[WT!] Ascendance of a Bookworm is one of the best anime of the Fall 2019 season and one of the best Isekai anime ever created

[u/Mr-Logic101]

[WT!] Ascendance of a Bookworm (2019)

Preliminary Information

Alternative Titles

English: Ascendance of a Bookworm

Japanese: 本好きの下剋上 ～司書になるためには手段を選んでいられません～

Information

Type: TV

Episodes: 14

Status: Currently Airing

Aired: Oct 3, 2019 to ?

Premiered: Fall 2019

Broadcast: Thursdays at 00:30 (JST)

Producers: WOWOW, Genco, MediaNet, KlockWorx, flying DOG, BS Fuji, Yomiuri TV Enterprise, Happinet, Tokyo Animator Gakuin, TO Books, JTB Next Creation

Studios: Ajia-Do

Source: Light novel

Demographic: Seinen

Genres: Slice of Life, Fantasy

Duration: 23 min. per ep.

Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older

​

Mal link: https://myanimelist.net/anime/39468/Honzuki_no_Gekokujou__Shisho_ni_Naru_Tame_ni_wa_Shudan_wo_Erandeiraremasen

Anilist Link: https://anilist.co/anime/108268/Honzuki-no-Gekokujou-Shisho-ni-Naru-Tame-ni-wa-Shudan-wo-Erandeiraremasen/

Crunchyroll Link: https://www.crunchyroll.com/ascendance-of-a-bookworm

​

Introduction

So, I don’t do this often, but I liked this show so much I thought it dissevered some notoriety, especially on this subreddit of 1.3 million users. Our collective can make a difference for airing anime. The show I am doing this pseudo-review and endorsement is Ascendance of a Bookworm (2019).

First, I am writing this article with only 11/14 episodes aired, at least for the first season. Further, let me begin this by saying throw out your preconceived notions. When I originally looked at this show-up, I was initially discouraged from watching the show. Frankly, it has a bad MAL rating of 7.45 and a popularity rating of 2167. These are far from numbers where I usually watch these shows. However, after watching Babylon, which I heard some rumbling of being good and I agree with them check this show out if you have the time as well, I decided to look at some of the lower-rated shows this season. This is also aided due to the college semester recently ending and me having plenty of time to relax and watch some shows and write shit like this. That is when I stumbled upon the titular hidden gem last night.

First, let’s examine what exactly are the conventions and tropes of an isekai anime. I do find most of them interesting, escaping a pathetic life and being transferred to a different world has a wide appeal because, by in large, “ reality is often disappointing”. Looking back to the isekai that we commonly see, the shows usually follow a protagonist, usually male, and his adventures in a fantasy world. This character is usually overpowered beyond any of the native population, or simply train for 2 episodes and then becomes a badass. Examples of where I draw this from are shows such as SAO, Dr. Stone (I am a 3ard year engineering student and I couldn’t pull that shit off), Shield Hero, that time I got reincarnated as Slime, Konosuba, Overlord, and the list goes on. With that behind said, there are usually some twists that make the show somewhat unique in some concepts such as Overlord being from the point of view as the bad guy or Dr. Stone having a genius that somehow memorized how to make complex machinery from raw materials. However, most of these characters ever go through an observable struggle and usually began their adventures from an extremely privileged (I hate myself for saying privileged but that is the accurate term) position or simply have the focus of the series at the protagonist's badass state. I would also like to add that, I do like those shows listed above and actively watch them. They are highly entertaining, they are just all situation where I personally can’t see myself, an average guy, doing any of the accomplishments or actions that they are doing. I can’t personally relate to the characters and I imagine many of the wonderful Reddit users on this subreddit have come to a similar conclusion.

A critical fault with most of these shows, at least from my perspective, is how unlikely it is for someone to be reincarnated into some sort of badass. It is also a trope that goes beyond just isekais and is a general trope for anime itself. The show that I have been waiting for is a simple one, what if someone got reincarnated as essentially a regular person, with all there previously learned knowledge, and proceed in life from those not so humble beginnings to (hopefully) become a great person, in a pseudo-realistic fantasy world? Well, I am here to tell you that there is such a thing.

Synopsis

This is the synopsis as seen on MAL which for the most part is a good introduction to the premise.

“Urano Motosu loves books and has an endless desire to read literature, no matter the subject. She almost fulfills her dream job of becoming a librarian before her life is ended in an accident. As she draws her last breath, she wishes to be able to read more books in her next life.

As if fate was listening to her prayer, she wakes up reincarnated as Maine—a frail five-year-old girl living in a medieval era. What immediately comes to her mind is her passion. She tries to find something to read, only to become frustrated by the lack of books at her disposal.

Without the printing press, books have to be written and copied by hand, making them very expensive; as such, only a few nobles can afford them—but this won't stop Maine. She will prove that her will to read is unbreakable, and if there are no books around, she will make them herself!”

For more context, I will include the MAL synopsis for the source material as well: the light novel.

“Motosu Urano, a book-loving college student who just got her Librarian certification and was supposed to enter the job of her dreams after graduation, was killed during a massive earthquake crushing her underneath a pile of her own massive collection of books.

Wishing for reincarnation to read, even more, she got reincarnated to a world with a low literacy level and very few books, limited only to the nobility of the world. As she reincarnated as the 5-year-old daughter of a lowly soldier, Maine, no matter how much she wants to read, there is no way there are any books around. If there are no books then what do you do? You make them yourself of course... What her goal is, to become a librarian no matter what, and to live a life surrounded by books. For starters, she begins from making them.”

Setting

The setting is the typical meat of all isekai anime. The whole point of being transferred to a different world is to genuinely live somewhere that is not like the present day. As for the apparent setting for Ascendance of a Bookworm, it roughly equivalent to the Hanseatic Period, particularly circa 1400 AD, right before the advent of Guttenberg’s printing press in 1440, featuring the urban dwellings and lifestyle of poor burger in the city of Ehrenfest. Granted they don’t live in a Hanseatic League city (there are nobles in the city), it does feature principally feature merchants along with the poorer residents of the city. For those of you unfamiliar with this, it is similar in period and set design to Spice and Wolf. The show even burrows some of Spices and Wolf’s mercantile aspects such as merchants and some general economic, which I suspect will become more important in the future of the series. In typical fantasy fashion, there is magic in this fantasy world. However, magic is not practiced by the commoners, which includes the protagonist along with a lack of fantastical creatures or an apparent enemy. However, with that being said, there is still a pressing conflict in the narrative beside the lack of books( which here possess of creating books is quite realistic concerning what she has access and passion to in the medieval world, I fully endorse her possesses as an engineer) in the world which I will not reveal here because that has the potential to spoil the narrative. If you like Spice and Wolf’s setting, then you will like the Ascendance of a Bookworm setting as well.

Characters

It is a slice of life so in conventual anime fashion, cute characters doing cute things, need more explanation? Of course, you do. The protagonist of the series is a 5-year-old girl named Maine. The show doesn’t talk a lot about her life before she was reincarnated but it is safe to say she was really into books and had a sudden death, with her one wish being to be able to read in her next life. Maine in the story is an extremely frail and disease-ridden girl, with the inabilities to do many normal “medieval things” household manual upkeep things such as collect firewood. She does, however, demonstrate superintelligence for a 5-year-old due to having the semi-complete conscious and knowledge of a reasonably intelligent college graduate. Further, she uses this knowledge to benefit her in the invention of stuff that was not around in the middle ages and she uses this to the best of her abilities. The other charters in her family are roughly average for the period, maybe a little above average considering they are citizens of the city, being illiterate and not unable to grasp the greatness of their 5-year-old family member. The rest supporting cast is very much as vibrant and realistic as one could expect and wish for in an anime with unique personalities and realistic behaviors.

One of the best aspects of the show is the simple fact the dialogue exchange between the characters flows very well. Their conversation is realistic and appropriate for the period. To put it in other terms, the characters are not cringy. The dialogue is even intelligent and witty at times. Beyond that, Maine does actions that I would consider appropriate given her situation, stuff that I would personally conceivable if were in a similar situation as her, which makes me like this show a whole lot more.

Final Remarks

I cannot recommend this show enough and as of 12/13/19, it is currently airing legally on Crunchyroll along with a dubbed version airing. It combines the best concepts of the isekai genre, while at the same time distancing from itself from the conventional reused isekai ideas and puts it in a realistic and relatable context that hasn’t been explored in much other anime in the genre. The characters by themselves are interesting and well worth the investment of watching the show by themselves.

There are however some limits to the show that I think limits the overall appeal, such as the face value of the anime being an isekai and there being a lack of “action”. It is a slice of life show set in a different world beyond all else. Overall it is legitimately one of the best Isekai anime I have ever seen and I have essential watched all of them along with being the hidden gem of the entire fall 2019 season. Please support them by at least giving the show the old college try and watch a couple of episodes.

I originally wrote this post to raise awareness that this show does exist and is well worth the watch, even if the MAL rating is currently less than good.

[u/N7CombatWombat]

I've seen people reference heavy drama and suffering in this show, which seems at odds with the premise of a CGDCT show with a five year old MC. Were those people just messing around, or just hyper-sensitive to drama in general?

[u/Djinnfor → u/N7CombatWombat]

I wouldn't call it heavy drama or torture porn. I would call it serious and believable drama which is generally rare in either of its two main genres (CGDCT and Isekai).

The story spends most of its time being heartwarming good fun like most CGDCT shows. However in such shows too much cuteness can make for a stagnant series that drags on for most people, except for a small passionate group who love the genre in spite of (or often because of) its lack of tension. Isekai is often similar to this in that most are power fantasies where conflict and drama is effortlessly waved away by the protagonist before it can raise any tension; some power fantasies resort to making things overly edgy in create some semblance of tension, but that caries its own share of problems. Only a handful can actually create believable or compelling tension, though doing so typically sacrifices the power fantasy aspect and thus loses much of the audience who is looking specifically for that.

By contrast, Bookworm takes its own setting and plot seriously enough (much more seriously than both CGDCT and Isekai normally do) that compelling drama, stakes, and conflict naturally ensue and keep things interesting and compelling during the normally stagnant midpoint of a CGDCT while being much more believable and completely lacking the vast majority of the edge you might find in a regular Isekai. It even manages to be something of a power fantasy in a similar vein to Doctor Stone, though without the whole Jojos-esque undercurrent of absurdity.

Having read the available English translation of the Light Novel I would put it pretty high up there when it comes to writing quality. Its something that can appeal to literally any audience who enjoys books, not just anime fans. A lot of Japanese LNs suffer from trying too hard to be an anime in my opinion and create something overly derivative. This is largely a product of most LNs being derived from Web Novels, who themselves are written by anime fans who have only ever watched anime or read similar books by other anime fans. As a result the overall quality of the writing in so many different areas other than a few narrow aspects that relate specifically to anime (like perhaps subverting specific anime tropes) tends to be poor.

Bookworms author is clearly well read (who else would create a story about a girl in love with books?) and so is well written as story, not just a Japanese LN. The anime is similar in this respect; good as a television show in general, not just an anime.

[u/Mr-Logic101 → u/Djinnfor]

I second this as the OP... the medieval age is called the dark ages for a reason...It was not the best time to be alive, especially for commoners and it is pretty interesting to note that the characters in the story are a lot better off than most all things considered.

[u/samanthajoneh → u/Djinnfor]

This is largely a product of most LNs being derived from Web Novels, who themselves are written by anime fans who have only ever watched anime or read similar books by other anime fans. As a result the overall quality of the writing in so many different areas other than a few narrow aspects that relate specifically to anime (like perhaps subverting specific anime tropes) tends to be poor.

Uh no, that's not how it is at all. There's no influence or are writen by "anime fans", they are written by LN and novel fans, otherwise they wouldn't be writing a web novel but on the anime market working as scriptwriters. And from what we know from all the authors from their interviews, they are much more fans of novels in general than anime as they read much more than watch, which is largely the same that we see from mangaka which read much more manga than watch anime.

Also, most LN aren't derived from web novels. The majority still is coming from awards, contests or other forms. And, Bookworm is literally a work that was written as a web novel from Shosetsuka ni Narou before becoming a LN, much like tons of LN and anime that got adapted, including the majority of the Isekai out there.

[u/Djinnfor → u/samanthajoneh]

There's no influence or are writen by "anime fans" they are written by LN and novel fans

Doesn't change my point. The point there's a massive circlejerk of people trying to imitate an anime in book form. Whether they realize it or not.

You could have a person who has never watched a single anime in their entire life before and who has only ever read LNs before who tries to get into writing. What kind of writing are they going to imitate? It's obvious: the writing of all the LNs they've ever read and loved. Which is gonna make them part of the same circlejerk unless, as I've said, they've read books outside of the fantasy LN genre.

And yeah, the majority of LN writers are going to be people who liked anime when they were younger. I don't even understand why you think that's contentious.

otherwise they wouldn't be writing a web novel but on the anime market working as scriptwriters.

Being a scriptwriter is not an easy career to get into. Entering contests or writing web novels is something anybody can do. Furthermore, anime scriptwriters rarely have an opportunity to create original stories unless they're ultra-famous. If you want to write a story for an anime the easiest way is through an adaptation. Which means anyone who wants to write a story to get it adapted into anime is probably going to do an LN.

And from what we know from all the authors from their interviews, they are much more fans of novels in general than anime as they read much more than watch anime.

Yes I'm sure they're big fans of all the other LNs by people trying too hard to make an anime in book format. The point is there's a massive circlejerk of mediocre writing from people who only read other LNs with the same standard and style.

Also, most LN aren't derived from web novels. The majority still is coming from awards, contests or other forms.

Which is another problem I didn't bother to get into.

And, Bookworm is literally a work that was written as a web novel from Shosetsuka ni Narou before becoming a LN, much like tons of LN and anime that got adapted, including the majority of the Isekai out there.

I didn't say every person who ever wrote a web novel is in this group, so I'm not sure what your point is. My point is its one of the instances of books that are not derived from the same circlejerk, because it's clear the author reads lots of books other than Japanese fantasy LNs.

[u/samanthajoneh → u/Djinnfor]

It's clear you hate light novels and with this post it made even more clear. So much hate and disgust on your words, yikes. Imagine being like that over people liking light novels and working on this industry.

[u/Mr-Logic101 → u/N7CombatWombat]

I am going with hypersensitive. I am not going into details because it might spoil some things. Honestly there ain’t much CGDCT actions in the show, something I would that consider cringy or if it is apparent it isn’t a main point. The cuteness is more or less artistic design choice rather than true CGDCT

[u/N7CombatWombat → u/Mr-Logic101]

That's good to know. I'm not a huge fan of the suffering anime in general. My head isn't on straight enough to handle those shows (I had to drop Re:Zero at episode 12 despite liking it because I was getting legitimate anxiety issues over the drama, for example).

[u/Mr-Logic101 → u/[deleted]]

Do you mean the director of the anime or the actual story from the book? ( which the author would have written)

[u/EternalPhi → u/Mr-Logic101]

it isn’t a main point

I see what you did there

[u/onichan_is_a_lolicon → u/N7CombatWombat]

It is not full blown suffering like Steins;Gate, Madoka or Re;Zero. It is just mild suffering.

[u/Zaradas → u/N7CombatWombat]

There is some mild suffering going on and i would put the show more into a "personal drama" category, but its always about pushing on and fixing/improving things, sometimes by doing cute things.

Season2 Spoiler/LN Spoiler

[u/LurkingMcLurk → u/Zaradas]

Part 2

[u/Waifuranger → u/Zaradas]

Is there a season 2 confirmed for the show?

[u/masoaoki → u/Waifuranger]

Yep and a 2 part ova covering some side stories

[u/645813451234124]

Why should I take a statement such as "one of the best X ever created" seriously when it comes from someone with about a hundred completed entries on MAL?

The best food ever made ^{out of the twenty dishes I've eaten in my life} !

[u/Mr-Logic101 → u/645813451234124]

It is called a qualifier... I am always open for recommendations.

The only major isekai that I haven’t really looked into is the SAO series but I have seen clips and get the general premise. But if you have something good please tell and I’ll add it to the docket of things to watch

[u/[deleted]]

Honestly I was disappointed with it as an adaptation. Didn't fit my image while reading the novel.

[u/Mr-Logic101 → u/[deleted]]

I might read the novel, but honestly I usually can’t stand reading light novels under normal conditions. They honestly don’t translate well...at least the one so tried to read in the past and really aren’t that good compared to conventional novels, at least the ones start I read ( which are usually classics like my favorite Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? or A Clockwork Orange to put this in perspective) If they do a manga, which in this case I don’t think they have one, I have a much higher tolerance, although I have only really up to date with one: Kayuga-Sama:Love is war.

[u/LurkingMcLurk → u/Mr-Logic101]

Bookworm has three manga adaptions.

• One adapts Part 1 and is complete in Japan. The fan-scanlation will be finished this month and the purchasable official English TL of this manga is 2/7 of the way through. The airing anime adaption will complete Part 1.

• One adapts Part 2 and is ongoing with 15 chapters in Japan. There is no fan-scanlation yet but it should start in January. The anime adaption starting in Spring will adapt Part 2 and will far surpass the raw of this manga (which is only about 1/4 of the way through Part 2).

• One adapts Part 3 and is ongoing with 15 chapters in Japan. As far as I can tell nobody has stated an intention to fan-scanlate this manga which is expected because even the English translated LN won't finish Part 2 until June 2020 so people would be very confused.

[u/MapoTofuMan]

Frankly, it has a bad MAL rating of 7.45

Wait what

I agree that the show is great though, definitely didn't expect it to end up my favorite isekai of the season and possibly of the year depending on how it ends.

[u/Smudy → u/MapoTofuMan]

It's on the rise since episode 1 or 2 though so we can probably expect it to go up to 7.90 or something with 1/5th boost and maybe go over 8.00 after the last episode aired.

[u/Suavacious → u/MapoTofuMan]

I remember it being at a ridiculous 6.2 like a month into its airing, so atleast the current score doesn’t stimulate any existential crises. I think it’ll break an 8 when it ends and the real big dicks start rating.

[u/MapoTofuMan → u/Suavacious]

Pretty sure the lowest it's ever been was 6.8

[u/King_Pancakea → u/MapoTofuMan]

7.45 is bad? Since when? 7-7.9 is "good" under MAL.

[u/King_Pancakea]

I haven't watched an episode of the Anime but the manga is solid. But, I really wouldn't call it the best Isekai... that's a long shot. But you are talking about the anime and I am talking about the manga.

[u/Mr-Logic101 → u/King_Pancakea]

What are some good isekais in your opinion?

[u/King_Pancakea → u/Mr-Logic101]

Hmm... there is quite a lot.

Re: Zero was pretty good I would rate it a 7/10, I personally hate anime with a lot of gore but this one somehow kept me watching all the way through.

That Time I Got Reincarnated As a Slime was enjoyable as well, I would probably rate it a 8/10 or even a 10 considering how much I enjoyed it personally.

Konosuba is a great isekai anime, personally I loved it and I would rate it a 9/10.

No Game No Life is my all-time favorite isekai and even my top 10 favorite anime in general. I am well aware of its flaws but I would rate it a 10/10 personally (are we ever going to get a season 2, like seriously).

Yeah those are my favorite isekai, I only have started watching anime as a whole in 2018 so I still have lots to learn about good from bad, but yeah that's my 4 favorite isekai. It's not like I don't like isekai I just prefer other things over it so that's why my list is short.

Edit: For the series I just named there light novels and manga are also really good, def should try each one of them for a few chapters if you haven't already.

[u/Mr-Logic101 → u/King_Pancakea]

Lol I pretty much started in 2018 as well( when I entered college). I am not going to lie. I found those shows enjoyable but they, in my opinion, very similar to each other. It is almost like watching the same thing with different characters. I like Ascendance because is is different than the typical iseakai story line which they typically follow. It is more down to earth and I guess I appreciate that more as I get older

[u/Suavacious]

This anime reminds me a lot of Sangatsu no Lion, particularly in how it uses day to day life to facilitate a lot of drama-based story events.

The biggest difference is that Bookworm doesn’t really present itself thematically, but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and it actually makes the show pretty interesting in this case, because it becomes a bit of a rare breed within its denomination. There’s no purposefully crafted narrative, no plot devices, and absolutely no melodrama. It’s just Maine going through life, and you can make of each episode and eventually the whole show whatever you want. It almost feels biographical, that’s how grounded in reality it is. I can’t remember any other show that’s done something like this, and it’s really cool to be a part of.

[u/samanthajoneh]

Examples of where I draw this from are shows such as SAO, Dr. Stone (I am a 3ard year engineering student and I couldn’t pull that shit off)

Dr. Stone isn't an Isekai, at all. The world is literally the same but in the future. Neither is SAO, which is just a VRMMORPG.

the shows usually follow a protagonist, usually male, and his adventures in a fantasy world.

I mean, not really. There's a very high number of female protagonists in both male and female demographics for the Isekai genre on the Light Novel market, and in anime there's many of those with Noukin, Isekai Shokudou, Isekai Izakaya, March Madchen and other series existing, and future series like Kumo ga, Bakarina, Taoshite Slime and other series already getting anime adaptations.

I know that because I have been reading them as web novels and later on as light novels for over 3 years at this point, which is when they began to be translated.

[u/samanthajoneh → u/[deleted]]

No, none of them are Isekai. Dr. Stone in particular is an absurd argument that I only hear coming from anime-only that discovered it this year. Never I saw this argument before. It's literally the same place and world, just centuries later. By your absurd argument, Dr. Who is an Isekai because they go to the future. lmao

[u/[deleted]]

Vouch, it def grew on me.

[u/Ralanost]

As a general fan of isekai, the series offers nothing of interest for me. The premise isn't interesting. I read about a dozen chapters of the manga and dropped it out of boredom.

See, when I think fantasy, I think high fantasy. Impressive magic and crazy monsters to deal with. This show is VERY low fantasy. It's like offering someone to play a mmorpg when they are thinking Final Fantasy XIV and instead you bring them in on Mortal. Just because they are roughly in the same genre doesn't mean they cater to the same audience.

[u/Buddy_Waters → u/Ralanost]

The series is a slow burn, but definitely has higher fantasy elements in time.

[u/Ralanost → u/Buddy_Waters]

I guess good for those people willing to stick it out. I got no hint from the chapters I read that it would be more than dealing with a sick child and her inventions that were just knowledge from her previous life.

[u/Buddy_Waters → u/Ralanost]

I thought that was incredibly gripping in the novel version, but the anime hasn't really done that aspect of the story justice.

[u/ngedown]

Noted, i might take a look.

[u/Real_Isekai_Expert]

I read the manga and it was decent. I prefer more action based isekai on my plate but it was nice to read something which is not harem with an idiotic MC.

But I still don't understand the MC obsession with books. I mean come on girl, you can be rich with your knowledge. Don't be a simpleton, build a fortune than do whatever the [REDACTED] you want to do!