Hm, so they just covered more chapters each episode. I thought the pacing was weird, but I figured it was intentional. As if the story is being retold by a child, fitting the overall look and vibe of the anime.
Anyway, I'm also one of those who binged it due to Robby's sig.
! It was really entertaining, but I don't dare to call it great yet. For one because it's still ongoing (:getlost:), but also because it reminds me of Attack on Titan in a way. Back then I also thought it was amazing, thanks to the overall novelty and the anime making up for the poor art of the manga. Now this is almost a decade ago, but I clearly remember an interview with someone who appeared to be a Japanese senior editor / renowned manga critic, and he completely destroyed Attack on Titan. He noted that the series has nothing to offer except for excess nudity and some cheap shock factor from people being eaten alive, and once you take it away you're left with nothing. I don't remember my exact reaction to the interview, but it was more or less "okay boomer".
! Except he was completely right. Once I got used to the characters dying brutal deaths and the reveal of the Titan origin, I lost all interest in the story. It's not that I disliked a certain turn of events, it just exposed how lacking the story was once I became numb to the innitial hook.
! And I kinda fear Ranking of Kings is a similiar deal. What will be left once you remove [[URL="https://c.tenor.com/X7cdzpjfypwAAAAC/ousama-ranking-anime-tears.gif"]ridiculously adorable crying boy being ridiculously adorable]? When you get used to likeable characters getting maimed left and right, only to be healed shortly after? I'm not going to lie, it worked super well for me. This is a textbook tearjerker anime, and I really don't tear up easily. But at one point these tricks won't work anymore, not if it isn't underlaid with real emotional attachment. I'm not attached to any of those characters. The disabled boy making adorable noises holds my emotions hostage, that's not attachment.
! I would still recommend it to friends (with the clear warning that this is still ongoing!), but I'm not expecting much past this first season.