Okay here we go again Let me expand my brain so I can write another possibly good/ bad review. I went into this without knowing much about it. I believe thats when I enjoy an anime most of all. Of course one could argue that all Isekai anime suck. On the contrary As Im on a quest to poison my mind with as much Isekai as possible naturally this anime piqued my interest. Whats this? A cute cat girl wielding a badass looking sword? Looks like a good time. Sign me up. https://64.media.tumblr.com/2052a364991fe8987bcf9018b613fba5/70586d4cd2fed5646a/s500x750/240fefce7efb72dfd011a0a7e5b29072b1d2fdfb.gifv Overview I was intrigued by the fact that our protagonist Shishou is our ill fated character that gets killed by our good friend TruckKun. Fuck yeah I knew it Never gets old really. The anime really doesnt spend much time elaborating who he was before he died. We dont know what his name was or what he did for a living. This is a trend Ive been seeing more frequently in Isekai. I welcome this change as I personally dont really care and just want to get into the meat of the story. He suddenly finds himself in a world with monsters of all kinds. Typical. But quickly the audience finds out hence the title of the anime. He was reincarnated as Wait for it A sword Holy shit I didnt see that coming. We are given a glimpse of the second protagonist of the show. Fran. So confusion as to who is the main character is cleared up quickly. Good. Thats what we like to see. He proceeds to get a bearing on his surroundings and immediately goes to work on leveling himself up. Standard stuff. He develops skills as he goes along and learns how to fly via telekinesis. Great. As he progresses he fights more and more difficult monsters. He absorbs their mana crystals and becomes more powerful. But hes still just a sword. Even though hes sentient he cant do all this by himself. And by pure coincidence we see him get stuck in magical ground that keeps him from getting out by absorbing his mana. Unless someone draws him hes not going anywhere. This is where it gets interesting. The camera cuts to a caravan of nefarious looking dudes and guess what? Slaves Of course Fran being a beast girl is among them. Shes a black cat. And her species has never evolved. So she wants to get stronger. Very straightforward. Obviously in the context of this show slavery is portrayed properly and that whole plot point gets put down within the first episode. That can be both a good and bad thing as Ill explain later. Honestly this show has a strong start and it keeps the willingness to click on the next episode rather easy. Characters Shishou https://media.tenor.com/AivFGClbI8AAAAd/iwasaswordwhenireincarnatedtenken.gif The one and only. He walks a fine line between pervertedness and wholesomeness. Because he is a sword he cant really do anything besides cut stuff up and go on long internal monologues. I believe thats why his character works so well for the show. The writers didnt dwell on the creepy jokes that he makes about Fran. Sure theyre around. But it doesnt really detract from the rest of the story. He looks super cool. The way hes animated appears to be CGI but it looks good I guess it would have to be since he is a sentient sword after all. He spends a bunch of time leveling up for a potential wielder. But almost immediately realizes as he unites with Fran he has a lot of work to do. Theres a moment later on where he tries to impose his will on Fran when shes confronted with a mortal enemy. But he eventually lets her decide what to do. She takes the lead in the most epic way possible. I love that They work well together and hes just there to help her grow. Overall hes a decently written character and fits nicely into the story. Fran https://64.media.tumblr.com/5e55d6ecc037a2f2540838ae9b28a9ab/fb1094c20b4b8a7657/s540x810/f37f7c555682dc33e3098295c85b63c7d16d62a6.gifv Okay I had to look this word up cause Im not very smart. She is the checks notes Deuteragonist. As another Anilist user pointed out the hard carry. At first I didnt like her character very much but as the show went on I couldnt help but love her. She has such a pure personality. All she wants is to get stronger. No matter the cost. Plain and simple. Even though Shishou is with her she is still capable of thinking for herself. Shes adorable and the faces she makes and the reactions she has to things made me laugh consistently. Im also thankful that the writers kept more focus on her character as the show went on. Good job writers. Amanda https://www.latestanimenews.com/wpcontent/uploads/2022/11/RAASep96.png Amanda is a high ranking adventurer that gets introduced later in the show. Some might find it annoying that this anime only has like 34 memorable characters but I like when a show keeps its core cast smaller. It keeps my short attention span happy. She is an elf lady who is known as the protector of children. She consistently stalks Fran and Teacher and initially I was creeped out by this. But the writers tried their hardest to prove that she has no twisted intentions. Certain moments where she tries to convince Fran that she is her ally are quite hilarious.She really has her head on straight and is a perfect secondary mentor for Fran. Garrus https://image.animationdigitalnetwork.fr/license/swordreincarnated/tv/web/eps3640x360.jpg Of course we need to have a rather gruff and intimidating looking dwarf on hand to provide Fran and Shishou with sweet gear and accessories. This is a common trope in Isekai as we all know. His rough looking exterior is obviously just for show as his kind and caring personality come through almost immediately. Garrus is worth mentioning because his left eye can automatically appraise gear and can sense sentient weapons such as Shishou. He sees right through Shishous ability to mask his sentient weapon nature. Pretty nifty little skill I must say. Conclusion Im going to keep the rest of this review short and sweet. Again with all my reviews thus far. I wish I had more of an intellectual thought process to more properly convey how I feel about this anime. While theres only a handful of characters that leave a mark. The rest of the cast serves their purpose. Certain interactions between Fran and Shishou are quite wholesome to say the least. Frans encounters with the other adventurers lead to some rather comedic moments. I honestly really dont have anything horrible to say about this anime. The overall presentation of it is consistent and pretty well thought out. It is predictable at times but it is an Isekai so I cant expect much more. The art and animation are nice. The studio C2C did a fine job and its a pleasure to watch. The fight scenes are flashy and build up and payoff are quite satisfying. I do wish the darker elements were more touched upon. Some points about slavery and the Black Cat Clans rivalry with the Blue Cats for instance. We get glimpses of it but it never really goes in too deep. I would also have appreciated more world building. But thats just me. Nothing about it feels like a waste of time. Certain plot elements and gags dont overstay their welcome I feel. I find the soundtrack to be fun and it fits the show well. Id say the only other qualms I have is certain scenes might be a tad unnecessary. When Fran wants to try new magic and Teacher tries to stop her from using as to not give away how strong theyve become is not needed. She ends up using the new skill later on anyway. Its just like fuck it. Blow everyones minds. Show them how bad ass you are how much potential you have. But as we see Fran ends up doing what she wants which is funny as is. I would also like to agree that Fran and Shishou talking via telepathy really isnt necessary in certain instances. Im trying to be honest with my thoughts here. Im a little late to the party I know. I dont want to take credit for certain things because I understand a reviewer before me said it first. I just wanted to add my input. It is definitely above average and I quite enjoyed it. Nothing too special but a solid effort nonetheless.. Im glad season 2 was announced because I will for sure tune in for it when it releases I shall leave you with a few adorable gifs of Fran and allow you to be on your way. Thanks for reading https://media.tenor.com/rtSS9ITm6tIAAAAC/entenseishitarakendeshita.gif https://media.tenor.com/4HYVQqvClusAAAAC/reincarnatedasaswordfran.gif https://media.tenor.com/6L1X9dreuMUAAAAC/reincarnatedasaswordtenken.gif https://media.tenor.com/mqsc4gDWCnwAAAAd/tenseishitarakendeshitafran.gif