Juxia Anime Review - Why You Should Revisit Chained Soldier Explosive First Season

With the second season of Chained Soldier (Mato Seihei no Slave) officially confirmed for a January 2026 release, now feels like the perfect time to look back at the first season — the one that started it all. Whether you watched it back in early 2024 or missed it completely, this series deserves a second look before its world expands even further!

Setting the Stage: A World Torn Between Power and Control

The first season, produced by Studio Seven Arcs and streamed globally on HIDIVE, introduced viewers to a version of Japan invaded by alternate-dimension monsters known as Shuuki. Female soldiers empowered by mysterious “Peach” energy formed the Anti-Demon Corps to protect humanity. It’s a familiar setup on paper — demons, squads, hierarchies — but Chained Soldier took the concept somewhere darker and more psychologically charged.

Our protagonist, Yuuki Wakura, accidentally crosses into the Mato dimension and encounters Kyōka Uzen, leader of the Seventh Unit. She offers him survival and power, but there’s a catch: Yuuki becomes her “slave.” That premise raised eyebrows among Western fans when the series premiered, but what makes it fascinating is how it explores mutual trust through an unequal bond rather than glorifying submission. Over twelve episodes, the show balanced its provocative setup with genuine emotional growth, turning what could’ve been exploitative into something surprisingly empathetic.

Action That Hits Hard – And Keeps Getting Better

Visually, Seven Arcs delivered crisp action sequences with strong direction from Junji Nishimura. The Peach-powered combat felt heavy, explosive, and surprisingly tactical. Each female unit used distinct techniques and weapons that reflected their personalities — from Tenka’s raw physical dominance to Himari’s precise coordination. Critics initially compared it to High School DxD or Akame ga Kill! (no surprise, since the manga’s author Takahiro also wrote Akame ga Kill!), but Chained Soldier built more coherent world rules and pacing.

Community feedback from forums like MyAnimeList and Reddit highlighted two key strengths: dynamic teamwork in battle choreography and character relationships that evolved beyond the usual “master-servant” trope. By episode 8, the Seventh Unit felt like a found family rather than a power hierarchy — a detail that aged well as fans revisited the show in anticipation of Season 2.

Why It’s Worth Revisiting Now

Here’s where the “new value” comes in. The production shift for Season 2 — now handled by Passione × Hayabusa Film under director Masafumi Tamura — means we’re likely to see noticeable stylistic evolution. If you go back to Season 1 now, you’ll recognize the groundwork that new staff will build upon: how characters’ fighting forms, emotional arcs, and even the color palette hinted at deeper, unresolved threads.

Additionally, Jump Festa ’25 confirmed that the sequel will focus on the “Leaders’ Meeting Arc,” where all unit commanders — including Ren Yamashiro (voiced by Kana Hanazawa) — appear together for the first time. That makes Season 1 your essential foundation. It’s where every relationship and rivalry begins, and rewatching it will remind you how much world-building was hidden in small scenes: the Corps’ chain of command, Peach energy’s mysterious source, and Yuuki’s evolving morality.

Final Thoughts: More Than Its Reputation

Chained Soldier Season 1 wasn’t perfect — its tone wavered between serious drama and fan-service spectacle — but it built a surprisingly strong narrative core about identity, dependence, and trust. For a series that many initially dismissed as another edgy fantasy, it turned out to have something real to say about partnership and vulnerability. And that’s why, before the next chapter lands in 2026, it’s absolutely worth revisiting the first season... not just to remember what happened, but to understand how far these characters have come.

So queue it up on HIDIVE, give yourself twelve episodes, and watch how a seemingly simple premise transformed into one of 2024’s most underrated action-fantasy anime. When the new season drops, you’ll be ready — and you might just realize this story was never about domination, but about learning to fight side by side.

Read More: Chained Soldier (Mato Seihei no Slave) Season 2 Coming Soon!

Chained Soldier Official Trailer:

Chained Soldier Complete Series: