The Rising of the Shield Hero Releases New Poster

While The Rising of the Shield Hero has not yet been officially confirmed for a second season, things are looking good for the breakaway anime series to make a return. With the first season nearing its completion, a new anime visual has been released that promises a new battle for Iwatani Naofumi to rage against.

Twitter User PHJD8I8 revealed the latest poster for The Rising of the Shield Hero, showing our protagonist facing off against the “Scythe Hero”:

The Shield Hero has had a difficult time to say the least in his series. Arriving as the weakest of the “Legendary Heroes”, Naofumi found himself in a terrible situation wherein the kingdom and its citizens came to hate him, his abilities were awful in this new environment, and everything was going wrong. In order to gain “exp” like any other role playing game, the Shield Hero had to assemble a party, first with the former slave, hybrid character of Raphtalia.

The series itself has been amazingly popular since its arrival as anime, originally introduced as a series of light novels, much like the fan favorite Sword Art Online. Naofumi has certainly been the underdog of the series, trailing in the wake of the other “Cardinal Heroes” as they fight their way through an ever increasing number of monsters threatening their new world. His strength and experience luckily has been increasing with each episode, to say nothing of his standing in this mystical world among its citizens.

Whether this new artwork is leading to a second season announcement is anyone’s guess, but if we were betting folk, we’d say its in the bag.

What do you think of this new artwork for The Rising of the Shield Hero? Do you think a second season is in the bag?

Originally conceived as a series of light novels written by Aneko Yusagi in 2013, The Rising of the Shield Hero’s anime adaptation is produced by Kinema Citrus and directed by Takao Abo. You can currently find The Rising of the Shield Hero streaming on Crunchyroll and VRV.

The series is described as such: “Iwatani Naofumi, a run-of-the-mill otaku, finds a book in the library that summons him to another world. He is tasked with joining the sword, spear, and bow as one of the Four Cardinal Heroes and fighting the Waves of Catastrophe as the Shield Hero. Excited by the prospect of a grand adventure, Naofumi sets off with his party. However, merely a few days later, he is betrayed and loses all his money, dignity, and respect. Unable to trust anyone anymore, he employs a slave named Raphtalia and takes on the Waves and the world. But will he really find a way to overturn this desperate situation?”