English Dub Review: That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: “On This Land Where It All Happened”

Overview: Suphia (Terri Doty) and Gabiru (Austin Tindle) trade blows with that of formidable Dragon Faithful members, Middray (Jason Douglas) and Hermes (Howard Wang), while Albis (Elizabeth Maxwell) takes on Yamza (Bryson Baugus), strong sword wielder and the middle-finger of Clayman’s (John Bergmeier) Five Fingers. 

Our Take: Although Clayman isn’t especially interesting as a standalone villain, his real role is merely to be hated as the arrogant villain and, similarly to most villains in Marvel Cinematic Universe, is mainly tasked with lifting up our main hero. In this case, everyone’s favorite blue slime, Rimuru. So with that in mind it can be easy to forget that Slime’s extensive pantheon of characters are just the opposite. Suphia and Gabiru’s fight with the Dragon Faithful, in particular with that of Middray and Hermes, serves as a refreshingly stark departure from bloodthirsty or maliciously intended slaughter that one may assume. Both sides showcase that there are actual people that make up their group, building a common respect for one another with their decorum and strength. But, at the same time, not devoid of their own unique personalities with good writing highlighting Middray’s confidence in his immense strength and Suphia’s tenacious nature. We also get some more lore about dragon newts as a whole with how their evolution development can differ so greatly from what Gabiru developed into and something more akin to his younger human sister, Souka. 

Meanwhile, we also had Albis completely dominating Yamza, making him look the jabroni he truly is. It’s nice that Clayman doesn’t just sit on his laurels and is active in maintaining a presence in the conflict outside of his reach, forcing Yamza to transform into a weaker version of beast Charybdis. Benimaru sees this moment to show just how much more of an absolute monster he has become with him destroying the creature within two blows and without breaking a sweat. His competitive disposition with Middray is also both tantalizing in wondering what that kind of rad badassery would look like as well as just plain fun in watching them stand off with one another. The animation was also pretty badass itself throughout all bouts with some good quick takes of Phobio getting the bare brunt of it from the Moderate Harlequin Alliance and as well Suphia being outclassed by Middray’s quick and poised fighting style. Also, the simple minute fact of Footman and Tear’s overwhelming power being helpful to Rimuru to size up Clayman’s forces just further cements that the guy can make use of even the smallest details at his disposal and that he can just add ‘Master Military Strategist’ to his already extensive resume and right alongside skills like ‘Business Savvy’ and ‘Ridiculously OP.’