English Dub Review: That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: “Digression: Hinata Sakaguchi”

Overview:

Episode 24.9 of That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime serves as a prequel and summarization episode to the 2nd season and details the important and critical aspects of what has unfolded to Satoru (Jason Liebrecht), since his reincarnation as the squishy slime, Rimuru, (Brittany Karbowski) and the formation of his nation, the Jura Tempest Federation. It also teases the main advisory of the next season as well in Hinata Sakaguchi and their inevitable clash. 

Our Take:

If you saw the episode number for “Digression: Hinata Sakaguchi” you might have guessed like I did that this is just a recap of everything that has transpired to our bright blue slime thus far in the series. I had the fleeting hope that this might be an episode that goes into Hinata Sakaguchi’s, one of Shizu’s students, past and who she is as a character, but alas it was not meant to be. Although, it is understandable why that would not be featured here and saved for the impending second season as she will play a much larger role there. So like I said earlier 24.9 is exactly what it implies which bluntly means that 99% of this episode is just recapping the events of season 1 and the OVAs that take place after. But even with that, it refreshed my memory well enough as there were some story elements that had slipped my mind like Shizu journeying alongside the Hero or that she was summoned from WWII during the Bombing of Tokyo. 

Although, if you notice there is still that lingering 1%. That is taken up by the very beginning and ending of this episode. It is here where we discover how Hinata learns more about Rimuru and his nation and also foreshadows a huge conflict. Although brief, it is clear she blames Rimuru for killing Shizu, even though it was a request from her. Whether or not that plays a factor in her grudge remains to be seen. Although, if I had to make a prediction I’d say it probably won’t as she doesn’t look like she’ll be swayed so easily, especially if Rimuru’s warning of things to come is any indication. 

There will be no pulling wool over anyone’s eyes here. This is by no means an important episode or even one that you must watch. It is really just a cliff notes summary that helps pave the way for the new season. In truth, to get the most (the only important tidbits) out of this episode would be to watch the first and last few minutes or you could just skip it altogether and wait until the new season begins. Whether you choose to watch it or not, is irrelevant, and will not impede the series moving forward as, overall, this is an absolutely skippable guilt-free episode that has little bearing on things to come other than the last few minutes of the episode.