Learn Japanese with The Rising of the Shield Hero

Anime by Japanese level › N3

How hard is the Japanese in The Rising of the Shield Hero?

Ikkimi rates The Rising of the Shield Hero at N3 (everyday Japanese at full speed). What sets its level: game-like fantasy words, clear speech. Of the 192 anime Ikkimi rates by hand, 44 are easier and 80 are harder.

Levels follow the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, from N5 (easiest) to N1 (hardest). They are Ikkimi’s estimate of how hard a show’s Japanese is to follow, from how fast people talk, how many unusual words there are and how clear the voices are. They are not official JLPT ratings.

Format, episodes, year and genres are from AniList’s entry, which may cover only the first season.

The words in the title

The Japanese title, 盾の勇者の成り上がり, is a first lesson in itself. Its 3 words, as a dictionary lists them:

How to learn Japanese with The Rising of the Shield Hero

Ikkimi lists The Rising of the Shield Hero on Crunchyroll. What each service carries varies by country. Ikkimi does not stream anything: you watch on your own account, in Chrome on a computer, and Ikkimi adds a Japanese line you can click on top of the player.

On Crunchyroll

Crunchyroll rarely has Japanese subtitles. On a Crunchyroll episode, Ikkimi looks for a matching Japanese subtitle file in Jimaku’s public catalogue, loads it and lines it up with the episode by itself. If Jimaku has no file for an episode, you can search by hand in the Ikkimi popup or load a subtitle file from your computer.

1. Add Ikkimi to Chrome

   Get the extension from the Chrome Web Store and sign in.

2. Play an episode

   Open The Rising of the Shield Hero on Crunchyroll. The Japanese line appears on top of the video.

3. Click the words you keep hearing

   The video pauses and the word opens: kana, romaji, meaning, JLPT level and a recording by a native speaker where one exists (never a computer voice; otherwise the line from the show plays again). Keep three to five words an episode, the ones that come up again.

4. Review them later

   Kept words come back as flashcards on the Ikkimi website, with the scene and the line they came from, just before you would forget them.

Easier and harder shows

Shows within a level of The Rising of the Shield Hero, with the most genres in common first.

Easier

• N4 to N3Dragon Ballドラゴンボールsimple adventure talk, shoutingCrunchyroll
• N4 to N3Digimon Adventureデジモンアドベンチャーchildren talking, monster names that repeatCrunchyroll
• N4Pokémonポケットモンスターmade for children, simple adventure talkNetflix

Also N3

• N3ONE PIECEloud and clear, pirate words that repeatCrunchyrollNetflix
• N3NarutoNARUTO -ナルト-clear voices, ninja words that repeatCrunchyrollNetflix
• N3Sword Art Onlineソードアート・オンラインclear voices, game wordsCrunchyrollNetflix

Harder

• N3 to N2HUNTER×HUNTERlong explanations of invented rulesCrunchyrollNetflix
• N3 to N2Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活fast emotional monologues, fantasy wordsCrunchyroll
• N3 to N2Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind風の谷のナウシカa film, formal and old-fashioned speechNetflix

See every N3 anime or all 192 anime by Japanese level, and read how to learn Japanese by watching anime from zero.

Questions

Is The Rising of the Shield Hero good for learning Japanese?

With some help. Ikkimi rates it N3 (everyday Japanese at full speed). What sets its level: game-like fantasy words, clear speech. It sits in the middle of Ikkimi’s levels. A beginner can follow it with kana and romaji on every word, but it is easier after one or two simpler shows.

What Japanese level is The Rising of the Shield Hero?

N3, on Ikkimi’s scale from N5 (easiest) to N1 (hardest). Of the 192 anime Ikkimi rates by hand, 44 are easier and 80 are harder. The level is Ikkimi’s estimate, not an official JLPT rating.

Where can I watch The Rising of the Shield Hero with Japanese subtitles?

Ikkimi lists The Rising of the Shield Hero on Crunchyroll. What each service carries varies by country. Crunchyroll rarely has Japanese subtitles, so Ikkimi looks for a matching file in Jimaku’s catalogue and lines it up with the episode.

What does the title 盾の勇者の成り上がり mean, word by word?

盾 (tate) means “shield; buckler; escutcheon”; 勇者 (yuusha) means “hero; the brave; man of valour (valor)”; 成り上がり (nariagari) means “upstart; parvenu; jumped-up person”.

How many episodes does The Rising of the Shield Hero have?

AniList’s entry lists 25 episodes of about 24 minutes, first aired in 2019. Later seasons may be listed separately.

What should I watch before The Rising of the Shield Hero?

Shows a little easier than The Rising of the Shield Hero, with genres in common: Dragon Ball (N4 to N3), Digimon Adventure (N4 to N3) and Pokémon (N4).

Sources: show details from AniList; meanings from JMdict (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0); readings and word splits from kuromoji.js with IPADIC; JLPT word levels from Jonathan Waller’s unofficial lists. See Credits. Spotted a mistake? Tell us at hello@ikkimi.app.