Summoned to Another World for a Second Time – Episode 1

Content Warning: Sexual harassment, power dynamic kink played for laughs/fanservice

What’s it about? Setsu was transported to another world in order to become its savior. After saving the world, he settles into living a normal life until he’s summoned back to his original world as a baby. If that wasn’t enough, once he becomes a high school student he’s summoned back to the other world.  

I’ll give this premiere brownie points for at least trying to be different. It’s no secret at this point that isekai is oversaturated with overpowered and arrogant male protagonists. That’s why whenever the formula tries to mix it up, it stands out because certain concepts can be interesting, especially in the hands of an experienced writer. Unfortunately, I don’t think the series composer, Yukihito, is up for the challenge since they barely have any writing experience. To be fair, the director, Nakanishi Motoki, has some experience under their belt directing some episodes of Kaguya-sama: Love is War and Made in Abyss: The Golden City of the Scorching Sun, but it’s a shame they don’t have much to work with in this premiere. 

Whenever I imagine the script for this series, I think the best way this show could’ve worked is if they explored the psychological effects it has on the protagonist to repeat his hero’s journey. Is this something he has to do for a third time? Is there a way for him to get out of this loop? The possibilities are endless but sadly it’s obvious this show isn’t heading in that direction. Hell, to make it simpler the plot could’ve focused on Setsu helping his classmates adapt to this new world rather than immediately revealing his pompous attitude.  

Ok! I’m just stalling now. Setsu is the typical boring protagonist that’s commonly seen in the isekai genre in recent years. Nothing about him is remotely exciting and it doesn’t help that the women around him treat him like he’s a gift from the heavens. While Setsu’s treatment of his childhood friend and the mage character is fine, it’s his behavior towards the woman captain that really bothered me. Instead of just telling her who he is, he decides slapping her in the butt is the most sensible way to confirm his identity to her. I wish I could say it ended there, but her intense admiration for Setsu compels her to become a chair for him. I’m all for BDSM to be explored in a healthy way, but frankly I don’t have the confidence this show will do that at all. Thankfully, there are no overt close-ups of the women’s bodies, but for the most part, none of the women have any agency, and they honestly exist solely to support the protagonist’s power fantasy.  

The ending credits also indicate that Setsu’s classmates aren’t going to be relevant to the plot so there really wasn’t any point to include them. Overall, the plot is extremely generic and doesn’t even try to create any anticipation for the story. The animation isn’t great and while it’s not the worst I’ve ever seen, it’s obvious there isn’t much of a budget if the stiff fighting sequences are anything to go by.  

I understand when isekai fans say they want mindless shows to watch, but surely there has to be better isekai stories just waiting to get a good adaptation. I sincerely cannot see how a generic protagonist like Setsu can bring any joy. I’m just saying you folks deserve better than this.