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When I started watching To Be Hero X, I had no idea what to expect. I already knew To Be Hero and To Be Heroine, the previous entries, and I kinda liked the whole nonsense vibe with some unexpected drama mixed in.
To Be Hero X is different.
Not just because of its surreal animation, but because it mixes genres and styles in a way that shouldn't work… but it does. I found myself glued to the screen, episode after episode, trying to figure out what was coming next. Spoiler: you won’t be able to predict anything.
The first thing you’ll notice is the art style.
Forget the usual cute anime tropes or polished realism.
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Here, the studio Paper Plane Animation Studio and the Chinese team threw in a bunch of different styles. Some scenes look like an indie game, others like a rough storyboard sketch, and some feel like a bizarre dream made in rough CGI. The main director is Li Haoling, who also directed stuff like Heaven Official’s Blessing and The King's Avatar. This guy has an artistic vision that doesn’t follow any rule and here he throws all of them out the window on purpose. And in the middle of this visual chaos, the anime delivers heavy messages and some social commentary that really hits, kind of like Mob Psycho 100 or Ping Pong the Animation, but with even more sarcasm and absurdity.
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The first few episodes are really confusing. I even thought, “man, this isn’t going anywhere.”
But out of nowhere, the story starts clicking. You realize all the nonsense has a purpose, and the characters, even if they look dumb at first, get deeper over time.
The main character, X, is this wild anti-hero/meme hybrid. He reminded me of Saitama from One Punch Man, but with deeper trauma and a way more chaotic energy. And Sakura, who seems like just a generic sidekick at first, ends up delivering some shockingly emotional moments. I swear. I thought it was all a joke, but when the drama hits, it hits hard.
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The anime nails the balance between humor and seriousness. One minute you’re laughing at dumb jokes and breaking the fourth wall, and the next you’re hit with heavy stuff like injustice, social control, trauma, and more. There’s brutal criticism of the system, capitalism, authoritarianism, and appearance-based judgment... And the best part: it’s all wrapped up in slapstick humor. It feels like a top-tier episode of South Park, but with the soul of an underground anime.
And of course, there’s fighting.
The fights are creative, over-the-top, with insane visual effects and rules that change constantly. But that’s part of the charm. Nothing is static here. The anime plays with narrative, genre, and even format. Sometimes it feels like watching a live manga, with frames slicing the screen, pop-up text, sounds that don’t match visuals... but it all adds to the intentional madness that is To Be Hero X.
This anime is not for everyone.
If you only enjoy linear stories with a clear beginning, middle, and end, you might get frustrated. But if you're into experimental stuff, if you liked things like Tatami Galaxy, Kaiba, or even FLCL, then To Be Hero X will totally surprise you.
This is a Sino-Japanese production, with support from bilibili and Aniplex, and you can clearly feel the cultural fusion throughout the episodes. Some moments feel like a jab at Chinese censorship, while others totally mock Japanese tropes. It’s cultural chaos but it fits the show’s vibe perfectly.
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To Be Hero X isn’t just a sequel to To Be Heroine it’s on another level.
Bolder, crazier, deeper. It’s an emotional rollercoaster: it’ll make you laugh, think, get confused, then feel sad, then confused again and finally, hooked.
If you want to explore more about the creative madness behind this, check out the creator of Mob Psycho, ONE, who also wrote One Punch Man, and the director Masaaki Yuasa, who made Tatami Galaxy and Ping Pong. Their fingerprints are all over this blended perfectly.
