Arifureta Say: Whatever You Do, Drink the Water (and Carry a Big Gun)

The third season of Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest is dropping every Monday. It’s probably on your watch list. Probably. Me, I didn’t give it any attention. It took this many seasons for Arifureta to make a blip on my radar. And let me tell you, I’m glad it blipped.

Your Complimentary Sword-Free Fantasy Synopsis

You died (it was probably Truck-kun). Luckily, you got a second chance and were isekaied into a fantasy world. Unfortunately, it was full of dragons. But who said isekai life would be any easier than real life? Now, you must survive in a world brimming with otaku-eating monsters. What do you do?

Arifureta has the answer: drink the water, carry a large gun, and make friends with the big-breasted bunny girl. (If that was also your answer, well done. All that anime-watching has finally paid off.)

Now, onto the Synopsis:

Instead of spending his free time working odd jobs to buy anime figures, 17-year-old Hajime Nagumo (voiced by Toshinari Fukamachi) is on a mission to save humanity. His classmates are on the same mission and have desirable skills. Unfortunately, Hajime’s transmute skill isn’t suitable (because this isn’t Minecraft), so he’s the runt of the litter. But wait for the kicker: he can snack on monsters to learn their abilities. And he can turn rocks into guns. That’ll make dealing with dragons somewhat easier.

Hajime gets even more help when he’s joined by a tiny blond vampire (voiced by Yūki Kuwahara), a perverted dragon (voiced by Yōko Hikasa), and a bouncy-boobed bunny girl (voiced by Minami Takahashi). Nagumo’s Endurance stat faces doom!

Same Story, Different Dance

So, let’s talk about fantasy and those guns Hajime makes from rocks. Stephen King’s The Dark Tower had fantasy and guns. Recently, I’ve been playing Blood West and Outlaws of Alkenstar. Both mix Wild West themes (mainly guns) with fantasy. You don’t build the weapons with rocks, but I’m sure you understand the concept. Arifureta also plays “Gungeons and Dragons” in a fantasy genre but with modern guns. It’s a fun twist. We don’t need swords.

However, guns are not the only inspiration Arifureta took from other properties. Re:Monster’s lead character ate monsters to gain their powers. Did Dungeon Meshi snack on dungeon denizens first? Hajime lost an arm, but Roland, Stephen King’s gunslinger, lost fingers on his business hand (The Dark Tower: The Drawing of the Three).

It doesn’t matter where Arifureta took inspiration, only that it does a great job with all the pieces. And it does.

I’m Too Hyped Up on Caffeine to Wait for the Plot

Arifureta jumps into the action in medias res, wasting no time on how Hajime Nagumo and his friends got into the mess they’re in. We merely see the mess, and Hajime is particularly deep in it.

Arifureta respects its audience’s ability to follow along. By the end of episode 1, season 1, we know that Hajime has been betrayed by his friends and that some (maybe all) of them saw him as a burden. That’s enough to leave us invested in his Hero’s Journey (ask Joseph Campbell all about it). Like many isekai, how the adventure started has little to do with the story’s focus. Arifureta was honest about its premise being meaningless. How many isekai could rip out the isekai part and give us a better story? Most of them! Unless it’s Sword Art Online, where the goal of escaping from the game needed to be up front, in episode 1.

Arifureta proved it can tell a story well and hold your TikTok-addled attention span.

Mostly.

Fight… Yawn… Scenes

Arifureta’s greatest weakness is its fight scenes. No heart-thumping action here. Each battle has little risk for Hajime after he drinks the magical water that gives him his powers. I’m not saying that we don’t ever worry for the guy, but many of the deadliest moments happen before a fight kicks off. By the time Hajime is running and gunning, we already know he’s won.

The weird music choice — which I’ll call elevator music even if it’s not — gives each combat encounter the menace of a barber shop. Sure, sharp blades are flying everywhere, but everyone’s coming out looking cooler than they did stepping in.

Should You Be Watching Arifureta?

We’ve only scratched the surface of what Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest has to offer. Altogether, the show features 41 jam-packed episodes. You’ll know it’s for you if you’re still watching after episode 4. (Dungeons & Dragons fans, you’re in for a treat).

Asread and White Fox (who produced Sengoku Youko) originally produced Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest. For the second season, Studio Mother replaced White Fox. Then, for the current season, Asread became the sole production studio.

You can watch Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest on Crunchyroll with subtitles or dubbed in English. The keyword is “potential.” Arifureta earns its Chibi Megumi rating of four because it’s brimming with potential waifus and pure entertainment.

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Have you been watching Arifureta since season 1? Did you jump in during season 2, or are you finally picking up the show? What would you make if you could transmute stone into anything useful in a dungeon? Tell us in the comments or on social media. I’d build a coffee shop and make a killing selling expensive coffee to the undead hordes.

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