Most isekai have a particular theme about them whether it’s about a normal man being summoned—or resurrected/reincarnated—into a magical fantasy world or becoming a hero that can somehow save the day. Yet, The Eminence in Shadow is quite a peculiar story. Enter Minoru Kageno, a teen who has always dreamed of becoming a powerful ruler, ruling from the world of shadows. As most isekai go, Minoru dies in a pretty silly way and is reincarnated into a new magical world that allows him to quickly see his dreams become reality. Creating a “fake” enemy organization and getting a bunch of waifu to join him through odd means, Minoru—now Cid—ends up realizing his fake villains are real and he really is in a world where he can become a powerful warrior.

Honestly, The Eminence in Shadow sounds like it was born from the mind of a kid who wants to be a Power Ranger but that is why it's so gripping. The world of The Eminence in Shadow is almost thrown away completely in this tale in favor of Cid’s rise to power, his battles with the Order of Diabolos, and his attempts at living two lives…one of a normal “mob-like” character and the other as Shadow, the leader of Shadow Garden. Most viewers will fall in love with Cid and we can say his presence alone makes The Eminence in Shadow great.

Another big strength of The Eminence in Shadow is the fights which are godly, to say the least. Cid/Shadow and his Mundane Mann persona steal the show but that is perfectly fine. Cid is without a doubt OP beyond words—he literally fights one warrior and uses mental manipulation the entire time—but unlike other OP fighters, Cid is OP because he made himself OP. In his previous life, Cid—Minoru—was already a tough fighter pushing past the limits most humans could. It only took the ability to manipulate magic in his new life as Cid to really give him the tools to become unstoppable.

When Cid isn’t killing baddies, there are other warriors like Claire, Iris Midgar, and Rose who step in for some battles themselves and are pretty incredible in their own individual ways. We loved some of the nail-biting final bouts that take place in The Eminence in Shadow but really this show has some stellar fights that should be noticed by all isekai that pride themselves on being action heavy.

Not too long ago, we wrote an article exclusively about Cid and made sure to tell the world our thoughts on him. Unlike almost every isekai MC, Cid is in a league of his own and that hasn’t changed since we said that. He isn’t a hero, and he isn’t per se a villain but he isn’t an anti-hero either. Cid is Cid, a man who wishes to become the strongest being in the world but in a way that he feels is “cool” and won’t make him stand out too much. We probably have made it very obvious in this review but Cid is almost the entire reason for watching The Eminence in Shadow and that is something we can’t say often in an anime, the MC being the sole reason to watch.

Typically, isekai that have plenty of waifu usually put said waifu in front of everything. They will often be shown half naked, in some odd perverted situation, and will lust for the main character. The Eminence in Shadow does have the occasional scene with the girls either being in a hot spring or showing off their “assets” but oddly enough, most of the women in The Eminence in Shadow get almost no screen time. Several of the central females like Alexia, Iris, and a few of the Shadow Garden girls will take center stage in various episodes but it often feels like the girls of Shadow Garden are only there for the occasional battle or comedic bit. The Eminence in Shadow has a lot of attractive ladies who are both tough and cool but we feel many are poorly utilized.