Tensai Ouji no Akaji Kokka Saisei Jutsu

The king of Natra has fallen ill, leaving the only hope for his kingdom to his son, Prince Wein Salema Arbalest. Known to be capable and wise, he is the perfect candidate to become the prince regent. However, if the prince has anything to say about the matter, he would rather sell off the Kingdom of Natra to the highest bidder!

Since he wields the authority of the throne, no one can stop Wein from auctioning off the country and using the profits to retire in comfort. All he needs to do is raise the value of the small kingdom to maximize his gains. But whether Wein's grand plan will succeed remains to be seen, as his wit often surpasses even his own expectations—much to the benefit of the oblivious citizens of Natra.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Ralei, Ninym Main

Takahashi, Rie Japanese

Arbalest, Wein Salema Main

Saitou, Souma Japanese

Earthwold, Lowellmina Supporting

Touyama, Nao Japanese

Zeno Supporting

Nakashima, Yuki Japanese

Arbalest, Falanya Elk Supporting

Senbongi, Sayaka Japanese

Ralei, Nanaki Supporting

Sakakihara, Yuuki Japanese

Solgest, Tolcheila Supporting

Kugimiya, Rie Japanese

Solgest, Gruyere Supporting

Ootsuka, Akio Japanese

Brandel, Fisch Supporting

Hikasa, Youko Japanese

Caldmellia Supporting

Noto, Mamiko Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Maruyama, Hajime Producer

Kitazawa, Shiryuu Producer

Fukaya, Naruki Producer

Reviews

Mar 29, 2022

KANLen09

Recommended

Tensai Ouji is a way better rhetoric than Realist Hero. There, I've said it.

Honestly, I didn't even think that there was another work that could better refine the Realist side of things, and when Tensai Ouji by novelist Toru Toba dropped this season, I'm more than elated to say that more than Realist Hero finally having a legit competitor, the latter was a lot more heartful and soulful that kept me rather engaged than Dojyomaru's big-brained insanity of a drag on that has already spanned across 2 cours. Of course, this wasn't all without its drawbacks that hindered what could a better potential of a ... much better Realist Hero be within the firepower lines of sight.

And that story starts just like Realist Hero, except without the Isekai, so it's keeping the narrative within closed borders and without external interference. Right off the gate, the full name of the series actually omits the ~Sōu da, Baikoku Shiyōu~ (Hey, How About Treason?) LN/manga tagline because that was supposed to kickstart the anime alright, but the beginning section was handled very briefly, but poorly to the point where it went speedrunning like crazy. I was almost legitly spooked because yet another series this season (Shikkakumon) was doing the exact same thing, and that was a big no-no when it comes to adaptations of not providing introductory context to the viewers. You can blame director Makoto Tamagawa for that mishap, considering that he didn't have enough experience as a director should be to break the 3-episode rule (which thankfully, the series gets better after that).

But enough about that. As I was saying, the introduction is very similar to Realist Hero, where due to certain complexities, the rightful king has to be commissioned out of his throne, only to pass the baton to someone capable. And that person is the Crown Prince Wein Salema Arbalest, the capable heir to the royal line of the Kingdom of Natra. He has the wits to raise his nation out of potential issues (say, debt) and is lauded for his genius traits, the only problem is that like the title, beneath that princely facade of his, lies the true colours of a rash rebel, a treasonous attitude to sell off his own kingdom and escaping from his duties. All day long, he will try to think of ways to complain about anything and everything, so long as he achieves his goal of not wanting to be shouldered with the kingdom's responsibilities on his neck. And as much as he gets flak in doing this, none is as more close as Ninym Ralei, a close friend and his personal aide whom comes from an oppressed minority race known as the Flahm. She is always the one that keeps Wein in balance and check, should he try to play punk and do the impossible, which for hilarious reasons (since this is a fantasy comedy), always fails outright with his genius brain, leading him steps further from treason. Honestly, I can consider these two as a couple ship, though they are more than just friends governing a kingdom, growing from a pre-mature state into a colossal feat from that genius brain of Wein's alone. Also, Ninym is waifu material, nuff said.

These two aren't alone in making Wein's conquest of winning kingdoms and bawling like a kid a reality. Wein has a youngster sister by the name of Falanya Elk Arbalest, whom one day aspires to be like her genius brother by filling in the gap when he couldn't do. And in my eyes, the perfect Imouto character can actually exist, even more for someone whom holds a position within the royal family. And like Wein, she has a personal bodyguard by the name of Nanaki Ralei, though both him and Ninym are unrelated to one another as siblings with the same family name.

Politics is the name of the game, and what character to fill that gap within the conflict of nations by adding a fellow friend into the mix: Lowellmina "Lowa" Earthwold, the second princess of the Earthworld Empire alongside her brothers Demetrio, Bardloche and Manfred, all vying for the throne in the most kingdom-like inner conflict ever. Of course, being a princess has stakes too just like a prince, and being friends with both Wein and Ninym in the Royal Academy, she knows the tricks and trades of both characters, more than being the female equal of Wein to the point of playing mindgames and trying to outwit each other. And shall I say for a fantasy comedy, the psychological "brains vs. brawn" of Lowa and Wein is one of the highlights of the series, and I can't understate this enough that this is the mark of friendship that's purposefully churned upside down for comedy purposes. It's like they didn't mean for things to happen, but yet it did, and will always come to a consensus at the very end to draw the psychological infighting. This is character development that I'm willing to invest into, and it paid off quite nicely.

Conspicuously, Yokohama Animation Lab was (and still is) a relatively new studio that I wasn't expecting to see on here, considering that the last series that the studio produced (Magatsu Wahrheit: Zuerst) didn't really show off any kind of decent visuals, and is still kinda at the bottom-tier of the animation pack. That said, Tensai Ouji is the studio's 3rd full-fledged work after Magatsu and Lapis Re:LiGHTs, and I can see some improvements, though much ado at times falling back to the same styles that have been done before. Specifically, the 3DCG that still feels wonky to watch, that neither is it good nor bad, just not a clean transition at all. But otherwise, it's just mediocre to at best, decent animation and visuals, since this features some action as well that's more static than moving ones, unless you want CGI in then it'll look horrible.

Likewise, there is something that caught my eye when the show started. Apparently, if you're a sharp-eyed hawk like me, you would've noticed that for some reason, they couldn't get the OP visual done in time, resorting to splicing and combining regular episodic animation cuts as sort of a "Just In Time" replacement before we would get the official OP visual fixed 4 episodes in. Yikes, that's honestly scary to not meet deadlines, and likely killed off potential viewers whom were interested in the show. Otherwise, the selection of the OST here is really good, and that one surprise is the unusual collab that I'd never expected to see: Nagi Yanagi and The Sixth Lie, joining forces to compose a song together that in my mind, was nothing short of a pleasant OP song, might be one of the better ones this season. For Yoshino Nanjo, her depature from fripSide is very telling, and the streak continues with her solo ED, which like the OP, is also a pleasant, upbeat song. All things considered, this would be one of the better OSTs of the season for me.

When it all comes down to it, I have to say that I really enjoyed Tensai Ouji more than Realist Hero, and the difference lies in these pointers (thanks to a certain someone's recommendations which I feel, resonates a lot with me):
- Realist Hero spends lots of its time on, for instance, fanservice in disguise, whereas Tensai Ouji relies on fewer narrative devices but it doesn't attempt to hide them.
- In both shows, the MC gets instantly appointed to lead their nations. Realist Hero's events happen randomly and clogs the narration trying to justify it, whereas Tensai Ouji makes it easy to accept and move on.
- In Realist Hero, magic plays a role to conveniently solve many issues, whereas Tensai Ouji relies solely on the wits of the protagonist.
- Realist Hero stresses on minor (at times, tedious) details of the governance; whereas Tensai Ouji almost exclusively focuses on the grand scheme of things.

If you're finding a show better suited to showcase what it means to be a Realist Hero, you can do no better than Tensai Ouji. And indeed, this show guided me out of debt to appreciate a few more comedy than I ever could.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Mar 29, 2022

SpRayquaza11

Mixed Feelings

Hmm, how to make a smart Main character interesting? Make him whine all the time?


“He is as interesting as a Wein(er)” ~ Secretary fujiwara.

This MC is the worst character in the entire season for me.

1)He predict things but they always go wrong but hell naw “He is the smartest”
2)” I am smort so I will cri but make sure to do the right thing anyhoo”~Weiner
3)any flahm/ninym insult just makes him seem like an immature child with a crown who heard a yo mama joke. He loses reason, and one day itll bite him in his ass.
...
if this was a comedy-only anime id forgive all this, hell'd even give it an 8/10, but it tries so hard to be a political thriller then its fair that I judge it based on that yes.

The problem does not end there, however, The MC who is supposed to be the smartest most badass dude who can achieve whatever he wants is just a tantrum-throwing kid who gets angered by even a slight insult to his waifu, and we are not talking a little mad, He makes SOME VERY QUESTIONABLE MOVES for someone WHO HAS THIS MUCH RESPONSIBILITY cause? someone said Ninym is low-class and does not belong in the gathering.

Most of the plot goes like He tries to predict something and it fails and falls flat, he throws a tantrum then he tries to predict things again, bravo it checks out this time why? GeNiUs PriNcE.

if you liked realist heroes, this may have a similar flavor. However, the comedic timing and whiny nature of the MC is sure to hamper most of its enjoyment IMO.

If this were a comedy it would probably work but, the themes are all over the place, sometimes he worries about his people doing things for them helps them out, some times he just talks of offering them up as sacrifices. People die and are emotionally affected due to his actions so certainly this is no comedy which makes him an even bigger asshole.

But an insult to Ninym just makes him go from smort man to caveman with zero reasoning capability. He does not care what happens to his other best friend Lowa but insulting ninym = trouble.

Enough ranting time to actually review XD

Plot (6/10)
Can you please decide if you want to do a comedy or a political thriller author san? Wein makes so many downright stupid decisions due to flahms, stupid idealistic thoughts. But, it all checks out due to some smart BS he conjures out from the depths of Narnia.

Characters (3/10)
Welcome to “I tried to hard to be RE zero” Imitation of flawed? MC Weiner , White head waifu (voiced by same VA too xD) so basically Emilia 2, A love rival Lowa who is actually miles better than the Whitehead but fuck that amirite? OH, ofc Petra = Flanya the loli used to give alternate perspectives (however she is a good character and her development was a pretty good one! But yet again Weiner had to come to steal her show ).

Art and animation (7/10)
The background art is quite good, The character design makes the none male or Lolis look like the same character tho dunno why. Op art is decent, ED not so much. At least the art style I must say is rather original. Animation is okay mostly, I loved the fact that they animated the horses properly was a big plus.

Sound and VA (8/10)
VAs do a great job no issue there (yes even the VA of wiener), OST is not catchy but fits the scene.ED is rather unique with a lot of royalty vibes.

Look, It depends if you consider it to be a Comedy you'll have a great time. HELL I HAD A GREAT TIME TOO when i ignored the political blabber which i knw will be thrown out of the window in the next fram., but if you try hard to be an intellectual political thriller and fail every criteria in it , I will judge as the same and so will others hence consider it a comedy anime or maybe watch 2 episodes to check if you can tolerate his bullshitery,

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Apr 1, 2022

SalarymanRambles

Not Recommended

This started off really well. And I mean REALLY well. The premise was curious and the protagonist's goal was something that made everything fun... For 3 episodes. When the season began I thought this would be the series that would show the 'Realist Hero' how it's done, and much to my surprise, it was the exact opposite. The show that started strong, got weaker and vice versa. It went from our MC being a legitimately genius strategist coming up with interesting tactics, to me going "You're joking, right?"

A story's ending matters a lot, and the final twist of the show, the genius move our genius ... MC uses to win in the final episode felt insulting to me. Sorry, but a bluff about shirts being what saves the day isn't good enough for me.

And, let's be honest, a lot can be overlooked since, let's be honest, this is a silly show that people watch casually for fun.
After the first 3 episodes slowly but surely it started to give into genre conventions instead of world build and implement tropes instead of write a story.

Just look at the poster and take a guess of what type of characters you'll find: the powerful older Queen that has an inexplicable obsession with the MC, the older powerful eccentric king, the slimy character that creeps on the MCs younger sister, the cookie cutter younger sister herself, the OP right hand of the MC that of course is also in love with him, etc, etc... Mind you, I will give it credit for not implementing the whole harem dynamic

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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