REVIEW: ‘I Parry Everything’ Delivers An Absurd Tale

I Parry Everything from OLM tells the tale of Noor, an orphan boy who dreams of adventure but lacks the necessary skills. When every training house rejects him, he settles into a life of labor, helping the people of the capital and training every day. But as dark events begin to unfold, Noor soon finds himself caught up in the chaos, helping to save the day.

Noor’s character centers around a familiar archetype. Having to raise himself in the woods alone, the man is simple and rarely appreciates the complexities of the larger world. His innocence makes him oblivious to the bad intentions of others as well. This leads him to acts of compassion that others wouldn’t dream of. This lack of awareness compounds the many rejections he faced as a child to undervalue what he is capable of.

Noor Isn’t Charming in I Parry Everything, He’s Stupid.

Occasionally, this results in the charming protagonist he is intended to be. However, as Noor’s exploits grow over I Parry Everything’s twelve episodes, the concept is stretched beyond charm, passing into the realm of absurdity. That Noor can make such mistakes as confusing a minitour for a cow is played off as naïvete, but just makes the character feel stupid.

Despite sometimes taking the jokes surrounding Noor’s lack of self-awareness too far, the series still delivers a fun story. As others come into contact with the young hero, they are charmed by his kindness, humbled by his generosity, and mystified by his physical prowess. The sight gags that play out, both on battlefields and across characters’ faces, deliver many chuckles and a few laughs. Although, the jokes do wear thin at some points. While the jokes never lose all their luster, they get dulled as the season enters its final few episodes.

This over-dependence on repetitive jokes is unfortunate, as there are plenty of other strong elements set up in I Parry Everything‘s narrative. They just never get a chance to shine. There are moments early on where it looks like the story will explore how folks undercut hard work as they misconceived it for “talent,” but those never come to fruition. These missed opportunities leave little more for the show to do than tell the same handful of jokes over and over.

I Parry Everything Suffers From Retreading the Same Jokes.

These jokes are delivered through the lens of an oncoming invasion. When Noor saves Princess Linberg from an angry minitour, he soon finds the young girl feeling indebted and obsessed with learning from him. Due to the revered place he quickly comes to hold with the entire royal family, he is caught up in the battles that threaten his home, even if he never fully comprehends what is happening.

The plot plays out with ample skill for a story with the tone that I Parry Everything has. There is no nuance in the conflict or shades of gray to complicate matters. The bad guys are simply evil and need to be stopped. This simple approach works splendidly, as it doesn’t cause many conflicts with the jokey nature of the series. Though, like other largely humorous anime sometimes do, it does once or twice slip in the occasional punch to the feels. These moments of sorrow and joy bring the series’ most memorable scenes, thanks to how surprising they are.

The visual presentation does a solid job overall. The animation that delivers the many sight gags the series leans on is always executed wonderfully. Shocked expressions and the wild plans to get the heroes out of hot water always come to comical life. It isn’t for want of trying visually that the jokes have a harder time landing as the series progresses.

Outside of the humor, the visuals are fine. The depictions of the world and its magical elements are solid but not exceptional. The character designs are varied, allowing the cast to stand apart. The monsters are also well-implemented, even though they are largely familiar and often uninspired.

I Parry Everything delivers a mostly enjoyable experience. There is a fair amount of fun to be had, even if the jokes become a bit played out by the end. Thanks to occasional character moments that shine and animation that makes the most of its humor, the series can be considered entertaining, even if being good sometimes escapes it.

I Parry Everything is streaming now on HiDive.