping up cute girls along the way. Does this anime sound like that description? Perfect.
Now, I admit, there is going to be a bit of bias in this review. Possibly because I've seen my fair share of isekais and have gotten pretty bored of the formula, and possibly because I'm a sucker for galaxy-brained strategies, but let's see what World's Finest Assassin did right.
Starting with worldbuilding. The general world is pretty generic-sounding. It's a classic medieval style monarchy where lords and nobles controls the general well-being of their region. There is uniqueness in the fact that some families have a reputable heritage, such as the Tuathe De Family for being the Monarchial Hitmen, or famed doctors. That's a fair element of uniqueness, but other than that, not much until the later episodes. There, you see into the backstages of these seemingly glistening cities. Maha and her group being homeless and abused in the orphanage, forced to sell their bodies for some snobby lord's pleasure, or the rampant drug abuse in another region, where its so dire that children struggle just to make sure their parents inhale another line of the stuff. Nasty stuff, and something that an assassin would definitely understand, which would play perfectly into our MC Lugh's development. So even in this repeated environment they managed to find something to build up out of. That's pretty good.
Speaking of Lugh, let's get to the characters. Lugh is your classic Jack of All Trades character, smart as hell and physically capable literally because he has an ability that lets him do so. On top of that, he has an unparalleled affinity of magic so potent he literally creates a howitzer cannon three seconds after learning how to make copper. To any, that would've been a shake-off right there, but this is where the magic of screenwriting comes in: When you see the tape rewind, you know its big brain time. All of Lugh's actions are carefully analyzed and an explanation is given on his thought process, meaning its not just him abusing tf outta his powers and hoping something works, but rather him utilizing his powers to his full extent to complement his abilities. Sure, the guy was the world's finest assassin in his previous life, so his development looks bland physically, but when you look emotionally, you observe what is mentally an old man learning how to love for the first time in his life. His first signs of remorse appear not in his previous life, but in this life, along with a desire to protect those he loves. Which transitions nicely into the other people he met
I don't think I'm gonna warrant Dia as a main character, she's given a basic breadth of character, but otherwise I think she feels too significant to warrant a discussion. Maybe if this anime continues and we see her operate as part of the assassin team we can come back to this later. Meanwhile, since both Tarte and Maha share similar trends I'll just talk about them both.
The biggest problem I have with the both of them is their undying allegiance to Lugh. Sure, he saved their lives, but did you really have to go to Albedo-levels of obsessiveness over that one matter? Its reasonable for Tarte, since she's been with Lugh the longest, but Maha, the researcher, the recon, really? Its one thing to be undyingly loyal, its another thing to be Albedo. Tarte, on the other hand, suffers from the whole insignificant issue where she feels like she isn't doing enough. And frankly, she isn't. Not only is she only there to poke a spear at some people occasionally, we rarely get to see Lugh capitalize his right hand woman to her full potential. Sure Lugh liked to act alone because of his past life, but you really gotta do your girl like that? From the opening sequence of the show alone Tarte couldve been so much more. So Lugh, you better start using your queen in that 5D chess game of yours.
Music and Art. This one's decent. The music scores during the most dramatic moments definitely had a play in getting my blood pumped and the clean and refined art of the music really gives a vibrant feel to the entire show. Other than that, the CGI is a bit clunky at times, especially at places like the soldiers scene, that's really my only complaint.
I think in summary, The anime did wonderfully at capitalizing off of the vast potential of the characters. There are definitely a few complaints I had, but nowhere near enough to call it a bad isekai. In fact, I think that because of the vast amount of detail and thought that went into the anime, especially the progression and abilities, as well as the literal galaxy-brain that goes on behind Lugh, this anime trumps over traditional ones as one to properly utilize the genres to their advantage. I look forwards to season 2 when Lugh can properly utilize everyone to their best potential
43 out of 59 users liked this review
