Shachibato! President, It's Time for Battle! (Episode 3) - Order Contest

Shachibato President it's time for battle Title

The Kibou Company push further into the dungeon, desperate to win the contest and the reward money, and stop Akari from being poached by a rival company. But will either of them be the first to get there?

What happened?

Having navigated the various multiple-choice barriers, the Kibou Company caught with Cyedge and Rivar as they faced the final boss of the dungeon, a three-headed maju with boss, management and subordinate head! It appeared to be unbeatable, but then something came to Minato. He instructed Akari and Rivar, much to his annoyance, on how to attack the monster. Amazingly, it worked and they raced to the finish line only to find that someone had already beaten them to it. That someone was Subaru from Imperial, one of the top-ranking companies. She had sneaked past the sleeping maju rather than wake it up to fight it, like Cyedge. With the contest declared a draw, Kibou Company kept Akari and Cyedge avoided any embarrassing forfeits. Valmi from Cyedge stopped Minato to ask him some probing questions about his past before leaving.

Shachibato President it's time for battle Episode 3 Rivar Minato and Akari facing a three headed maju with boss, management and subordinate head

What did you think?

This series really is going all-in on the business ideas in a fantasy setting, and if I’m honest, it’s not really working for me because of that. Had they done the same thing, but kept it subtle, maybe even as an inside joke that could later become Easter Eggs, it would have probably worked fine, but it just feels silly now. Even the tease at Minato’s past wasn’t enough to make me really care about the series. I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s bad, but it sure isn’t good. Hopefully, it’ll prove me wrong, but it needs to get on with it if that’s the case.

Shachibato President it's time for battle Episode 3 Minato and Akari

What have you learnt?

Not every series is going to turn into the next Bofuri. I knew that coming into this season and while I probably haven’t taken that many risks with my selection, I think that it was worth taking the time to see for myself. It’s always a good idea to widen what you watch and read. There are ideas everywhere and if you look hard enough, you can always find inspiration or something to take away from a series. Sometimes, you’ll even find that a series that you haven’t enjoyed can teach you just as much as one you did. At the moment, I think the message from Shachibato is that you should be more subtle with your gimmick.