Goblin Slayer (Episode 3) – Unexpected Visitors
An unusual group of adventurers come searching for the Goblin Slayer as goblins are appearing in alarmingly large numbers and they need his help. But will he answer their call? There are goblins involved so yes!
What happened?
After returning from their latest quest, Goblin Slayer finds three strange adventurers waiting for him at the guild. Their party consists of a high-elf, a dwarf, and a lizard-man and they have a goblin problem. Quite frankly, that’s all they needed to say. He accepts the quest and tells them to sort out what they will pay him with the guild.
Meanwhile, the Priestess is approached by a couple of other porcelain adventurers and asked if she would like to join them as they think Goblin Slayer is a bit off. They are interrupted by Majo who questions the Priestess about Goblin Slayer and whether she wants to continue with him. She’s more cloaked with her questions and intentions than the others.
The Goblin Slayer is taking the quest and tell Priestess to rest, but she’s not interested and wants to go to. It’s a long way to the ruins that the goblins have taken over, which means they must stop for the night. They share some food and drink and get to know one another a little better, although Goblin Slayer is as predictable as ever. The next morning, they arrive at the ruins and begin their quest.
What did you think?
After the first couple of episodes, I can see people getting frustrated with this one. It’s slower and has almost zero action, but it’s so much more than that. This felt like a classic epic fantasy story with the party eating and drinking around a campfire where they find out about each other. It’s also a great way for the audience to get to know them too. But not too much, need to keep some mystery.
So, after a mostly slow episode, it gave us a great tease of what to expect in the next episode as High Elf dispatches a couple of goblin guards with her arrows in expert fashion. Then, they walked out of the shadows to the sound of heavy metal. Excellent. I can’t wait for the next one.
What have you learnt?
As with all stories, knowing your genre is incredibly important. There are tried and tested tropes that the audience will expect and if they’re not there it can leave them disappointed. I’m sure we can all think of somethings that we love in stories and get a warm feeling whenever they show up. That’s what this episode was like for fans of epic fantasy. Too often, stories try to rush through things and don’t take the time to fully utilize the tropes.
There really isn’t anything like sitting around a fire eating good food and drinking dwarven wine to make you want to get to know other people and then go on quests together, hunting goblins. I hope I don’t sound sarcastic because that would be amazing!
Other reviews in the series
Series Information
| English Title | Goblin Slayer |
| Japanese Title | Goblin Slayer |
| Genres | Action, Adventure, Dark Fantasy |
| Demographic | Seinen |
Anime
Season One
Movie
| English Title | Goblin’s Crown |
| Japanese Title | Goblin’s Crown |
| Released | Winter 2020 |
| Animation Studios | White Fox |
Season Two
Manga
| Series | Side Story II: Dai Katana |
| Author | Kumo Kagyu |
| Artist | Shougo Aoki |
| Volumes | Ongoing |
| 1 | The Fortress City |
| 2 | There’s Always Tomorrow! |
| 3 | Help and Help Alike! |
| 4 | I Can Smell Blood! |
| 5 | If You Let Your Guard Down, You Die! |
| 6 | Be Thankful to Everything! |
