I hate farming. Which begs the question, why would I watch a farming-related show? Well, last time I did so I ended up really enjoying it, so it’s given me more of an open mind to watching shows about things I don’t personally enjoy doing myself. I’ve Somehow Gotten Stronger When I Improved My Farm-Related Skills stars Al Wayne, who found out his stats were insanely strong after he maxed out his farming skill. Then, he used those stats to cause a dragon to explode with a carrot, and his life became very chaotic after that.

The story here is pretty mid, but mid in a way that’s typical for a show like this. Usually, when a protagonist finds out they have overpowered skills, the plot focuses on how those skills inadvertently cause the protagonist to get shoved into the hero lifestyle. This is no different, but there’s really little else to offer here. You have a little bit of world-building in terms of how the humans and demons are in conflict, but it’s a very bare bones story. Usually, tales like this are dependent more on great characters and fun dialogue, but well, it doesn’t get any better.

The characters are all very one-note, and to a degree that I didn’t even think was possible. Al and the characters around him constantly have to remind the audience that he’s a farmer. Episode two quite literally references it almost once a minute for the first few minutes. If you were to turn this into a drinking game, then make sure none of the players are anywhere near a set of car keys. I also wouldn’t suggest walking either. The other characters really aren’t that interesting either. This is what made me think that this was some kind of parody, but I stayed confused, debating this the entire time. The part where Al causes a dragon to explode by throwing a carrot at it was genuinely good, but it’s also the only thing I liked about the entire season. The fact is, this is a show too ridiculous to be taken seriously, and not funny enough to be seen as a successful parody.

I do see elements of a show that could have worked here. I like the idea, and episode one does have a solid hook. After that, it just loses all entertainment value. The dialogue either has to over-explain the same things over and over, or has dialogue that’s borderline nonsensical. For example, when Al returns home to see his parents, he is attacked by his father for hugging his mother. His father saw him as someone hitting on his wife, but how would he not immediately recognize his own son? Again, this makes me think it’s a parody, but this just wasn’t funny; it was just weird.

This show was a genuine struggle to watch. Episode one made me think I was going to get a hilarious over-the-top experience. What I got was an over-explained lesson that Al is, in fact, a farmer. I get the impression this is meant to be a running gag, but it was just awkward. If this were my first experience with a farming show, I would have never dared to attempt a second. I feel like I ended up watching this show so you, the readers, don’t have to.