MovieChat Forums > Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu (2016) Discussion > Extremely Unlikable Main Character

Extremely Unlikable Main Character

posted 8 years ago by taijiquan12
4 replies | jump to latest

My friends have gotten into this anime, and last night I watched 3 episodes, coming in about mid-season, starting at what I believe was the 10th episode. They assured me that the main character's choices and personality had taken a turn for the worse in these episodes, so I'm aware that I might've seen the character at his worst, at a point where he's intentionally supposed to rise from, but the episodes I saw turned me off so much I'll never watch this show again.

I can't remember the last time I saw such a simpering, whiny, self-pitying, and all around obnoxious character get touted as someone a show should be based around in a way we're supposed to take seriously.

If it were a comedy or a satire, I could've gotten behind the main character, but more or less every character that he came into conflict with, even his romantic rival (that I guess we're supposed to be against?), was in the moral right.
The only way a character with this personality being the center of everything would work is if we're supposed to laugh at him and enjoy his failures, which I don't think was the creator's intent.

In a scene where a character presented as his rival challenges him to a duel after he boastfully claims he's a knight, I found myself rooting for this character to get beaten viciously, even to die. In the 3 episodes I saw, he only had a few barely redeeming moments, mostly being a fake and whiny petulant brat, a complete teen angst stereotype.

Again, I know I came into this show without a fully formed idea of the main character as I saw 3 episodes mid-series, but I got a decent idea of the other characters, who I didn't mind nearly as much. In anything else, a character like him would be an annoying rival to the actual hero, or a henchman to the main villain. Having to see everything from his perspective got exhausting and excruciating.
If in 3 episodes, you can't manage to show the good qualities of a the central character, even during their lowest point, then other than satire/comedy, I can't think of why on Earth you would want to follow this character at all.

It was so bad that it stuck with me and I had to make a topic, apologies to all legitimate fans of this show, I'm sure you have your reasons for liking it, I just can't understand it.

"Bulls**t MR.Han Man!!"--Jim Kelly in Enter the Dragon 

[–] jonroyle 8 years ago

tend to agree, he can be a right whiny brat,

the thing i like about him is he always comes through in spite of that, but the episode with him getting his ass handed to him by that knight is a bad one of him to be fair

[–] i_am_steve_ok 8 years ago

I was hoping the premise would be like "All you need is kill" premise with time travel of a normal guy who learns form his mistakes and become a stronger cooler character but in a fantasy setting instead of a sci fi one. Instead the lead character initially seems to be heading that way at the beginning of the story arc at the manor, but now he's just as stupid, full of himself, and as useless as he was at the beginning of series (minus the new fog trick that no one falls for). He goes into each arc throughout the season with 0 plans and hopes something/someone else would save him

[–] beckerjr82 8 years ago

this improves throughout the series where in the end he is good at it, the arcs show his growth of character.

This is my ignore list. There are many like it, but this one is mine

[–] jannispetersen 7 years ago

I agree with everything you said. But then again, you saw the exact worst episodes of the series (except the manor arc, just before those three, which are even worse! If you can believe that). That said, the series is completely hit and miss! It starts off extremely strong, the first 4 episodes being incredibly great!!! Also, right after those episodes you mentioned, the series regains it's initial momentum. If you actually make it through to the end, sitting through the ordeal in the middle will result in a redeeming series.

I, myself, was very, very close to turn off this series at the same point, where you did! In the end, I'm glad that I didn't. The show was ultimately great, but the cliché of the whimpy track-suit kid and stock-stereotype characters a la maid, loli and cat-girl lowered the quality immensely.