KonoSuba – God's blessing on this wonderful world! 3

Episodes 1-3

Oh KONOSUBA, no matter how hard of a day I might be having, you'll always be there to put a smile on my face and hurt my sides with laughter. Our favorite adventuring party is back together after a few years, and they continue to bring the stability and charisma of a sleep-deprived DND campaign. There are brief moments where everyone works together and synergizes, but 80% of the time, it's just pure chaos and screaming. It's good to be home!

The first episode of this season continues from the end of the movie with minimal recap. The movie directly informs a lot of the narrative progression of season three, with Kazuma's worldview and environment being affected by those curious about his heroic exploits. In reality, this is all to get his expectations up about living out an amazing adventure fantasy, only for him to get humbled extremely quickly when he realizes exactly the kind of show he's in. KONOSUBA has trained me to this point where if Kazuma is reminiscing about something or thinks that something is going in one direction, it's pretty safe to assume that the opposite will happen. Even though there is a clear formula with the comedy, it never ceases to make me laugh thanks to the expressive animation and fantastic voice acting. I swear there are some moments where it sounds like the voice actors are genuinely screaming out of anguish and anxiety in the booth, but anything below that wouldn't hit as hard as it does.

I don't want these reviews just to be me listing my favorite jokes from each episode, but I do think the dinner scene in episode two surmises a lot of the potential for the season. With a spotlight now on Kazuma, it will get progressively more challenging for him to cheese out wins by taking the sneaky and underhanded route. If it wasn't for Darkness, he probably would've been screwed at the dinner party in episode two or eventually make a mess of things staying at the castle in episode three because there's only so far he can go on his own. However, I like that this is an established dynamic with the group right now. They're all messed up in some shape or form, but only when they come together can they squeeze through these more conventional fantasy situations. Even when they succeed, there's always a caveat or an immediate follow-up that they need to deal with, which means they barely have time to rest! (Or, in Aqua's case, stay sober).

Despite all that, I appreciate that the first two episodes showed off the camaraderie between our four leads. It's one thing for all of them to build off each other's nonsense, but I forgot how much of a rapport they have. We see Megumi getting angry on Kazuma's behalf, which is sort of his general emotional support, which might be the foundation for a blossoming romance between the two. Darkness might be a perverse masochist, but she does stand by her comrades, and it's nice seeing Kazuma look out for her when she's surrounded by nobles who don't know her true self. She seems to genuinely believe in Kazuma as a leader and a friend, even if she doesn't always approve of his methods, while he likes seeing her happy as an adventurer. Then there's Aqua, who acts as the perfect nonsensical foil, like the big sister down in the dumps, and you just don't wanna leave her alone.

I think it's for that reason that episode three didn't feel as strong as episodes one and two. I like Kazuma's relationship with the princess and genuinely feel bad for her since, similar to Darkness, she seems to be living the sheltered noble life. I'm surprised the show went the extra mile to establish that her kingdom is under constant attack, which makes her sheltered life sound more justified. I don't think she'll become a member of the main cast, but I could see her being firmly established as a recurring character, especially with all that talk about her potentially being an adventurer. But honestly, the highlight of episode three was when the gang got back together because that's when the show feels like it's at its strongest. Plus, I feel like Kazuma looks better as a person being alongside his comrades because when you leave him to his own devices, he starts creeping into territory that doesn't make him nearly as likable.

Still, I wasn't expecting our cast to reunite under these specific circumstances because while everybody is together again, they are also forced to stay at the residence of the noble whose house they destroyed earlier in the show. I love that little bit of continuity. There's a lot of groundwork between Darkness's status as a noble, the impending attacks from the Demon Lord forces, Kazuma's potential romantic relationship with Megumi, and now this mysterious thief. There are many possibilities, and I cannot wait to see what they offer.

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KonoSuba – God’s blessing on this wonderful world! 3 is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.