Mushoku Tensei: A Redemption Story... Or Not?

[@AsarathaHSYT]

READ THIS BEFORE COMMENTING; I WILL BE DISCUSSING THE MOST POPULAR RESPONSES TO THIS VIDEO. 1. "But Rudy isn't actually 30!" If you post this you're just getting banned from the comments. Unbelievably, horrific cope that I will not be wasting my time with anymore. If you lived thirty years of your life and somehow had a successful brain transplant into a child's body, that does not make you a child. It makes you a thirty year old in a child's body. Even though your brain will be responding differently to your new body, you will still have the lived experience, memories, and development of a full adult. I don't care if he spent most of his life shut inside, and if you think that is a fool proof argument, this can be applied to real life sexual relationships and is not an argument you want to go down. The only arguments against this are cherry picked "but he isn't attracted to his mom" ignoring the surrounding context of the series, and one of the very first conflicts for Rudy in Season 1 being his trauma related to his old life. That is not possible if you are a new born child; to have trauma from an old life. UPDATE: It turns out, if you comb through the Mushoku Tensei light novel, he regularly refers to himself as an "adult on the inside", or "having the mind of an adult", and says his age is "over forty" 😱 2. "It is not a redemption story, it is an X/Y/Z Story" Okay. I appreciate and respect your different interpretation, and was simply responding to what I see most online. My criticisms absolutely do not in any way change when you shift from "redemption" to "second chance", or "change". They all apply 100%. 3. "You should have had someone more neutral edit the script" Good idea. I did. Someone who has finished the story and enjoyed Mushoku Tensei went through this video script and made numerous changes to it, and ended up coming through the other end of it with a new perspective on the series and my dislike for it. They still enjoy numerous parts of it, but see why and agree with me now on the issues with Rudy pre-volume 15. 4. "You twisted things to fit your narrative." No I didn't. Nobody has actually been able to provide a way as to how I have done this, just accusations with no backup. The only one with substance is "Undressing Sylphy wasn't about only about her being a girl", which is partially true. There was some pushback from Paul about Rudy undressing her in general, but the conversation ended up veering towards "I know how it is to be rejected by the girl you like", and Rudy later going "Sorry, I thought you were a boy", not "Sorry, I shouldn't have done that." That is how I came away with that interpretation, and I still find it to be a valid one. Rudy did not apologize for doing what he did in a way that satisfied me as a viewer. 5. "You are biased/You are not being objective!" Yeah. That's how fiction works. Nobody is, these are all subjective opinions. 6. "Do you have a problem with all dark subject matter?" No. I have a problem with dark subject matter in a story about "redemption", or a "second chance", or "growing as a person" being portrayed as a joke or stories with those themes not coming down on characters for doing it. A lot of people have brought up Game of Thrones, which is cool, but I haven't seen it! If you want to use Breaking Bad as an example, that is a story that covers very messed up stuff. Murder, the drug trade, probably other stuff that I am not immediately remembering. What is different between portrayals for stuff like Breaking Bad and Mushoku Tensei is that whenever Walter White murders someone he doesn't turn to the camera and make a silly face with jovial music for the sake of it being silly and funny. They are either portrayed as is, cause him multiple issues down the road, or a strong part of his characters delving into darkness. Rudy, as shown multiple times in this video, will inappropriately touch women without their consent and it's supposed to be funny, I guess?

[@doodlegame8704]

I can understand why you hate Rudy. Though I may disagree with just how how bad of a person he is, I agree that many of his actions are terrible. However, for me it hasn’t ruined the story as a whole for me or really tainted my experience except a few specific moments like in S1 episode 6 (I think), 8, or S2 ep 7. I think those are also low points for Rudy and his development as they represent significant moments of relapse. I guess I just don’t find Rudy to be in any way unrealistic as a character or evil, rather that selfish or misguided. Good day! I’ll still be watching you for your other videos that are more positive about media you do like 👍.

[@heysiri3327]

6:53 Side note: I would argue that Tanya is in fact not evil. The first episode of the anime would have you believe otherwise, but that scene plays out completely differently in the light novels. She placed those soldiers in the pillbox not to kill them, but to get them out of her way, unaware that it would be destroyed, and when it was, it was just a side note which she didn't care about. Also, it wasn't Tanya vs Being X, it was Tanya vs a pantheon of "gods" who barely interfere with anything. She is brutal, strict, and unempathetic, but not intentionally cruel or evil. She's a perfect soldier (or at least perfectly acts like one), not a sadist. Tanya's personality can be defined by three values which she prioritizes in this order: 1. Self-preservation 2. Utilitarianism 3. Autonomy None of which are outright evil in any way, shape, or form. She also has a very heavy sense of duty and responsibility despite her self-preservation, as shown by her willingness to be punished for not realizing that the not-USSR's soldiers were acting out of nationalism rather than communism. I don't like the anime because it is at best 40% accurate to all of Youjo Senki. The plot is 40% accurate, the characters are 40% accurate, the philosophy is 40% accurate, the computation orbs are 40% accurate, the art is 40% accurate, Being X and Tanya are 40% accurate, etc.

[@kap1618]

Tanya is Libertarian and Capitalist principles taken to its logical extreme. Even Tanya knows that they're messed up, they just own it.

[@shawlipson1782]

I know this comment is almost a year old but I just can't agree. The story is literally called Tanya THE EVIL. The title is literally telling you she's evil. I don't know about you but lacking empathy for others and not caring about getting others killed is pretty evil to me.

[@Stryfe52]

@@shawlipson1782I feel like it’s just a problem of definitions. Like, I’d consider you fucked up for that kind of thing but I wouldn’t necessarily call you evil. Todd from Re Zero does the same shit but I don’t consider him evil, at worst he’s a paranoid psychopath, but nothing he does is inherently driven by malice or distaste for people. Evil to me, for example, would torture just for the sake of it; enjoying the suffering of others. I’ve probably just got a bad definition of evil to be fair though.

[@vansdisciple3508]

Rudy character development Child Groomer -> No longer a Child Groomer (children grew up)

[@norwa3518]

Rudeus' character development has never been solely focused on his perverted side. It has always been about Rudeus trying to live a better life. He gains skills like magic and learns several languages, works out intensively, forms connections with influential people, etc. This series was never meant to be about Rudeus becoming less of a pervert. If you find it uncomfortable, you can drop it. Its not the end of the world.

[@Ace-Intervention]

You mean groomed every little girl he knew so he could marry them lmao

[@gurnoorsekhon6402]

​@@norwa3518 Bruh he's not a pervert. He's a PED*PHILE. If they wanted to do a redemption story, why make him do the one crime that is absolutely unforgivable under any circumstances? How are people justifying this pedo fantasy as simply "a pervert"?

[@mylem6234]

@@norwa3518Ah yes criticising one aspect of the series means you have to drop it, outstanding logic.

[@jthepj108]

Thanks for this video, you've contextualised stuff that i never actually critically analysed before as a LN reader. I also believed the same ideas thst MT is a self improvement story. To me, Rudy improves over time in terms of his social interactions with others and view his second life as a way to genuinely try at leading a life he enjoys due to his shitty previous life. However, he never seems to overcome/eeceive punishment for his treatment of others, even Sara forgives him and they reconcile later in the story despite his treatment of her throughout S2.

[@baonguyenxuanthai711]

I agree with this ❤

[@tonylukban1880]

I thought you said you read the LN?

[@yym.2664]

Mushoku Tensei is...... somewhat of a redemption story. Rudeus never "redeems" himself, and I don't believe that to be the point. I personally understand it to be a story about second chances despite deserving none. It's a decent story that is leagues above your average light novel (to be fair, that's not a high bar), but it's also a story that never fully confronts the main character's flaws and problems (including him being a pervert in the worst of ways). If anything, I personally find the fact that the author has the main character intentionally retain his character flaws as one of the few unique things that truly makes the series stands out (not including the pervert part here. Considering the trajectory of another character Jino, I think the perverison is just the author's sexism and personal fetish showing.) The main flaw that the protagonist Rudeus faces is his fragile sense of self and the subsequent dependence on those around him. The story never sugarcoats this toxic personality trait and the depth of his depravity (In an alternate timeline, he outright becomes a serial rapist.) All of these results in his lack of worldly ambition and a tendency to give up on himself. Rudeus never overcomes these failures that caused him to waste his previous life. When faced with tragedy in his second life, he immediately crumbles without the support of those around him. However, the only difference between his current life and his previous one had been that Rudeus was lucky enough to be given a second chance (and a third chance I suppose in his second life). The story drives this point home. His original only in-universe importance is from his children. And in spite of all the reasons the protagonist perhaps deserved to die the way he did in his original world, he thrives and becomes a better person when given a chance to become his better self. While he never fully overcomes his flaws, he tries. He turns to his family for aid and support. Then he fails regardless. So he compromises and tries again. The two greatest climactic battles in his life both conclude with his defeat (even if the latter is a nominal victory). The big bad evil boss is still alive and well at the end as that is beyond his capabilities. Yet, in the willingness to try and be better despite oneself, he improves and inspires the people around him to be their best selves. And in keeping with this narrative theme, the story makes clear that there were perhaps many things Rudeus could have done to improve the world he resides in. He could have tried to solve slavery. He could have tried to solve bigotry and fantasy racism. At the very least, he could have been more active in the political system to shape the world to be a better place (Said apathy would then lead to a misunderstanding and a soured relationship between him and his children at some point). However, the protagonist simply wasn't interested in the matter. If not for the meddling of fate, he explicitly would have happily spent the rest of his life doing nothing and just holding down a stable job with his wife up north. Instead, he spent his life supporting the projects of his friends and family instead. This all culminates in a rather humorous epilogue that recounts his life's achievements where he rarely did anything on his own (Thus later academics would question whether he had been an epiphet used by serveral figures or just an opportunist who sponged off the achievements of better men.) And again in spite of all that he didn't do and all that he wasn't, the story concludes with him having lived a happy and fulfilling second life to the best of his abilities. That was enough for him. I don't want to and won't excuse the pedophilic tendencies and perverted actions he displays. (Adding on to this point: the reason he was kicked out by his relatives wasn't just because he missed his parents' funeral. They kicked him out because he was caught jerking off to a hidden surveilance tape of his child niece showering. So yeah no, he's just a disgusting perverted pedophile. No argument there.) And the novel is filled with problematic tropes and characters (there's his sister's pedophilic incest plot, Jino's woman objectification plot, a lot of things surroudning Elinalise). I think it's perfectly fine to reject the series because of all these problematic aspects, and they are indeed very problematic. I'm just here to share my opinion on why someone may still find parts of the story interesting or relatable despite the glaring problems.

[@baonguyenxuanthai711]

I agree with this 100%

[@Azg105]

Over the years i have become much less fond of ecchiness in anime in general, so it is a shame that when i find a show like this that has a lot of legitimate interesting fantasy elements, it is covered in degenerate bullshit. Like Rudy is a very flawed character even without the degeneracy, so the story could still function, but no, it gotta appeal to the otakus. And the fact fans defends this stuff is so deranged. Like its one thing to defend a show you like, but its a whole other thing suggest that the pedofilic shit NEEDS to be here. Like cmon man

[@gurnoorsekhon6402]

Bruh it's not even ecchi. If it was simply pervert stuff, it could still pass. But they are legit drawn as children and identified as children. How this is not classified under child porn is beyond me. Because usually they subvert that by saying "oh no, she's a 1000 year old demon" but here they are LITERALLY CHILDREN LESS THAN 10.

[@abdulrehmanqureshi6127]

It would have been so good if it was not like this 😢

[@SmthPositive_]

My problem with the people presenting it as a redemption story is the only time Rudy’s behavior was condemned was in his original world. After he’s reborn the narrative doesn’t view his weird predatory behavior as bad in fact it gets laughed off for cheap gags and he can even make an escape out of imprisonment because his perverted Roxy figure as you said the only growth is him not being a neet anymore which yay I guess character development he can step outside but still at the end of S 1 let’s himself get banged by a 15 yo he’s biologically faintly related to as a fully adult minded 30yo

[@SmthPositive_]

@@terencebarnes7393 frankly idgaf how it was portrayed in any other medium since we’re talkng about the anime but good for you for justifying this kind of behavior I guess

[@SmthPositive_]

@@terencebarnes7393 game of thrones isn’t hailed as redemption story you don’t get the point

[@SmthPositive_]

@@terencebarnes7393 or your bar is just in hell

[@SmthPositive_]

@@terencebarnes7393 your last point doesn’t have any correlation to what this is about. If he wants a normal life he should at least attempt to be normal and not live out his creepy behavior while getting one little girl after another to groom thrown at him. All I do is expect the story and narrative to view/portray problematic behavior as problematic but it doesn’t so it’s not delivering in what it’s trying to sell except people like you who interpret grand things is this dumpster fire of a story that just isn’t there even the author has questionable takes that just shows you the actual mindset mt was crafted with I’ll end the conversation here bc it’s pointless to you but feel free to continue to talk to yourself even tho you won’t change anyone’s opinion especially if we watched it ourselves and saw it for what it is. Power fantasy pedo wish fullfillment trash

[@R3in_Ch]

​@@terencebarnes7393mt cope

[@ari-man]

Never understood fans propping it up as a self improvement story. Great video.

[@AsarathaHSYT]

the pfp made me laugh ngl

[@Stryfe52]

Yo is Subaru ok there?

[@ShadowKoto]

Asa, I understand that Mushoku Tensei is controversial, but I am genuinely disappointed in you for voicing your opinions.

[@MoppetMage]

Something something murder video game argument Something something flawed characterization Something something he hasnt gotten his development yet

[@R3in_Ch]

I'm just gonna put this comment here people in the mushoku community hates Subaru who dies for his friends while rudeus being the pervert gets all the love. How's that fair???? 😂

[@jumbo_jin5657]

I was actually confused when I heard people saying that since never even once did I encounter that, until just recently when someone on Twitter ( Rudy fanboy) told me and I quote what he said " I don't know but Subaru is weird for me, how could he reject Rem for Emilia even though Rem is giving herself to him? That's just so unrealistic and creepy " now relastic is subjective and I'm not gonna comment on that but " creepy " FUCKING CREEPY 😂

[@jonathanbustillos514]

I totally agree with you. Fans of MT tend to say that Rudy grows as a person, and later on in the series he even stops being a pedophile because he gets married to 3 full grown-up women. The problem is what you say: He never gets punished or makes a reflection about it and about how sexual harassment is bad, it just happens that the girls he likes grew old so technically it's not pedophilia anymore and the problem is ''solved'', but because the author never portrayed it like something bad or wrong, it never got a proper punishment/ consequence.

[@mmallowsmallows2575]

Someone did not read the novels

[@jonathanbustillos514]

Ah another classic response @@mmallowsmallows2575

[@Deoraí_25]

Yeah, like what sucks is that if Magonote removed or at least punishes Rudues for doing all these actions, you have at least a solid MC, but instead he keeps throwing in his fetishes for female underwear, Incest, and all these gross ass topics, it gets really annoying especially when something serious is happening.

[@bobjones2959]

@@mmallowsmallows2575 Instead of saying that, why not just explain what you're talking about and why they're wrong. No one who thinks the story is shit as it is now is going to put time into reading the novels. If you can't be specific with your points, maybe don't waste anyone's time making them since you're not actually refuting anything anyone's saying.

[@bokuwatobi_]

⁠@@bobjones2959there was chapter that I think perfectly embodies a comeuppance of sorts but it was removed and is being reworked because of how bad the subject matter was. If you know who Aisha marries then you know how bad that relationship is, but basically no one but Rudeus was mad about it and Aisha threw it in his face and caused him to think about just all he had done. It was good thematically but the content itself was rough. The novels are great and add a lot of context and character moments that the anime cut to its detriment but it also shows Rudy at his absolute worst and his thoughts are akin to industrial runoff almost consistently until about the 6th or 7th book but he has those moments of introspection and you notice a small change in thoughts and actions. Now I’m almost done with 22 and I haven’t even really noticed but like maybe 10 weird sentences is the last 10 or so volumes and his actions are objectively better. As for his bad actions, I don’t understand the kind of fan that defends him. The point is that he is indefensible and a reprehensible wretch of a person that kinda gets better. He could definitely be better but I feel the author made him that way specifically to make him the worst kind of person so as to inspire anyone to be better. Tl;dr (sorry for crappy formatting and grammar I’m busy doing something else too) The novels are great and add to the idea of rehabilitation, there was a novel chapter that I think really completed his arc, and finally I think that fans that defend Rudy the character instead of the work itself are cringe and should probably reread or watch or just go do the language learning and grass touching from the show.

[@MoppetMage]

*Might be regurgitating but here's my piece on it:* Just like with other controversial characters e.g Ketil, *portrayal* is everything. Having a p3do mc is isn't inherently a horrible thing and nothing should be taboo in the realm of storytelling. However, that alone does not invalidate any criticisms or feelings of disgust someone may have on the series/Rudeus/Paul, etc. People should be allowed to freely criticize a story in the same vein that a person should be allowed to freely incorporate whatever he wants into a story. I think the reason why so many people defend or even try to justify the more controversial aspects of MT is the melodramatic portrayal of that subject. Take Monogatari for example, the mc is undoubtedly an epstein and does many weirdge creepy shit across the series that are arguably way worse than rudeus in quantity. However, because the series only portays it as a gag 100% of the time, no one really cares at the end of the day. Ontop of that, Araragi does in fact have substance beyond that character trait. This character trait is ONLY played for laughs, gags, fanservice, and nothing pretentious (unless ur a pseud). Whether you find that disturbing or not is up to you but I'm only using it as a comparison. For MT, the series is more focused on that particular subject. It's tied intrinsically to the main character, his "hero's journey". It's more direct. And there are multiple melodramatic instances of them addressing it. It is still very much played for laughs some times e.g Eris beating the shit out of him haha funny!!!! Harassment is funne!!! But you can see the difference between this and monogatar's portrayal. Him playing friggin eroges for decades, spying on his niece through the bathroom camera he installed, not attending his parents' funeral, not being able to go outside, blatantly saying in monologue that he wants to groom Slyphy, wanting to enact on his hedonistic desires whenever possible, all eris scenes, praying to Roxy's panties like it's war memorabilia, getting ED because Eris left him, weird ass trauma and wanting to game end himself after the Sara situation, tons and tons of solemn looks & "introspection" moments where Rudeus (in his UB voice) speaks in a serious and pretentious voice like he's in oregairu. The subject is always being brought up like you're meant to take it """seriously""". But the portrayal of it so laughably wish-fufillment, I simply can't. Overcoming flaws would be cool and all but the it's very much self-indulgent and too rewarding for Rudy. Fanservice is fanservice regardless of personal disgust. Framing devices, selection & omission processes, attention to specific details, character designs, etc, - all of these have intention behind them. It's not 'projecting' or 'not understanding the difference between fiction and reality' to call out Rifujin for these portrayals. And just because Rudeus develops & gains basic human decency and becomes more reserved with his perversions, that does not excuse his decades of wrongdoings. I think it's good that he """occasionally""" aims to be better, but using "redemption story" to excuse, deflect criticism, or even justify his actions is pretty stinky.

[@B10-HAZARD]

Get yo MAL essay out of here

[@antiwave5294]

well said

[@_NIKOS9_NIKOS]

Louder for those in the back please

[@KingLAO2964]

well put Moppet

[@xplosives1752]

This exactly, very well put

[@beev4289]

I keep hearing rudy develops later But dudes mentally 30 and still chooses to sleep with a child, there is no getting past that for me And then ~spoilers~ He ends up cheating on his wife, sylphy Like???? And fans defend this Rudy isn't even punished, instead he gets multiple wives in the end Everything about this sucks

[@Leovader123]

He: goes outside, gets a job, learns to interact with others, learns consent (eventually), learns to do good deeds when possible and support hes family.

[@gurnoorsekhon6402]

​@@Leovader123bruh he's a pedophile. Are you saying real life pedophiles deserve a second chance too?

[@BanefulOtter]

Do you have the context of the "cheating", and the fact that he didn't even initiate it but was convinced when he was in an awful mental state? He didn't want to do it. And I'm pretty sure the context of why he even "cheats" is a punishment, spoilers below. I think having your dad die protecting you while trying to save your mom only for her to remember nothing and not be able to interact with you is a pretty big punishment. The Man-God even said he could avoid that, but he didn't. Roxy basically forced herself on him and he just went along with it because he couldn't think well. I know I sure wouldn't if I were in that situation. People who say he doesn't change (he changes in season 1, change doesn't have to be massive and all at once to be change) don't understand that this isn't a typically shounen/isekai/anime. It's a life story of a piece of crap given a second life.

[@gaminginvirinch3339]

​@@BanefulOtter random women forced on me therefore I would cheat on my wife? So it's ok to cuck on your wife because a woman is all upon you? Do you hear yourself right now?

[@gaminginvirinch3339]

​@@BanefulOtter then get other wives as a reward? What's the personal punishment that Rudy suffered or was called out for it? Dad's death was his fate because of the mistakes that he constantly made. Also, what is a typical anime? So a piece of crap should get away with it because his dad is dead so he can cheat?

[@Diego-sk4hv]

I remember watching the slavery episode and feeling so off that Rudeus had nothing negative to say/think about buying a slave, I immediately went to r/anime to see if anyone else felt the same as me...not a thing, it’s as if everyone commenting didn’t even see that part of the episode because nobody was even mentioning it. I had to scroll down quite a bit to see a comment mentioning it, and of course it was someone DEFENDING Rudeus’ actions...something about Mushoku Tensei community, it’s like they willfully ignore the bad parts of their protagonist and his actions. I’ll keep watching cause it has good animation and to see where it goes, but when people call this the best isekai there is...I don’t see it.

[@gavynegoldsmith4791]

As I fan of the show I can say that your right that it isn’t shown in the anime but just like any other anime Contant get skipped and mushoku loves to skip content that shows him as something more than a Pedo becuase any publicity is positive publicity and the production team for mushoku lovemaking controversies to promote the show😢😢

[@jumbo_jin5657]

The whole slave thing wasn't a problem for me really but I completely understand why people will hate that, simply put just like you said Rudy not showing any noticeable decdain towards slavery is odd, you don't need to have slavery in your country to know that it's just cruel, how could you see bunch of people being chained and their dignity stripped away from them and seeing that happened to a LITEARL child and not showing anger or disgust just because " lmao this is just this world culture" is just fucked up and it's not a good excuse at all, I didn't care about sylphi reaction or anyone at that matter because honestly after knowing the ending all of the girls seems really weird to me, their existence is connected to Rudy and nothing more their characters arcs is with Rudy, their most notable connection is with Rudy and (spoiler alert) they will all end up with him portraying another polgamy failure, but honestly this is the only part where I'm gonna say it's fine because it's fiction, since polgamy working in that way is only possible because it's fiction 🤣

[@afrozzz5634]

This anime just grosses me out, it’s so fucked up that it’s so popular.

[@baonguyenxuanthai711]

I know, right ? The second part of season 2 will be out this Spring too, and it is already on my "PASS !" list.

[@cflim0725]

The author statement of "imposing his sense of justice on a culture he is unfamiliar with" is really funny because Rudy isn't like other isekai MCs who were taken from their world and put into another, but he was born into this world and grew up in this world. If that's the case, how can you assert that he's unfamiliar when it is literally the culture he grew up in. Sure, he remembers his previous life, but to say someone is "unfamiliar" with the world they were raised in and lived for their entire 2nd life is a big stretch. It really just shows a lack of care and consideration by the author.

[@vibrantdonkey8589]

The one and only thing I’ll say in rudus’s defence regarding undressing Sylpha is that in Japan it’s common for adults and children to bathe together and he was likely just trying to wash her after getting dirty/ warm her up after getting stuck in the rain. He still should have given her a chance to bathe alone and not fucking stared at her body but it was probably the only time he had non perverse intentions with another child.

[@Khayelihle5457]

Your not talking out of your ass brother. You are spreaking FACTS! Although I don't agree with everything I understand your argument. When you mentioned the age difference between Eris and Rudy I looked up the age of consent in Japan when the novels were written and learnt more Mushoku Tensei lore, thank you.🤝

[@acousticco]

Even if he "redeemed himself" and actually got better I still would not care for the series. I do not want to watch a show to represent the "sympathies" of an absolute monster. It baffles me how people continue to defend this character. People are so far disconnected and ignorant of issues like sexual assault, slavery, etc all the terrible shit that Rudeus has done that they are still unwilling to properly judge his actions. Even by the end of the ln (spoilers for anyone who gives a shit) Rudeus gets his very own harem which ties everything up in a neat little bow which shows that he does not get better. He continues to treat women as objects (don't make me have to explain the immorality of harems because I shouldnt have to). In my opinion, pieces of media like this are extremely harmful because it pushes the idea that these actions are ok; yes, in some moments in the series it condemns his actions, but ignoring most of the show for cherry picked evidence does not prove a proper point.

[@acousticco]

@@lucasvanwijngaarden670 I'm ok with being filled with hate if it's against pedophiles, groomers, and rapists. Also, polygamy and harems fall under the same category of being hedonistic.

[@undecidedopinions1188]

At the end of the day this is your opinion so I can’t be mad but it’s a fictional story so I don’t take anything serious about it, a 40 year old man is reincarnated into a child it’s literally fiction, nowhere in the world would that happen, I understand if you find his actions wrong, some of the thing he does make me uncomfortable, but i still watch because I find the story interesting, if you don’t like Rudy stop watching the show, it’s as simple as that, you said that this type of media is harmful but I disagree because I’m a male and I watch this show but I don’t go around groping and grooming women just because i watch the show, i also don’t see other people doing anything wrong to women in the real world, whatever people on the internet does not count for me because it’s not the real world, I have never thought the things Rudy does are ok and I do not condone, to me it’s a fictional story, I don’t watch overlord and somehow think it’s okay to murder people

[@acousticco]

@@undecidedopinions1188 To be clear, I'm obviously not calling fans of the show terrible people, but it would be entirely untrue to say it has zero real-world implications. Culture and Literature are 100% tied together ie. "You are not immune to propaganda". Whether we like it or not we are influenced by pieces of media. Also, keep in mind in Japan groping and sexual crimes go largely unreported and it is a horrible problem in their society. Him not being properly punished for his actions display sympathies for those actions. I understand that people like the show for other reasons, but I do not understand why people reverently defend Rudeus as a character. At the end of the day, I respect that you responded in a reasonable manner rather than just saying "tourist" or something like that.

[@undecidedopinions1188]

@@acousticco you know what you’re absolutely right about the way it affects Japan, especially since sex crimes are very common like alarmingly common but like you said mostly unreported, I can also see how a show like mushoku tensei can enable behavior like that, i completely agree that Rudy isn’t a good person and his actions are deplorable & i like Rudy as a fictional character but i don’t defend his action because I find them morally wrong and overall just weird because he is a grown man in a child’s body which is another discussion which is why I try not apply real world logic the story cause it doesn’t work, i agree with you overall and I’m always for a discussion

[@undecidedopinions1188]

@@lucasvanwijngaarden670 is it considered pedophelia if a 40 years old man in a 15 years olds body has intercourse with another 15 years old, that’s a question I knew I would ever ponder

[@maksym7219]

While i definitely agree that there is no real development in the protagonist of Mushoku Tensei, what really made the series enjoyable for me was its expansive world(especially in season 1) and gorgeus animation. I can defenitely understand why people dislike the show, because ever since season 2 started and the show started heavily focusing on Rudy instead of the worldbuilding which we got in season 1 the enjoyment of the show for me dropped off substancialy. Nice video though =)

[@baonguyenxuanthai711]

The animation does look good

[@natalimoina]

The funniest part of people claiming it's a redemption story is that, from what I've heard, the series ends with Rudy marrying all the kids he groomed. So actually, despite already being at the very bottom, he somehow manages to become even worse.

[@R3in_Ch]

I wish the mt fan base in top comment would reply here

[@idk4435]

he does indeed. A true bullshit power fantasy.

[@ans7xd780]

I mean, what's he supposed to do then? Get a divorce?

[@AL-jl7ek]

​@@ans7xd780 Not groom children.

[@dragongus9574]

Great video Asa. Can’t wait for MT fans to see this and not understand disagreements.

[@pleasantpeasant7770]

I think there's disagreements and blatant bait.

[@Dan-Ky-Kang]

And if you think this video's the latter, then you're proving the original comment right

[@keylessbaton4758]

I couldn't get through the first season. Didn't know how to put it in words. This helped a lot.

[@volki8219]

thank you so much for this

[@ezrapierce1233]

You know, I have to say I love the series. That said, I won't disagree with what has been said here. Shame on me it seems💀 Let this comment be my confession

[@Nate_the_Nobody]

3:45 It's important to note that Rudeus thought she was a he at that point

[@pizzasteve9503]

I truly feel that mushoku tensei fans calling it a “redemption story” are setting people up for disappointment.

[@PlankDot]

@@terencebarnes7393 Except the show doesn't show his tendencies in a bad light. He is never punished for what he does. He gets to rape and harass women over and over again without any consequences whatsoever. He can self-reflect all he wants but at the end of the day if he's still raping and pillaging then he hasn't really changed.

[@R3in_Ch]

​​@@terencebarnes7393ah so rudeus being a pervert is fine but subaru dies for his friend gets all the hate.

[@EmperorMarcus-Aurelius]

@@terencebarnes7393bro is spitting the most facts

[@EmperorMarcus-Aurelius]

@@Brianworldwide_7I would give u a cookie 🍪 if I could

[@princemannic]

Him not liking MT is a pretty warm take DANDADAN tho madness

[@hyphenq]

Tanya is peak, I want a S2 so bad

[@dimz5198]

its more so a story about maturing rather than redemption

[@flattertitan7609]

After years of having to say this same thing to people after they try and tell me "You don't understand it, bro." I can just start sending them this link. Massive W.

[@SyncXmA]

inb4 the “it’s fiction not reality 🤓☝️” people find this Great vid btw man

[@carrot708]

I don't mind people not liking this story, or Rudy. It's when people start saying that fans of the story who aren't even a little bit disgusted, are disgusting, or that the author is sus, that I start getting offended.

[@Bruh-bi6yi]

why are you getting offended over another stranger being called sus (righftully)

[@GreatGreenGoo]

I 100% agree. This could have been an amazing anime. The narration is there, it almost goes there but then doesn't and it completely drops the ball on any moral or redemption quality it could have truly had.

[@BanefulOtter]

I don't know why people expect Rudeus to change in one season. Have people gotten too used to series where characters have change separated by arcs, not YEARS of their life, like how it actually works in the real world? Your expectations of a screwed up 30 year old NEET were too high, expecting him to change quickly because that's how other anime work. I'd say his first major change from his past life, one where Rudeus explicitly states it himself, is the end of volume 12 when he's 16-ish years old. This story isn't interested in pleasing you and making characters good, it's interested in showing a bunch of awful people living their lives until maybe they change. Rudeus isn't interested in changing, he's interested in "living life seriously." I think you just have the wrong expectations.

[@son1cc567]

And how the hell did he go through redemption or growing up? He literally ended the story with a harem of kids he groomed and took advantage of in their childhood. And absolutely no punishment for it.

[@MarianaBello-fq3hx]

Rudeus is a very realistic person because he is someone who gives himself to his dirty desires very often, even when "trying to change". A common piece of trash. Still the series doesn't punish him enough, that's why i think it is bad/problematic.

[@HeroOfJusticeYT]

he worships a pair of underwear and tries to fuck kids hes not realistic

[@princemannic]

this video made me start reading tanya the evil and i kinda dig it

[@stuckerfan2563]

Re zero is basically what mushoku tensei should have been

[@highspeedrailenjoyer1045]

I love both series but there is a difference. Subaru has light and can escape his situation, Rudeus has not gone outside for like 30 years.

[@ygtyrell8965]

Also you mention that rudeus doesnt want to impose his own viewpoints in the world his in, if his viewpoints were in agreement with slavery what would he exactly be imposing?

[@AsarathaHSYT]

>I< didn't mention that. the author did.

[@sudanemamimikiki1527]

But rudy isnt actually 30 years old... He is 34 years old

[@tapz02]

Your a legend, really articulate and always keeping it real!

[@aguy9602]

Finally someone voices this opinion. This story has made me sick to my stomach. Especially with the pedophilia Rudeus is the epitome of losing the true test of character by refusing to do the right thing when no-one would hold him accountable for not doing it. Ofc he's also a terrible person in many other different ways. It's a real shame because a lot of the other facets of the story sound very interesting but I can't stomach that predator mc.

[@baonguyenxuanthai711]

I agree 100%

[@raphaelfelix4795]

Perfect video. I only add one thing, THE AUTHOR CONTRADICT HINSELF, HE SAID "SLAVERY COULD BE GOOD, BUT KIDNAPPING IS EVIL", WELL WELL, WHAT IS HAPPENED IN THR STORY EXACTLY AFTER THAT WORDS? YEAH, WHAT ARE THE EXCUSES NOW?

[@balagado6848]

Its crazy how many people defend this anime. its like it lured them in with pretty animation and good world building to lower their defenses and not think critically about how the show handles its mature content.

[@golderado6740]

Spot on, this and Shield Hero really pull out the worst defenses of atrocities.

[@Ymryrth]

I like MT, reading the LN currently. I think Rudeus is a entertaining character. A good person? No. Would I defend his bad actions? fuck no. I like MT for its world, its characters (LN give more different POVs, which fleshes out the relationships and everything). I like GOT (the books) but I can also recognize that there is a lot of bad stuff and bad people in there.

[@jordanboo1532]

I hate when people present it as a redemption story because yeah, it’s not about that. Paul’s story is actually about redemption, a man who after learning the responsibilities of being a father tries his absolute hardest to bring his family back together, no matter the cost since he understands another mistake will overturn everything he’s ever achieved in his life. Rudy’s story is not about redemption, it’s about maturity. At 17 he became a shut in, and at 34 he dies, so 50 percent of his life is him being a gooner, he’s never matured from the moment of his trauma and never advanced in any way. It’s only when he’s sent to this world he starts growing again. Rudy gets over his fear of leaving his home because of roxy. Rudy’s creepy moments with Eris almost completely stop after the teleportation incident because he understands how serious the situation was. Rudy reuniting with his father, where they both realize they’ve undermined the other’s suffering. Rudy reflecting on how his parents and brother’s must’ve felt when seeing Norn’s breakdown. He doesn’t have some huge redemption arc regardless, the mere fact that through interacting with his family and others on an emotional level, and he gets positively impacted by them as much as they’re affected by him, makes it so fulfilling to watch. MT fans throw “redemption” around recklessly prolly because of vinland sagas influence. I love MT and if the author got his disgusting fetishes out of this story, thats a big “if”, I’d recommend it to anyone. Yap sesh done!

[@Stryfe52]

14:54 not trying to be an ass, but goddamn. This is making me feel kinda stupid for ever having liked the series enough to even read the novels. I don’t even disagree with what you’re saying, and yet I still enjoyed it. You completely tore into something that I liked once, and now I’m just leaving this looking differently at MT, but also appreciating Re Zero so much more. I had my justifications for some stuff in the series, but now I just feel so stupid for all of that. Genuinely keep doing what you’re doing, I appreciate this content a lot. I’m hoping you cover more than just anime honestly because I’m really starting to value your opinion on things if all this was just stating your opinion. This has really got me thinking about all kinds of stuff right now but I’d prefer not to yap any longer than I already have

[@antiwave5294]

I wouldn't call MT a redemption story. I think the bigger theme is him "trying" however I think there's better ways off how this could be portrayed in this story ,though I really like MT, everything you said I fully understand and get behind every point you made on this video. Very understandable reasons as to why you don't like Rudy cuz I also find many scenes uncomfortable to watch. I could sit here and logically point out a plethora of reasons why there's ups to this series as well but we can agree and disagree at the same time. great video, honestly glad to see reasons for why someone doesn't like MT. The only point I half disagree on is the aspect of the power fantasy, I half agree due to his training leading to a much larger mana pool but he literally will never get good with the sword or at least be as good with the sword as he is with magic, often in power fantasies and especially isekai MC's tend to be multi-talented gods in literally every damn field that's possible whereas its not like that for Rudy which will cost him in the future, this in tandem with his overestimation of enemies will have serious consequences. I think the checks and balances put in MT don't make the power fantasy a full point I can agree with; as to me its refreshing to know a character is not good at everything, an argument could be made that any media showcasing powers to any degree is a "power fantasy" now that I think about it but obviously I know what you mean. (this information is basically season 3 MT and beyond) (and of course power fantasies don't matter if the protag is a pedo and a piece pf shit) The ending was funny, who tf asks those types of questions?

[@azzi7588]

i can't see how he's even "trying" if he still ends up marrying eris and sylphie and having kids with both of them by the end of the story

[@AsarathaHSYT]

I know a MT fan and have spoken with them about content beyond Season 2 of the anime, and to be honest, it does sound pretty interesting. It's a shame it took it 14-15 volumes to get there, though.

[@antiwave5294]

@@AsarathaHSYT fair point , I liked the story before then but I do see how that can be a problem

[@antiwave5294]

@@azzi7588 I understand that, I would say that Roxy is the only one who's literally his age; I hate the "looks young but is actually 4000000 years" old trope its annoying Here's what I could gather from Volumes 8-26 the aspects of "trying" (its gonna look basic because he literally does nothing in his past life by comparison.) - he doesn't make the same mistakes as his father Paul (he doesn't sleep with other women outside of the polygamous relationship between Roxy, Eris, Sylphie) - he cares about his mother and father (as opposed to beating his meat during his parents funeral in the past life) (Visits Paul's grave annually) - going to and completing school (he doesn't event complete HS in his past life) - becomes a near workaholic (to prevent himself from being what he was previously) - is a caring father and is responsible for all of his children while he is alive - takes his wives/family and friends thoughts and opinions into consideration and becomes CELIBATE for awhile

[@turtlepope2249]

​@@antiwave5294You're right about all that but I wanna point out : Sylphy is explicitly opposed to polygamy but the author finds a very convoluted way for him to also marry Roxy (why is Rudy still friends with Elinalise tf) against Sylphy's wishes. I think I would give more credit to Rudy's development if he stuck to a single relationship with Sylphy

[@Deoraí_25]

Thank you! Finally as a fan of the series who absolutely despises Rudues I have found the perfect video that goes over my issues with his character 😭 I absolutely agree with everything you have said, I always get negative opinions when I say he’s bottom 2 in Mushoku, but when I try to make my points I always get the comments of “Uhhh why are you hating in a morally bad character!” Or stuff like that (The bit at the end of the video was hilarious, 10/10 😂🔥)

[@wholesomejj1339]

"If you enjoy mushoku tensei that is perfectly fine" LIES! DECEPTION!

[@hisbel924]

I agree on most of your points and a lot of weird things that Rudeus does make me sick but that doesn't make me dislike the show and I still thing that MT in it's entirety is one of the best stories I've read

[@AsarathaHSYT]

that is completely fair. i am glad you can still enjoy it!

[@bokuwatobi_]

I’m in the same camp. I enjoy the series(light novels) in spite of the worst parts and it makes me angry seeing people get angry at the simplest criticisms and then defending the actions(?!). But yeah I think it’s a largely enjoyable piece of media that has an insanely awful mc.

[@motivatedtoscapechildsupport]

AsarathaHS,i can already see the dislikes even though youtube doesn't allow us to see it and this video is still not public.

[@deebig9101]

You know, I actually enjoyed this discussion, it was handled a lot better than a majority of other youtubers and I really can't disagree with you on much, the only point I don't like is one I also argue against with other fans of the show, that being on Redemption. I don't believe that is what the story is about, I believe it is about progression, I have a number of points as to why, but basically, never once does Rudeus forget his old life or try to be a better person, he is himself and got reborn, he wants to do better than his last life, not fix his mistakes. Yeah though, the story does paint him in a positive light when he is a shitty human being, all I can say is that the anime isn't for everyone and I'm glad I got to hear this point of view.

[@darwinspain4831]

Bro you cooking

[@azzi7588]

how dare you criticize goatshoku tensei

[@rastafarian2490]

It would be so much better if the show just removed some things, and it wouldn't even change the story. Makes me wonder why it wqs in their in the first place tbh

[@R3in_Ch]

Please tell me you are joking

[@EmperorMarcus-Aurelius]

@@R3in_Chbro it’s a joke but mushoku tenesei is peak

[@HeathenSlayerBlack]

@@peppermint3808 The subject matter is bad, but the story is extremely well-written.

[@JabariMore]

Bro, I agreed with your video on twitter, but now the Midshoku Tensei fans are beating my ass in the qrts💀💀

[@efrenyalung1348]

THANK YOU!

[@alpguy4865]

I want to talk a lot about this series but then realized most of the things that I want to talk about doesn't really bring anything new to the table, so I'll probably repeating the things that have been said from both the pro and contra side, but I'll give all of you this: When I read/watch MT, I rarely think Rudy as a 30 years old guy despite that's the fact. I think it has something to do with the fact that the characters, power system, and world building are so good to the point I don't really focus about the bad things that happened. I can definitely say that this is one of the best written harem story, since the heroines in MT felt like their own characters despite ended up being Rudy's harem in the end. Sylphy, Roxy and Eris are their own characters with their own friends and goal. Not to say other harem doesn't do this, but when they did it, it felt superficial and uninteresting while MT does it so much better. Which is the reason why I'm infested in the family drama (god, I love the family drama from this series). I think the groomer, pedo, and pervert act that Rudy did can be summed up with one point: It's your typical anime troupe. Being a pervert is the cliche in lots of animanga, so when Rudy does it with little to no punishment (at least a realistic and harsh punishment), it isn't something that he will ever get, because it's anime. Not to say it is justifiable or people shouldn't say anything or criticize it, but that's probably the reason why the author made Rudy the way he is today. I'd say the argument that it's not really a redemption story is pretty valid. Rifujin should do a better job in the redemption part, which isn't something he seems to care a lot, especially with the recent slavery comment.

[@applel2.043]

I don't the pervert anime troupe includes pedophile☠️. Like I don't even recalled which anime has children getting groomed and portray as funny except for mt .

[@alpguy4865]

@@applel2.043 1. This is a story about a guy that adopt a small demon child, which in the end of the series they're getting married (Uchi Musume) 2. Monogatari series, just search Araragi and Hanekawa, in which there's particular scene where a 18 years old guy drooling over a kindergarten child's body 3. The entire story of Ryuou no oshigoto 4. The entire story of Ro Kyu Bu 5. The entire story of Tenshi no 3p 6. Papa no Iukoto wo Kikinasai in which there's a college guy character that drools over a 3 and 10 years old children These stories doesn't particularly have grooming (unless for Uchi musume). But it does feed to the idea of pedo, even more than MT. There're probably more, it's just I'm not that insane enough.

[@princemannic]

Did you like any of the characters that weren't rudeus in the show Personally i really enjoyed paul bes a good showing of a flawed person trying to do better and still struggling along the way

[@AsarathaHSYT]

I think Paul is a better version of Rudy, personally. Same abhorrent behavior, but he isn't painted in a good light constantly, and even shown to completely crumble after the mana calamity. To be frank, I did enjoy the Paul/Rudy confrontation in cour 2. I also thought Eris and Ruijerd were alright.

[@TheLocalW]

IT'S TIME

[@justinseiyanyx6092]

Ok first of all Rudy isnt your standard over powered MC. He is overpowered when compared to regular chatacters we see but when even compared to some bigshots in the world of Mushoku, you can see he is a big fish in a big ocean. He only got to his power level because of his laplace factor which only gave him the potential of having a larger mana pool than most but his constant training during childhood, was what actually helped him have that big a mana pool. His voiceless casting was also like this because he understood how the magic operated under physics, thus making it easier for him to grasp. Even Sylphy when taught by Rudy was able to grasp the skill and she also has an unusually large mana pool, making the advantages Rudy has not all that special in the grand scheme of things.(multiple people were born with the laplace factor). Second on the topic, of Rudeus' development. Yes he is mentally a middle aged man but you have to remmeber he was never a functional part of scoiety. His social skills were onbtained through games, anime and other media. I think the redeption part of the story is how he manages to develop himself into a respectable person in his family. This is done through even the first season with his interactions with Paul (understanding his point of view and making up with him, in his past life he pushed away loved ones lkke him parents and siblings), even his relationship with Sylphy, Roxy and Eris show that he only viewed them as loved interests in a game or story rather than individuals which will be explored later this season no need to spoil that. Even when he fought Prsted it showed him humility with his powers. He might be strong but the world was vast and anyone could be stronger than you. Even his relationship with Sara, though it ended on bad terms. Got him the most development so far. With how it made him to pick himself up from the breakup with Eris to how it made him start to act respectful towards most people he met . Through the story he has learned so much that i cant even mention it all here. And by the ened of it, he finally accomplish what he never could when he lived his first life. Having a loving family around him and being a respectable person in society. It was about the bonds he made and how he fought to protect them. Yes, his perverse actions still aren't justified, but i feel thats just a surface level of development youre expecting from Mushoku Tensei.

[@AsarathaHSYT]

i dont think going around sexually assaulting people/children makes you a functional part of society. sounds like he should have a 3rd try

[@justinseiyanyx6092]

@@AsarathaHSYT I did say at the end of the story. And I did also say his perverse actions early on aren't justified or forgiven. I get you, it is weird, but I can say that the series as a whole is over sexualized and though its not an excuse, I just tend to ignore it because that's not the main thing I'm here for. At the end of the story he manages to have all that he never could. But it didn't just get from zero to everything. There was genuine development through out the story if you just look. I understand how it can fly over your head. It did for me too on my first retrospection of the series but as I took a deeper look, I found out what was actually going on underneath all the perverted nonsense. If it's not for you there's no problem there. But I ask you to take a deeper look into the series because Mushoku really is about change, and not just for Rudy.

[@xplosives1752]

@@justinseiyanyx6092it isn’t “flying over his head”, he knows about all of it, its just overshadowed by all the bad in the series that the video covers. If you can ignore that stuff and really enjoy the series still, fair enough, but don’t act like people haven’t experienced the rest of the developments in a story just because they dislike the series, since it’s very possible (and true in this case) that they did fully understand everything and still just didn’t like it.

[@BearsBeersBeets]

@@justinseiyanyx6092 Lmao yeah guys we just arent smart enough to understand the deep meaning behind rudy making out with a ten year old. Anime fans always bring out the crazy arguments for pedophilia.

[@Theokal3]

"Should he just wait until he's 18 to have sex with people?" "Yes." I kinda love how blunt this anwer is. But yeah that seems like a perfectly good answer.

[@arandomnerdnamedseth]

Real and for true

[@B10-HAZARD]

No way, never thought you would make a video about MT 😭

[@seanmcellistrem4529]

Enjoyable video. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed Mushoku tensei but that was more so while not thinking about it. Trying to justify slave trade or killing a child slave is a bit of a weird move on the creators part and the whole nonchalance about the scene, especially since they’ve re-iterated, he’s not a child and obviously knows it’s bad. Also the constant perverted nature of rudeus throughout the whole thing was a bit sour and definately detracts from enjoying it. If they wanted to make it a redemption plot then they’d get over his trauma and his “tendencies” as he actually tried to improve himself but he really only lost his trauma but kept the horrible attributes that he got from them so it falls so short. He’s gets a second shot at life, literally, but he doesn’t improve upon himself, more so just to “be better” than before. (Idk how to put it without seeming like redemption. It’s more so just giving someone a head start in life that had horrible attributes in his last that didn’t get shed via the process. Think instead of getting rid of past traumas and improving himself with good actions and an actual brain ((how tf was the initial sylphie scene not trashed on more, his inner-monologue was so oblivious only a complete idiot wouldn’t be able to tell what he was doing.)) he simply just added new experiences without getting rid of the consequences of his past trauma leading to being a complete dirtbag and being by our account a pedo.) I feel like you can go back through the entire series and change most of the sexual scenes and actually make him get over his lust, the series would be near perfection. (Minus the polygamy part) Even being Paul’s son doesn’t explain nearly any of what happens in the show.

[@seanmcellistrem4529]

Also I think people like rudeus more than Subaru because the show actually goes out of the way to paint Subaru in an unhinged(but realistic) light while MT kinda plays everything off as a gag or being Paul’s son.

[@jumbo_jin5657]

Im in anime only that stopped watching it for similar reasons and also i was spoiled about the ending so if anything the fans were the ones that ruined it to me 🤣 nevertheless im thankful since when i discover the ending i was happy that i will not countue reading it, simply put not my cup of tea What was problematic for me is the fan defending the series and the way they defend it, when you talk about moral high ground character themes they get upset saying it's fiction, well hell yeah it doesn't effect reality but it effects my brain of how absolutely disgusting Rudy can act sometimes and the fact that the person that write this is a real life human, making fun of people critising in anime or story based on the morality is pathetic, i watch anime because of these theme's that people find laughable or annoying Also there's a very HUGE biased that some fans present twords this argument, when someone proclaim that MT saved them or helped them improve in their life the fans wil support that, no one will say something like " dude calm down it's just a fiction " because if someone did they will never hear the end of it But when someone critics the series and that it doesn't suit their taste suddenly the " you are so salty it's just fiction" argument becomes falid? And I'm not talking about those who took it upon themselves to shit, compare or even threatening the author just because they don't like the work, this is not critising this is straight up fucked up and delusional Gory and sexual themes is not for everyone and not everyone can handle it, and even when they do, it's not guaranteed that they would like the way the author protrayed it, just because you get in the internet and said you don't like doesn't make you a bad person by default and no one is forced to like something or not talk about it because they don't like it " if you didn't care why would you talk about it then?" Is also very common but honestly very stupid argument too, two words " share opinion" and no one said that opinion should be positive at all, it's in opinion that people feels intitled too just like any other opinion, as long as you are respectful in your statements there's nothing to be said really

[@Lavender_Chan]

AMEN! I get so frustrated whenever people on the internet claim Mushoke Tensei is the "best" isekai. I'm sorry, but seeing sexual acts on minors and the MC supporting slavery is extremely disturbing and morally wrong.

[@Doris-gf4hb]

I agree with you, someone make a post to call Rudy a pedo and the comments where fill with fans defending him. After watching this video I don't want to watch it (I never was a fan also never know about this anime). What is crazy to me is why this shit is popular like I'm sorry but seeing this type of behavior is grosse and it can make anyone uncomfortable. Also it is crazy that fans are defending this (like wtf). My fandom would be against it,.

[@Junkyardproduxtions]

I feel like while not addressing all of the concerns one of the issues I wish the story just never did from the outset is transfer Rudy's brain. I think most of the story works a great deal when you divorce him without the 30 year old mindset. Like everything is pretty well written imo and has a pretty rich world. The fact that this wasn't just a straight up fantasy story kinda is what kills it for me. We don't even need Rudy to be the isekai character because we fucking get another. But that all being said the SA and grooming stuff always gets under my skin when i watch

[@kap1618]

I just don't find Rudy or MT interesting or entertaining. Hisoka from HxH, Demiurge from Overlord, and Haruko from FLCL are worse than Rudy but are interesting and/or entertaining.

[@MatterfiedV2]

Didnt watch a single second yet (i paused the video as quickly as humanly possible) but i already know that you are WRONG!!!

[@michaeleanthonyjr]

Hate to break it to you Asa, it's not an opinion that he's power fantasy. Sorry 😂

[@donrog5035]

Well I agree with all your point. Personally one season was enough for me. I could not continue it because of the protagonist.

[@nathankeel6667]

For me mushoku tensie is a story I enjoy its clear that its well written and care is put into it but I dont recommend it to people nor would I put it in a favorit list for basicity everything you mentioned and the past 2 episodes (not counting this weeks) have been pushing my its just a fictional story to its limit wail from what ln readers say alot of this stuff iv heard is better handled and more detials are given in the lns iv also heard rudy is worse and a story that already pushes separation of reality and fiction to its limit I dont want to spend my time reading much less spend money on something I might just not enjoy. I will continue to watch MT because of as I said its world building and character writing and I enjoy how its not afriend to tackle difficult subject matter I find interesting even if it does it poorly like 40% of the time or 20% of the time retcons it for a joke at least it handled the sl*very issue better then other isaki iv heard about nont that that's a very high bar hell its a very low one

[@gavynegoldsmith4791]

As a mushoku tensei fan I can I will say it your completely right but also wrong but that’s not your fault that’s the anime. Having read the LN and WN their is tons of skipped content just like any other anime

[@gavynegoldsmith4791]

Most of it being dialogue and “and unimportant scenes” but some of them really do take meaning and create that redemption that you want to look for in mushoku the worse ones in my opinion being the Julie episode and when he kidnapped the girls

[@gavynegoldsmith4791]

They way they botched it and turned it into something to joke about instead of a compelling show of character made me mad as hell. Like with Julie he wanted to end her life not just because she was sad. She herself wanted to end it. being sold off by her parents enduring terrible conditions with minimal amount of food. In her eyes life was over and to rudues if he were to be like any other MC and “save her” it wouldn’t matter if she herself didn’t even want to live

[@gavynegoldsmith4791]

Him asking her if she wanted to die and he could do it was fulfilling her request she desperately wanted but when it came to her she wanted to live and rudues took that as her not ready to leave and took her in. PLUS in LN he makes Zaonba give her a paycheck so she can buy things she likes or her freedom if she wishes

[@gavynegoldsmith4791]

But I am done with my rambling😂😂 I just wanted to explain like this that the true enemy is not Rudes but the studio productions and the entertainment, world in general but let’s not go into that😂😂😂

[@Deoraí_25]

As someone who’s read the LN’s they are actually much worse compared to the anime. Rudues’ inner thoughts is massively prevalent like for the example of the Julia matter, where he makes the comment of “the child slave we should buy has to be a little girl!” Which thankfully the anime cuts out as that’s just weird and gross. There’s plenty of more but I say the anime is much tamer than the LN’s

[@YozakuraSensei]

In before these replies go to the gulag

[@Lotti01]

Bro sounds like penguinz0

[@turtlepope2249]

Absolutely fantastic video! Really insightful as always. And I want to add my perspective on it. As someone who enjoyed reading through Mushoku Tensei, I will say that I mostly ignored a lot of these things the first time. Rudeus was always an awful character but other characters, as well as the world and plot gripped me. I told myself : "well, that's just your typical anime tropes" and moved along. Only after finishing the series and thinking about it more in depth did I realise how uncomfortable i was with its portrayal of relationships. And honestly, it now feels like the series actively tries to remain as bad as it can even as all the characters become adults. That I could ignore it during my entire readthrough tells me, above all else, that I was gravely desensitized to portrayals of sexual (and otherwise) abuse in fiction. I'm obviously not the only one in that case, as evidenced by the horde of MT fans defending Rudy's actions like he's their father come back from the tobacco store. And while Japan clearly doesn't have a monopoly on problematic fiction, it is definitely one of the biggest providers in the mainstream right now. Obviously this is related to all the "tourist" comments, which in my opinion stems from people getting too accustomed to the medium's worst trends. Tropes that would normally range from "kinda weird" to "really creepy" slowly become just little quirks of the medium in the eyes of many anime watchers. if someone tells you you're a tourist, just take it as "you kept your integrity and standards, how dare you ?" Now to the biggest thing of the video : the author's comment on slavery. I generally stick to judging works of fiction for what they are, independently of the context surrounding their production. For that reason, I am very cautious about judging an author based on their work, and force myself to not make assumptions (unless they're super obvious) The author of MT is no exception. Some people might have jumped the gun and call the author a pedo, but I wouldn't. He did seem to have a very poor understanding of the notion of consent (euphemism), but I also thought he sometimes had genuinely good intentions, only very, VERY bad execution. However, this comment on slavery really makes me rethink my stance. I find it extremely hard to not see it as a way for the author to disguise his views as Rudy's. Like, it really just sounds like an excuse. At best, it's an excuse for him to write that scene in (easily the worst in the entire series for Rudy's character) instead of having Julie come from an orphanage for example. I feel like any respectable author commenting on this scene would not paint Rudy's actions here as noble, but instead express that he is being very self serving. This reinforces that, just as you said, this is not a redemption story : apparently, Rudy's actions here as perfectly fine, he's being "respectful of other's culture" and "not all slaves are unhappy". And since the series constantly fails at portraying reprehensible actions as such, I am now forced to wonder what the author would say about all the horrible scenes in season 1. "Sylphy should've explained the situation more clearly" "Rudy was just pranking Eris" "He's just daydreaming, it's not hurting anybody" etc. I guess my conclusion concurs with yours : tackling these sensitive subjects is a good thing, but you need to put effort in understanding them, caution in exploring them, and intent in portraying them.

[@madwiththehat9932]

It could have been a great cautionary tale if ONLY this story was presented as "what if a mentaly deranged man with a lot of issues went to another world where everything bad in his previous life is accepted". Maybe he tryies to be a good man at the beginning, but seeing that this world is ok with his moral depravity he goes further and further, with some good bits every now and then.

[@gojojyrking1996]

I do agree with some of the things you say and I do dissagree with others. I think this is because we just happened to interpret the story differently so I am not going to say you are wrong for that becuase stories are ment to be interpreted differently and if you interpreted it that way then that is what the story is to you. One thing I do not agree on is your statement on how the subject matter of slaves have been handled in the series. You say that Rudeus does not deem slavery as evil yet we have seen him multiple times in season 1 condemn the act itself.

[@darthnius809]

Brother it gets so much fucking worse

[@theboneman7379]

The redemption of self story isn't about his sexual nature but rather his past way of life, mooching off his parents, no friends or really family after his parents death. no skills or ambition, not goals he strived for. I also really don't consider Rudeus an adult, mostly due to the fact that his hormones' and brain is that of his body. we could point to his past life knowledge but lets really delve into his past lifestyle. though he did seem to corrode his new brain with past traumas and habits. no friends and only every communicated to his family with abuse slung towards them, he'd play online games with people of similar mind set and jack off to porn upon porn of anything he could find no one to point out that he's destroying himself by doing this, kept to his own devises and mentality, in his own little echo chamber for 2 decades which started when he was 14 and at the start of high school. I truly don't consider him adult or mature as those are things garnered through living and fucking up. as a personal example I'm 22 and don't really consider myself adult or matured as I simply just don't have a clue as to what I'm doing most of the time. currently coasting through life with little to no motivation. Personally I just see Rudeus as in the proper body fit for his mentality as now he's able to make the fuck ups that he didn't in the past and grow up from them. in basic terms he's gone from a Man-Child to just a Child. we even see this in his behavior, thinking woman as dating sims characters that if you level their heart meters enough they'll allow you to do anything which is what he tried with Eris and failed, it was only shown through his knowledge and dedicated practice with his skills such as learning other languages and his magic, that Eris started to idolize him, after Orsted's attack and they recouped themselves Rudeus went to instantly trying to figure out "disturb magic" which to Eris who had lost her will to fight saw as absolutely incredible, especially from the only one who was legitimately in danger during that fight this was also where she misinterpreted that Rudeus wanted to fight Orsted again so she went off to train, though they cut that out. he is learning just not in the sexual category as of yet, but he will be around the second half of season 2 to season 3 if the pattern of adaptation stay the current path. as for the comments on him not being punished for his misconduct. Bit spoilery here but simply put this is a cruel world where a higher noble bought a lower noble families underaged daughter, had his way with her and then dumped her off into a slave trade where he proceeds to never be punished for that said action. this world doesn't really have a code of ethics, the strong flourish and the weak are abused. as for the changes the story wish to actually emphasized in his character. The 1st change was him deciding to actually start living his life, around his birthday. The 2nd was going outside, obviously the Roxy part. The 3rd was him figuring that people are people as at the start he really only saw everyone else as side characters in his game, Roxy did initiate this change but it was the Sylphie bath scene that solidified it for him, but old habits die hard The 4th was with Eris when she rejected him and told him to wait, which despite him porn addled mind he respected until she advanced on him. The 5th was in fact the ED as much as people laugh, you could say that was his punishment for not waiting, if he were to have waited he would just have abandonment issues instead of sexual scarcity and abandonment. the 6th is the sexual change you seem to desire, but that would go into spoiler territory so I'm going to stop here with this comment. of course this could be what I read into about the series, but others also read the same so I cant say fully if it was intentional or not of the author, but it wouldn't surprise me if it was Obviously I disagree with you but I don't mean you any ill will, simply desired to give my prospective as someone who owns all the currently translated novels.

[@xplosives1752]

whats number 6? I've read the full series and I can't tell what you're referring to.

[@theboneman7379]

@@xplosives1752 spoilers for others it might be my own interpterion then but essentially its his first marriage were while he's still prevy in thought occasionally, he refrain from laying his hands on anyone outside of his eventual three wives. seems to be the guys main disdain for Rudeus.

[@goat7557]

@@theboneman7379 the distain is that Rudis is a actual pedo it doesn’t matter that he isn’t even more of a scum bag cause he doesn’t cheat on his wives his a scumbag for being a pedo groomer who doesn’t learn that his way of thinking isn’t healthy nor morally good. I still like the series but rudeus sucks and mcs like him show me how much of a better written character my favorite mcs are like Subaru but idk I just like character who grow and don’t stay at the starting point through the whole story

[@ygtyrell8965]

He was a full grown man but can we say that his brain was fully formed

[@AsarathaHSYT]

Yes

[@ygtyrell8965]

@@AsarathaHSYT so you generally believe that a person who has not left their room in 20 years and has had next to 0 interaction with people whilst dealing with trauma will be fully developed?

[@AsarathaHSYT]

Yes. Their brain is fully developed. To say otherwise is a very slippery slope when it comes to justifying actual real life bad behavior.@@ygtyrell8965

[@ygtyrell8965]

@@AsarathaHSYT i am not justifiying the behaviour, but ii also dont believe someone whos not left there room for 20 years to make the best choices

[@AsarathaHSYT]

@argoimpact2972 Objectively wrong. If his new brain was different he would not have the same thoughts, memories, and experiences of his old brain.

[@mike1564]

Damn. I haven't watched mushoku tensei and after watching this I don't think I will. Like I heard that mushoku just like re zero is the protagonist maturing and becoming a better person. But if at season 2 he still does this horrid shit then I don't think it's worth it. Like people say Subaru is as bad as Rudeus but like is he a pedo? did he sexually assault anyone?

[@applel2.043]

The anime community can be backward sometimes lol. People was hating subaru back in 2016 where ep 13 launch and he was just creep while rudeus over here groom children and he have a whole army defending him . Not only that but people were complaining about Subaru crying too much when he literally die while rudeus over here try to suicide because he got dump by his girlfriend and everyone called it good writing.

[@mike1564]

@@applel2.043 Tbh him commiting suicide after rejection is in character since he's that of a fucking loser lol. And I think people only really hated subaru after episode 18 because half of the anime community is fucking braindead and they can't read so they just assumed that it was all about rejecting Rem, like they thought they were right there beside her even tho she ain't real.

[@stuckerfan2563]

Yeaht the first season was okay for me but the current season just disgusts the hell out of me

[@kenja935]

Rudy is not a good person who disagree is just sick in the head. And the story is not about to become a good person. Its a story about his life, his struggles. It is different then other isekai anime but its not a hero story. The only thing rudy cares fore is himself and his love ones. He is not the hero type of person other people(watcher) sees in him.

[@argy7526]

good anime but rudeus... it could have been within the top 10 anime of all time easily but rudeus and his weirdness drag it down he is a groomer, slaver, is a degenerate and many more honestly the anime should have cut all this scenes out we all know they left important staff out why not remove this its not like he ever develops the "development" is on the girls growing up, from all the girls he got i will say ok for the blue haired girl (i dont remember her name) who is like 400 or sth she is x10 his real age (not the one the others think he is) as for the rest no matter how much the anime changed isnt eris his cousin?

[@xie215]

W that was my criticism of it too but I like how they make ppl actually like him still for example like they do with water white in Breaking Bad its a shame that it is as bad as Rudious being a literal pedophile tho I think that's too far but I will wait for the upcoming seasons of the series if that aspect of him changes because maybe it just didn't come to that form of development for him yet and the writer is focusing on dif things still. But I 10000% agree that rudious being awarded for his actions is bad. So my criticism goes down to Rudy is a predator and gets rewarded for it and the show doesn't yet show any sines of his change in that regard. He is also okay with slavery (another thing I ABSOLUTELY agree with) and to make it simple he is an incel and gets awarded for it. Hopefully this criticism gets sealed in the future tho because I hate pedos.

[@hyphenq]

MT woukd be good if Ghislaine was the protag

[@shidokusunagi7755]

Am I fucked up for liking this story? Idk… I always don’t have anything to say anything back from these types of criticism since it’s true. Especially unfiltered things that this show does is quite fucked up and idk why I never thought of it that way.

[@machodgdon]

Finally another midtensei hater

[@jeremiahnoar7504]

The idea of it being a grand redemption arc where an evil person finds a way to redeem himself is the only thing that kept me watching.

[@ygtyrell8965]

Not seeing changes, this is obviously wrong but you see him groping Eris at the start of season 1 but at the end when she tries to sleep with him he initally rejects due to her mental state, at the start he would not have had this consideration

[@AsarathaHSYT]

Huge development 😱😱

[@ygtyrell8965]

@@AsarathaHSYT it is a form of development but it doesnt fit your narrative

[@tapz02]

@@AsarathaHSYT looooooooooool

[@copiipasta1468]

he still slept with a minor and attempted to sleep with a minor in season 2@@ygtyrell8965

[@AsarathaHSYT]

Development is when you go from assaulting women to waiting 0.1 seconds before assaulting women. This is peak character writing, actually@@ygtyrell8965

[@turtier]

So, Eris was 15, so technically she was an adult in this universe... but I don't say that to defend it. Actually, I think it's kinda telling. I like how they only celebrate birthdays every 5 years, but its a much bigger event, thats cool. The logic they gave for the adult age being 15 is that it's a multiple of 5, which makes sense... but why not 20? It would make sense, and even irl I think 20 makes more sense as an adult age than 18. But the adult age is 15... why? You could argue that with a different world and culture, and even biological differences with the people in a fantasy world, that people mature quicker. I could kinda get behind that, but it would have to be handled carefully, and probably only in shows that don't have any sexual focus. But here, it does just kinda give me the impression that the adult age was set at 15 as an excuse to make underage teenagers technically adults. And even my theoretical argument of people maturing quicker in this world is kinda thrown out the window when Eris still very much resembles a 15yr rather than an adult.

[@calistusjay60]

People should watch Re:Zero for an actually well done version of this Isekai redemption plot. Ah, but then they’d have to confront a character that mirrors their worst traits back at them and doesn’t dress it up with fan service scenes of young girls or comedic degeneracy which makes them uncomfortable.

[@kap1618]

I have issues with Re Zero, namely how is it a redemption when the person in question is a literal teenager? Subaru is a idiot but he's just a teen so what does anyone expect.

[@АртёмТаран-ш7к]

Ok i kindna see your points here. Personally perv jokes are not bother me. For me its 50/50 cringe/funny. Talking about Rudeus itself, he is indeed a pervert scummbag, but he have redeeming qualities. Like, he actually cares about his family and friends and willing to protect them like he did with Eris when she gets kidnaped in s1 part1 ,with Orsted encounter, and when he saved Sara in s2 Sylpyette grooming thought was fucked up, but he kindna abandoned this thought, he never manipulate, abuse her or some shit. Just was friendly and teach her magic. Eris interactions were more wild. To be fair they developed a legit bond on devil continent though their journey but Im not gonna be a devil apologist and just say, sex scene was fucked up. I just consider it a lowest point for both characters. This and the slavery thing. All in all i do think Rudeus is morally wrong character most of times, it just makes him more interesting for me. It is fiction characters can make morally wrong desidions and still be good characters from writing stand point, like Griffith. i just wanna say the story is really intriguing and makes you wonder what comes next. Rudeus character is a big part of it but not ALL of it. If Rudeus endgame and what character he become will disapont me, show still have worldbuilding, interesting side characters, good action, and good portion of mystery to its plot (Like what was this portal cataclysm, who is Orsted and what his bussines he have with Hitogami, who actually is Hitogami and what his motives).

[@undecidedopinions1188]

Good video even tho I disagree with the video😂

[@strahinja9803]

Nah mushoku peak

[@Souplord1]

I agree

[@gurnoorsekhon6402]

Hiw is this show airing around the same time as Vinland saga and people defend this views on slavery?

[@benjamincounter931]

I agree with most of your points in this video ngl kinda challenges my perception of the story. That said I really dont fw Rudeus but he def does change quite a lot though over the course of the anime