How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom Part 2

Episode 6

How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom delivers a slow episode this time, but it's one I actually found myself enjoying! Structurally it was more of what we have been seeing most weeks – that is, lots of characters sitting in rooms talking to each other. But there was a bit more meat on the bones this week, as we actually got something that is quite rare: Souma being out of his element.

As I lamented last week (and after most episodes, truth be told), Souma is often portrayed as the smartest person in the room, always having perfect clarity of the situation and making the best possible decision that would turn out to have zero unintended consequences or fallout, a personification of the Great Man theory of history. But here, for once, he does not know what is going on.

What is this strange garage doing out in the middle of nowhere?

Dungeon cores?

Strange technology?

Magic cubes that could make or break the nation?

Souma doesn't know. And it's great! It's a really great departure from the norm. He is forced to contend with situations he does not understand, and his conclusion is that things must be handled delicately or they might spiral out of hand very quickly. In the end, he realizes he needs Genia's help to keep this situation in check because he can't do it alone.

(I also generally vibe with the idea of Dungeon Cores as it is a theme I have explored in my own tabletop games over the years, but that's neither here nor there)

This realization is perhaps the MOST realistic the show has been up until this point. Souma is not simply facing a crisis of exhaustion from working too hard and being too good at everything, or being desired by too many buxom women at once, or being so good at war that it makes everyone upset how good he is at war. Souma is facing a real challenge for once, in an area he has no knowledge of; he cannot predict the outcome of certain actions, so he must rely on an advisor with expertise that he does not have. That is a realistic leadership scenario, and his reaction to it is similarly grounded.

That said, the “hey will you two get married cause that would be great for me and the kingdom” proposal was still weird and not great. But I'm overjoyed that Souma has at last encountered a real obstacle that felt like something an actual ruler would have to contend with, rather than another exercise in him playing a 4x game with a guide open in another tab.

Rating:

Grant is the cohost on the Blade Licking Thieves podcast and Super Senpai Podcast.

How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom is currently streaming on Funimation.