Saturday 12 January 2013

Just finished: Yuusha Yoshihiko to Akuryou no Kagi

That's the thing about sequels: they're never as good as the original.*

This series managed to be entertaining right to the end, but you could tell they were running out of ideas. Too often, the story would rely on Yoshihiko being distracted by something absurd while the other three waited for him to come back.


But, you know, this lazy approach to writing was somehow in keeping with the low-budget production standards. And while the jokes were fewer and further between, there still seemed to be enough to keep me watching. And I did enjoy the Monty Python reference at the start of ep 10 with the guard at the battlements shouting feeble (and extremely long) insults at the travellers below.


I liked some of the build up to the final boss battle, especially episode seven where our noble heroes come up against some monsters disguised as them who are far more noble and heroic that the real thing. However, the final two episodes that dealt with the final boss battle itself didn't seem to have much in terms of storyline. On the other hand, it did stay loyal to the spirit of the story in that Merebu never did learn a spell that would help them in battle.


By the end I was kind of glad it was over. Humorous distractions are funny at first, but this was a whole series of them. And it ends with references to a possible film. Although I know I'd watch it, I'm totally fine if it never gets made.

But having read back what I've just written, it seems a little bleak. Don't get me wrong, it is funny. There are moments in every episode that will make you laugh. Just not as often as the first series.

* This is not necessarily true. The Godfather II and Aliens are two films generally considered to be as good as their prequels.

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