English Dub Season Review: Log Horizon: Destruction of the Round Table Season Three

Overview:

After five years Log Horizon makes its long-awaited return. Does it live up to expectations? There’s a lot of different arcs in a shortened season so it feels a bit incohesive. There are some plot threads from previous seasons still dangling. So, it’s hard not to feel a little bit disappointed with how this season turned out. Especially after the long wait and who knows how long till another season. If we even get one.

Our Take:

Log Horizon has a lot of fans and I know why. It definitely sets itself apart from its contemporaries by focusing more on characters and world-building. There’s not a ton of action here and it has a lot of political intrigue going on. What sets Shiroe apart from other protagonists is how he uses his brain and wits instead of being stronger than everyone.

This season had such a strong start and I was really interested to see where the first arc was going to go. Unfortunately, that plotline ended with a  whimper instead of the bang I imagined. We had this gigantic voting process with the fate of Akihabara on the line and not only did the competition drop out but the aftermath of the election was never touched on or spoken of again.

The subtitle of this season is “Destruction of the Round Table” which led me to believe that the Round Table Conference would break up or at least be left off in a bad state. That is not what happens, in fact, it almost seems like it’s better than ever. Sure, some members have left which could be construed as “destruction” but things are still going well for the people of Akihabara. Even if the opposing party would have won the election it wasn’t like they were an evil villain planning to ruin the city.

Maybe that was the message all along. Our opponents aren’t always evil they just have a different mindset than us, I just think if that was what they were going for it could have been portrayed better. I think that is where most of my disappointment from the season comes from is that the early arc could have just been so much better.

If you read my reviews every episode then you might be able to guess what my other disappointment is. We needed more Krusty, and why is he still on the other server? I mean I know why he was transported there but that whole situation was not handled well to me. Princess Rayneshia is finally going to get him in the latter half of the season but we spend the rest of that focusing on younger Log Horizon guild members.

I know it seems like all negatives but I just wanted to get those out of the way first so I could focus on the more positive stuff. As I said Log Horizon is known more for its character interactions than anything. While the younger guild members might not be the group you wanted to focus on you have to admit that their growth was really well done. I mean it makes sense that they would be the ones that get more growth because of their age there is just more to cover there.

Before this season I honestly could not have cared less about Minori. The last arc of this season changed all that though, she really grew on me. I admit some of my dislike was a bit biased because I knew she was in love with Shiroe and that would conflict with Akatsuki and we can’t have that. She really showed how much she admired and learned from Shiroe by stepping up and being a great leader in that final raid battle. She also handled her rejection really well, it was something I think we can all relate to. At one point in all of our lives, we have experienced heartbreak and whether you were rooting for Akatsuki or her it was still hard to see her upset. She handled it much better than I would though so my hats off to her.

While I may not like how slow the plotline with Krusty is unfolding it still delivered some awesome character moments. Krusty is kind of like a buffed-up Shiroe. He isn’t quite as smart but he is not what you expect from your typical glasses-wearing anime character. Seeing him use his wits and strength to his advantage is always a treat. He and Kanami are two of my favorite characters that we never get enough of in my opinion.

Log Horizon: Destruction of the Round Table was a good season but if you had been waiting five or so years for it you might leave a bit disappointed because it still isn’t finished. After how long it took to get the third season I can only imagine it will be a similar wait for a fourth season. It is one of the more popular anime’s out there and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it get another season especially with how they teased another arc at the very end. If there is anything anime fans have learned, it’s to not give up on getting another season. The Devil is a Part-Timer just got a second season announcement after eight years so anything is possible. This was a good season and worth a watch but temper your expectations from the long wait.