The Healer Who Was Banished from His Party, Is, in Fact, the Strongest, so why is he known around town as “Laust the Ignoramus”? Why is he walking with a wooden plank around the Adventurers’ Guild, searching in vain for an adventuring group? Not that Narsena is fooled for even an instant. She remembers the skilled warrior who saved her from the goblins in a red sunset when she was a blonde, noble-looking little girl, and has been training ever since to join him one day. As a fellow adventurer, and perhaps something more. He doesn’t recognize her: we all deal with our teenage years in our own way, and Narsena is now a blue-haired, Aladdin-resembling martial artist who fights in risque attire. Their first expedition to the Labyrinth of Mardath proves that Laust is an accomplished veteran, with many fighting and thieving skills besides his healing. So, why Was The Healer Banished from His Party, then? When he returns, we learn that the famous Blades of Lightning would keep nine tenths of his salary. The Guild authorities seem inexplicably hostile too. It sounds like workplace harassment, if you ask me.

This one was…okay. The fights are well choreographed. The animation does the work. At first, the show puts a bit more emphasis on its jokes than it should, and its locations look kind of generic. But after that, I was entertained. Narsena is enthusiastic, Laust is kind, and both have clear motivations that propel the episode forward just enough. He wants to distance himself from his banishment and get a second chance at a job he excels in. She has worked hard for years to get close to her hero and childhood crush and is finally living the dream. Then again, he doesn’t look all that affected, and she hasn’t an atom of doubt about her chosen path. Her crush is also a bit over-the-top. I wish I could be more enthusiastic, but this show brings to mind Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash, a somewhat better version of this concept: the kind healer, the despised group, the budding crush, killing monsters for a living. It had its problems (namely, the fanservice), but could also fill all these concepts with pathos. This one, not so much. I don’t think I will continue, but if you happen to love isekai-style shows and aren’t too demanding, it should be all right.

The Healer Who Was Banished from His Party, Is, in Fact, the Strongest is streaming at Crunchyroll.