Are we trying to copy Dragon Quest for its protagonist presence?
Yet more shows got leaked early. At least this one and that awful Level 2-but-actually-Zero one. But I actually have multiple meetings this morning, so it, and Bartender for that matter, will have to wait a little bit. The actual premiere for this is on the 9th.
Impressions:
It’s an interesting decision to attempt to make the golem of a protagonist seem palatable by comparison by having a whining, simpering incompetent spend the first five or so minutes pathetically mewling about how scary everything is while he gives everything his finest thousand yard stare. Oh, Mr. Protagonist, you’re so brave and handsome and gallant but this is really scary and dangerous! That’s definitely a trap! A scary trap! Gargoyles are scary! I’m scared, Mr. Protagonist! Let’s go home and abandon our quest because this is so scary! It’s scary! Which then gives way to the teatime of info-dumping. Hooray, we recited the premise, and it only took almost the entire episode. Congratulations on… having a premise.
What is completely missing here, besides the animation budget, direction, and script, is any kind of chemistry between any of the characters at all. The obnoxious one is just outright awful. The dude barely registers as a person and is more an inert sack of flesh that occasionally announces what’s in front of him. The girl is the same, but slightly more excitable, meaning they draw three expressions for her, which is one more than both the dudes combined. That also sums up the production. It pretty horrible, especially when they’re talking up how difficult the challenges are, and then it cuts over to the dude having cleared them without breaking a sweat off-screen, not that it has the ambition to even draw sweat. Heavy breathing might be too big an ask.
