Kemono Michi: Rise Up (2019)

[旗揚！けものみち]

Director: Kazuya Miura
Studio: ENGI
Starring: Katsuyuki Konishi, Rie Suegara, Akira Sekine
Episodes: 12

Synopsis:
An animal-loving pro wrestler is summoned to another world, but instead of becoming the hero to defeat the Demon Lord and his army of monsters, he instead strives to open up a pet shop.

Impressions:
The premise of this show caught my interest. If we're going to have yet another isekai, we need to be doing something other than the usual milquetoast NEET turned nigh-invulnerable demigod. Genzou our lead certainly breaks the mold there and casting Katsuyuki Konishi in the role was a savvy choice. Also, the story comes from Akira Natsume of KonoSuba fame, so that should give you all the more reason to expect something out of the ordinary. At first, I was rather into it, but Genzou became such an abrasively one-note character that my investment quickly waned. It also doesn't help that this self-professed animal lover is so awful at taking care of animals. If that was twisted into part of the joke, that might be something, but that doesn't happen. Surprisingly, Shigure—who first impressions would lead you to believe she's a useless wastrel like Aqua—actually ends up being the most grounded member of the cast and you honestly start to wonder why she sticks with someone like Genzou. There is some good stuff to be had here, but it can't hold a candle to KonoSuba and even as far as comedic subversions of isekai just in this season are concerned, it comes up short. If the show's sense of humor clicks with you, you should have enough to get through to the end, but if not, it wears out its welcome quickly. Take it or leave it.

Rating:
50/50