Shangri-La Frontier

lezvie

Well, over the last years of watching way too many anime, i believe i have now the ability to spot well produced trash. These are those anime that at first look, seems promising, and maybe the next big thing. But ultimately fall off, to the point where a season later no one remembers it. Or maybe it is actually hyped until more seasons drop and people start realizing it wasn't that good in the first place. I believe Shangri-la Frontier falls into this category. Yet, i also believe this was one of the best of its genre. Now, way to start a review, right? Let's start with the basic. What is this anime about? In a near future, where non-VR games are considered oldschool classics, the game industry is suffering from a similar event that us anime fans are. There are way too many carbon copies of sucessful titles, and most of them are absolute trash. But, like in our case, there are some people that choose to specialize in this type of trash media. The MC of Shangri-la Frontier is one of such people. Actually, he is one of the best at this. He is a high school average student that has this big breasted girl secretly crushing on him blablabla, it isnt important. What is important is: he is only interested in playing the so called Kusoge (trash games) in his free-time. He is well known in this niche community, where he managed to beat the most obscure trash games, even those that had gamebreaking bugs that made them impossible to beat normally. He is kind of a glitch hunter, if you will. There is even a pvp game where these madlads play by only exploiting glitches. But, this isn't what Shangri-la Frontier is about. This anime is about the time when the main character, that calls himself Sunraku in games, meets the opportunity to stray from the Kusoge for a while, and instead experience the recently hyped Kamige (god game, it is a term the japanese use for the GOATs) Shangri-la Frontier. Yet, he is still in the mindset of a Kusoge master, so he will approach the game with his own quirks, making a birdhead character, with a glasscannon build and try to parry and evade everything. In the first moments playing the game, he unintentionally skips the first town, notices it way too late, and decide to go to the second town, that is closer to his current position. But to get there, he has to beat his first boss. Which he does in a very well made action sequence. This was the first red flag for me. One of the things i expected from this was a closer vibe to when i play MMORPGs. I know this was way too compared with SAO, but one of the only things SAO did well was the beginning, where it really felt like a game, and the players needed to grind, and get better at the game to pregress through the floors. Shangri-la Frontiers approach, however, is closer to that anime "I don't want to get hurt, so I will max out my defense". Remember how Maple unintentionally kept discovering unique hidden quests and exploits in the system and became way too much overpowered? This is kinda of what happens here. Sunraku, while playing the game his own way, will discover a questline that no other player ever did, by chance meet with a legend boss that no player ever encountered, receive buffs, weapons, and so on. It feels like Sunraku is playing a whole different game from everyone else in Shangri-la Frontier, because while other players can discover new things, generally it will be discovered and shared by others eventually. But as someone who played a lot of MMORPGs, Sunraku's adventures in the game feel too distant for me to hype it. Ultimately, this anime is another Isekai power fantasy in disguise. Remember how people hyped Shield Hero, but as the seasons went by, people realized Shield Hero without the revenge arc is just another powerfantasy isekai? Well, i think the same applies to Shangri-la Frontier. It uses a lot of plot devices to convince you it is different, but it is actually the same formula. The main character has access to powers, opportunities and npcs no one else does. Every secondary character is there to make the MC feel like god. Hell, the characterization of Sunraku, the player, is generic, with the goal of making the watchers self insert. Now, i feel i'm shitting too much about it. But it does have it's qualities. Despite the aforementioned, Shanri-la Frontier is still one of the best representations of game systems in anime that i've ever seen. The reason people hyped this was that the writer actually plays and understands games. Also, from a storytelling standpoint, this is a solid one. The Weathermon arc was very well written, and was the reason i decided to watch it to the end. I also NEED to talk about the visuals. This anime project value is what we all want for action anime. It was no Jujutsu Kaisen, but when it mattered, the fight scenes are breathtaking. This anime has amazing special effects on the skills, as well as great photography, camera work, and fluidity on movements. The charaterization of players felt a little boring, but the monsters and enemies look amazing. Also, going back to the Weathermon arc, the visuals there came close to JJK levels. Overall, it is okay if people liked this. I also did. I just want to make sure people are aware this is nothing new. This anime is an application of a tried and overused formula, but still a successful one. Still, i believe it is not a good experience for those that hyped it for its gaming aspects. If you want to turn off your brain, watch an anime with an ok plot, and really well done fights, this is the anime for you. Still, i find it ironic that, just like Sunraku sometimes thinks Shangri-la Frontier is a well produced Kusoge (trash game) in disguise, i think Shangri-la frontier is a well produced trash anime. But we all like our trash, don't we?

Wavieff

> “Hey, gamers! Limit your gaming to ten hours per day. Any more, and you’re seriously gonna die!” - No More Heroes 3 img(https://files.catbox.moe/jeb8v8.png) # **Gaming is a feeling in your SOUL, man.** It’s as much a thing you do as a thing you experience, as a thing you inhibit, as a thing you BECOME. Playing video games is the rawest form of escapism because you become the player, the hero, the number one, propelling the force of the narrative at the push of a button. *Shangri-La Frontier* is the first anime that gets the holistic gamer shtick down pat. See, the whole joy of gaming is a very tactile feeling: you get the sense that it’s never really DONE. Whereas with a movie, you press play, and let it run ‘till it’s over, video games are an eternal experience. Whether it be sidequests, speedruns, or achievement hunting, most games offer repeatability, rePLAYability, and that is their greatest strength. There’s always something to do. img(https://files.catbox.moe/mr4ncc.png) *SLF* captures this in stride, kicking things off with “trash games player” Sunraku, a young man choosing to revel himself in only the bottomest of the barrelest games, because he loves tearing at the mechanics from the inside, seeing what ticks, seeing how far he can push the game, seeing just how awful everything is with his surprisingly-well-working eyeballs. So, when his friends invite him to hit game *Shangri-La Frontier,* he’s skeptical. He doesn’t play good games any more than I watch good anime! Regardless, he gives it a shot, and soon finds himself itching at every turn to get back into it. From here, there’s glimpses into protagonist Sunraku’s everyday in the real world, but it rarely consists of more than a convenience store run and a silly romance subplot. From here, it’s all gaming, all the time, baby. In terms of a narrative, *SLF* isn’t gonna blow your socks off, but it doesn’t need to. It’s a simple to-the-top narrative propelled by fun characters, old friends, and cheesy villains with bosses to beat and quests to fulfill. In that way, it’s a video game you can watch, which is an experience that I can’t say I’ve had with anything else. Except maybe [Versus](https://youtu.be/wg7ljhZuJJc?si=ezTm_9xnMLKfDJWR). Loveeee [Versus](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7r_gZMnKvI). img(https://files.catbox.moe/yh5c29.png) One fun twist to it all is that Sunraku decided to dump all his points into the luck statistic, something most players won’t do, and gets so lucky in that luck that it prompts a whole narrative with him as the epicenter. He encounters legendary enemies at low levels, uncovers a new dimension, gains access to superweapons, and is cursed with scars that wrap around his body, marking him as “The Special”, “The Chosen One”…in case we weren’t aware already! Nothing is told or explained in excess. *Shangri-La* trusts its viewers with its simple mechanics and quirks and characters, laying it all out on the table very clearly, and referencing back to itself when it needs to, whatwith item descriptions, abilities, and the whatnot. Each episode has a myriad of accomplishments and is polished with solid animation, and silly tunes to keep you rolling. The energetic performances recall late-night voice calls and blazing trivial bickering that only the devoted could know. Interesting, but unobtrusive hooks, funny sideplots…Are you sold yet? img(https://files.catbox.moe/jj1i7t.png) # **In many ways, *Shangri-La* Frontier is the anti-*Sword Art Online.*** Though both take place in video game worlds, *Sword Art Online* takes a serious slant with the “you die in the game, you die in real life” mantra, whereas *Shangri-La Frontier* offers no such ultimatum to its characters, as they log on and off freely, instead being allowed to revel in their world, feeling more like an extended hangout session. It’s got the gall to build up a legendary boss with four episodes worth of brutal, cathartic, high-stakes fighting. It’s got upgrades. It’s got save-scumming. It’s GAMING. # **Inside the box, but thinking outside it.** Where Sunraku starts, a ritualistic fun-having doomsayer with masochistic tendencies for the awfulest of awful games, is completely different from where he ends up, a freewheeling, reliant, still fun-having optimist with a laundry list of fun to-dos! It feels HUGE, like, even just with Sunraku as a character, he becomes more reliant on his friends, on allies in-game, on the world itself as he learns to stand on its feet, too, and trust it. There’s a slow feeling that ripples down your arms and to your toes when you settle into a good game, and that’s exactly the feeling this captures. *Shangri-La Frontier* is the video game anime given flesh. It’s what you want when you think of one, much in the way that *Speed Racer* is the perfect anime-to-movie adaptation. It’s very much simple entertainment for entertainment’s sake, but sometimes all you need is an energy drink to the mouth, a lack of sleep, and a play of the game. # **Welcome to *Shangri-La Frontier.*** img(https://files.catbox.moe/azu8lo.png)

Humble

~~~img220(https://cdn.oneesports.gg/cdn-data/2024/04/Anime_ShangriLaFrontier_Sunraku_Season1_BossFight-1536x864.jpg)~~~ ~~~Surprise anime of the year goes toooo.... Shangri La Frontier!!! At least so far this year, but honestly speaking Shangri wasn’t on my list of anime to check out for the season and yet here we are. Let’s get into the review. __Story __ Rokuro Hizutome Aka Sunraku his gaming tag is our main character who loves to indulge in the most awful trash games. This is literally how the anime begins; however, he begins to get tired of this repetitive process and is recommended that he try out the new God tier game Shangri La Frontier. Yup that’s it and I love it! To me I think this is genius, the plot is not the best part of this anime, the game is. We are just watching a gamer try to beat this VA game with an expansive world which is extremely diverse. Why do I think it’s a genius idea, because we do this everyday, watching streamers play games so why not do it in an anime. Now don’t get me wrong this anime is clearly a couple of years in the future because all the games are VA styled, and we also see Sunraku in the game more than real life which is great cause his normal everyday life seems kind of boring. Now what catches your attention is the actual game, they’ve done such a great job with creating bosses, special moves, abilities, different characters, and even special features to the point where you actually would like to play the game. __Characters __ img220(https://images.augustman.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/07/10143044/Shangri-la-frontier.jpg?tr=w-1366) We really focus on one character within the story which is Sunraku within the beginning of the story we see him do a pivotal move, which is dumping all his skill points to the luck attribute. This move right here successfully ties the story together, on why he ran across the “Lycagon the Nightslayer” monster, on why he’s found the special feature “Rabbituza”. Regardless of this, we see he’s basically coasting within the game based on his previous gaming experience. Another bullseye for this anime, you can’t have a gaming anime without great character designs. We meet a few side characters which are all girls surprisingly. We have Psyger – 0 which is like the attack god in the game lol. Surprisingly her real-life alias is a girl that secretly (not so secret) has a crush on our MC. With a background like this you would expect her to be a full suit knight of armor character who is probably one of the strongest in the game. We have Arthur Pencilgon, yes, the name is a bit weird but she’s a beautiful spear wielding player killing character. Not too much background on this character outside she’s famous in real life and a previous gamer friend of Sunraku’s. Another character is Oicazzo which is a pro gamer in real life, but character is a blonde hair girl who fight with her fists. Think of Oicazzo as Sunraku’s best friend/rival within this anime. __Animation __ img220(https://kvasir369.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/slf-18.png) This anime pretty much gets passing grades for every aspect you can grade an anime on. The animation of the anime is above average, and I appreciate the details of the background. The biggest aspect of the animation is the fight scenes. The fight with Wethermon the Tomb Guard was great! Not to mention the opening music was great as well, both songs. __Conclusion __ So, I’ve praised this anime for being a great anime in all aspects, deservingly so. However, I do fear that this anime will turn into somewhat of an energy drink as I call it. To explain the first season provides you with a rush and then crash after the first season. Like how The Sheild Hero anime has become. Ultimately watching a character progress through a game will slowly but surely continue to have people dropping the anime, with the next season I will be looking for a major plot or something big to happen. I rate this anime with a - __"You haven't seen this yet? Turn it on NOW"__. ~~~ _Anime scores of 90+ get this recommendation_

douveAtomique

Shangri-La Frontier is a very paradoxal anime. While its story follows a high schooler (we'll call him Sunraku) playing a fully-immersive virtual reality video game named Shangri-La Frontier, the series actually doesn't feel like it was made for an audience of 'experienced gamers' but rather for people that don't know much about games or how a multiplayer environment functions. There actually isn't much to talk about because there simply isn't much going on with the anime. There is no story, no meaningful goal, the characters are just there, we know next to nothing about them, there is no backstory, no character development, I can't think of any theme or message the anime is trying to convey, you're just watching a bunch of people play a video game. While the anime tries to be realistic by referencing real world video games' principles, any semblance of realism is broken by the absurdly strong MC and the author's misunderstanding of players' behaviour. If you play video games a lot you'll probably notice that a good part of the show doesn't represent actual multiplayer games, MMORPGs in this case. Am I supposed to believe that out of the 30 million people playing Shangri-La, no one has ever managed to kill 'unique monsters' before Sunraku? Am I supposed to believe that no one has ever gotten a certain unique scenario before him? The show is plagued by the author not understanding MMORPGs in an age of information and him desperately trying to make the MC special. He's supposed to be special because he plays a lot of 'trash games' which makes him really good at actual good games like Shangri-La? He's supposed to be special because he skipped the game's tutorial and dumped all his stat points into Luck? He's supposed to be special because he wears no armor and a goofy helmet while every other player wears normal gear? Does the author think everyone is some kind of NPC? Has he ever played games? If this was a real game everyone would be playing a female avatar wearing skimpy outfits. If dumping all your stat points into Luck was so good everyone would do it. Another example of the author's poor understanding is showcased when one of the game's rule is explained: the game's NPCs can die and they don't respawn. Come on, anyone knows that if this was real people would purposefully kill all the NPCs in the game to fuck with the developers. Anything that can be used to gain an advantage over other players or to sabotage them will be utilized in a video game - especially in a multiplayer one -, there is absolutely no doubt about that. While this specific rule could have been used to great effect to build a social commentary about massively multiplayer games, the general lack of players' morality or even decency, and their proneness to sabotage, sometime entirely maliciously, Shangri-la Frontier never goes past appearences, never delves deeper into the social quandary that is inevitably created through putting players together in a virtual space, never explores any theme other than the basic premise of gaming=fun. As stated there isn't much to say about the characters. No one really matters except for the MC, Sunraku. He's the god-gamer himself, able to immediatly understand and deal with everything the game throws at him. The issue with Sunraku is that he's too good while every other player is utterly incompetent even though they've been playing the game for way longer than him. The MC feels like a self-insertion from the author who's just displaying his gaming fantasies. As with any good story, there is a shy and submissive female character with voluptuous breasts whose sole personality trait is being in love with the MC. Can this trope just die already? Why is it so hard to write female characters? Another issue is that a good part of the cast is comprised of NPCs and, to be honest, I couldn't care less about them. While it's easy to get attached to NPCs when you're the one playing a video game, I can't help but ask: am I really supposed to care about NPCs in a fictional game played by fictional characters? How do you make a series about a guy playing a video game interesting? I don't think Shangri-La has the answer. Because the anime takes place inside a game where players respawn when they die, any kind of tension is immediately nullified and creates a stalemate of ideas where nothing can evolve; trying to find meaning in Shangri-La feels useless. In short, if you're very familiar with online video games, chances are you'll not enjoy this anime if you think too much about it as it feels like it was written by someone that learned about MMORPGs by reading a video game thesaurus from 25 years ago. But if you don't or only casually play games, enjoying this series should be way easier. While the pacing of the show is definitely very slow and the MC never stops explaining absolutely everything he's doing, the art is pretty good and the animation is clean. Apprehending the show from a pure entertainment perspective seems like the only way to enjoy it.

Hokkuo

~~~DEFINITELY not the professional review you're looking for, but after stumbling upon Shangri La Frontier, I have a feeling my luck stats are DEFINITELY maxed out so here's a short spoiler-free *"review"*~~~ ~~~img(https://media1.tenor.com/m/TfGJX1JyixAAAAAC/heck-yeah-hell-yeah.gif)~~~ ~~~✧~~~ I'm gonna be real with you, I found SLF on a whim, and not a happy one. Bored with nothing to do, I reluctantly decided to pick this anime up with a sore throat. Because let's face it, has my, has your, has OUR experience with the VR genre in anime ever truly been the VR we know and love? I mean the biggest effect my VR has had on the real world is making a young innocent child scream as I tell them to commit inhumane and unlawful crimes after they call me gay for asking blud to be my neko girlfriend in every server we join (DO NOT TWIST MY WORDS). But that's it. Nobody dies, nobody becomes hospitalised and nobody is after my butt after I tried to save my girl from being stuck in a virtual reality world. Only to realise, "Why am I comparing it to other shows? Shangri La Frontier is a one-of-a-kind." A truly god-tier anime buried under pieces of garbage that only weirdos can learn to love. ~~~img(https://media1.tenor.com/m/tovSjZC-jIYAAAAC/shangri-la-frontier-sunraku.gif)~~~ As an avid lover of not-so-normal looking avatars in-game I commend my blue brother Sunraku for representing the exotic-headed community earnestly. I was initially against the idea of having to stare at a bird-headed man with a well-toned body and only his underpants on for 25 entire episodes, but oh boy did I soon find myself absolutely DEVOURING it. I've gotten so used to it that I feel he'd actually look perverted with clothes on -andddd I'll stop my commentary on his appearance right there before I make my digital footprint even worse than it already is (I want an education and a job). ~~~img(https://a.storyblok.com/f/178900/960x540/a7d00545db/shangri-la-frontier.png/m/filters:quality(95)format(webp))~~~ Back to the reason on why SLF is so enjoyable before I got a little bit distracted. ~~~*THE PURE RELATABILITY!*~~~~~~(that may or may not be a word in the Oxford dictionary but it is in mine)~~~ The nonchalantless (again, a word in mine) of just enjoying games... it's portrayed ever so perfectly. Dying over and over again, respawning over and over again, checkpointing over and over again! Who cares if I get slashed by a big bad baddie (monster) (alliteration)!? The only thing forcing me to try and live is the curiosity to explore what I don't know about a game and to not face the death screens that take 15 seconds to disappear. He literally treats the NPCs like NPCs. There is no infatuation with this seperate world. He's sane. He's normal. He's US (I hope). His friends? They're real friends! One feels empathetic for a visualised piece of programme, one is literally there just to have fun in a *GAME* and one just wants to hang out with you but they're all equally as stupid as you. Sometimes they dip to do stuff in real life or play other games leaving him to do whatever he wants; like playing SOLO (becasue spoiler alert: not everything needs to be done with others). It's so FREAKING CASUAL! ~~~img(https://media1.tenor.com/m/srLeZF0pCsYAAAAC/shangri-la-frontier-shangri-la.gif)~~~ Slap me across the face, take away all my rights, I know I just talked about the UNseriousness of SLF, but let's talk about the SERIOUSNESS of SLF. Realistically there's not much to talk about... it's just that chill and simple of an anime. The worldbuilding (the reason for SLF's "success") however helps make this whole laid-back entertainment just a teensy weensy bit more distinct. This includes the pure vastness of the game itself, the unique backstories of the NPCs and the history of SLF that is slowly unravelling itself. Like... I was already going to watch the second season but now I'm DEFINITELY going to watch the second season. ~~~-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-~~~ I've had enough of the dramatic BS that I just can't put my shoes into, I want more of SLF! CASUAL GAMING! ~~~★★★★★~~~ ~~~From someone who plays games to someone who plays games, if you haven't already, you should definitely give Shangri La Frontier a shot. (23rd June 24)~~~ ~~~img(https://media.tenor.com/FBjJTyS789wAAAAi/noob-roblox.gif)~~~

Lunchtable

~~~img500(https://files.catbox.moe/r7dyrr.jpg)~~~ ~~~__Production__~~~Firstly, lets talk production. In terms of animation this anime is clearly above average, Shangri-La Frontier is host to a plethora of environments that all have a distinct and memorable feel to them thanks to the outstanding background art. In particular, I thought Wethermon's arena and the Prismatic Forest Grotto were especially well designed, the monotone color palette used in Wethermon's arena creates a more somber and lonely feeling environment, while the Prismatic Forest Grotto is a vibrant forest hideaway, drawn completely in a style that is more akin to a painting than a drawing. Similarly, action sequences are also treated to some great animation, with every fight being consistent in quality. ~~~img500(https://files.catbox.moe/on02wz.jpg)~~~ Sound overall was really good as well, I wasn't the biggest fan of some tracks that played during dialogue, but they never harmed the experience in a major way. The more fantasy themed woodwind tracks in particular were really excellent, tracks like the one that play at the beginning of episode 15 really helped in setting the correct tone for the scene. Another moment that just impressed me to no end was the smithing scene in episode 11, the way the sound of the hammer acts as the metronome for the song that starts playing is just genius sound design. Aside from songs, sound effects in general were good as well, everything was high quality and clear sounding, and action scenes made great use of chunky sound design to enhance the feel of collisions and explosions. ~~~img500(https://files.catbox.moe/6cfmvf.jpg)~~~ ~~~__Plot & Characters__~~~The writing of Shangri-La Frontier in general is very cheesy. Lots of cringeworthy dialogue, done to death tropes, and a story that is just too simplistic to get at any deeper themes or meanings. A simplistic plot isn't necessarily a bad thing, but there are times where the plot just feels like its moving from point A to point B without any nuance, which made some episodes a bit of a slog to get through. Some episodes also largely took place in games that weren't Shangri-La Frontier, which I felt impacted the pacing in a negative way. Writing wise Shangri-La Frontier makes up for some of its flaws in its action, the fight scenes are all well written and make extensive use of the setting being a video game world, with characters using game mechanics and items to overcome challenges, every action scene was engaging in some way. This is especially true for the Wethermon arc, which I think is the high point of the show. The plot also suffers from a lack of meaningful stakes, due mostly to the fact that none of the characters can actually get injured or die due to the setting being a standard video game. There is a noticeable lack of tension in most of the action scenes because you know that even if the character gets injured in some way, they will eventually recover/respawn and be perfectly fine, only losing some items or currency. This is not a problem in some scenes where the characters put a lot of money or resources into a single fight, or when an encounter is time limited, but for the majority of the action the lack of real consequence for failure makes it hard to feel as stressed as the characters do in the moment. ~~~img500(https://files.catbox.moe/44816y.jpg)~~~ Speaking of characters, the characters of Shangri-La Frontier are about as simplistic as the plot is, none of them get an extensive backstory or have any major growth as a character, and they largely only have 1 or 2 traits that really define them. The dialogue between characters had its flaws too, there were a few points while watching where I thought it just sounded unnatural and over the top, even for a gamer. More specifically I felt this way about how some of the characters would provoke each other and start arguments over things in the game, it just felt random at times and didn't add much to the scenes where it happened. I will say that despite this, the characters antics were still fun to watch, which I think is partially due to the great voice acting. The majority of characters while not having a very deep or complex relationship with other characters, still had fun dynamics with each other that resulted in some genuinely funny jokes and entertaining dialogue, though I still wish that the relationship between some characters was explored in a little more detail. I'm especially heartbroken over ~!Setsuna and Arthurs!~ relationship not being expanded upon, all we really get to know is that they are close to each other, but we don't get to see how they got to know each other or any of their past dialogue, I think this in particular was a big missed opportunity by the author to include a more emotional character arc in the show. ~~~img500(https://files.catbox.moe/vkgz1g.png)~~~ ~~~__Conclusion__~~~PROS: + Amazing overall production + Very entertaining fight scenes that make good use of the setting + Simple but fun character relationships CONS: - No deeper themes or messages are explored - Plot isn't very focused for the majority of the show - Lack of tension in most action scenes If you are looking for well produced and written fight scenes wrapped up neatly in a well designed game world, with a more simple storyline and characters to move the action along, then this is a worthy watch. If you want something deeper to dig into in terms of plot or characters, then you might be better off watching something else.