Shangri-La Frontier (2023–2024) User Reviews

Revised review - this show is great

[Tasteless_Critic_Takes · 9/10 · 15 October 2023]

My previous review of the series is listed below:

SLF is a pretty unserious, low stakes and carefree exploration into the fantasy genre, which doesn't exercise massive stupid rules of the world on you, just shows you a guy diving into a good game, a bit like a dark souls style VR game, having fun. You don't get the stupid parts of an isekai no one likes but it feels a bit like it's set in an isekai world, and while the worldbuilding and characters don't show anything new to you, I think the plain and simple idea is refreshing in itself and low effort.

Episodes of the show go down easy - you don't have to devote your whole soul to reading into the plot, there's good production quality and music, and so far no blisteringly irritating characters. Looking for a chilled out show that isn't boring? This is it! You literally will not get bored watching these early episodes at least - things unfold fast and well, and with a small amount of comedy to keep it light and a standard MC who realises gaming is a hobby and anything but edgy, it's just simple to watch.

The most notable thing about this show for me? Nothing! Let me reiterate how formulaic and standard it has been thus far, and yet it's not remotely boring. I can't quite place my finger on what's so interesting about it. It almost has an air of uniqueness to it.

In what could've been summarised in 3 sentences - good show, not special but still worth your time. Better than most of its genre.

Now this was what I had to say 3 episodes in. I was thinking this show had potential but would succumb to shameless fanservice or the like within a couple episodes and the ideas would run out. We're now about halfway through tje first season, and I have to say this show is worth investing your time in.

Shangri-La Frontier may not seem immediately special, but the fact the intensity of the show is so huge when it wants to be despite no "you die in game you die in reality" or such tropes makes me think it is special. It's not a shameless trope or a generic show because it isn't forcing itself to do more to make the concept interesting.

The show is genuinely entertaining. The characters are all quite funny and while there hasn't been a major male character besides Rakuro himself the women in this show are treated as human beings. The worldbuilding is literally incredible - I was a skeptic at first but they genuinely have thought everything and the combination of sci-fi and fantasy is well balanced. The enemies are well designed like the author was actually trying to make a fleshed out real game rather than just having slime number 2 followed by the main character fighting solely in PvP for the rest of the show. They've made it clear now that they are invested in making a realistic game where the progress in PvE in the show is going to be a part of the plot.

So I really think I needed to amend anything I stabbed at last time I reviewed - this show is special, is actually original and I can feel the intensity and hype without the stakes of death on the line because it's well written. It's also not trying to drop sob stories on people which is great.

9/10. Genuinely higher caliber than expected.

Intriguing and Exciting

[talking_about_movies · 8/10 · 7 April 2024]

"Listen, do you want to know the truth about this world?"

Shangri-La Frontier is a very entertaining anime. In terms of entertainment alone, this would be my pick of the season. It's about a very imaginative, grand and subtly mysterious video game. It's the kind of video game that you'll love to play yourself, because it's just that cool.

There's a lot to like about SLF. First of all, let's get to our protagonist - Sunraku. I thought he was a great protagonist and he was somewhat inspiring and I'll tell you why. He sets very high standards for himself. He never shied away from a challenge. He wouldn't forgive himself if he did.

Next, we have world-building. And that's one of the main reasons why SLF is so entertaining. The world of this game is vast and full of surprises, which is perfect for an entertaining story. I loved seeing Sunraku figure this game out as an experienced gamer. The side characters are also very likeable. Pencilgon and Emul in particular were my favourites. There was also that little mystery about how good the AI of the game is because you could hardly distinguish an NPC from a player if you compared their behaviour. There were many of these little mysteries surrounding this game and I'd love to see where this story goes.

The one thing about this anime that surprised everyone, was the technical aspect. Studio C2C has made okay-ish animes before. But SLF right here is their big break. The animation might not be consistent, but it's absolutely brilliant in the important scenes. And I think that's perfectly fine. The Wethermon fight scene was jaw-dropping in terms of visuals. The soundtrack too was very entertaining throughout the anime.

Overall I had a lot of fun with SLF and I can't wait for season 2!!!! I can't believe we'll get about 50 episodes in just 1.5 years. Thank you C2C! I'd definitely recommend watching this anime if you haven't.

Stakes? What stakes?

[MightyKDP · 9/10 · 6 April 2024]

I was skeptical at first. Another anime about a virtual world, where nothing the characters do really matters in the grand scheme of things?

Just like the happenings in every piece of entertainment don't really matter much in our world beyond our own personal, emotional investment in them. SLF makes you care about the game world and curious about it's mysteries and NPC inhabitants. The characters are colourful, unique, and easy to distinguish from each other. The action is great. The character relationships and interactions are endearing. There may or may not be a singing rabbit.

When the season concluded, I went and read the manga (also fantastic), and there is a lot more cool stuff on the way for anime fans.

Beautifully done. A worthy adaptation.

The critic review is a joke

[nielsenmike-74851 · 10/10 · 8 November 2023]

As always you just can't trust critics. This show is amazing. It's got reallyGood characters a great story the fight scenes look very well done.

This anime is going to be one you don't want to miss out on. It's going to have 24 episodes as well which is a huge plus. 12 episodes are fine but when you double it, yessssssir. I'm not really sure what else to say because I don't want to ruin it with spoilers but just do yourself a favor and watch it I'd be surprised If you don't give it a personal rating of 8/ 10 For me it's. 10/10 I'm huge into anime and also video games so these ones just hit different for me.

Go watch it.

I've no idea why this show isn't more popular or rated higher. It's excellent.

[jochang-30856 · 9/10 · 22 April 2024]

Wasting time watching a new series just to find out it's terrible is the worst, so when Shangri-La Frontier popped up as an option I very nearly skipped it. No one talks about this show. There's no buzz or hype that I've seen whatsoever, and given how much mediocre anime there is out there at a glance this seemed more of the same. It isn't. It's actually quite good. I'd go so far as to say it's the best 'full-dive' online game anime I've ever seen, easily on par / surpassing bigger titles such as Log Horizon, Overlord, SAO, and Accel World.

The creators are obviously mmo gamers themselves. You can see this in showcased mechanics, message board behavior from the community, or hilarious moments set-up for maximum, social awkwardness. While you don't need to be a gamer to enjoy it (they provide charming, pop-up explanations for the uninitiated), it's made for people who are.

Story itself is told really well. Pacing is spot on. The surprising amount of attention given to specific events also makes you excited for what comes next. They could have easily cut-out entire episodes for the sake of time or additional work involved but they didn't. It's deliberate, and far better for it. Clearly there's real vision for the overall story being told and no shortcuts are being taken here.

SLF isn't an isekai. There are no life-threatening stakes involved, no one is trapped, and there are zero irl concerns worth mentioning of any kind. That's part of what makes it unique. IMDB doesn't classify it properly, either. Sure, there's action, adventure and the tech involved is fantasy by current standards. But this is a comedy first and foremost. It's deliberately dumb at certain points, and funny in the best way. SLF knows exactly what it is and pulls it off perfectly.

I really enjoyed this show. If any of the above sounds appealing, you will, too.

Best game anime I've seen

[hfdjtcnnv · 10/10 · 7 May 2024]

This feels like it was written by someone who actually plays games or at least did their research. The MC is a guy who hunts and exploits glitches and unlike a lot of the protags I see for this kind of thing he isn't a sad friendless loser, which is a nice change of pace. He actually has friends he chats with across games who each have their own weird approaches and playstyles. I liked the understanding the writer has that games are communal. The people who are breaking this game have a history of doing the same kind of thing across other games.

They're good at games because they test each other in competition and swap ideas. The protagonist wasn't born special, he's someone with a long standing hobby of playing unfair games and using solid meta understanding or exploits to get through them.

The world of the game itself is interesting, and actually sounds like something I would enjoy playing. It leaves the game's main story a mystery and then drops hints at it instead of front loading the viewer with infodumps over explaining everything like a lot of anime do. I think the show is building a mystery on the real life side on why the game works the way it does, and I'm interested in seeing how that pans out.

Lazy MC Character Design, Bad Storyline, Not an Isekai, Comedy VR Game

[shuvongkor · 1/10 · 26 March 2024]

If you ever watched SAO, then you know that anime is not a true Isekai but still SAO is a interesting concept that has Excellent MC Design, Excellent MC's Waifu Desgin with a great storyline and great action adventure in the VR world. There is a seriousness and dept to it. Well, "Shangri-La Frontier" is the opposite of that. The MC's character Design is just Lazy and Pathetic. His backstory is pathetic as well. He plays all the pathetic games that no one plays. When there are perfectly good AAA VR games exists. And when he finally start to play a AAA game, there he wears a "Bird mask" and no clothing or armor. It's seems like the writer intentionally did this so that the MC's mouth won't have to be animated. Nor his clothing or armor need to be animated. Saving money in anime production. Even his first Waifu Design in the VR World is Lazy and stupid and nonsense. She wears a huge male Armor that should not even fit her. And we all know in Game World all female armor and clothing supposed to be skimpy/lightweight in design. That is just common sense. And the writer makes her run fast with that huge male armor which is pure nonsense. Well if you want something different and awkard that normal then this anime is for you. This anime is also a comedy. The MC's talks too much even in battle, and he talks with himself. If you think about it, it's actually good that he wears a bird mask all the time. So that we don't have to suffer watching his mouth running all the time. There is a reason Good AAA games MC don't talk. And the writer didn't knew that.

Ultimately this anime is about a guy who plays pathetic games decides to play a Popular AAA VR Open World Game with a Bird Mask and no clothing or armor. No lives are at any risk here. It's just a game. And the MC wants to beat it. Although beating the game accomplish nothing. No one is actually in danger. There is no real plot here.