mix this two reviews in one not to make it to big Shangri-la Frontier is a refreshing departure from the high-stakes, death-game narrative prevalent in the VRMMO genre. Instead of the usual imminent danger of real-life consequences, the anime focuses on a quirky ensemble of characters enjoying the virtual world, offering a delightful and nostalgic portrayal of kids simply having fun in a game—a welcome contrast to the often intense and serious tone of similar titles like the .Hack series, SAO, and Log Horizon. What sets "Shangri-la Frontier" apart is its seamless blend of fast-paced battles and silly humor. The adrenaline-pumping action sequences keep viewers on the edge of their seats, while the lighthearted banter and comedic situations provide much-needed moments of levity. This balance ensures that the anime remains dynamic and engaging, appealing to both fans of intense combat and those who enjoy a more straightforward, humorous approach. Shangri-La Frontier: Kusoge Hunter, Kamige ni Idoman to su is an anime with good ideas but between good ideas and errors the final impression on me was neutral.

In this story we follow the player specialized in bad games known as Sunraku who, after a long time trying all kinds of bad games, decides to play a virtual reality game known as the best game today, Shangri-la Frontier. This is the basis of the entire story since the anime.

The premise of a story that takes place in a game world isn't exactly new, but this anime pleased me at first because it didn't resort to the cliché of the protagonist being trapped in the game or taken to another world like any Isekai, however, this point is harmed when the author does not add any other form of risk to the plot. In both the real and virtual worlds, there is no risk of anything serious happening that could permanently affect anyone in this story, which means that all the scenes that should be exciting are empty because there is nothing at stake.

As this is not a story about risks, the plot could focus on the gameplay of Shangri-La Frontier but the author does this in a very frustrating way. When showing any kind of training, the lack of stakes makes it a bit tedious to watch because our heroes are going to get what they want and have nothing to lose if they fail, they can die all they want and nothing really matters. But if watching these training sessions already seems like a waste of time, it only gets worse when the characters almost always just say that they acquired a new skill off-screen and that it works in a very arbitrary way.

Our protagonist is a pleasant surprise as he is not the typical loser or edge protagonist, in fact from the little that the script allows us to see it is possible to notice that he has friends and is loved in his social circle, it is a shame that there is no narrative arc for he. Sanraku learns nothing that leads to personal growth or that leads to any change in perspective from the beginning to the end of the story.

The human secondary characters suffer from a lack of screen time in the real world because even with how little the story shows, I was really interested in finding out more about Oikatzo and Pencilgon. In the end, the character that had something closer to a development arc was Pencilgon but as we know very little about her and most of it is from other characters' statements, we can only believe that she changed but we didn't see that change.

The animation is quite decent because if it doesn't shine like some contemporary shounen anime, at least it doesn't displease. The fights, although they don't have very good choreography, are not bad to watch due to the quality of the animation, but they end up suffering from a lack of emotion due to the lack of risks that I mentioned before.

In short, Shangri-La Frontier: Kusoge Hunter, Kamige ni Idoman to su practically cancels out its successes with its mistakes, which gave me an experience that was neither good nor bad, it was empty and neutral. I don't see it as a waste of time to watch it, but don't expect it to leave a deep impression on you, whether negative or positive.