Ranking of Kings: The Treasure Chest of Courage

Ooofie, I think that's a very effective way to describe how this 10 episode collection of Ousama Ranking related side stories comes off as; While it can be really enjoyable to spend some more time with the characters outside the drama and plot of the parent series, it really had me wondering… “Why”? Why did this need to happen?, were people so starved for Ousama Ranking content that 10 episodes of random shenanigans that happened off-screen was really worth our time? The answer is no. A BIG no. This is NOT season 2 of Ousama Ranking, so don't get discouraged from watching the main show overthis spin-off's rating or reviews. So it's a 10 episode journey through different moments of the show, mostly on what happened alongside those moments. Which range from showing us how Ouken, a mayor villain of the show's first season, came to be, to episodes where the entire show's continuity and established world are disregarded to tell cute and wholesome stories. The problem is; these stories do NOTHING, they don't change how decisions the characters make come off, don't give any more information about a character's motivations or background, and it doesn't have anything to say about the world. It occasionally does one of these, yes, but it's rare and won't be likely to really affect the main show in the long run. Couldn't we have gotten a look at the broader Ousama ranking world? Other kingdoms or characters who won't get as fleshed out in the manga series or the anime? New original stories? When it doesn't work, it feels like a wasted opportunity to really get into many interesting topics of the series, instead, it's just reestablishing things we've already seen. And when it works, it's not telling anything too new, just expanding on old ideas again. The Characters? None get arcs because there is no overarching plot. This also makes all of them less appealing. The Animation? Not as clean as the main show's because they evidently have less budget and fights hint at conflict, which this spin-off avoids at all costs. The Music? Uninteresting. If you're a certified Ousama Ranking enjoyer like me, check out the show with freedom to skip any story you don't care about, you'll miss nothing on almost every story told here. You'll like this show more than the average person if the flowers and spice and the everything nice is enjoyable to you. If you just like ousama ranking or lower, then skip this, it won't be worthwhile.

This is a tough one. Ranking of Kings itself is one of my favorite anime of all time; but it was noticeable from the first episode that this was not the same. It jumps from side character to side character, and plotline to plotline, rarely ever giving the viewer anything relevant to what made the first season special. There were a few genuinely great episodes thrown in here that continued the plot or supplied important context, but there was a large amount of pointless filler, as well. I almost dropped this at one point. A better idea than making this a full pseudo-season would have beento make a special or two where they included the good ideas that they clearly had, and eliminated half-baked and fillery ones. It would have made it look a lot less like they were just trying to throw anything out there to tide us over until the true season two.

I was quite saddened by how low the score is, it might not be a season 2 of Ousama Ranking, but it still manage to deliver. It was a very decent watch from start from finish. Yuuki no Takarabako focused more on the side stories and what happens in between the season 1 of Ousama Ranking. I think it manages to flesh out the characters more with how they have limited screen time back in season 1. One might think this is filler, but for me it certainly doesn't feel like one. The animation while not quite the spectacle as season 1 is still fairlygood. A bit of spoiler, I like that they use a unique animation for episode 9, very picture book-ish. Maybe some people see it as a major turn-off but it feels like a breath of fresh air to me than the usual anime style. The characters again is the main highlight of the series, each one has their own goals, personality and identity. I love every character in this anime because each of them felt unique and alive. This one stood out for me because I love anime that focuses on characters. My slight problem with this anime is the world building. It's still vague but we get to see bits and pieces of the Demon clan, but that's just it. There are a few plot point that maybe the season 2 will explain, because there are still a lot to unravel about the world of Ousama Ranking. Overall it's a must watch if you enjoy watching Ousama Ranking, it certainly stood out in terms of pure fantasy than your average isekai "fantasy" that's been milked to dry these days. Thanks for reading.

I am not a fan of Ranking of Kings. It was decent until the ending just ruined everything. I wasn’t too excited for this anthology season, but I just said why not. The first 4 episodes were boring as these small stories didn’t add much of anything. It’s only episode 5 afterwards that I found enjoyment in this season. The background story of Ouken and the brothers was actually very interesting and grim. The stories became more relevant and added more motivation to the characters. They still didn’t help the ending of the original show tho. Overall, there’s some enjoyable stories that helped theoriginal show. 6.5-7/10