English Dub Review: How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom “The Wise Man Never Forsaketh an Advantage”

 

Overview:

Souma listens in on the conversation from last time. Their names are Kaede Foxia and Halbert Magna, Hal is thinking of defecting to Duke Carmine’s side. Souma sits down and talks with them. Afterward, they finish the date and Hal’s father comes to the castle to beg for his son’s life. He then has a secret to tell Souma.

Our Take:

These dang cliffhangers! Every. Single. Episode. WHYYYYYYYYYY?! Sorry, just frustrating but I suppose wanting more of a show is a good sign. We got to meet the characters that were having their “loud” discussion last time. One is a human named Halbert Magna and the other is a mystic fox named Kaede Foxia. Turns out Hal is considering joining Duke Carmine in his possible rebellion. Little does he know he is talking about defecting in front of the current king!

Lucky for him the current king is both nice and pragmatic. He sits down with them and Kaede recognizes him immediately but it takes Hal a little bit. Hal and Kaede fit the childhood friend trope to an absolute T, and I’m pretty sure Souma recognizes it too. If they aren’t married by the end of the light novel (notice I said that not show) I will eat my shoes.

Afterward, Liscia and Souma finish their date with a lap pillow. They also have a rather serious discussion about the state of their relationship which I found refreshing. Souma has leveled up his magic so he can move dolls independently now, I think this will come up more in the future.

The next day Souma gets a visit from Glaive Magna, Hal’s father, and Hal looks beaten up. Looks like his father is pretty strict but seems loyal to Souma. He also has a message for Souma but of course, that is where the episode ends, so frustrating I tell you.

The new characters mean new voices! Kaede Foxia is played by Anjali Kunapaneni, a relative newcomer to anime from what I can tell. It’s a small sample size but I liked what I heard so far, I like the character Kaede in the LN and I think she does a good job. Kellen Goff plays Halbert Magna and he’s fantastic in just about everything I’ve seen him in. His vocal range is out of this world so I was glad to see him on the cast list. Cris George is Glaive Magna and he’s no slouch either. He’s been in a lot of shows and he fits the gruff Glaive well. Also, don’t think I didn’t notice that both their names are spear-type weapons, maybe it has a meaning?

Well, the release schedule for this show hasn’t been super consistent so we will see when the next one is. I hope soon cause I don’t like waiting a week for these cliffhangers let alone multiple weeks. I really like how this show handles things so far and can’t wait to hear what Glaive had to tell Souma.