The world of Shogi is an intense one. How Evil is Ryuuou No Oshigoto!‘s series premiere?

Ryuuou No Oshigoto!
Studio: Project No.9
Genre: comedy, romance

Well, this one I’m not sure about. The main character is Kuzuryuu, Yaichi – he’s a sixteen-year-old Shogi master. He’s hit something of a slump and has been trying to rekindle his love for Shogi. It’s not as extreme as a certain love for ramen we’ve seen in previous anime, but it might get there. After the tournament that gave him his master status. he’s found it hard to get excited about the game. So, I guess he’s just bored? Well, that all changes with the arrival of his new disciple. Enter Hinatsuru, Ai.

Ai is a nine-year-old little girl who somehow got inside of Yaichi’s apartment when he wasn’t home. After a bit of a discussion about Ai becoming Yaichi’s disciple, he comes up with a brilliant plan to get rid of her. Yaichi decides to test Ai’s shogi skills hoping she will be terrible so he can send her home. It backfires and they play all night long. The next morning Ai has prepared breakfast which impresses Yaichi.  Then Ai goes to take a bath. While that is happening Yaichi talks about his sister, who would kill him if she new Ai was staying with him. Cue the scary sister now.

Sora, Ginko catches Yaichi in a less-than-savory moment. One that implies Yaichi is a pervert. Ginko instructs her shameful brother to commit suicide. Yeah, she’s not happy at all. Ai manages to stop Ginko and they get into a little spat. Ginko eventually drags them both to the master who taught her and Yaichi how to play shogi.

At the master’s house, we learn that Ginko and Yaichi are not really siblings. They were taught shogi by the same master so in shogi they’re siblings. It’s weird to me, but at least it makes sense. The master tells Yaichi to train Ai even after they learn she ran away from home. Are runaways treated differently in Japan? (Chris: Actually, yes, but that’s beyond the point) That just doesn’t seem like a good thing to do. But I guess it’s not as bad as letting kids buy a fake rocket launcher. Ai gets what she wants so there’s that.

Look at that face. How can you say no to that face?

There’s still more. Yaichi has to attend a shogi match against someone he knows. Turns out this guy has yet to reveal his true form or something along those lines. He keeps spouting nonsense about being a knight? I mean the cape is nice, but he’s not even wearing armor. Yaichi doesn’t seem all that impressed with the guy.

Ai isn’t having any of it either. She snaps at him a little bit which is admittedly super cute. The guy actually keeps going even after the reactions he gets. So I guess he just likes to tute his own horn.  The episode ends with the match about to begin so there’s no telling who’s going to win *cough* Yaichi. It’s almost as likely as your chances of getting hit by supersonic in Pokemon.

I’m still not sure what I think about this episode. I’ll just say it’s about as evil as a Killer Robot Army for now. It’s enjoyable most of the time. That bath part got a little less so. I would have to watch more of the show before I know if I like it or not. If you want something a little more enjoyable, check out our review of Karakai Jozu no Takagi-san.
It’s really a lot of fun, with none of the awkward moments. Well, that’s all I have for you today. Thanks for letting me waste your time, people.

Keep It Classy,
Evil Bob