REVIEW: ‘Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon’ Episode 1 — “The Vending Machine Travels”

The isekai genre has quickly become one of the most popular anime genres worldwide, but it takes a lot to stand out in a crowded field. With so many characters being reborn into a new world with extraordinary powers, Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon sets out to turn the premise on its head. Reborn as a Vending Machine Episode 1 introduces viewers to Hakkon (Jun Fukuyama), a young man who tragically dies in a motorbike accident and awakens in a fantasy world as, you guessed it, a vending machine.

Reborn as a Vending Machine Episode 1 starts by showing Hakkon waking up in his new world and slowly discovering he isn’t dead, but he isn’t quite himself either. He quickly realizes he has been reborn as one of his greatest loves in life, a vending machine. The comical introduction quickly establishes the series’ aim to take a more comedic approach to the isekai genre. Instead of making him extremely powerful or good-looking, his very first interaction with another character shows just how weak he is in his new form. Confronted by an anthropomorphic frog trying to destroy the strange machine, Hakkon learns how his machine works and what he will need to do to make it in this new world.

The systems introduced in Reborn as a Vending Machine Episode 1 are straightforward. Hakkon needs to sell items in order to convert the currency into points that he can use to maintain himself, as well as upgrade things like what he has in stock and what kind of defenses he has. Since he is in a fantasy world and not, say, an arcade or a mall, he is going to need to be smart about how he allocates his points so he can make money in this new world while also protecting himself from any danger. Coupled with the fact that he can’t move or speak outside of a few pre-recorded lines built into the machine, it makes for a really interesting premise.

The first human character Hakkon meets is a young woman named Lammis (Kaede Hondo). Lammis is on her way to find and defeat the frogs so she can eat but finds that Hakkon has already driven them away. She instead ends up buying items from him and is overwhelmed with how delicious they are. This leads to her taking him back to her village to introduce him to her friend Hulemy (Shiki Aoki) and also establishes that Hakkon and Lammis are going to be tied at the hip going forward. She is an interesting character, herself not being someone who is all too powerful or respected, and it makes for a partnership that I am really looking forward to seeing more of.

The bits of worldbuilding in Reborn as a Vending Machine Episode 1 help establish the magical rules and the way things run. Nothing introduced so far is entirely game-changing or unique, but it is presented in a tidy way that makes a comedic premise more interesting. I’m not just invested in how he will function as a vending machine. I actually want to learn more about the world and see how he can navigate it alongside Lammis. She gives Hakkon the nickname Boxxo, what he will be known as throughout the rest of the series, as they set off on an adventure that can go in a number of different and intriguing directions.

Reborn as a Vending Machine Episode 1 manages to take a silly premise and make it more interesting than one would think. A magical world and compelling characters set up what could be a much better series than the whimsical title would make people imagine. I can’t wait to dive into more of Boxxo and Lammis’ adventures to see what happens next.

Reborn as a Vending Machine Episode 1 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.