Louie, a brawny student at the mage's guild, is reluctantly accepted by three girls (Merrill-thief,
Genie-fighter, and Melissa-priestess) as a companion for their adventuring party. As the foursome
explore ruins, battle dark creatures, and make new friends, they also uncover a sinister plot within
the kingdom.
(Source: Anime News Network)
My uncle passed away a few days after Christmas. 2020 happened to be a year of uncle deaths for many, but mine was only in his early 50s, and his life snuck out in the middle of the night. Being a huge nerd both figuratively and literally, he had essentially been single for his entire adult life until getting married just a few short years before his sudden and unexpected death. He was an unbelievably smart yet equally kind man, and is dearly missed. That said, this is still a review of the all-filler 24-episode fantasy adventure _Rune Soldier_. You see, I found this box set in his house when his wife invited members of the family over to take items we considered sentimental. A dvd box set of _Rune Soldier_ wasn't specifically sentimental, but it did it remind me of my ever-single fantasy-author uncle. In any case his wife did not object to me taking the boobie anime lady box. _Rune Soldier_ is a comedy fantasy with little overarching plot and copious T&A. As was to be expected from the box art, the characters in this are scantily clad and constantly lingered-upon: they have preposterous breasts, discuss quests within bath houses, and essentially make any excuse to get naked. The central character is a bumbling strongman/wizard, and one of the main women is obligated by God to serve him (and outright told to sleep with him.) Classic "what Americans think anime is", and they’d be right with this one. _Rune Soldier_ shockingly eschews the traditional romance it sets up and doesn't actually follow through on its threatening and creepy sexual undertones. I almost couldn't believe it. Not every episode is good, in fact most of them are passable at best, but by the end I would have liked to see the show mature into something greater. This doesn't make sense as a 24 episode anime program at all. There's no meat! It just... ends. I don't know if it got cancelled or wasn't initially envisioned as the pseudo-sitcom it ended up being, but it's unfortunate that it had to be this way. So the show still surprised me, if not entirely. First of all, it’s often legitimately funny. The characters aren't deeply explored by any means, but the time you spend with Louie and the ladies is actually more enjoyable than it would seem because their personalities are so distinctive and are such easy targets for good gags. This camaraderie is likely due to the show consisting of 95% down-time, with no larger plot to speak of until the very, very end. I'm surprised an episodic Dungeons & Dragons style fantasy television show about a group of horny adventurers ostensibly headquartered in a tavern hasn't gotten big in live action. It actually works. Fine you twisted my arm, I'll make it. Well, I'll think about it. I wish my uncle was here to talk about it with me. So, thanks to my late uncle for not only allowing me to experience delicious mid, but also to imagine what could have been (and what still could be), before we all get bonked to the great horny jail in the sky.