Kazuma Satou was your average hikikomori living in rural Japan. Unlike most of these elusive shut-ins, however, he wasn’t afraid to wander out into public, as long as there was a good reason for it. Well, on one fateful day, he travelled to the city to pick up a limited edition video game bundle, and on his walk home, he would be faced with a decision that changed everything. He recognized a girl he knew from school crossing the street, and in one split second of impulsive heroism, he ran out onto the road to push her out of the way of an oncoming vehicle! His decision may have cost him his life, but as a reward, he found himself seated before a Goddess named Aqua, who offered him a rare opportunity... To be transferred into an alternate fantasy world, to live out a brand new life as an adventurer! She offered to send him with any item he chooses, so he decided that he wants a goddess, like her, to stay by his side forever. Thus, with the Goddess Aqua by his side, Kazuma strikes out into the unknown, to make a name for himself, defeat the Demon king, and save the world!

Well, there’s a bit more to it than that, but you’ll have to discover that for yourself.

Konosuba, otherwise known as God’s Blessing on this Wonderful World, was produced by Studio Deen, a production company that has been around since 1984, and has been going strong pretty much ever since. Every year since their inception, they’ve been releasing a handful of anime TV series every year, along with a decent amount of OVAs and movies, including both huge commercial hits and lesser known indie darlings, with the unfortunate flop here and there. I’ve reviewed several of their titles before... Some of which I glazed pretty hard... And they’re probably most well known for their work on the long running shonen action anime Bleach... But unfortunately, since they’ve produced so many different anime over so many decades, and those titles run the gamut of visual quality, it’s hard to nail down any specific production trends or influences that may have gone into Konosuba.

It’s a lot easier, however, to talk about Konosuba’s director, a man named Takaomi Kanasaki. He’s directed a few series over the years, most of which I haven't seen, but I can point to a couple I definitely have... The second season of School Rumble, and the entire franchise of Is This a Zombie? and while I haven’t seen either one of those shows in a really long time, I do remember liking them quite a bit, and I can distinctly remember countless visual gags that I liked from both, which is definitely something that carried over into Konosuba. Despite my straightforward synopsis earlier, this is a comedy anime through and through, and Kanasaki does appear to have a gift for attention to detail, and having fun with whatever is going on in the background of a shot. Even when the action is front and center, he’s extremely creative with his brand of visual comedy, and especially in regard to comic timing. From shots of characters being gobbled up by giant frogs to the simplest change in a character’s expression, this director knows how to bust you at your seams.

As far as design work goes, there are two sides to this coin. For side one, the main characters all look awesome. I can’t entirely credit this to Kanasaki, as the designs were lifted straight from the source material, but he did know how to work with what he was given. All four members of the main cast, as well as several prominent supporting characters, were gifted with unique aesthetics that stand out against the rest of the world, while still looking more or less believable within it. These are characters that were made to be merchandised, with vibrant, easy-on-the-eyes color-coding and multiple intricate details. The other side of the coin is the fantasy world itself, which if I’m being honest is a little on the generic side, but that’s actually kind of a good thing... Konosuba dumps so many chips into character writing that any extra effort they put into world building would feel like kind of a betrayal. These characters only really need a stage to perform on, and it does an adequate job of that. Still, the world does feel immersive and full of life and history, so it’s not entirely bland.

The animation itself, on the other hand, is divisive, to say the least. There are people out there who will call this animation ugly, and trashy, and I can’t really argue with them... You know that broken framing technique that’s called Runny Eggs animation, where characters go distractingly off model whenever the animators want to present fluid animation without spending too much money? This show uses that shit a lot, and I know that it can get under peoples’ skin, hell, I’ve complained about it in other reviews... But honestly, I think it weirdly works in Konosuba. It’s used enough that it doesn’t feel too distracting when they ramp it up, and it does work with the comedy. The same goes for repeated animation cycles when a character starts desperately bawling over their circumstances, which happens often. I personally have no issues with it, at least for the most part. The only time it bothered me was during fanservicey scenes where characters are either nude or scantily clad, and I don’t think these animators were too familiar with how a human body moves. Still, that only really happens in one episode, so it’s not too big of a deal.

Your mileage will vary, but I thought it was a good looking anime.

The English dub was produced by Bang Zoom Studios at the behest of Crunchyroll, and they pulled together an interesting talent pool. I’m not too familiar with Arnie Pantoja, he hasn’t been in much that I’ve seen other than this show and the new Final Fantasy 7 games, but he plays a snarky and slightly sleazy parody of your basic isekai protagonist as well as anybody could expect. Cristina Valenzuela and Erica Mendez both portray their characters wit full and unwavering sincerity while also playing up their characters’ self destructive quirks... It is deliriously funny hearing the legendary Cristina Vee stammer and trip over her words while poorly concealing her own masochism... But the star of this dub is without a doubt Faye Mata, who is by far one of the funniest voice actors I’ve ever heard, period. Her portrayal of Aqua, in all of her useless glory, is probably a big reason why she’s my favorite character in this series. I said this before in my Shield Hero review, but Faye commits whole-heartedly to the bit when playing less dignified roles, be they sleazy like Princess Melty or whiny like Aqua. The original Japanese is of course exceptional as well, you can’t go wrong with either choice.

Konosuba, thankfully, is one of those anime that let you know right off the bat whether you’re going to like it or not. When I did my Top 100 Favorite Anime Moments a while back, Konosuba wasn’t fresh in my mind, so it didn’t show up as many times as it should have, but I had no problem adding the opening sequence of the first episode, because it provided the perfect summary of what would go on to become my favorite anime comedy ever. In this sequence, we’re introduced to Kazuma as a lazy, good-for-nothing shut-in who is at least socially competent enough to go buy his own video games, and self-aware enough to acknowledge the stereotypes of his lifestyle. This gives him some relatability, as sometimes we all get stuck in a rut that we know is unhealthy for us but we’re too comfortable to get out of. Hikikomori have a reputation for being selfish, but Kazuma immediately endears himself to the audience by not only sacrificing his life to save someone he barely knows, but by experiencing actual relief when he finds out that she’s okay... At least he died for a good cause.

You will not forget the fact that he did that, or at least I never did. I don’t know if it’s fair to assign anyone the label of “good person” or “bad person” over any individual deed, but he is, at least, a person who is capable of selfless and altruistic actions. He is also made immediately sympathetic when Aqua tells us the actual, pitiful truth of how he died, openly mocking and manipulating him over it, so that when he acts entirely out of spite by dragging her with him to the fantasy world, it’s hard to not be entirely on his side. Thus begins our journey... The journey of a shut-in loser with the chance to make something of himself with a clean slate, and a stuck-up, arrogant Goddess who is forced to live alongside mortals. These two characters have boatloads of chemistry, not only as comedic foils to one another, but as time goes by, as friends and allies, too. So, right off the bat, before you’re even halfway done with episode one, you know exactly who these two characters are, what kind of dynamic they’re going to have with one another, and especially, the specific kind of comedy that this series is aiming for, and while it might not work for everyone, it is a Goddess’s blessing on anyone who does enjoy it.

The plot is tenuous, but it moves pretty quickly, as Aqua and Kazuma start from the bottom and work their way up, scraping by on what little money they can earn, coping with their struggles in any way they can, but they do make progress, and their circumstances do improve. They even pick up two new members, a mage who is obsessed with one type of magic and will use nothing else, even though doing so would be more practical, and a crusader who is masochistic and loves humiliation and taking damage in battle. Now, a friend of mine at work did bring up an interesting observation when I got him into the series... If Kazuma's luck is so high, how come he only attracts the worst party members? I had to think about this one for a bit, but here’s what I came up with; Any genuine, competent fighters would probably not work well with him and Aqua. That party would split as soon as a better offer came along for them. Instead, he winds up forming a party of misfits, who have enormous potential, but with crippling flaws that nobody else is desperate enough to look past, and that ultimately draws them together as teammates, and even friends.

Kazuma’s luck didn’t find him the best people, it found him HIS people. All four members of the Konosuba party have noticeable strengths, but are also just the worst. But that raises another question: How do you write a series where the main cast are awful in so many ways, but still somehow likeable? Well, it’s been done before, and the best example I can think of is the American sitcom It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia. If you haven’t seen it, Sunny is a show about five people who are lifelong friends, and while they are all some degree of crazy, narcissistic and/or sociopathic, they’re also incredibly easy to root for. Most of this is due to the fact that the conflicts surrounding their toxic behavior is always internal, as the biggest targets of their toxicity is almost always themselves and each other. It’s rare for an outsider to be affected by them, but when it does happen, it never feels inherently malicious... The Gang are just being themselves, which occasionally means using people without really thinking about it.

And for the record, while the dynamic is similar, the cast of Konosuba rarely if ever hurts anyone else without suffering some kind of consequences for it. Kazuma does have a pervy side, but indulging in it constantly damages his reputation and public image, whether he deserves it or not. Aqua is whiny and emotionally immature, but much like Kazuma, her image(this time as a deity) is the only thing that suffers. Megumin dedicates herself to a combat philosophy that she knows is a huge risk, but it’s primarily a risk to her own safety. This is a bit of a spoiler, so I’m going to keep this vague, but on the rare occasions where their bullshit is directed at someone else, that someone else winds up being a villain, and while you totally CAN feel bad for this villain... They offer multiple chances and opportunities for forgiveness... Like I said in my Black Butler review, you can get away with A LOT of cruelty in a story if the victim is a demon.

And, like I said before, this show is genuinely really funny. I know I’ve slammed some anime in the past for utilizing questionable, potentially problematic humor, but Kazuma isn’t that bad with it... I would argue there’s really only one scene(at least in this season) where he crosses any serious lines, and he literally thought he was dreaming in that scene. I know a lot of people find Aqua annoying, and I get why, but I love how wildly she swings between arrogant Goddess posturing and full-on, hysterical despair. I don’t know, it just always hits my funny bone the right way. I guess I don’t love Megumin and Darkness as much, but I still like them, I still find their antics funny. Honestly, I’m struggling to think of anything that I don’t like about this series, but I'm pretty sure my only complaint is some mild pacing/story structure issues towards the end and certain aspects of the animation being mid. That's it, though.

What I especially love about Konosuba... As if the rest just wasn’t enough... Is that it blows every other Isekai’s big ideas out of the water. When I came back to writing reviews in 2021, and I started with In Another World with my Smartphone, I set a standard that I’ve been keeping up for the five years that have followed; I love any anime that introduces a weird or unique idea, and then fucking runs with it, exploring all of the unique possibilities and implications. Smartphone Isekai had a cool idea, bringing a working smartphone to an isekai world, but they didn’t do jack shit with it. I brought up Konosuba specifically in that review for the sake of comparison, because Kazuma didn’t bring a smartphone to another world, he brought a whole-ass Goddess, a decision that is the cornerstone of this franchise’s identity, and a concept that the story never stops exploring and playing with. Part of this is due to the fact that the series has top tier attention to detail, and never neglects how useful or problematic a character could be in any given situation.

To make things even better, though, on Aqua's end, this is the story of an arrogant God being cast out of heaven and forced to live amongst men... She's basically Thor but with less dignity, and if that idea doesn't grab your attention, we can't be friends. These two stories are playing out side by side, in perfect harmony with one another. Beyond that, Konosuba doesn’t really have a unique concept or a weird idea. Functionally speaking, it is a show about protagonists who get transported to another world and have to figure out how to survive as adventurers. What sets it apart from other isekai anime isn’t just the inclusion of Aqua as a character, but its cast of characters in general. The strength of Konosuba is in its characters. The identity, the heart, and the overall entertainment value of Konosuba are all in its characters, who are all funny, and interesting, and lovable in all the worst ways, and they bring out the absolute best in each other.

Konosuba is available from Crunchyroll, along with two sequel seasons, one spin-off season focused on the backstory of Megumin, one movie, and a handful of OVA episodes. The original light novel series by Natsume Akatsuki is available from Yen On, and a manga adaptation is available from Yen Press.

Look, comedy is subjective. You can technically say that to some degree about every genre of entertainment, we’re always going to have our own unique opinions on everything related to anime, but comedy stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of just how differently two people might take it. There are some comedy anime that I found painfully unfunny, but which other fans might hold close to their heart as the laugh-fest that got them through a difficult time in their life. On a similar note, I could laugh my balls off while watching an anime that left most of my peers feeling cold. The only opinion I am prepared to represent is my own, though, and Konosuba isn’t just my favorite isekai anime, it is also, in my opinion, one of the funniest anime I’ve ever seen. It’s not perfect, but I do feel as though it’s overall entertainment value overshadows any minor flaws I may find in it.

I give Konosuba a 9/10