Saito-san the Handyman Goes to Another World, scheduled to air from January 2023, is a so-called reincarnation in another world story, based on a series serialized in ComicWalker and Nico Nico Seiga. The protagonist is Saito-san, a handyman who has had trouble with human relationships in modern Japan, but it has a slightly different taste from ordinary reincarnation in another world stories! This time, I would like to introduce what kind of work Saito-san the Handyman Goes to Another World is!
About the Overview of Saito-san the Handyman Goes to Another World
Saito-san the Handyman Goes to Another World is a web comic serialized in ComicWalker, Nico Nico Seiga, and other sites. The author is Kazutomo Kazutomo. The announcement period began in October 2018, and as of November 2022, seven volumes of the comic have been published. As of January 2022, the total number of copies published has exceeded 300,000, and an anime produced by C2C is scheduled to air from January 2023.
A brief summary of Handyman Saito Goes to Another World!
Saito, who worked as an employee of a construction company in modern Japan, opened locks and repaired roofs in the local area, but the work was extremely hard and the pay was low. Even when he asked for a raise in salary, he was told there were plenty of people who could take his place. One day, Saito was hit by a truck and before he knew it, he was reincarnated in another world! Reincarnated in a city where a national dungeon had been liberated, Saito formed a party with the friends he met there and entered the dungeon. Saito was not given any special cheats and was useless in battle, but the lock-picking and party management skills he had acquired at the construction company made him an indispensable member of the party.
This is what they call a reincarnation in another world story! But it's a little different
This work is a so-called reincarnation in another world. The means of reincarnation from modern Japan is a classic large truck, and the despair over the darkness of modern Japan is also classic. However, rather than being reborn or reincarnated in another world, it feels like he was transferred to another world just before colliding head-on with the truck. There are no obvious cheat additions that are common in reincarnation in another world, but the main character Saito himself brings only the useful craftsmanship he has cultivated while working at a construction company and a few belongings.
The setting of the other world in Handyman Saito Goes to Another World
The other world that Saito, the Handyman, goes to another world, is reincarnated in is a fantasy world of swords and magic, but the world view is strongly influenced by the settings of classic RPGs, so-called wizard-type RPGs, with a mixture of various races, and the settings of roles and treatment at the time of death are similar to those of Wizardry. Sometimes you will be attacked by outrageous unreasonableness, and you may encounter friendly or hostile NPCs. The main character, Saito, is not very useful in terms of combat, but he is valued by the party because he is good at unlocking.
Handyman Saito-san Goes to Another World is a Wizardry-esque world, and the respect is visible here and there. Wizardry is a pioneer of 3D dungeons and role-playing games, and even today Wizardry-like games are released in the series, but the game design is not straightforward. I would like to introduce some of them.
*Inside the stone*
There was a high-level magician in Saito's party, and when that magician used a teleportation spell, he was unfortunately teleported inside the stone. This is a trauma for everyone in Wizardry, and it mainly occurs when a teleportation spell is mistaken, an accident, or when a treasure chest trap is not released and the teleporter trap is activated, causing random teleportation, warping to coordinates inside the wall and annihilation. This is the message that is displayed at that time. If this happens, in the worst case scenario, you will be hit with the injustice of all the characters you have worked hard to develop disappearing. So if you try to open a treasure chest without a lock-opener, you could die instantly at worst.
Decapitation from a surprise attack
Wiz-like games are very tricky games, and even if the enemy is high-level and you would not lose if you fought normally, they can sometimes sneak up on you with a shitty abnormal status, suddenly decapitate you and kill you instantly, or get hit by a breath and wipe you out. In wiz-like games, the flow of a surprise attack and total annihilation is rare but common.
You have a chance even if you die
In this Wiz-like game, even if you die in the dungeon, there is no system that kindly takes you to the church by taxi, and when you die, your body is left there. However, that is not the end, and if the body is somehow recovered, there is a chance of resurrection. However, the cost is as heavy as the original Wiz and it seems to cost a fair amount of money. In the original Wiz, you can be resurrected at a place called Kant Temple, but if you don't have money, there is no mercy, and in some cases it will fail, and in the worst case scenario, your character will be lost and you will never be able to use it again. Even if you fail, you will not get your money back. Because donations to the temple are a sign of your feelings for God.
Saito, the handyman, will definitely be the key member of the party
Saito has been reincarnated into such a harsh parallel world, but he supports the party with the lock-opening, repair, and party management skills he developed during his time at the construction company. Morlock, a particularly powerful magician, is a senile old man who forgets how to chant magic, so Saito covers for him by memorizing the chant of the spell. He was not particularly used to modern Japan and was not blessed with good relationships, but you can see him thriving in a parallel world that is much harder than modern Japan. Saito himself does not do anything flashy like being invincible with cheats, but he is the type of protagonist who supports the party behind the scenes. Incidentally, if Saito-san is gone, the party will fall apart.
It's not just Saito-san, it's an ensemble drama of various characters
The story centers around Saito-san's party, but various characters, including cooperative and hostile characters, appear and most of the characters' backgrounds are drawn individually. Therefore, it is easy to empathize with the characters because their cooperation and hostility in the dungeon are depicted after knowing their goals and backgrounds, and the characters move after knowing their settings and backgrounds, making it an ensemble drama-like technique.
It's interesting because each character is picked up!
Each character's episode is picked up individually, and the character moves after knowing the background, so there is tension in the interactions and hostility with the protagonists. A work with a similar technique may be similar to Kenka Shoubai. In Kenka Shoubai, the backgrounds of various strong people, the secrets of their strength, and the reasons for fighting are depicted individually and firmly, so there are no disposable characters and you can watch it with tension, but I think that Handyman Saito Goes to Another World has a similar tension and fun!
Pay attention to the relationships between the characters!
In Handyman Saito Goes to Another World, various characters are picked up one by one and the characters are drawn with care. It is interesting to see how these characters connect with each other, and it is interesting to see how Saito becomes respected by various adventurers through his interactions with his party members, other parties he fought alongside in the dungeon, and non-combatants in the town.
[Handyman Saito Goes to Another World] Summary of what kind of work it is
We have summarized what kind of work Handyman Saito Goes to Another World, a winter anime that will be broadcast from January 2023, is! It's basically a comedic work, and each character, including the main characters, is picked up on individually, so I think it's easy to empathize with. People who like Wiz-like games might like it. That's the kind of work it is! Please check it out!
