Sentenced to be a Hero Vol. 1
Author: Rocket Shokai
Illustrator: Mephisto
Publishers: Yen Press
Age Group: Older Teen
Genre: Dark Fantasy
Type: Light Novel
Content Warnings: mistreatment
Spoilers ahead
Plot
No one wants to be a hero!
Heroism—a punishment for only the worst criminals. Those sentenced to the fate of the hero are forced to fight on the front lines against deadly centers of contagion that rot the land and turn its creatures into roving armies of violent beasts. And if a hero dies, their only reward is being brought back to life so they can continue the never-ending battle. But when Xylo Forbartz, a member of the Penal Hero Unit 9004 and a convicted goddess killer, comes face-to-face with a new goddess, the pact they forge might just be enough to change the world…
Character Development
All of the characters have very distinct personalities. I’d even say mental and personality disorders that make them interesting characters.
Xylo may be angsty with a good reason, but he’s also a brilliant strategist with very little resources.
Teoritta is an interesting goddess with an unbearable personality. She gets better as we understand more of the world, why she acts the way she does, and how Xylo sees her. This all adds a complex layer to how the reader interprets her.
The other Penal Heroes are also interesting in their own right. They all have specific purposes in combat with a variety of character flaws that make battles unique and fun to read.
Captain Kivia is Botha. Strong counter to Xylo, but also feminine. She’s a good mix of being a strong independent woman and girly. We also get a hint of her trauma that causes her to feel like she needs to be more masculine to fit into her role as the captain of an army platoon.
World-building
There is a lot of exposition to explain how this world works. This slows down the story and it’s hard to get into reading it at first, even with the reader being dropped into a battle.
I do like that each chapter is part of a report like the audience is reading each report as it comes in from the front lines. It’s a clever way to build the world. It makes you wonder if we, the reader, are part of the Galtuile (the military/political force that deploys Xylo and the other heroes).
The trial records as well are placed in strategic parts to show characters, how things are handled, and not what we expect to read. It’s like seeing the man behind the curtain. It gets the reader on the side of the heroes so we root for them in each battle. This creates the villain outside the main story reports as well.
Themes
At this time, I think it’s too early to see what the theme is. Though there is a lot of set-up for Xylo to be frustrated at his circumstances and want to push for justice/revenge.
Observations & Predictions
Some of my favorite lines:
“Don’t be so dramatic. It’s just one leg (p. 54)”.
“We might be digging our own graves for all we know. I decided to keep this joke to myself, however. The person I’d been teamed up with wasn't a big fan of humor (p.74)”.
Penal Hero Unit 9004 will end up being the biggest problem against the co-existers (a shadow organization pushing to get along with the monsters). I find this quite funny because the co-existers are the most likely reason that the Penal Heroes are together. They’ve manipulated anyone that’s a threat into becomeing heroes. After all, if they die enough they’ll no longer remember anything. The heroes can be a smokescreen for the main populace from finding out their true agenda.
My guess is that not killing these Heroes in Penal Unit 9004 will make them the ultimate pawns to mass control humanity into co-exising or even destroy humanity. If this doesn’t happen, Xylo and his crazy band of misfits may just become true heroes after all and save humanity.
Recommendations
Other non-hero heroes:
Tsukimichi: Moonlight Fantasy By: Kei Azumi
