English Dub Review: The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter “Powerful Skill Set”

Overview

Based on the fantasy/adventure light novel series written by Meguru Seto and illustrated by Note Takehana. The story follows Noir who is the 3rd son of a poor noble and his job position is taken away by a more powerful noble due to being outclassed and lacking enough skills to attend the Hero Academy.

Progressively, Noir tries to find a way to be able to use his skill power known as “Great Sage” which in a nutshell grants him unlimited knowledge for a short period of time but gives him intense headaches after each use. So in an effort to overcome the detriment of his powers, he stumbles across a hidden dungeon and encounters a young woman named Alice who offers an unusual but effective solution to his headaches…


Our Take

This series kinda feels like your typical by the numbers fantasy series with a few twists. The Protagonist, Noir has the potential for greatness once he fully masters the limitations of his skills. I also like how his skills have actual risks & drawbacks along with his desire to overcome them even if his newest method of treating them is hilariously unusual.

The art/soundtrack and the overall production quality was also decent in execution. It’s also clear that despite the episode’s proceedings coming across as a borderline “Harem” anime, the series did not hold back when it came to fan service and it seems to feature cute likable girls for Noir to interact with, even if it feels a bit contrived that Noir is going to have an entire support system of female teammates to help keep his life points up.

Overall, I enjoyed this. It’s pretty much a pure power fantasy and wish-fulfillment-styled show with a touch of wackiness that doesn’t overly rely on mean-spirited humor at the male protagonist’s expense compared to sexist drivel shows like Prison School or Akiba’s Trip that were repeat offenders of that trope. It also doesn’t seem to be taking an overly serious route. It’s light-hearted with a small touch of romance and I hope we get more character growth and progression in future episodes.