RebelPanda sits down to write a review of Mushoku Tensei with the help of his friend, Al

Al: I loved Mushoku Tensei. I understand why they call it the pioneer of the isekai genre. Nowadays, every isekai anime uses the same tropes, but this show did them purposefully, complimenting the story in the process. It boasted stunning animation, a great soundtrack, and a sprawling fantasy setting rich with lore. What’d you think, Panda?

Panda: I agree the production values are top-notch. In my opinion, Mushoku Tensei has all of the trappings of a typical JRPG inspired fantasy, except with a repulsive, openly pedophilic main character. A random loser died and got reincarnated as a child, except his old consciousness is always present—it’s a seemingly ordinary show until an adult child predator’s voice starts narrating. On top of that, it’s another wish-fulfillment isekai, even though it’s not as apparent as most modern power fantasy anime. It seems different because it was written before all these tropes were done to death. Every season for the last six years, there have been dozens of ‘ironic’ and ‘satirical’ power fantasies. They don’t bother pretending like they’re not harems with overpowered protagonists. This story is different because it does the tropes, but without a veil of irony.

Al: Rudeus works for his powers, unlike most isekai heroes. He reads books, practices his spell casting, and works on his sword-fighting technique. It’s not like he was reborn as a god. There are plenty of times he is too weak to win a fight. Of course, he is an imperfect main character; this is a redemption story. Including pedophilia is the author’s way of saying, if you can’t handle this kind of content, don’t continue.

Panda: This is the kind of show that makes anime fans look bad. It is riddled with degenerate fan service, unnecessary sexualization, and the pedophile main character spoils all the enjoyment. The excessive use of sex and nudity is meant for titillation. I only saw a generic isekai with the same as any ecchi anime—which is an excellent indicator of the target audience. None of this comes as a surprise, though. Apparently, the author was inspired by porn games, like Rance.

Al: To you, all nudity is excessive. If you weren’t so sensitive, you’d realize the anime has a nuanced portrayal of lust. Usually, anime don’t realistically express sexuality—panty shots, giant jiggly boobs. You know what I mean. But Mushoku Tensei realistically showcases genuine human desire, such as sex, longing, and masturbation. It’s honestly refreshing. There’s so much sex because of the time-period—people didn’t have phones or computers, sex was a way of occupying time. Members of royalty will boink maids in front of children because that’s how the culture was. It’s an essential part of every character’s life. The story is historically accurate with added fantasy components.

Panda: First of all, no. I like ecchi anime, one of my favorites is Interspecies Reviewers. Suppose Mushoku Tensei is “accurate” to the Middle Ages: Fantasy settings do not need to replicate every shitty aspect of the past. The author selected “perversion” as the thing he wanted to replicate. The only excuse is that he wished to keep it realistic? That’s lazy writing at best. The story doesn’t comment on why there is a constant perversion. It just is. The obvious answer is, men had more power than women, and consent was irrelevant to them. We see this with the strong male characters who lead the households, such as the fathers in the Greyrat family. They wield swords, sit at the end of the table, and have sex with whoever they want. Aside from that, there is nothing else historically accurate about it.

Al: You’re mistaken. When animating Mushoku Tensei, Studio Bind referenced art, technology, furniture, and decorations from the Middle Ages. The characters live in finely ornamented rooms. Households are accurately decorated depending on the family’s social status. Not only is this historically accurate, but it adds depth to the world-building.

Panda: All of these are great additions to the show—but that’s all they are. Extra coatings of paint to cover up the sleazy writing. There is a fine line between “How things used to be” and “How I wish things would be.” More often than not, Mushoku chooses the latter. Its lewd and lascivious portrayal of sexuality is in service of the male audience’s fantasies: A girl masturbating outside of the bedroom, the maid is horny for the father, the parents loudly bang every night, and chances to have sex constantly land in the main character’s lap. This world is a horny teenage boy’s wet dream. Rudeus is the audience’s proxy, and he comes close to being another badly written self-insert isekai protagonist.

Al: Rudeus isn’t a self-insert. He is a believable and relatable character. His portrayal of PTSD is exceptionally realistic. During the show, he gets nightmares and flashbacks to getting bullied in high school. The flashbacks are well-directed, too: the music becomes foreboding, and the scene becomes saturated with a blood-red filter. It’s not like they happen at random times either. Whenever Rudeus reaches a turning point, such as leaving home and adjusting to his life as a teacher and setting out on a journey, his trauma resurfaces. If he’s under severe stress, mainly in the final arc, he’ll suddenly get thrown back to high school. Even though years have passed, he still experiences trauma because that’s how it works in reality. Society conditioned him to become a pervert by bulling him into becoming a shut-in.

Panda: I’ll admit I loved how well Mushoku Tensei portrayed trauma… in theory. Without a doubt, it is the most emotionally resonant aspect of the show. I could empathize with his severe anxiety, but he pre because he was a pedophile. It may have been society’s fault that he wasn’t offered therapy. However, I cannot sympathize with a pedophile. He is not a good guy. He will never be a good guy. Saying it’s “society’s fault” isn’t an excuse. Perversion is a behavior he can control with restraint.

Al: The show is about his redemption. The title is literally “Jobless Reincarnation” because he is redeeming himself in a second chance at life. He begins as a loser, who couldn’t care less about people. Then he becomes a more caring person—helping to keep his family together and even risking his life to save people. That’s why he makes nice friends like Sylphie. And he got a job to pay for both of them to go to magic school. He might be a pervert, but that’s the point. Plus, Rudeus is a lolicon, not a pedophile.

Panda: You’re somewhat correct, there is a difference, but within the story, Rudeus is attracted to actual children. Writing an inhuman piece of garbage like Rudy, developing him into a half-decent person, then expecting us to praise him for doing the bare minimum is shoddy writing. And he can’t even do that much! He preyed on family members in both his first and second life. Rudeus has the mind of a 40-year-old man, who 100% jacked off to child porn right before he died. Just because he threw himself in front of a truck to save a couple of kids doesn’t make him a better person. He needs to do work towards becoming a better person—and so far, it has been one step forward two steps back. Your description of his connections with family and friends are on point, except you’re missing parts. Rudeus admits that he wants to ‘groom’ Sylphie to be his wife, which involves taking her to school with him. On the outside, it seems like an act of kindness, but in reality, he has sinister motivations.

Al: Rudeus has the body of a child. How could a child be a pedophile?

Panda: Hold the phone. Aren’t you always the one who argues that lolis are legal as long as they’re old enough? I could point to Rudeus’s teacher, Roxy, and say she looks like a child, and the show has its own built-in fantasy logic to make her older than she looks. By your reasoning, both of them are adults. What’s the difference?

Al: Rudeus didn’t have sex with her when she offered! She consented, and she’s older than him. He didn’t do anything illegal. You can’t say he’s a pedophile if he hasn’t done anything.

Panda: Even if what you said was true—which it isn’t—doing the bare minimum isn’t redemption. He is expected to save an innocent person’s life and does not have sex with a kid. It’s basic human decency! That’s not something to applaud! That aside, he didn’t even do the bare minimum. You twisted the truth. Rudeus groped Eris, a twelve-year-old girl, and tried to take off her panties while sleeping. He imagined having sex with her, and the only reason he didn’t is that she got away before he could go all the way. He was fully willing to molest her!

Al: Again, the story takes place in a fantasy realm during the Middle Ages; couples are encouraged to get married younger. Most fiction depicts morals based on the modern era, but that doesn’t mean EVERY story must ignore the realities of the past.

Panda: OK, you know why that’s a bullshit excuse, right? Rudeus came from our world, where we have a moral framework that says “Respect people’s bodily autonomy” and “Don’t be a fucking child predator.”

Al: You’re projecting your own morals onto a story that takes place in a different time and place. The only reason why you preach your moral purity like a saint is that you’re too narrow-minded to divide fiction from reality. As someone who has been consuming anime for years now, I am capable of keeping reality and fiction far apart.

Panda: Are all anime simply meaningless cartoons that can’t comment on real-world issues? I reject that. Fiction is a means of communicating thoughts, emotions, stories. Even if a work of fiction makes me feel ashamed or guilty, like Mushoku Tensei obviously makes you feel, I will never undermine an entire art form by saying, “It’s just fiction.” Have some balls, for God’s sake. If we generously assume the show is depicting real-world problems, it’s doing it poorly. Such as Rudeus’s pedophilia; the show endorses his actions. Even though he calls himself disgusting, there is no self-awareness. I doubt he will come to realize what he is and stop. Calling yourself ‘scum’ isn’t enough. He is like a fan of degenerate anime, such as Eromanga sensei, who says, “Anime is trash, and so am I.” There’s no nuance, it’s just presenting repulsive aspects for either shock or fetishization.

Al: Eventually, he will have consequences for his actions. This is part 1 of a 23 episode show. You’re judging it too hastily.

Panda: When? The only so-called “consequence” was him getting punched and kicked. The anime acknowledges Rudeus is a sick pedophile, then plays it off as a joke. In fact, it normalizes the pedophilic aspects. He refers to his cousin Eris as a little girl in most contexts because that’s what she is. But when he gets a chance to make a move in the bedroom, he creepily calls her ‘his’ loli. The term ‘loli’ usually refers to a specific type of anime girl character design. In the real world, you don’t call a little girl a loli. She is just a little girl. By calling her, a ‘loli’ separates Rudeus, and the audience, from any blame. This is the author’s way of saying is that you don’t need to feel shame for indulging in some sexual fantasies about prepubescent girls.

Al: You fundamentally misunderstand the point of the show. We’re not supposed to like Rudeus! Even in the synopsis, it says, “He’s a pervert.” What did you expect? Just because he’s an immoral person doesn’t make him a bad character.

Panda: You’re right, he is a pervert, and bad people aren’t necessarily severely written characters. Whether or not I like Rudeus is irrelevant to whether or not he’s a well-written character. What matters is: How does the story depict the ramifications of his negative choices? Does it condemn his actions or condone them? Does it focus on him or the person he hurt? In this case, he is always the focus. The other characters are unimportant—and even when they do have a chance to voice their discomfort, the scenes are full of low camera angles, leering shots, and dehumanizing close-ups on breasts, thighs. It boils down to “Haha, sexual assault,” rather than painting him in a negative light. Even the decent female characters, like Roxy, are treated as objects. After the first two episodes, she only appeared in brief clips where she was constantly getting molested.

Al: Have you ever thought you’re taking anime too seriously?

Panda: Have you ever thought that maybe you only defend Mushoku Tensei because you like Rudeus?

Al: Come on man, really? You’re just going to ignore all my arguments?

Panda: Yeah, sorry that was uncalled for.

Al: We at least agree the show has amazing production values, right?

Panda: Absolutely. I loved seeing Rudeus and other mages cast their magic. I was shocked the author created a second language, and it didn’t sound like gibberish. The voice actors did their job well, and the music fits without issues. I didn’t like much about the characters, but there were some cool designs. It’s commendable that they never simplified the designs. When the production cut corners, towards the end, it still looked far better than most TV anime. The hand-to-hand combat and sword fights are choreographed professionally. Alright, 8 for animation, 8 for sound, and 3 for the story and characters. Overall score: 3/10

Al: Whoa, don’t you think that’s a little unfair? It deserves at least a 7.

Panda: Nope. This is my review, and I say it deserves a 3/10.

Al: Fine, whatever. Let’s just watch some more anime.

Panda: Let’s. As long as it’s not Mushoku Tensei.