TP Bon is not something I would expect to be my favorite thing of the year. It certainly doesn't reach the highest highs in entertainment value, writing or anything, it just remains decent for like two whole seasons released back to back on Netflix.
The show is episodic, with little overarching plot, formulaic I might even say, as every episode is basically structured the same. And it is gladly a very entertaining and fun formula that I can keep watching over and over again. I very much appreciate seeing world and western history from a Japanese perspective, and they treat different cultures and religions with a decent amount of respect. How this is all just point blank stated like an educational kids show is therefore charming rather than annoying.
I also find it charming how they use traditional animation based on the original manga's style. At the same time they do adapt the show so that our main character lives in the present day, something often not done in adaptations of older time travel stories, and I very much appreciate it.
Bon is a likeable protagonist, he is a bit wacky and lazy in the beginning, but nowhere near as much to become unlikeable. The point is that he's average and he absolutely is extremely average, relatable to everyone and likeable in trying to do the right thing without having special capacities other than his tech as a time patrol agent. And the recontextualization of his opening monologue about being average in the end is absolutely beautiful.
And it is thoroughly entertaining with humor and decent in-episode storylines featuring the historic people, which I sometimes wished we had more of. So it's not like the greatest thing ever, doesn't have one super epic element to it that ingrains in my mind forever like I sometimes have with mediocre films and series, but it's just all around an entertaining and charming little show, maybe average and unnoticeable to some, but in line with its own message, great in its averageness.
