Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
payjeck
The story is forgettable, the animation is mid at best, the plot is literally just a fix-it fanfic from AO3, the voice acting isn't particularly revolutionary or interesting but the sound design is next level. I've watched a lot of bad and mid anime in my life and this one's sound design and flourishes are surprisingly competent, varied and all around well put together. From the footstep properly sounding like the sound of the shoes the specific character is wearing to the the musical flourishes being well timed and unique in their composition, it just goes above and beyond.
4/10
Give the sound guy and the composer a raise
Read at the sourceRemanTheArchean
A powerful mage is sent back in time to undo a screwup. This show is a solid line of tropes played straight-up, and with decent execution it's enjoyable if you're a fan of them. There's a clear power fantasy aspect with semi-explicit power rankings, the MC concealing his power level, people underestimating him, etc. though that's only part of the focus. There's a magic academy and nobles that are pompous to the point of absurdity as well. Then there's the love interest who's literally named "romantica" and... yeah, it's about as tropey as you can get.
The thing that makes this fun is that it's not absurdly rushed like many other low-quality anime plotlines are, and the core group of the MC, the love interest, and the femboy sidekick have decent chemistry and are entertaining to watch. The…
Read at the sourceaty3306
It was a production that I watched with pleasure; its subject matter was successful but not well processed, especially the character's return to the past was interesting. As with any time-themed production, the main character here is trying to shape the future, but these events actually take place in a very clichéd way; they are all ordinary and well-known. I would definitely give it a higher score if it was handled well. The character of Azest has more aura than the main character; I liked the ambient design and character drawings, and if you want to open it in free time and enjoy it, I recommend it.
Read at the sourceMitsotakiShogun
The first time I watched this I was positively surprised because it was better than what I had expected, and I gave it a 7. Now I've finished rewatching it, and I'm downgrading to a *lenient* 6.
The animation is meh overall, there were a couple interesting/memorable moments for sure, but when it comes to the fights it becomes almost atrocious. Magic is very uninspiring, and Pram's sword-"fighting" has got to be one of the most boring, exaggerated crap I've seen. We're in 2025, and we're no strangers to even crappier animation, so let's move on.
The story has so many cuts and holes. At one point, there was a "chess" game (extra pieces, inconsistent & stupid rules) that was supposedly a major plot point, but we weren't even shown the outcome. I decided to look it up. I found the chapter on…
Read at the sourcePrashantttt
To be honest, the first two episodes were actually amazing. I loved the tension and the setup. It really felt like this anime was going to be something special. But after that, it completely fell apart and turned into your average piece of trash isekai.
Like I said, the start gave me hope, but the characters ruined everything. Most of them are annoying and not even worthy to remember. Romantica is the biggest problem. This bitch should have died in the first episode and the MC should have let her die. She is ungrateful, annoying, untrustworthy, and easily the shitest thing about the show.
Then we have Pram. You can add a girl, a boy, or even an old man, but a character who looks like a boy and acts like a girl is just weird here. I don’t know if he was gay or what kind of creature this c…
Read at the sourceVTkrrishblaze
Really just a mid anime is the best way to describe it. Just a good show to watch in the background while gaming or doing errands, has in interesting variation of a popular story trope, but really just falls short in capturing the viewers interest in its entirety. You never feel like rooting for anyone, and while some character dynamics interest you, namely the girl from alpha class with our MC (i'm forgetting character names and I just finished the show LOL), their dynamic is the most intruiging part of the show, everything else is just really stale.
Overall not bad, but not great so just mid.
Read at the sourceTharr
Interesting. I thought it was obvious (that the anime is sht), but the recommendations section is almost equal. As usual, most people talk about the source or how they felt, instead of just saying facts about this anime. So, here I am. I'll keep it shot because I really don't wanna talk about it too much.
Visuals. Meh. Meh all around. Designs, landscape, vfx, animation, cinematography, fight choreography etc. Oh, actually the teacher has a somewhat decent design. And the "old" version of Azest. The rest is meh or downright bleargh, starting with Pram.
Audio. Again, meh. OP and ED are forgettable, both songs and visuals. The soundtrack is also meh, although they used a lot of different tracks and in par with the scene. So I guess, thats one good thing. Ok, and maybe also the mixing levels…
Read at the sourceKaydansnk
This is underrated so I chose to overrate it. As per-usual, those who read the source material are heavily influencing the negative reviews 🙄 and consequently hurting the author and their prospective fan base. No better way to say “I really enjoyed your book” than by hitting them straight in the wallet amiright?
Moving on.
There are not even an eighth as many “returnee” anime’s as there are mangas/manhwa etc and it’s a crying shame, I hope this statement ages like milk in the future 😌
So that aside, this anime was great. The characters were all distinctive, and art was well drawn and captivating and the story was cohesive. Anime is not known for its subtlety, but this one hit the subtle in the spots where it was needed and the “in your face” when it wasn’t.
It is compared to Irre…
Read at the sourceArchangelEST
Returner's Magic is a show that's a mix of fairly common fantasy tropes that manages to put together a sufficiently interesting story and characters, along with passable production values.
Animation / Art / General Visuals - 7/10
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There's nothing wrong with the show per se, but it doesn't really impress in any way either. Everything is pretty standard for a moderate budget adaptation.
Sound / Music / Voice Acting - 7/10 ------------------------------------------
The show has some cool battle themes, but ultimately nothing overly noteworthy.
Story - 7/10
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While full of common fantasy tropes, the story is fairly interesting. A young man who studied magic and adventured for 10 years with countless friends and colleagues, get…
Read at the sourceuniqueindividual
Maybe because I have been wading through a lot of anime mediocrity and trash lately, but this anime felt refreshing how it doesn't force feed you exposition. I even like that in the first episode there were flashbacks to people I don't know with no explanation except the main character grimaced in remorse and sorrow while having said flashbacks. I knew these people were important to him and gone. A good case of showing and not telling that stays true through most of the anime.
After fighting a long war, the protagonist is sent back to high school. This is the fantasy magic high school where they learn no basic skills except how to fight and the filthy commoners barely even get that. Protagonist now wants to use this opportunity to minimize the horrors of war by training his friends that…
Read at the sourcejackreacher1992
The story did have some potential considering the manwha already has a built in fanbase. However, the studio did it so half-heartedly that a story that deserves 7 or 8 out of 10 becomes a 2 really and averages out at 4 or 5. The characters feel forced, the MC's determination feels half-assed, but the biggest drawback is the animation. It's not that it's the worst, it's just weirdly slow and clunky, like worse than mid 2000s video game, same with dialogue- it felt like something written and acted by AI. It walks such a weird line of rushed or skipped plot but super slow dialogue and animation. Like when you're watching a video buffer but it's not buffering actually. Yet it skips all the elements that might have made me care about the side characters or their motivations or something along t…
Read at the sourceBenx2019
I think this is my new benchmark for average. It's not awful, but an average anime isn't really worth your time. The animation is cheap. Lot's of cg, none of which looks particularly good. The none cg action scenes are fine, but pretty average. The detail is pretty average overall, but occasionally the character detail is pretty decent. The story has a good premise, and fair world building, but the overall execution leave something to be desired. Pacing is fairly good most of the time, a couple of episodes drag, but overall it's fine. Voice acting is average town, slightly grating, not a ton of emotion, but some. So not good at all, but average for dubs :). I actually liked a fair number of the tracks in the ost, and the ED is quite good. The op is kind of generic, but fine. Overall this i…
Read at the sourceRowinHaddick
As someone who watches and enjoys silly but fun action and fantasy, I hoped this would at least be that. However, this show committed 2 sins that I cannot tolerate: (1) It Bored The Hell out of me and (2) It confused me to no end. While usually I might write a review detailing the traditional aspects of a show and their qualities, everything in general was so mediocre that I didn't want to explain why everything was at best a 5/10. Instead, I will cover two things in this review, how it committed the aforementioned 2 sins.
(1) Boredom - No Stakes, Bad Action, No Way To Measure Strength.
- When something has no stakes in it, you tend to start to ask yourself why you should care about what is happening. This was the case here. The first couple of episodes is as the synopsis says and then i…
Read at the sourceShinkuo
Have you ever thought to yourself "Hey, this manga would be great as an anime! Why hasn't it been done yet?"
That was me with this show--- about 5 years ago when I first started reading the Manhwa.
After completing it I can safely say it absolutely FLOPPED and did not live up to expectation like with Attack on Titan or Mushoku Tensei. But looking back on it, the signs were there and realistically even with better animation or editing this was about the level of quality to be expected.
I will put it here if you don't want to read the following ramblings: This is show is not very good, is kinda boring, but provides a bit of entertainment if you like Isekai, Fantasy Academy stuff.
I can't comment on the Manhwa since I only read maybe a hundred chapters years ago and honestly don't rememb…
Read at the sourceAvroraa
The anime stays true to the manhwa, faithfully adapting each scene without rushing or cutting corners. While this loyalty is appreciated, it becomes a double-edged sword. The animated series could benefit from injecting its own creativity, especially in the battle scenes. The manhwa excels in showcasing stunning battles through illustrations, but the anime feels somewhat lackluster in comparison. A bit more original animation could enhance the overall viewing experience. Nevertheless, the story and pacing remain solid, leaving only the animation as a minor disappointment for those craving a bit more flair in the action sequences. Oh right, the opening songs are bangers, though!
Read at the sourceShQdowK
"A Returner's Magic Should Be Special" is an engaging adventure that breaks from the standard amidst a sea of animated stories. The narrative is compelling and maintains the viewer's interest throughout, which is a rare quality in and of itself. The tale is a breath of new air.
ᴛʜᴇ ᴀɴɪᴍᴇ ʜᴀꜱ ᴀ ᴘᴏᴏʀ ᴊᴏʙ ᴀᴛ ᴀɴɪᴍᴀᴛɪɴɢ ᴀᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ꜱᴄᴇɴᴇꜱ, ᴅᴇꜱᴘɪᴛᴇ ɪᴛꜱ ꜱᴛʀᴏɴɢ ꜱᴛᴏʀʏᴛᴇʟʟɪɴɢ ᴀʙɪʟɪᴛɪᴇꜱ. ᴛʜᴇ ꜱʟɪɢʜᴛʟʏ ʟᴇꜱꜱ ᴘᴏʟɪꜱʜᴇᴅ ꜰɪɢʜᴛ ꜱᴄᴇɴᴇꜱ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴀɴ ᴀɪʀ ᴏꜰ ɴᴏꜱᴛᴀʟɢɪᴀ, ᴄᴀʟʟɪɴɢ ᴛᴏ ᴍɪɴᴅ ᴇᴀʀʟɪᴇʀ ᴀɴɪᴍᴇ ɢᴇɴʀᴇꜱ ᴡʜᴇʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀꜱ ᴜꜱᴇᴅ ʟᴇꜱꜱ ᴀᴄᴄᴜʀᴀᴄʏ ᴀɴᴅ ʜᴀᴅ ᴇʀʀᴀᴛɪᴄ ᴘᴏᴡᴇʀ ꜱᴡɪɴɢꜱ. ᴡʜɪʟᴇ ꜱᴏᴍᴇ ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ᴘᴇʀᴄᴇɪᴠᴇ ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴀ ɴᴇɢᴀᴛɪᴠᴇ ᴀꜱᴘᴇᴄᴛ, ᴏᴛʜᴇʀꜱ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʜʀᴏᴡʙᴀᴄᴋ ᴛᴏ ᴀ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄᴀʀᴇꜰʀᴇᴇ ᴇʀᴀ ᴏꜰ ᴀɴɪᴍᴇ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛɪᴏɴ.
I find great resonance in the way the characters' bond is portrayed. The relationships shown in this series touch a nerve, e…
Read at the sourceNathan35637
I read the manhwa and it is fire unfortunately though the anime is not. The story is good and the art is fine. Desir is definitely a the most fitting protagonist for this and the side characters although cliched they still have depths to them. I believe that the characters were okay however many character development scenes were rushed at the end .The pacing is off, a lot of still frames, okay animation, and they montaged a lot of stuff at the last episode. Overall still an okay adaption compared to other horribly adapted anime but if want more of the story then I highly recommend reading the manhwa.
Read at the sourceMoonlitMizore
This show felt like a strange mix between World Trigger and Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei / The Irregular at Magic High School. It was a fun enough watch, but nothing particular special or stand-out was in it. (Not a spoiler, this is covered in episode 1:) The "going back in time to prevent a terrible future" time-loop part of the story is uncommon but not anything original. Overall it's slightly above mid in my opinion, and I enjoyed it enough. However the entire show felt very rushed and suffers from bad pacing. Not sure if the source material also moves the plot as fast or if it is an anime only issue, but if the show had been better paced it would have felt much better.
I will keep an eye out for a second season for sure, though.
Read at the sourceShaykeMeUp
There were quite a few things I liked about it, but on the whole it sort of felt like a mess.
Things that were fun/good:
rainbow hair
pram is a super cute and fun character
azest is hot
However - the plot in general is very basic and follows the same tropes weve seen a million times without really adding anything fresh. The main girl is annoying, and the logic of the MC / general reasonings doesnt make any sense. Were never given a reason why the MC is OP, nor are we given anything about the background of the world to justify the over the top "commoners suck" prejudice that is being fought against the whole time. There also seems to be alot of going back and forth on the "rules" of everything like the tournament and so on. There was a bit of satisfaction in terms of seeing the how the c…
Read at the sourceOrimu-
Im very disappointed with this adaptation. It skipped a lot of scenes, interactions between the characters that builds up their relationships and turned a lot of things into slideshows (Promised Neverland S2 style). They fit around 53 chapters in 12 episodes. Its so disappointing because it lacked substance making scenes less impactful. The animation also didn't help. I loved Arvo's adaptation of "Bokutachi wa benkyou ga dekinai!" but it seems that they don't excel in combat animation. I gave the anime a 6/10 just because Im happy that this got the attention of the anime industry and got animated.
If the anime is your introduction to the series and loved it, i'd say its fine. But you're missing out on a lot of stuff.
Read at the source
