The Revolutionary Return of Rising of the Shield Hero Season 3 Unveiled in Epic New Trailer

The KADOKAWAanime YouTube channel released a new trailer for the upcoming third season of Rising of the Shield Hero, confirming an October broadcast date. The trailer provides a deeper look into the upcoming story, showcasing new allies and enemies that Naofumi will encounter. The animation quality suggests that Season 3 will be a significant improvement from previous seasons. The trailer confirms that Kinema Citrus is on track to deliver on their promise of an October release date, as previously stated in press releases. Considering the criticism of the second season, the studio needs to demonstrate their ability to faithfully adapt the Light Novel's storyline. However, based on the footage shown in the trailer, it appears that the staff is avoiding repeating their past mistakes.

Rising of the Shield Hero Season 3 Releases in October 2023

In the latest Season 3 trailer, similar to the previous ones, there is mention of the disappearance of three other heroes - Ren, Motoyasu, and Itsuki. However, the majority of the footage focuses on Naofumi, Raphtalia, and Filo engaging in battles against various opponents in bloodsports. What makes this new trailer different is the introduction of Fohl, Atla, and a mysterious masked attacker who is likely to be Murder Pierrot. It is evident that the anime will be adapting at least two story arcs from the Light Novel - "Rebuilding" and "Fallen Heroes". Naofumi's efforts to revive his territory and rescue its inhabitants eventually lead him to compete in a coliseum, and this is followed by the aforementioned story that centers around the heroes.

Kinema Citrus faces a challenging task ahead. Despite the surprise success of Season 1 of Shield Hero in 2019, the studio stumbled with Season 2. The decision to rush through the lengthy "Spirit Tortoise" arc resulted in underdeveloped and poorly portrayed characters, as the story suffered from being adapted from too many Light Novels. Additionally, there was a decline in animation quality and an excessive use of out-of-place CGI. As a result, much of the positive reception for the anime disappeared, raising concerns about whether the studio had become complacent due to its previous success.

However, there is hope highlighted in the new trailer. The fight scenes showcased in the trailer demonstrate higher quality smoke, flames, and special effects compared to Season 2, hopefully indicative of improvements throughout the series. Furthermore, the trailer's emphasis on the coliseum and the heroes suggests that the staff might focus on adapting every aspect of a few arcs, rather than attempting to cover too many. With October just a month away, fans will soon discover the truth. For those who want to catch up, Rising of the Shield Hero is currently available for streaming on Crunchyroll and Funimation.

Look for season 3 of Rising of the Shield Hero when it premiers in October 2023!