Anime Review: May I Ask For One Final Thing?

I’ve been generally keeping clear of Isekai anime the last few years, also with a lot of fantasy series based on light novels. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t because those series were frequently crap. When I saw May I Ask For One Final Thing come up on the list of upcoming anime, along with one other show I’ll get to later, it seemed like a good time to put my toe back in. I’d say this was something of a pleasant surprise.

May I Ask For One Final Thing is less a part of the Villainess genre of Isekai, and more a send-up of the sub-genre. Protagonist Scarlet El Vandimion wasn’t reincarnated or summoned from our world. She’s a local. She was also born to power and privilege. However, she also has no patience for those who abuse their power. She also has two aces in the hole. First, of the various deities you can be born with a blessing from, she was born with the blessing of the God of Time, granting her the power of time manipulation. Second, she was trained extensively in the sweet science – you know, fisticuffs. In other words, she can Za Warudo and Ora Ora like a Jostar. Did I mention she has zero patience for those who abuse their power?

So, when the vile failson of an aristocrat breaks off their engagement to marry a priestess of the Goddess of Beauty/Yanderes, who has also been Isekai’d, and is planning to humiliate and degrade Scarlet, well, it’s a good thing she’s got pockets in her dress for some studded leather fingerless gloves. This makes for a wonderful setup for the various series arcs. Aristocrats dealing in slaves? That’s a punchin’. Noble from a neighboring kingdom who won’t take no for an answer? That’s a punchin’. Attempting to displace the Goddess of Healing and get her worship banned? That’s a punchin’. Trying to destroy the magical barrier protecting the kingdom so neighboring nations can invade, when you’re also that priestess of the Goddess of Beauty from earlier? You better believe that’s a punchin’.

Scarlett punching someone in their Stupid Face from May I Ask For One Final Thing? — Sadly, not all the face-punching is this satisfying.

Indeed, if there’s a weakness to the show, it’s not that the punching isn’t satisfying, or that the show isn’t able to come up with interesting characters we want to see get punched. It’s that the depiction of the punching can sometimes get unsatisfying. It’s not that it becomes rote. A fist making contact with the face of a smug, privileged prick can be immensely satisfying. It’s that at some point,t it feels like the animators lose their enthusiasm for showing punchable faces getting their needed punching.

That said, it’s clear the writers know how to make an entitled doucheliner feel like someone who needs an ass kicking, without going too over the top. The fault strictly lies with the depictions of some of the ass-whoopings.

I did immensely enjoy the show, and I do recommend watching it, but if you’re looking for something to fill the lovingly rendered beat down shaped hole that One Punch Man Season 1 and the last season of JoJo left in your heart, this might not be what you’re looking for.

You can find where May I Ask For One Final Thing is available for streaming through JustWatch: