Reviews for Ranking of Kings: The Treasure Chest of Courage

So, just in case somebody started watching this and is confused, this is NOT Season 2 of Ousama Ranking. Rather, it's a series of specials covering side material from the manga that didn't entirely fit into the constraints of Season 1. As such, it's more an anthology of little self-contained vignette stories that add to the series' lore and flesh out the characters and story more. They are not all closely-related to each other, and the order they're watched in at least mostly doesn't really matter. That said, it's still very much Ranking of Kings. Same fantastic production values, same high-quality storytelling. Just in bite-sized chunks. Some ofthem are light and fluffy, and some dark, and some incredibly moving. Looking at you for those last two things, Prince Ouken.

If you enjoyed Season 1, you'll probably enjoy this. You may not be hanging on for dear life waiting for the next episode as there really aren't cliffhangers to these specials, but you're still getting Bojji and the whole crew, and you're getting a TON of fantastic worldbuilding.

It may be a bit before there's enough manga material for Season 2. I'm ecstatic that Treasure Chest of Courage is here to somewhat bridge the gap!

It's the return of the sign language Prince Bojji the GOAT once again! Just not what you expect from this time... I mean clearly, the main parent story that aired and lasted for a consecutive 2-cour between Fall 2021 and Winter 2022 to really rush the manga (because of its chapters which are filled with short panels), it was, and still is to this day, in my opinion, a triumph to Wit Studio and the staff under then-debut director Yousuke Hatta's dedication, in terms of capturing mangaka Sousuka Toka's childlike storytelling that has everyone captivated and cheering on the underdog of one of the most underappreciated,to a master juggernaut of a show back in its day. And now, there is a new Ousama Ranking anime, and you should rejoice...right? However, it's just not in the same wavelength as you would expect, but I reassure you, it's the same Ousama Ranking that you like and/or love from the main series.

The new anime, dubbed Ousama Ranking: Yuuki no Takarabako a.k.a Ranking of Kings: The Treasure Chest of Courage, it's not Season 2, but the adaptation of the culmination of the manga's side stories. Basically what that means that this show is a direct canon to the main series and provides kind of a "behind-the-scenes" look on how and why do the characters in this show think and do the way they did in the main series. In a TL;DR sense, it allures and showcases the same expectations from the main series that does not feel like its presence has shrunk ever since the year's gap between the parent story and this "spin-off filler" series. And it is to my eyes, a great addition that's akin to a cake's in-between icing that adds more flavour and substance to an otherwise great show to begin with. As an example, for one, getting to understand what's on the characters' minds and psyche of the things they do at the moment of the main story's worldbuilding and development, it just simply oozes fascination, more than just questions and answers to an already subtle plot.

That said, Wit Studio under director Yousuke Hatta comes back to wield the side story anime, and it's still pretty much Ousama Ranking under the shell, with all of the fascinating artwork and choices of animation that impresses the same way, just like its main cousin. And while Aimer's ED is just plain beautiful to listen to, PEOPLE 1's OP is just fine, not on the levels of Season 1's OP maestros of King Gnu and Vaundy, but decently good.

If you like Ousama Ranking to begin with, I don't see why this show isn't as good as the main series already is. It's additional fuel for entertainment, and this IS good entertainment while we wait for the eventual Season 2 (if there will be any once the manga has caught up to the anime and progressed further).

Good stuff all around.

Ooofie, I think that's a very effective way to describe how this 10 episode collection of Ousama Ranking related side stories comes off as; While it can be really enjoyable to spend some more time with the characters outside the drama and plot of the parent series, it really had me wondering… “Why”? Why did this need to happen?, were people so starved for Ousama Ranking content that 10 episodes of random shenanigans that happened off-screen was really worth our time? The answer is no. A BIG no. This is NOT season 2 of Ousama Ranking, so don't get discouraged from watching the main show overthis spin-off's rating or reviews.

So it's a 10 episode journey through different moments of the show, mostly on what happened alongside those moments. Which range from showing us how Ouken, a mayor villain of the show's first season, came to be, to episodes where the entire show's continuity and established world are disregarded to tell cute and wholesome stories. The problem is; these stories do NOTHING, they don't change how decisions the characters make come off, don't give any more information about a character's motivations or background, and it doesn't have anything to say about the world. It occasionally does one of these, yes, but it's rare and won't be likely to really affect the main show in the long run.

Couldn't we have gotten a look at the broader Ousama ranking world? Other kingdoms or characters who won't get as fleshed out in the manga series or the anime? New original stories? When it doesn't work, it feels like a wasted opportunity to really get into many interesting topics of the series, instead, it's just reestablishing things we've already seen. And when it works, it's not telling anything too new, just expanding on old ideas again.

The Characters? None get arcs because there is no overarching plot. This also makes all of them less appealing.

The Animation? Not as clean as the main show's because they evidently have less budget and fights hint at conflict, which this spin-off avoids at all costs.

The Music? Uninteresting.

If you're a certified Ousama Ranking enjoyer like me, check out the show with freedom to skip any story you don't care about, you'll miss nothing on almost every story told here. You'll like this show more than the average person if the flowers and spice and the everything nice is enjoyable to you.

If you just like ousama ranking or lower, then skip this, it won't be worthwhile.

This is a tough one. Ranking of Kings itself is one of my favorite anime of all time; but it was noticeable from the first episode that this was not the same. It jumps from side character to side character, and plotline to plotline, rarely ever giving the viewer anything relevant to what made the first season special. There were a few genuinely great episodes thrown in here that continued the plot or supplied important context, but there was a large amount of pointless filler, as well. I almost dropped this at one point. A better idea than making this a full pseudo-season would have beento make a special or two where they included the good ideas that they clearly had, and eliminated half-baked and fillery ones. It would have made it look a lot less like they were just trying to throw anything out there to tide us over until the true season two.

i'm already in love with Ousama ranking so my review maybe bias lol once you start watching you realize this is not season 2 but it's a collection of stories that goes before and after the original story. there is no order for them so you don't have to watch the episodes in order and most episodes has more than one story. the stories for me answered some questions and filled some gaps from the original story which is fulfilling and the afterward stories are delightful. what is appealing for me that they cover all the characters even though some people would argue thatthey want more of Bojji or that they don't really care about other characters but as we all know from season 1 you can't end up hating any character in ousama ranking and that is one of the charm in story, well at least for me cause i'm a huge believer of gray & there is no complete white and black in the world, so we get to see all sides of the characters and get better understanding for them. some stories are light, cute and funny while other are heavy and emotional.

all in all it has everything i loved in the original story and i'm happy we got to watch more cause yep the amount of positive energy i get from this anime is like no other.

to be fair at 1st i gave it 8 but as i watched more i had to give it 10

I was quite saddened by how low the score is, it might not be a season 2 of Ousama Ranking, but it still manage to deliver. It was a very decent watch from start from finish. Yuuki no Takarabako focused more on the side stories and what happens in between the season 1 of Ousama Ranking. I think it manages to flesh out the characters more with how they have limited screen time back in season 1. One might think this is filler, but for me it certainly doesn't feel like one. The animation while not quite the spectacle as season 1 is still fairlygood. A bit of spoiler, I like that they use a unique animation for episode 9, very picture book-ish. Maybe some people see it as a major turn-off but it feels like a breath of fresh air to me than the usual anime style. The characters again is the main highlight of the series, each one has their own goals, personality and identity. I love every character in this anime because each of them felt unique and alive. This one stood out for me because I love anime that focuses on characters.

My slight problem with this anime is the world building. It's still vague but we get to see bits and pieces of the Demon clan, but that's just it. There are a few plot point that maybe the season 2 will explain, because there are still a lot to unravel about the world of Ousama Ranking.

Overall it's a must watch if you enjoy watching Ousama Ranking, it certainly stood out in terms of pure fantasy than your average isekai "fantasy" that's been milked to dry these days. Thanks for reading.

I am not a fan of Ranking of Kings. It was decent until the ending just ruined everything. I wasn’t too excited for this anthology season, but I just said why not. The first 4 episodes were boring as these small stories didn’t add much of anything. It’s only episode 5 afterwards that I found enjoyment in this season. The background story of Ouken and the brothers was actually very interesting and grim. The stories became more relevant and added more motivation to the characters. They still didn’t help the ending of the original show tho. Overall, there’s some enjoyable stories that helped theoriginal show. 6.5-7/10

To me this show felt like some ideas some stories that were supposed to be implemented in S1 but due to air time limitations were cut out and don't sometimes they don't fit that well, due to changes that had to be done to make the S1 compatible. I wish we got 33 episodes in a mannerly order and with the full story, but oh well some stuff had to be left out to fit the timeline. Is the show any good? Well due to many plot jumps it feels a bit messy, but it is not a bad show in general, same qualityis kept. Maybe 1 day we will get a remastered version like what happened to Hunter X Hunter.

Is it nesesery to watch? I feel like if you want to stick to this series you should definitely watch it. Maybe if you didn't watch neither stories someone arranged the episodes in some manner to represent how the story is supposed to go and you can follow some kind of list to watch it in an orderly fashion.

I'm a bit disappointed that this has happened, but in the end anime is a business. Maybe one day when we get more animators in the western world that are on par with those great anime studios from japan we can get more stuff done. In the end money rules it all, and remember that every time you see a poor adaptation of a work you found rather great.

It’s difficult to rate this one because the episodes are all so variable. Aside from the very last, every episode is broken into fragments covering often entirely different characters at distinct points in time. On occasion, this really works, with episodes 1, 4, and 10 being particular highlights, and portions of the others working pretty well. It also gives the animators room to do some pretty extra stuff, including making part of two episodes in a much more storybook style that kind of works despite the lesser fluidity of the animation. But that’s just it: this show works in part, but not so well as awhole. Some of these parts would have been great inserted directly into the show, some would have dragged won the pacing, some are just repeats of things that happened in the series and some are expansions on concepts from the series… though some expansions are a lot less necessary than others.

There’s a lot of interesting here with some really good ideas lumped in with a lot of meh. And that’s disappointing because these characters are still excellent, the animation quality remains high, and this is still the same great story I fell in love with before, but I have to evaluate it based on what they gave me this time around and… it’s kind of a mess. A mess with great moments, but it’s hard to recommend beyond just enjoying seeing more of these characters and these settings.

English. This anime continues to surprise me a lot, I would define it as a very good relief to the soul, from the previous season we were left with a super beautiful story of a boy who wants to be the best in an entire ranking of kings, here we see small stories that happened in the course of the first season, stories focused on the characters' past where we see their motivations or why they did some actions in the series that, although they did not need an explanation, they gave it to us in a very good way, that throughout the entire the seriesending with some beautiful episodes where they tell us a heartbreaking story.

The animation is beautiful, you can distinguish them from the first moment you saw it. The characters in this season are beautiful, as I said before, they explain things to us that give a lot of depth to them and they give us super interesting stories.

Of course I recommend this second season, I think many would have wanted to see the continuation of our king but this is much better than I thought, give it the opportunity, it is just as good as the first season and it will entertain you a lot.

Español.

Me sigue sorprendiendo muchísimo este anime, lo definiría como un alivio al alma muy bueno, desde la temporada anterior nos quedamos con una historia super hermosa de un niño que quiere ser el mejor de todo un ranking de reyes, aquí vemos historias pequeñas que sucedieron en el transcurso de la primera temporada, historias enfocadas en el pasado de los personajes en donde vemos sus motivaciones o el porque hicieron algunas acciones en la serie que aunque no necesitaban una explicación nos la dieron de una muy buena manera, eso en el transcurso de toda la serie terminando con unos episodios hermosos donde nos relatan una historia desgarradora.

La animación es hermosa, la distinguirlas desde el primer momento en que la vieras. Los personajes en está temporada son hermosos, como lo dije con anterioridad nos explican cosa que le dan mucha profundidad a estos y a nosotros nos dan historias super interesantes.

Claro que recomiendo está segunda temporada, pienso que muchos hubieran querido ver la continuación de nuestro rey pero esto es mucho mejor de lo que pensaba, denle la oportunidad es igual de buena que su primera temporada y te entretendrá muchísimo.

People truly loved Ranking of Kings season 1, maybe a bit of a surprise hit due to the relatively small following of the original source material, and I think a LOT of fans were hotly anticipating the continuation of this fantastic story. So I get the feeling that people feel a bit cheated in terms of what "The Treasure Chest of Courage" (or TCoC) brought. Clearly not "Season 2" but you can never be sure these days. "Filler" is such a dreaded word and not really a useful or even meaningful discussion point; well, quite frankly I'm just tired of using it as a criticalnarrative talking point. Because TCoC is more of an anthology, a backstory, a creator or larger contexts, a new secret adventure, and a warm embrace. And yes... some *actual* canon events (see episode 10). Which is ultimately why I still love TCoC.

Each new episode is its own thing. It lives up to its original series' tone, is a wellspring of incredible artistic talent, does right by its characters, and expands on what we already love. It just may not continue the main questline, but it gives me hope and fills me with patience for it to continue someday. Who knows what reasons for attempting this collection of stories happened? Studio Wit has always been an opportunity for young artists and experimental visual storytelling. Perhaps this was the perfect opportunity to add certain scenes that didn't fit into the pacing of the original anime. Maybe they are waiting for other major projects to clear up until they could get back all the original artists/directors back for a full season. It almost doesn't matter because what TCoC offers, while not hotly desired, is still incredibly unique and a very interesting case study on dividing main-plot elements from side-plot elements that perhaps begs to be looked into for other studios.

But it's not all even; thems the breaks when it comes to anthologies as anyone who watched Star Wars Visions could tell you. So I'd like to talk about each episode/episode story and give my thoughts. And which ones are the most "required reading" for those only interested in the main story... you stick in the mud!

Episode 1

Kage's Errand - This one is very cute. It's Kage focused which is an extra plus for me. The forest is a really nice setting but I really like the twist of this one. The idea of the "Wild Goose Chase" bit into the reveal that it all ended up being a carefully constructed way to test Kage's kindness. It hides the twist until the very end very well.

The Price and The Money - No it's Boji's turn to be tested. I love how you can really see the interplay between Boji and Kage here coming up with the scheme and figuring out how to make things right in the end. It's a very simple "lesson learned" and everything works out no one needed to feel bad after all moment but it's nice to be reminded of this stage of Boji and Kage's moral growth. The Underworld town is also a very cool location and a great pitstop in the story to organically add an extra opportunity to learn.

Episode 2

Beasts of the Wilderness - Speaking of great pitstops to organically add new side adventures, this may not be one of them. Time is of the essence as Boji and the Underworld army rush back home to battle Miranjo's forces. It could have probably taken an extra day, though we never see them travel any time other than daytime making it seem like the trip was a few hours. But the main problem is the story I think. Boji and Kage are markedly more naive than previously seen and the twist is funny but hardly resolves anything and renders the side adventure less worth the endeavor of telling it.

A Mysterious Desert - This was the episode that made the casual lax nature of the characters seem the most bizarre in light of where the story needs them to be. This episode is maybe the weirdest. It almost feels like we tripped into a Space Dandy episode. Well, it's very pretty at least.

Episode 3

Hiling's Old Friend - Remember Hilling's knight friend Ann? She never gets any explanation and sort of just shows up with her later. Well, I love her along with Hilling and this episode is great for introducing their history for the first time. The little quest the two of them and Dorshe go on is super fun and feels like a natural extension of the story we never got to see in the original show.

Daida and Magic - Precious! Getting to see more of the Prince brothers while they were young is the cherry on top of this episode. Short and sweet and you get to learn more about Daida's connection to his mother's magic and his brother's courage, which makes it heartbreaking knowing their temporary falling out upon growing up.

Episode 4

Immortality and the Three Brothers - One of the more "important" episodes. We already know some of this story from the original series, but if you want a detailed and more thorough backstory that catalogs the evil acts of Satin and the relationship of the former brothers more, then watch this episode. Especially considering where episode 10 ends, you may feel emotionally left out without getting more of this now!

Episode 5

The Law of the Underworld - A direct continuation of the previous episode follows an Underworld guard Fren. I like how this shows the relationships between guards and even the "bar trio" show up here again. It also expands on Ouken's cure mission. It feels far more like new material too.

A White Horse in Love - It's just more of the "Despa's White Horse is fat" joke. Breaking up the episode this way after a lot of interesting stuff with a joke that's partially repeated content? Well, it's still funny. I like the jokes here still but it's not a stretch to call this "padding".

The Gentle Soldier, Hokuro - We don't get too much Hokura. I like this character a fair bit. His inclusion in the story is small but he adds heart where it's needed. This is a small wholesome flashback story. It's simple and doesn't overstay it's welcome.

Episode 6

Bojji the King - We move to the end of Season 1 where Boji gets to be King (for only a bit) but this story helps show Boji's growth and his relationship with the townsfolk. I could have seen this in the actual show but it works better as a bonus here (pacing-wise). I could have seen this story placed closer to episode 10 to help build anticipation for TCoC's finale.

The Melancholy of King Daida - I was excited to get more from the "reformed" Miranjo since her ending didn't sit with me as great as the rest of the way the story wrapped up. There still seems like there's more to be done regarding Daida's relationship with her and the complexity of her "forgiveness arc". This is still more of a Daida story in the end. It's still a great one showing *his* growth, but well... maybe next time.

Episode 7

The Snake Charmer with the Crooked Smile - Big Four backstory <3 ! We get to learn more about the first time Bebin and Despa met. Also, we see more of Despa's ability in understanding weaknesses. Nothing here that couldn't have been assumed but fills in more of Bebin's past nonetheless.

The Big Four's Banquet - The Big Four have to kiss and make up. This story is great. I love the plan to appeal to the four's competitive nature to get them to work together. Seeing them all get humbled is as fun as the excitement from the arm-wrestling match. The way the team actually manages to get back in each other's good graces actually goes against Hokuro's expectations (since his plan fails at the end), but honestly, if his plan didn't fail I don't see where the path of them working together would have gone. It's a little finicky but they stick the landing.

Episode 8

Kage's Yearning - Kage and his mother's flashback story. It's sweat! We deepen our understanding of their time together as a family and we also see the first person that ever encouraged Kage before even Boji. I want to see that dude in the future!

A Great Mother - One of two stories that utilize an incredibly smooth cutout paper "puppet" animation style. Not sure how to describe it. This one's about King Bosse meeting his first wife. We know some of this story already but it's worth a watch for the change in visual style alone.

Episode 9

Miranjo and the Demon - The other story in said unique art style comes right here. Seeing more innocent Miranjo gets us back to really wanting her redemption arc to reach full completion. Just another pleasant showing from the artists all around.

The Prince and His Treasures - All these really nice/cute/sweet stories got lumped all together and I felt myself appreciating more moments with Boji right before the season 1 finale but could really start to feel the magic wearing off. Why the King Boji stories or the Unique Artstyle stories weren't matched with the same episode is kind of strange too.

Episode 10

Aaaaand we're back, where the plot purists get fed the good stuff. I'll admit I was very happy after the hiatus from tjhe more serious tone but we're fully onboard and kind of immediately addressing Ouken stuff. This is a great setup episode and proves that they're planning on making a Season 2 and it really leaves characters off in an interesting place. There's still so much going on in this world, it's getting more and more complex and kind of scary? (these Gods man...) Okay, maybe a bit of an anticlimax; usually characters are never too in danger/suffer consequences. But I'm sure we'll have opportunities to address that later as we keep building things up. It was still badass.

Not sure if this format for a review was the most helpful. it feels weird to give each story/episode a number grade but episodes 3, 4, half of 5, and 7 were my favorites. Maybe only episode 2 (or 8?) being the ones I felt the least excited for. Overall this "season" was an 8... maybe 8.5/10 but while maybe not an important addition it's an enjoyable addition to Ranking of Kings nonetheless.

I think it's not for everyone. I pretty like this specials, it was a warm feeling and I was happy to see again some characters and more background. But the 9 first episodes are really bonuses, without battle and most episodes are 2 story, without link between them. But if you want to see the futur season 2, you have to see the last episode, it's the direct sequel of the season 2, so even if you don't like chill OAV, make sure to watch the last episode ! Small spoilers : Some stories you can watch in these specials : the past of Ouken, Despa and Desha(my favorite story), some background with Miranjo or Bosse etc...

Ill just start by saying this is NOT a sequel. its a collection of side stories in between the main story. That said. Though not perfect specially at the first stories. This compliments greatly the stories of most characters. Specially more to the last stories. This may not do much by itself, but if you fell in love with the characters and story of Ousama Ranking this is a must watch. very beautiful. I especially enjoy Ouken's story. Bojji's farewell gifts. Daida's story was heartwarming too. the big four's story was fun. There are some stories that change up the art style, and while it is strangeat the beginning. they are still great, since it gives the story more of a fairy tale feel.

I went into this already knowing that it is a side story and that it will probably not be too engaging. I got what I expected. The parent story, Ousama Ranking, was incredibly fresh, at least in the beginning. The quality of the art style, which I loved so much when it was at its most vibrant (as in episode 1), was surprisingly dull at times, and generally not consistent. The story suffered a bit from pacing issues, and despite considering Bojji the Best Boy of the year (and Kage as a great sidekick), it still bothered me that he could somehow understand what people sayby reading their lips; the premise was not entirely genuine. However, the fantastical elements of the story kept me going, the world of Ousama Ranking is still largely unexplored.

The side story attempts to explore and explain some mysteries, but it falls flat very soon. The first episode has two short stories that feels like they come out of a children's book, with morals and all that. They are stories that use very familiar tropes, only difference is that they're taking place within the world of Ousama Ranking. The aesthetically sweet art style saves face, and I would not be mad if the side story kept it in that direction - downgrading to a children's show that could be enjoyed by grownups too - because it was doing it right. By episode 2, however, the art quality noticeably dips down, and I would say it resembles the art we saw during the middle episodes of the parent story. OK now we have a children's show that grownups are not really enjoying.

Parts of the world is investigated: Bandits, weird creatures, magical plants in forests, etc. These instances are more random than awesome. A treasure chest may be the focal point of this side story, but I don't think I care too much.

Other themes concern the past of some characters, like queen Hiling in episode 3, and one of the key villains in episode 4. In the episode about Hiling, we learn more about her healing magic and see a rare Daida-Bojji brotherhood action. Also important is the Dorshe-Hiling dynamic and more Anne time, remember her? She is amazing and so is Hiling but unfortunately the execution of such a potentially good episode leaves a lot to be desired. There is significant time dedicated into Daida trying to practice the healing magic and I can do without that. Episode 4 attempts a boring backstory on an interesting character, I find it unnecessary. These stories about the past need much better writing, they are handled poorly.

I stopped watching because it felt like a chore. There may lay one or two interesting side quests ahead, or some random cool fight, but I don't have it in me to continue through episodes and episodes of repetitive content.

I'm not very good with the science of scores, I'm not sure if this is a 4 or a 5. I know if I continue, I will only get harsher with the score. I went as deep as 4 episodes out 10 so I will also score it the same way.