First Impression: I’m Standing on a Million Lives

One day after class, Yotsuya Yuusuke finds himself in a game-like fantasy world, along with the popular Shindou Yuu and shy Hakozaki Kusue. Shindou was actually the first summoned to the fantasy world. When she completed a quest, she got to go home…but also received a quest to become friends with Hakozaki. Upon completing that quest, Shindou and Hakozaki were summoned to the fantasy world and assigned another quest. When they finished, they returned home, but got a quest to be alone with Yotsuya. When they catch him cleaning the otherwise empty classroom after school, all three of them are transported to the fantasy world. There’s an implication that this cycle will continue and the party will keep growing. Also, if they die in the fantasy world, they return to life fully healed after a 30-second timeout. Unless they got eaten, then they stay dead…maybe? But if they suffer a TPK, they all die for real…possibly? Naturally, a giant troll eats Shindou (the party’s wizard) and she doesn’t regenerate. The troll also maims the timid Hakozaki (nominally the party’s warrior). That leaves Yotsuya…whose class is farmer.

It’s an unusual setup for an isekai and gives me hope that the story could go interesting place. The show left me with many questions. Is Shindou is gone for good? What’s the alleged “game master” who claims to be from the future trying to accomplish? Will additional students will join the party? What does the title have to do with the story? Who is Yotsuya really? (See, he looks like a harmless antisocial loner, but there are signs that he has a much darker side.) Based on this episode, I feel like recommending I’m Standing on a Million Lives. It could be fun.

I’m Standing on a Million Lives can be streamed on Crunchyroll. Read our thoughts on all the new fall anime series, in additional comments from our other writers, on our fall 2020 anime first impression master post.

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