The Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 7

Reset to Level 1

All things considered, The Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 7 wasn’t very important. The episode established 3 basic things, and nothing else mattered. Well, that might change in the future. But, for now, only 3 things matter from this episode.

The first thing is that all Naofumi’s party members had their levels reset. We saw that Naofumi, Rishia, and Raphtalia were all reset back to level 1. This doesn’t seem to matter too much for Rishia. But, for Naofumi and Raphtalia, this is a big deal for different reasons.

For Naofumi, being level 1 means that he’s lost access to all his various skills and shields. And, the base shield he woke up with is one that he’s never seen before. It’s likely that the stat and equipment reset has to do with being in a new world. I guess this world has different unlockables for Naofumi’s shield.

For Raphtalia, being level 1 means being a child again. In case you forgot, the level of a demihuman affects their appearance. Raphtalia “grew up” at a fast rate in the first season because she leveled up at a fast rate. Now, she looks as she did when Naofumi first met (purchased) her.

Now, what are the implications of levels resetting upon hopping worlds? Well, it may mean that L’Arc, Glass, and Therese went through the same thing. Now that they’re back in their original world, they may be far stronger than before. They may be back to their original levels.

Oh, and I guess I should point out that Filo is missing. But, it seems safe to assume that she’s been reset back to level 1 as well. And, this actually might be why she’s missing. She might be back in an egg.

The Hunting Hero

The second basic thing introduced in this episode is the existence of Kizuna. Kizuna Kazayama is important because she’s one of the four Cardinal Heroes of this world. So, that means there are four Cardinal Heroes of this world. But, they have different weapons than what we’re used to.

Kizuna is the Hunting Hero. Exactly what that means isn’t explained. But, it looked to me like her weapon can alter its appearance. I’m pretty sure the fishing rod she had when we first saw her was one form it can take. And later, she uses a sword which she refers to as her Hero weapon.

How does this make sense, though? Well, think about how Naofumi’s Hero weapon works. He’s the Shield Hero, so he can use a variety of different shields. As the Hunting Hero, Kizuna can use a variety of different hunting weapons.

That assumption could be incorrect. I’m basing it on the limited knowledge we have about Kizuna and her weapon currently. Also, we don’t know the titles of the other Cardinal Heroes of this world. But, since there’s no Shield Hero, there likely isn’t a Sword, Bow, or Spear Hero either.

Something else that’s interesting about this is that it means there could be even more heroes. If this world also has Cardinal Heroes, does that mean it has Seven Star Heroes too? And does it mean “Naofumi’s world” has Vassal Heroes? Or, are the Seven Star and Vassal Heroes synonymous?

I’m guessing that last one isn’t correct. We know there are 4 Vassal Weapon users (I don’t remember if they’re called Heroes). And based only on the name, I’m assuming there are 7 of the Seven Star Heroes. There might be up to 15 heroes from each world running around.

Escaping the Prison Dimension

The third and final of the basic concepts introduced in this episode is the prison dimension. Now, it could be that the prison dimension doesn’t matter now that our heroes escaped from it. But, that would be a little strange, don’t you think?

What would the point of the prison dimension have been then? If the only purpose it served was to introduce Kizuna, why not have a normal prison instead? To me, the introduction of the prison dimension means that there’s someone who created it. And if they can create a pocket dimension like that, what else can they do?

Could they send the Cardinal Heroes back to their original worlds? Are they responsible for unleashing the waves via dimensional portals? This seems like something that needs further investigation before Naofumi’s party returns home. Kizuna might even know who sealed her in there.

The prison dimension could be important for a different reason, though. We may have seen glitches in the world before in the series. But, from what I remember, this is the first time Naofumi exploits a glitch. And while his exploit didn’t make much sense, it sets a precedent.

Are we going to see glitches in the world become a more common occurrence? And, are these glitches going to reveal some secret about the world(s). Like, we know the world Naofumi found himself in looked exactly like a game he played. Is it actually a game?

On one hand, that could be a decent theory. But on the other, we already have a bit of evidence against it. For example, all the Cardinal Heroes come from different universes. They’re all from Japan. But they’re from different versions of Japan. So there’s some multiverse stuff going still.

Conclusion

What do you think about The Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2 Episode 7? Do you think the Vassal Heroes are going to be stronger in this world? What are your predictions for the titles of the other “new” Cardinal Heroes? And do you expect to see more glitches in the world? Let me know in the comments.

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My review of Episode 8 is available now.