thinking back on this anime... one of the things I like most about it is what it has to say about power. like, that's a really strong theme with basically every character... who has power, why they have power, whether or not they're worthy of power, how they keep their power, and what they use their power for. Boji is basically presented as the most powerless character when we are first introduced to him. and honestly, until he trains with Despa, that can basically be considered true. but Boji's experience being powerless is what lets him empathize with people like Kage, who has been abused by those in power throughout his life. this is a cautionary tale... when people in power lose their perspective on what it's like to be weak, that's when the weak start to suffer. and why even have power if you're not going to use it for the benefit of those who need it most desperately? we see Bebin try to impart this lesson upon Daida at one point... he takes Daida into town and shows him a man who is deaf and blind. and when Daida says there would be no point in living a life as pathetic as that, Bebin responds by saying "so, under the same conditions, you would've given up?" and it stops Daida in his tracks. Bebin then pivots the lesson... he basically says that a kingdom is only as strong as its weakest people. if a king is strong enough to give the weak a sense of security, and a good life... that's what really measures the greatness of their accomplishments. but Daida doesn't have the perspective to appreciate that. he doesn't gain power for the sake of others. he chases the powerful image of his father, in order to meet expectations. and his father set him up for failure in that regard. the king made a deal with a demon, stole Boji's power via a magical contract, and is now at an unattainable level of strength, at least by normal means. in Bosse's backstory, we learn that he originally pursued power for the sake of prestige, and his own sense of accomplishment and superiority. it was only after Boji was born that he realized what a king's power is really supposed to do. Boji's powerlessness is Bosse's fault. and Boji is his precious son. his son is literally the weakest, most vulnerable person, in direct contrast to Bosse, because of what Bosse did. and that makes it very clear what Bosse's responsibility is... who he has to dedicate his power to. Bosse is only as strong as the people he needs to protect. over the course of this show, we watch the powerful made weak, while the weak sit at the heart of everything. young, promising Daida is rendered a helpless prisoner... he and everyone else are manipulated by Miranjo, who is essentially just a scared child trapped in an inanimate object, and Bosse feels like he owes the world to her. she and Boji are connected in their technical powerlessness, and in the way Bosse feels like he owes them everything, especially for the hand he had in leaving them the way they are. what good is power if it cannot be used in service of those who need it most desperately? and yet, the person who is the most down to earth, the most in touch with how the weak feel, and what they need, the person who is best equipped to love and provide care, is Boji. he comes by it the most naturally. the second opening says it best: "shake off the power that comes from malice." "all the things I've fallen in love with. and the curse that fell on me, too." "give me enough light to protect them." these characters aren't subversions just for the sake of being unpredictable... the story is saying that there's something wrong with the way we typically value power as a form of intimidation, for the sake of gaining superiority over others. it's really that mindset that produces the evils of the world. people gaining power without developing the kind of care it would take to give it true efficacy. you can tell that all of these characters grew up with this idea of the superiority of brute strength, ingrained in them from early on. and Boji actually benefits from knowing that he can't achieve this goal. in some ways, it's not worth it. look at Bosse. look at Daida, prior to his imprisonment within himself. Boji has always known better than that. it takes someone who has truly been weak, to know what the downtrodden really need, and why they should be cared for. every character in this show has their own relationship with strength, and weakness, and power, and their own fragility. even the most physically imposing characters in the show can be rendered powerless by their fragile hearts. and this is the real reason why Boji is the strongest.
Ouken caught me the most off guard with his complexity When he's first introduced he gives off the impression of just an unhinged criminal psychopath meant to be a roadbump for another character down the line. and then you learn *_why_* he's like that, and how much more important than that his story is. Desha was also a bit of a surprise. But he's just SO cartoony villain looking, and by the time you meet him the show's already driven home that nearly every single character is more than meets the eye that you already know he's definitely not just a cartoony villain.
I continuesly cried in every episode lol 😭 this anime is just master piece it shows something disabilities that can't be change can be your strength and advantages so beautifully... Not like any other typical anime shonen this days... That just straight up OP in few chapters... Except i enjoy a manga BIRDMAN that one is exceptional
I think they did it on purpose. They made it look like she was going to be evil, played on the evil stepmother trope, made her reject the will that states he should become king. But then she turns around as we learn more about her. She did all of that because of how protective she is of him. She learned sign language to talk to him better. She helped him and his friends. She deeply cares for him. That’s why we love her
In retrospect, Boji could've easily run away from the robbery or dodged Kage's knife. Instead, I feel like he saw someone who was in more need than himself and wanted to help him in some way. Boji didn't care what people in the town said about him. He only cared when those around him talked down on him. He isn't stupid, he isn't naive, he isn't gullible. He just takes the path that feels right to him and he's ready to take on the consequences of his decisions head on. Boji wasn't born OP. He took his opportunities to learn new skills and mastered them and adapted to them.
I don’t think it was because he wanted to help him. I think it was because he was just so happy to have someone understand him. Other people can learn sign language and talk to him. But this is someone who just understands them as is. And that made him so happy that he didn’t care that he was a thief
Just a minor nitpick: You said that the curse makes him deaf and unable to speak. This isn't entirely accurate. The curse makes him deaf, small and weak. Him not being able to talk is because he's deaf. If you can't hear your own voice, forming words is very hard, but it becomes pretty much impossible if you've been deaf from birth.
@@DecafisHere no prob, ive seen other videos say the same that he's mute. I've listened to the anime and heard him say "arigatou" many times (although not very clear) which means he can speak, just unable to form the words properly. a good case of this is Hellen Keller. Apparently, she lost her hearing and sight at 19 months old. It wasn't until one teacher found out a method to teach her how to speak by copying mouth movements, breathing, and throat vibrations through touch! ofc she sounds like a robot when she does speak, but it can't be helped because tone and accent is hard to copy when you're blind and deaf!
I mean, if we're nitpicking, then he's not wrong. No need to add "by extension" when the cause is the same for both. It made him unable to speak, did it not?
The fact that in the first episode Boji was obviously winning a practice match and all they could say was "you're not fighting right! That's cheating" got me heated shows this is a good show. I care about Boji and root for him from square one.
Yeah, I guess that got almost everyone pretty annoyed when that happened. Surprisingly enough, once you've seen the entire show, you come to realize why these people would think like that in the first place: They only had so many role models after all to compare to, so it was ignorance, not deception or despise, that motivated their initial view on Boji's fighting style... Another good example of the show smashing tropes.
I cannot overstate how much I came to love Queen Hilling. She’s a wonderful defiance of the evil stepmother trope that turned into one of the best mothers in all of anime, which is made all the more impressive when you consider that Bojji isn’t even her biological child. She made genuine efforts to understand and care for Bojji when no one in her situation would. Probably my favorite motherly character in all fiction, to be honest.
I agree! She loves Boji as her own son even if she never bore him, she treats him as hers no matter what. She absolutely adores her boys, and goes to great lengths in the show for both Boji, and Daida. Truly one of the best mothers in any story.
One of the best anime I've recently watched. I love the friendship between Bojji and Kage, two lonely children underestimated and discriminated by others, found in each other the love and support they needed. So beautiful.
What's so great is that they gave him such a disadvantage to overcome and didn't just fix that disadvantage in the first episode. Like My Hero Acedamia, Deku has no quirk, but then in the span of 3 episodes he goes from someone who's not super powered over coming that weakness to become the greatest. Instead, he is just given the strongest quirk and is now the most powerful because he did some training. Naruto was an idiot kid who was bullied and not meant to be super strong. But then I guess everyone forgot he had a beast with the strength of an atomic bomb inside of him that he could control and become the strongest anyways. There are so many "underdog" stories where they go from legit handicap that they're over coming, to just being "Fuck it lol, that's fixed pretty quick. Why was he supposed to be an underdog again?" in the span of the first few chapters. In Ranking, Boji doesn't just get gifted or trains his ears into being able to hear or learning how to talk. He owns that shit and uses those shortcomings not just as a handicap to over come, but to use them to his advantage. I've only been watching the anime, so idk if he's given a wish from the demon or magical artifact to give him hearing and speech. But I really hope he doesn't, because that's why he's so much more interesting a character in my opinion. He's not supposed to be a character the viewer is supposed to wish fulfilment themselves onto like most shonan anime where they have to knee cap the protag for a few chapters and then forget they took that blow to the knee so that the viewer can feel over powered. And that's just one of the reasons why this show fucking slaps hard. Like, really really hard.
I feel like they overcame his weakness way too early and easily. We got even less than a training montage and were outright told after his training that he was already the strongest.
Well tbh, i feel he not different from the examples you said cause i think they did make him overcome his weakness pretty fast. Like he was cursed and incapable of getting stronger but then became the strongest in the land and able to fight opponents of bosse level before the first season was over once he trained under despa. I do agree with what you said about using his weakness as a strength though and him being one of the strongest in the verse don't take away from the story cause i feel like theres more to come to challenge him in ways other than just direct physical combat, just gonna have to see how it plays out.
Well they kinda half did. They slap Kage with him, who negates the inability to speak. Overall though, better than certain anime like the decent Bofuri where the whole gimmick is she maxed defense and is terrible at everything else and a few episodes in it throws away the gimmick and she just keeps getting random offensive power ups and loses her speed issues.
I disagree with your comparison with Deku. Yes deku was given the strongest quirk but he did not became the "greastest" in 3 episodes, using his quirk literally destroys his body when he uses it in the first seasons. He's slowly getting stronger and learning how to use his powers without destroying is own body. Boji it's still handicapped that's for sure and i dont think that will ever be "fixed" but he also was a really bad fighter and only good at dodging and then he becames a super precise and skilled swordsman in literally 1 episode so your comparison makes 0 sense.
@@mashmeloazul My comparison isn't that they have to train to become stronger. My comparison is whenever a character is handicapped at the beginning of the story, be it no quirk or deaf and mute or can't use magic. That this one doesn't ditch that handicap after a few episodes. Yes Deku needs to train to become stronger and learn to use his quirk. What I'm comparing it to is that he goes from no quirk to best quirk, doesn't matter if he can't use it instantly, it's that he instantly fixed that problem. It would have been neat seeing how he could become the greatest through no quirk at all, to show that you don't have to be born exceedingly strong in order to become the greatest, that anyone can do it. In Black Clover, Asta is unable to use any magic whatsoever, so he trains and trains to become super strong physically so he can be the Wizard King. However, he then magically comes across a grimoire that lets him use anti-magic, the strongest magic ever. So it went from him being unable to do magic and he's weaker for it, to now being exceedingly strong. The problem isn't that those aren't interesting. I still love both of those shows and think it's fine that they got their powers. I don't even think it's really a problem. What I'm saying is that Boji keeps that handicap and succeeds despite it. He will be king without the ability to hear or speak and they keep it that way which is in my opinion far more interesting than him being, I suppose "fixed".
First, it was my first impression on Queen Hiling. Then, Bebin after the fight with Apeas. Both of my first impressions were obliterated. At that point, I know this anime is different. Boy was I right.
Ranking of kings is so god damn incredible. I am blown away after every episode. Can't believe Demon Slayer, Attack on Titan and Ranking of kings were all airing at the same time. I feel spoiled with all this amazing anime.
What I more like of this show is voice of every character. The voice of mitsumata is so mesmerizing. Being a snake many would hv mad either husky, icy, cold voice but mitsumata had such a pleasant and appealing voice
If it gets a second season I'm really interested in how they handle Miranjo. She really didn't get a chance to really atone for her actions to the audience which leaves a bit to be desired at the end. Her vow to help the demon at the end also means there's more to her arc. Miranjo has done a lot of unforgivable things, especially to the character's we know, that the path of atonement is going to need to be much harsher than it was for Domas, and Domas betrayed Bojji and attempted to kill him.
I think the moment where she saw her Mom, Queen Shiina and King Bosse at the sky is like her character's turning point. Miranjo lived a life for the happiness of others but not hers which left her broken so I really wanted to see how everyone especially Daida will mend her. SHE'S TOO PRECIOUS JUST TO BE A VILLAIN AGAIN PLEASE 😭
What a great video man! Ranking of Kings is amazing, and I feel like it was able to out perform almost every other anime. Like ofc AOT and Demon Slayer are great. But ROK introduces a world we may be familiar with and just flips it on its head!. GREAT VIDEO ONCE AGAIN!
The mention that Boji is one of your favorite anime characters made me realize that most of the cast are among my favs... and that's nuts. Rarely do anime have this many characters this likeable.
What made Ranking of Kings a good anime is that, every characters are not flat and the whole anime doesn't just revolve around the MC because it also shows how and why that certain character became who they are which is the greatest quirk this anime has! Can't wait for the Season 2 and please, MAKE IT HAPPEN!
Not only was this anime great, but I could connect to it more because I have a disabled sibling who has a physical disability of growth and verbal communication. Often, I felt like my brother was a burden however I ultimately love him to the end. This story helped opened my eyes to what my brother is truly capable of and believe in his greatness even if I'm one of the few that does it. This belief in other's courage and strength could be applied to anyone. But having a disabled sibling makes it more connectable because Bojji is disabled yet has people close to him ultimately caring for him but don't want him to be overburdened by certain strives of what they think he's not capable of. I didn't mean to get deep, but this anime was probably more a tear jerker for me because it hits close to home on many levels.
I watch a (really) Lot videos of ousama Ranking reactions/análisis and see a Lot of comments like yours, people that conected to Bojji un a personal level, which is something You don't find so often in animes. Personally i have a niece with 80% of deafness so watching this with her was amasing in many ways
I think this was a perfectly written anime or altleast as close to a perfectly written anime. I loved every single episode. I never knew what to expect considering I haven’t read the source material. I like the idea that fights weren’t the focal point of the story and the characters interactions were the biggest strength to the show.
This show was the surprise gem of the season. I thought from the art it would just be a cute comedy for that season, and it ended up one of the better shows I’ve seen in general.
Ive bee fan of ranking of kings for 5 years already and i am truly happy that finally its getting more people into it its a wonderful serie this video is so amazing and rlly well done
Can I also say that I really love the overall visuals of this anime? I like how they go with the "old-style" fantasy anime look. It matches the overall vibes of the story. This anime is clearly on my top lists
I like how the only one that believed in Boiji from the start.... was Bosse. I say that confidently even after I have finished the first saga (Season 1) of Ranking of King.
Your videos are so underrated! The quality and content are next level! keep up the great work! I look forward to seeing this channel grow and seeing what you can do!
A friend of mine recommended this anime to me, and man, it was one of the best anime I've ever watched. Like the style was so cute I was expecting some sort of comedy from it, so everything was so unexpected from the very beginning. Also I couldn't't help to cry on every episode
I started watching this show 3 days ago because of a clip I saw of the fight between Ouken and Daida(bosse) and have since binged every. single. episode. and am now left feeling incomplete with my life, I don't know what to do now, except maybe watch it again.
Wow, you did an amazing job narrating this anime with honest and heartfelt insight. I just finished this anime. Has completely turned what I thought I knew about anime upsidedown.
It was pretty good overall though I felt it had some weak points like the people who the mages help lacked any nuance, it was basically just “oh they’re evil bc that’s just how they are”, and Miranjo being revived was undeserved imo, she should’ve been released and sent to the after life with Bosse or just left in the Demon to deal with the consequences of her actions, her coming back and Daida wanting to marry her was nonsensical and very strange imo. Felt like the wish would’ve been better used for fixing Ouken or reversing Bojji’s curse finally
This anime is almost perfect, I would have love that after training with Despa yes he grew strong but not the strongest right away, other than that amazing!
So is like we’re living back in 60s or 70s from that time anime was good and great at all? Ranking of king is like a masterpiece from the old anime before.
Just finished the anime… and man the main story line is finished but theres still so many unanswered questions. Like the gods and what about demons? Is there a demon clan? What about Kages clan? Will bojji ever get his curse lifted? Why does Daida want to marry Miranjo who is possibly 2-3 times older than him?? Lol
One of my favorite animes of the year and it was great but it was just the ending that Pissed me tf off. They showed how hard ir is to forgive and how complex motives are and then "oh you suffered a lot? Wow, let's forget everything, matter of fact? Let's make her marry the kid she groomed with ZERO consequences, like literally none at all"
@@ragnorockcookie2868 Orginally I used to make videos reccomending manga and anime on my tiktok account. (my username is still the same) But I decided to make RUclips videos instead, since well... RUclips is alot better! It took months to learn how to edit and how to write a script, but in the end it payed off!
I agree with everything you said about the show, except one thing: Bojji isn’t trying to hide anything. The first episode explicitly showed that people still had trouble understanding Bojji and the reason he went along with Kage’s clothes-stealing was because he was the first person who PROPERLY understood Bojji (aside from the snake, I think?). He didnt care about the clothes because he finally had someone to talk to. As such, he probably couldn’t convey to others he could understand them by lip-reading. The rest of his depths were hidden by self-doubt caused by the mockery; sure he put on a brave face, but when people keep saying your fighting style is dishonorable and that you’re a moron, it does get to you. If anything, his flaw is that he was way too trusting of others, so when they said his fighting style is wrong and he’s dumb, he takes them at their word and does things incompatible with his very character. Also, if he really wanted to hide his abilities, he wouldn’t have completely (albeit unintentionally) humiliated Daida in their mock battle. He wanted to show he was worthy of the training but was just too kind to show it earlier.
i loved this series so much and i think it might be in my top 5 anime of all time, maybe even top 3. and i really loved what they did with the characters. thought i was gunna hate queen hiling at 1st but she one of my faves.
Havn't watched the video yet. Just wanted to say if the main thing I remember the show for many months later equals what the anime "did perfectly" then imo it was the main character hands down. His innocence and his bravery and his frankly amazing and aspirational traits that allowed him to continue challenging life no matter how hard it became for him or the excuses he might've had to quit. The anime just had a main character that was truly a joy to discover and follow. It's what I loved the anime for while watching it and why I remember it fondly. The people who made it managed to put lightning in a bottle when they created him.
Man I came expecting to hear you say it does one thing good but that's it... I came expecting to tell you off by the end. Man this video is the perfect explanation especially for anyone on the fence (minding a few spoilers, but if you were gonna let that stop you anyway what's the harm) Seriously man great vid on a AMAZING anime I thought I was gonna hate Ranking of kings but by episode 2 or 3 I was hooked, cant wait for season 1 (dub) to catch up
@@DecafisHere haven't had a chance to check out much else on your channel but when the squad hops off (elden ring fever) in a few hours I plan on checking out what else you made Always looking for new anime to check out but hard to find new&good channels these day, but either way man keep up the amazing work
I absolutely love the first half, but have quite a few reservations with the second half. The show doesn't seem to know what to do with the side characters once their personal arc is complete. I lost my interest in Bojji as a character slowly after the completion of his training. Bojji was compelling to me, because this powerless guy was doing his very best despite no one believing in him. But after his training he became kinda bland to me. He became so perfect that it was boring to me. The only flaw he still has, being deaf, doesn't really have any story implications anymore. He can have regular conversations with people because of his lip reading and because the people around him are able to understand his mumbles. Lastly, it just gets very repetitive to me. Characters constantly say the same lines or repeat certain actions over again. I loved the show at first, but the second half has severely lowered my opinion on the overall show.
With the Genshin' OST when starting the game, you just reminds me again that Mondstadt characters are in this anime too: Queen Hiling (Eula) and Kage (Venti) 😂
For me, the story was so awesome because "there's no antagonist". This anime is the best explanation/show and tell of the story making phrase "There's no mustache twirling, laughing villain in real life.". Every characters in this show was all victims. In my opinion, even the Demon was a victim in some way.
Thank you for the video. I think I finally found something that will fill the hole that will appear once I catch up to one piece. Also, very cool end edit
The Queen only push down Bojji, because she thought Bojji was so weak, so she used a pretentious harshness to keep him safe. Well, we see you, Queen. You can't fool us 😂
the starting of the anime was bomb but nearing the end it just dropped of hard, the characters kept getting healed having nothing to loose and it doesn't make sense that boji became the strongest character in two weeks at the end it should have been gradual. it also felt as if there was a over-emphasis on miranjo at the end.
@@DecafisHere I have no complaint. Killing characters left, right and needlessly is BS anyway. One thing I noticed is how the author loves all his characters either if it's the hero a supporting characters, and most off all the villain. why would just the "good guys" should get their happy endings.
If you enjoyed this video on my thoughts on Ranking of Kings. Consider subscribing and maybe liking. 🧐🤔
I love your use of Chrono Trigger music.
thinking back on this anime... one of the things I like most about it is what it has to say about power.
like, that's a really strong theme with basically every character... who has power, why they have power, whether or not they're worthy of power, how they keep their power, and what they use their power for.
Boji is basically presented as the most powerless character when we are first introduced to him. and honestly, until he trains with Despa, that can basically be considered true. but Boji's experience being powerless is what lets him empathize with people like Kage, who has been abused by those in power throughout his life. this is a cautionary tale... when people in power lose their perspective on what it's like to be weak, that's when the weak start to suffer. and why even have power if you're not going to use it for the benefit of those who need it most desperately?
we see Bebin try to impart this lesson upon Daida at one point... he takes Daida into town and shows him a man who is deaf and blind. and when Daida says there would be no point in living a life as pathetic as that, Bebin responds by saying "so, under the same conditions, you would've given up?" and it stops Daida in his tracks. Bebin then pivots the lesson... he basically says that a kingdom is only as strong as its weakest people. if a king is strong enough to give the weak a sense of security, and a good life... that's what really measures the greatness of their accomplishments. but Daida doesn't have the perspective to appreciate that. he doesn't gain power for the sake of others. he chases the powerful image of his father, in order to meet expectations.
and his father set him up for failure in that regard. the king made a deal with a demon, stole Boji's power via a magical contract, and is now at an unattainable level of strength, at least by normal means. in Bosse's backstory, we learn that he originally pursued power for the sake of prestige, and his own sense of accomplishment and superiority. it was only after Boji was born that he realized what a king's power is really supposed to do. Boji's powerlessness is Bosse's fault. and Boji is his precious son. his son is literally the weakest, most vulnerable person, in direct contrast to Bosse, because of what Bosse did. and that makes it very clear what Bosse's responsibility is... who he has to dedicate his power to.
Bosse is only as strong as the people he needs to protect. over the course of this show, we watch the powerful made weak, while the weak sit at the heart of everything. young, promising Daida is rendered a helpless prisoner... he and everyone else are manipulated by Miranjo, who is essentially just a scared child trapped in an inanimate object, and Bosse feels like he owes the world to her. she and Boji are connected in their technical powerlessness, and in the way Bosse feels like he owes them everything, especially for the hand he had in leaving them the way they are. what good is power if it cannot be used in service of those who need it most desperately? and yet, the person who is the most down to earth, the most in touch with how the weak feel, and what they need, the person who is best equipped to love and provide care, is Boji. he comes by it the most naturally.
the second opening says it best: "shake off the power that comes from malice." "all the things I've fallen in love with. and the curse that fell on me, too." "give me enough light to protect them."
these characters aren't subversions just for the sake of being unpredictable... the story is saying that there's something wrong with the way we typically value power as a form of intimidation, for the sake of gaining superiority over others. it's really that mindset that produces the evils of the world. people gaining power without developing the kind of care it would take to give it true efficacy. you can tell that all of these characters grew up with this idea of the superiority of brute strength, ingrained in them from early on. and Boji actually benefits from knowing that he can't achieve this goal. in some ways, it's not worth it. look at Bosse. look at Daida, prior to his imprisonment within himself. Boji has always known better than that. it takes someone who has truly been weak, to know what the downtrodden really need, and why they should be cared for. every character in this show has their own relationship with strength, and weakness, and power, and their own fragility. even the most physically imposing characters in the show can be rendered powerless by their fragile hearts. and this is the real reason why Boji is the strongest.
Ouken caught me the most off guard with his complexity
When he's first introduced he gives off the impression of just an unhinged criminal psychopath meant to be a roadbump for another character down the line.
and then you learn *_why_* he's like that, and how much more important than that his story is.
Desha was also a bit of a surprise. But he's just SO cartoony villain looking, and by the time you meet him the show's already driven home that nearly every single character is more than meets the eye that you already know he's definitely not just a cartoony villain.
I think everyone cried at the first 2 episodes
Yup!
I continuesly cried in every episode lol 😭 this anime is just master piece it shows something disabilities that can't be change can be your strength and advantages so beautifully... Not like any other typical anime shonen this days... That just straight up OP in few chapters... Except i enjoy a manga BIRDMAN that one is exceptional
First ep already got me till the last ep
@nqctrna me to
First two episodes and last 🥺🥺
I like the step mother omg. At first I thought she was gonna be the typical evil step mother but omg I was wrong. Best waifu ever
Queen
Yas Queen
Shes kinda hot too.
She ended up being one of my favorite mom's in anime
I think they did it on purpose. They made it look like she was going to be evil, played on the evil stepmother trope, made her reject the will that states he should become king. But then she turns around as we learn more about her. She did all of that because of how protective she is of him. She learned sign language to talk to him better. She helped him and his friends. She deeply cares for him. That’s why we love her
In retrospect, Boji could've easily run away from the robbery or dodged Kage's knife. Instead, I feel like he saw someone who was in more need than himself and wanted to help him in some way. Boji didn't care what people in the town said about him. He only cared when those around him talked down on him. He isn't stupid, he isn't naive, he isn't gullible. He just takes the path that feels right to him and he's ready to take on the consequences of his decisions head on. Boji wasn't born OP. He took his opportunities to learn new skills and mastered them and adapted to them.
I don’t think it was because he wanted to help him. I think it was because he was just so happy to have someone understand him. Other people can learn sign language and talk to him. But this is someone who just understands them as is. And that made him so happy that he didn’t care that he was a thief
Just a minor nitpick:
You said that the curse makes him deaf and unable to speak.
This isn't entirely accurate.
The curse makes him deaf, small and weak. Him not being able to talk is because he's deaf. If you can't hear your own voice, forming words is very hard, but it becomes pretty much impossible if you've been deaf from birth.
Thanks for pointing that out. I mispoke in the video.
@@DecafisHere no prob, ive seen other videos say the same that he's mute. I've listened to the anime and heard him say "arigatou" many times (although not very clear) which means he can speak, just unable to form the words properly. a good case of this is Hellen Keller. Apparently, she lost her hearing and sight at 19 months old. It wasn't until one teacher found out a method to teach her how to speak by copying mouth movements, breathing, and throat vibrations through touch! ofc she sounds like a robot when she does speak, but it can't be helped because tone and accent is hard to copy when you're blind and deaf!
@BobTheBox Im only half way through the show, and I was scared to death your comment was spoiler territory xD Very good point.
I mean, if we're nitpicking, then he's not wrong. No need to add "by extension" when the cause is the same for both. It made him unable to speak, did it not?
It is really the curse that makes him deaf though? If he lifts the curse and gains his power back will he also be able to hear?
The fact that in the first episode Boji was obviously winning a practice match and all they could say was "you're not fighting right! That's cheating" got me heated shows this is a good show. I care about Boji and root for him from square one.
I was so pissed cause they proved from day one that bojji is the better swordsman. They never said he couldn’t just land a hit
Yeah, I guess that got almost everyone pretty annoyed when that happened. Surprisingly enough, once you've seen the entire show, you come to realize why these people would think like that in the first place: They only had so many role models after all to compare to, so it was ignorance, not deception or despise, that motivated their initial view on Boji's fighting style... Another good example of the show smashing tropes.
@@AstonWildsteel which trope
@@JoJoboiWav Multiple. That's why I used "tropes" in plural.
I cannot overstate how much I came to love Queen Hilling. She’s a wonderful defiance of the evil stepmother trope that turned into one of the best mothers in all of anime, which is made all the more impressive when you consider that Bojji isn’t even her biological child. She made genuine efforts to understand and care for Bojji when no one in her situation would. Probably my favorite motherly character in all fiction, to be honest.
I agree! She loves Boji as her own son even if she never bore him, she treats him as hers no matter what. She absolutely adores her boys, and goes to great lengths in the show for both Boji, and Daida. Truly one of the best mothers in any story.
One of the best anime I've recently watched.
I love the friendship between Bojji and Kage, two lonely children underestimated and discriminated by others, found in each other the love and support they needed. So beautiful.
You are 100% correct
Kage lived up to his name. He became Bojji's shadow, protecting and cheering for him every step of the way.
What's so great is that they gave him such a disadvantage to overcome and didn't just fix that disadvantage in the first episode.
Like My Hero Acedamia, Deku has no quirk, but then in the span of 3 episodes he goes from someone who's not super powered over coming that weakness to become the greatest. Instead, he is just given the strongest quirk and is now the most powerful because he did some training.
Naruto was an idiot kid who was bullied and not meant to be super strong. But then I guess everyone forgot he had a beast with the strength of an atomic bomb inside of him that he could control and become the strongest anyways.
There are so many "underdog" stories where they go from legit handicap that they're over coming, to just being "Fuck it lol, that's fixed pretty quick. Why was he supposed to be an underdog again?" in the span of the first few chapters.
In Ranking, Boji doesn't just get gifted or trains his ears into being able to hear or learning how to talk. He owns that shit and uses those shortcomings not just as a handicap to over come, but to use them to his advantage. I've only been watching the anime, so idk if he's given a wish from the demon or magical artifact to give him hearing and speech. But I really hope he doesn't, because that's why he's so much more interesting a character in my opinion. He's not supposed to be a character the viewer is supposed to wish fulfilment themselves onto like most shonan anime where they have to knee cap the protag for a few chapters and then forget they took that blow to the knee so that the viewer can feel over powered.
And that's just one of the reasons why this show fucking slaps hard. Like, really really hard.
I feel like they overcame his weakness way too early and easily. We got even less than a training montage and were outright told after his training that he was already the strongest.
Well tbh, i feel he not different from the examples you said cause i think they did make him overcome his weakness pretty fast. Like he was cursed and incapable of getting stronger but then became the strongest in the land and able to fight opponents of bosse level before the first season was over once he trained under despa. I do agree with what you said about using his weakness as a strength though and him being one of the strongest in the verse don't take away from the story cause i feel like theres more to come to challenge him in ways other than just direct physical combat, just gonna have to see how it plays out.
Well they kinda half did. They slap Kage with him, who negates the inability to speak. Overall though, better than certain anime like the decent Bofuri where the whole gimmick is she maxed defense and is terrible at everything else and a few episodes in it throws away the gimmick and she just keeps getting random offensive power ups and loses her speed issues.
I disagree with your comparison with Deku. Yes deku was given the strongest quirk but he did not became the "greastest" in 3 episodes, using his quirk literally destroys his body when he uses it in the first seasons. He's slowly getting stronger and learning how to use his powers without destroying is own body. Boji it's still handicapped that's for sure and i dont think that will ever be "fixed" but he also was a really bad fighter and only good at dodging and then he becames a super precise and skilled swordsman in literally 1 episode so your comparison makes 0 sense.
@@mashmeloazul My comparison isn't that they have to train to become stronger. My comparison is whenever a character is handicapped at the beginning of the story, be it no quirk or deaf and mute or can't use magic. That this one doesn't ditch that handicap after a few episodes.
Yes Deku needs to train to become stronger and learn to use his quirk. What I'm comparing it to is that he goes from no quirk to best quirk, doesn't matter if he can't use it instantly, it's that he instantly fixed that problem. It would have been neat seeing how he could become the greatest through no quirk at all, to show that you don't have to be born exceedingly strong in order to become the greatest, that anyone can do it.
In Black Clover, Asta is unable to use any magic whatsoever, so he trains and trains to become super strong physically so he can be the Wizard King. However, he then magically comes across a grimoire that lets him use anti-magic, the strongest magic ever. So it went from him being unable to do magic and he's weaker for it, to now being exceedingly strong.
The problem isn't that those aren't interesting. I still love both of those shows and think it's fine that they got their powers. I don't even think it's really a problem. What I'm saying is that Boji keeps that handicap and succeeds despite it. He will be king without the ability to hear or speak and they keep it that way which is in my opinion far more interesting than him being, I suppose "fixed".
First, it was my first impression on Queen Hiling. Then, Bebin after the fight with Apeas. Both of my first impressions were obliterated. At that point, I know this anime is different. Boy was I right.
Ranking of kings is so god damn incredible. I am blown away after every episode. Can't believe Demon Slayer, Attack on Titan and Ranking of kings were all airing at the same time. I feel spoiled with all this amazing anime.
We are blessed with god tier anime 👌🏾
Id say the closest character to being one note would be Despa. He never stops being fabulous.
Absolutely correct 👍
The ranking of kings embodies the saying "Don't judge a book by it's cover." Something that we don't see too often with other anime.
What I more like of this show is voice of every character. The voice of mitsumata is so mesmerizing. Being a snake many would hv mad either husky, icy, cold voice but mitsumata had such a pleasant and appealing voice
YUP! The voice acting for the English dub is greta
If it gets a second season I'm really interested in how they handle Miranjo. She really didn't get a chance to really atone for her actions to the audience which leaves a bit to be desired at the end. Her vow to help the demon at the end also means there's more to her arc. Miranjo has done a lot of unforgivable things, especially to the character's we know, that the path of atonement is going to need to be much harsher than it was for Domas, and Domas betrayed Bojji and attempted to kill him.
I really am hyped for the next season cause we don't know Miranjo role yet and desha is going to the vault.
Couldn’t have worded it better
I think the moment where she saw her Mom, Queen Shiina and King Bosse at the sky is like her character's turning point. Miranjo lived a life for the happiness of others but not hers which left her broken so I really wanted to see how everyone especially Daida will mend her.
SHE'S TOO PRECIOUS JUST TO BE A VILLAIN AGAIN PLEASE 😭
everyone cried on Opening 2 when the mom kiss their son
What a great video man! Ranking of Kings is amazing, and I feel like it was able to out perform almost every other anime. Like ofc AOT and Demon Slayer are great. But ROK introduces a world we may be familiar with and just flips it on its head!. GREAT VIDEO ONCE AGAIN!
I 100% agree!
every aspect of this anime support each other perfectly from the animation to the character, song and story.
How can you go from this? *looking adorable* to well...... THIS *looking adorable but holds a sword*
He’s adorable when he’s eating when he’s sleeping when he’s dancing and marching .. and when crying tho that can be heart breaking
The mention that Boji is one of your favorite anime characters made me realize that most of the cast are among my favs... and that's nuts. Rarely do anime have this many characters this likeable.
What made Ranking of Kings a good anime is that, every characters are not flat and the whole anime doesn't just revolve around the MC because it also shows how and why that certain character became who they are which is the greatest quirk this anime has!
Can't wait for the Season 2 and please, MAKE IT HAPPEN!
Not only was this anime great, but I could connect to it more because I have a disabled sibling who has a physical disability of growth and verbal communication. Often, I felt like my brother was a burden however I ultimately love him to the end. This story helped opened my eyes to what my brother is truly capable of and believe in his greatness even if I'm one of the few that does it. This belief in other's courage and strength could be applied to anyone. But having a disabled sibling makes it more connectable because Bojji is disabled yet has people close to him ultimately caring for him but don't want him to be overburdened by certain strives of what they think he's not capable of. I didn't mean to get deep, but this anime was probably more a tear jerker for me because it hits close to home on many levels.
I watch a (really) Lot videos of ousama Ranking reactions/análisis and see a Lot of comments like yours, people that conected to Bojji un a personal level, which is something You don't find so often in animes. Personally i have a niece with 80% of deafness so watching this with her was amasing in many ways
I think this was a perfectly written anime or altleast as close to a perfectly written anime. I loved every single episode. I never knew what to expect considering I haven’t read the source material. I like the idea that fights weren’t the focal point of the story and the characters interactions were the biggest strength to the show.
This show was the surprise gem of the season. I thought from the art it would just be a cute comedy for that season, and it ended up one of the better shows I’ve seen in general.
The transition to the final montage is perfect. Going from Bojji's tears and yelling to the Warrior Roar was amazing.
I am glad you enjoyed it! That part of the video was my favorite. I loved putting the time to edit that last minute of the the video!
Ive bee fan of ranking of kings for 5 years already and i am truly happy that finally its getting more people into it its a wonderful serie this video is so amazing and rlly well done
It's Kage (Kah-geh), not Kaji. The "ge" in Kage is pronounced as the "ge" in gecko.
Hurts to hear it all throughtout the video
Who would have thought queen hiling was a great mother and also gonna be super important later on lol. How many people would be dead otherwise 😅
we are eternally grateful with Bebin because Despa was not just the best master bojji needed but also when he needed it =)
Can I also say that I really love the overall visuals of this anime? I like how they go with the "old-style" fantasy anime look. It matches the overall vibes of the story. This anime is clearly on my top lists
Queen Hiling oh lawd😩😤
This analysis is amazing. Thank you for putting into words why I love this series so much. ❤
"he cant even hurt a fly"
true, he would need to use his whole body weight to even inflict any amount of damage to one
or just stab it with his rapier
I like how the only one that believed in Boiji from the start.... was Bosse.
I say that confidently even after I have finished the first saga (Season 1) of Ranking of King.
Your videos are so underrated! The quality and content are next level! keep up the great work! I look forward to seeing this channel grow and seeing what you can do!
Glad you loved it! I’m currently working on a aot video
Okay, you convinced me to watch the show
That’s the magic of my voice
A friend of mine recommended this anime to me, and man, it was one of the best anime I've ever watched. Like the style was so cute I was expecting some sort of comedy from it, so everything was so unexpected from the very beginning. Also I couldn't't help to cry on every episode
Couldn't agree more
I started watching this show 3 days ago because of a clip I saw of the fight between Ouken and Daida(bosse) and have since binged every. single. episode. and am now left feeling incomplete with my life, I don't know what to do now, except maybe watch it again.
Wow, you did an amazing job narrating this anime with honest and heartfelt insight. I just finished this anime. Has completely turned what I thought I knew about anime upsidedown.
It’s been so long since I watched anime. Might give this one a try. Thanks for the vid
I love boji so much. He just warms my heart❤ makes you want to protect him at all cost
this anime is so good im crying over the clips in this video cus i remember every single one specially the sad and heartbreaking ones
6:32 I got that problem too
She the best....
Excellent review, you nailed the theme. Can’t wait for the next one.
the cutest boi i ever did see, especially when he tries to speak
BEST ANIME OF ALL TIME. NUFF SAID
Oh man that back ground emotional tune in ranking of kings is so cute
It was pretty good overall though I felt it had some weak points like the people who the mages help lacked any nuance, it was basically just “oh they’re evil bc that’s just how they are”, and Miranjo being revived was undeserved imo, she should’ve been released and sent to the after life with Bosse or just left in the Demon to deal with the consequences of her actions, her coming back and Daida wanting to marry her was nonsensical and very strange imo. Felt like the wish would’ve been better used for fixing Ouken or reversing Bojji’s curse finally
The 1 thing this anime gets perfectly: everything
This anime is almost perfect, I would have love that after training with Despa yes he grew strong but not the strongest right away, other than that amazing!
So is like we’re living back in 60s or 70s from that time anime was good and great at all? Ranking of king is like a masterpiece from the old anime before.
This anime recently ended and I’m gonna miss it
Eren Yeager watches Ranking the Kings, crazy.
Fr tho
Just finished the anime… and man the main story line is finished but theres still so many unanswered questions. Like the gods and what about demons? Is there a demon clan? What about Kages clan? Will bojji ever get his curse lifted? Why does Daida want to marry Miranjo who is possibly 2-3 times older than him?? Lol
I mean the manga is still ongoing. There will be more content in the future. I’m sure of it
One of my favorite animes of the year and it was great but it was just the ending that Pissed me tf off. They showed how hard ir is to forgive and how complex motives are and then "oh you suffered a lot? Wow, let's forget everything, matter of fact? Let's make her marry the kid she groomed with ZERO consequences, like literally none at all"
God damn it your video quality is good the fact that you can make a short intro of the story and combine it with music that matches is just wow
Glad you loved the video man!
I’m glad you loved the video!
Yo you got to tell me how you became so good
@@ragnorockcookie2868 Orginally I used to make videos reccomending manga and anime on my tiktok account. (my username is still the same) But I decided to make RUclips videos instead, since well... RUclips is alot better! It took months to learn how to edit and how to write a script, but in the end it payed off!
@@DecafisHere thanks
This looks like a Children's tale but It is told as a Epic legend.
Boji is our precious boy and he must be protected
ranking of kings does everything perfectly
This anime thaught me not to judge others too fast..
Bojji is what happens when you put nothing but Dex and Charisma in a character and it works so well.
I agree with everything you said about the show, except one thing: Bojji isn’t trying to hide anything. The first episode explicitly showed that people still had trouble understanding Bojji and the reason he went along with Kage’s clothes-stealing was because he was the first person who PROPERLY understood Bojji (aside from the snake, I think?). He didnt care about the clothes because he finally had someone to talk to. As such, he probably couldn’t convey to others he could understand them by lip-reading. The rest of his depths were hidden by self-doubt caused by the mockery; sure he put on a brave face, but when people keep saying your fighting style is dishonorable and that you’re a moron, it does get to you. If anything, his flaw is that he was way too trusting of others, so when they said his fighting style is wrong and he’s dumb, he takes them at their word and does things incompatible with his very character.
Also, if he really wanted to hide his abilities, he wouldn’t have completely (albeit unintentionally) humiliated Daida in their mock battle. He wanted to show he was worthy of the training but was just too kind to show it earlier.
Hiling did nothing wrong
naw on a real note tho why the outro dead ass gave me chills the way them beats were hitting lol
Wym?
@@DecafisHere the outro song was like so PERFECTLY placed that i got chills
Glad you liked it !!
i loved this series so much and i think it might be in my top 5 anime of all time, maybe even top 3. and i really loved what they did with the characters. thought i was gunna hate queen hiling at 1st but she one of my faves.
Havn't watched the video yet. Just wanted to say if the main thing I remember the show for many months later equals what the anime "did perfectly" then imo it was the main character hands down. His innocence and his bravery and his frankly amazing and aspirational traits that allowed him to continue challenging life no matter how hard it became for him or the excuses he might've had to quit.
The anime just had a main character that was truly a joy to discover and follow. It's what I loved the anime for while watching it and why I remember it fondly. The people who made it managed to put lightning in a bottle when they created him.
The healing ost is amazing
Man I came expecting to hear you say it does one thing good but that's it... I came expecting to tell you off by the end.
Man this video is the perfect explanation especially for anyone on the fence (minding a few spoilers, but if you were gonna let that stop you anyway what's the harm)
Seriously man great vid on a AMAZING anime
I thought I was gonna hate Ranking of kings but by episode 2 or 3 I was hooked, cant wait for season 1 (dub) to catch up
The dub of rok is amazing. And I am glad you loved the video!
@@DecafisHere haven't had a chance to check out much else on your channel but when the squad hops off (elden ring fever) in a few hours I plan on checking out what else you made
Always looking for new anime to check out but hard to find new&good channels these day, but either way man keep up the amazing work
Funny thing is that I’m also playing elden ring right now.
@@DecafisHere shit if you on playstation let me know and I can help out
Got stacks of lord runes too if you need
Alright, you've convinced me to binge this show my next days off.....
Did not expect this show to make me cry 13 times. By far the most I've ever cried since freaking DEVILMAN CRYBABY.
It’s also worth noting he’s like 15
Characters are deeper than they assume. That’s the Queen lol initially I disliked her but damn she’s awesome.
Bojji is the cutest anime character of all time, felt u there bro
Have you watched ROK? Have you read the manga? What are your thoughts! LET ME KNOW IN THE COMMENTS RIGHT BELOW!
great video bro!
I absolutely love the first half, but have quite a few reservations with the second half.
The show doesn't seem to know what to do with the side characters once their personal arc is complete.
I lost my interest in Bojji as a character slowly after the completion of his training. Bojji was compelling to me, because this powerless guy was doing his very best despite no one believing in him. But after his training he became kinda bland to me. He became so perfect that it was boring to me. The only flaw he still has, being deaf, doesn't really have any story implications anymore. He can have regular conversations with people because of his lip reading and because the people around him are able to understand his mumbles.
Lastly, it just gets very repetitive to me. Characters constantly say the same lines or repeat certain actions over again.
I loved the show at first, but the second half has severely lowered my opinion on the overall show.
With the Genshin' OST when starting the game, you just reminds me again that Mondstadt characters are in this anime too: Queen Hiling (Eula) and Kage (Venti) 😂
Totally supporting every word you spoke in last 12 mins 💯 . Great video btw 🔥🔥
Thanks bro
For me, the story was so awesome because "there's no antagonist". This anime is the best explanation/show and tell of the story making phrase "There's no mustache twirling, laughing villain in real life.". Every characters in this show was all victims. In my opinion, even the Demon was a victim in some way.
in real life there ARE villains. far worse than anything you have seen in any anime/movie
LONG LIVE KING BOJJI!
Yes sir!!!
VOUCH!!!
Thank you for the video. I think I finally found something that will fill the hole that will appear once I catch up to one piece. Also, very cool end edit
Thank you
RANKING OF KINGS is MASTERCLASS. Something I did not expect to see in modern anime shows.
Ranking of peak
fr, its amazing !
makes me tear us just thinking about this anime.
The Queen only push down Bojji, because she thought Bojji was so weak, so she used a pretentious harshness to keep him safe.
Well, we see you, Queen. You can't fool us 😂
I love that little deaf munchkin so much.
Great Video, I really enjoyed watching the smol Boi getting stronger and proving himself to be a worthy king! What Song is playing at 03:55 ?
Welcome to the Disco
@@DecafisHere Thanks! That song is such a banger, Im glad i didnt miss out
The only anime that’s made me cry, cheer, shout in frustration, smile, and laugh all in one go
Man the underkings brother is hilarious
The Genshin theme made this amazing. That instrumental harmony is A tier.
I’m talking about background music
😊 thank you 😊 I hope you enjoyed the video
I did thank you 👍
My tears were raining in the first two episodes
Can i get the name of songs used in tje video? They slap please
1st 2 episodes were written by the devil, cause it made me cry
ngl if this wasnt a fighting anime this would absolutely be favorite material for me. the characters are all so amazing
Subverting expectations, the anime. That's what I got from it.
My favourite anime of the season, and quite possibly landed itself in my top three
8:10 I was looking around my room to see where I left Genshin Impact running to turn it off for the video... It was the video.
Sorry about that
@@DecafisHere don't be it was a great music selection.
the starting of the anime was bomb but nearing the end it just dropped of hard, the characters kept getting healed having nothing to loose and it doesn't make sense that boji became the strongest character in two weeks at the end it should have been gradual. it also felt as if there was a over-emphasis on miranjo at the end.
This is a super understandable complaint. But I feel like if we want tackle stereotypes, we have to explore the villain.
Agreed, the end was disappointing.
@@DecafisHere I have no complaint. Killing characters left, right and needlessly is BS anyway. One thing I noticed is how the author loves all his characters either if it's the hero a supporting characters, and most off all the villain. why would just the "good guys" should get their happy endings.
I agree! He can definitely beat Goku!
THANK YOU! People are disagreeing with me
Goku one of the weakest anime characters in my eyes.
Yes agreed
Great video Decaf! I can’t believe the show only has a few more episodes left, it feels like it’s been going on forever 😂
3:54 WAAASSS BEUTIFUL AND make me happy
The One Thing Ranking of Kings Does Perfectly
proceeds to make a video about everything ousama ranking does perfectly