That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime is a popular isekai animated series, and its star is Rimuru Tempest, who is notorious for being overwhelmingly powerful. However, that's not all he's known for. Rimnuru has also established himself as a benevolent and generous leader and visionary, and he has a kind and gentle face to match.
Rimuru started off as a blue slime, but early on, he began looking human, mostly for the benefit of friends and allies such as king Gazel Dwargo and assorted human allies. However, Rimuru looks nothing like his old Japanese self, and at a glance, he looks distinctly like a blue-haired girl. However, he didn't actually become a girl. That's just a relic of Shizue Izawa's original form.
How Rimuru Tempest Reinvented His Human Look
Rimuru Tempest's single greatest skill is Predator, the ability to absorb another organism and analyze its biological properties and magical attributes. Early on, he did this to various cave monsters and even a dire wolf, and he could transform into these creatures and use their abilities at will. At that point, Rimuru was unwilling to harm humans this way, so he couldn't assume a human form until he met Shizue Izawa, a fellow Otherworlder who had come from World War II-era Japan.
Shizue was dying, especially with Ifrit gone, and Rimuru promised to look after her young students at Freedom Academy for her. Then, with her permission, Rimuru used Predator to absorb Shizue and grant her eternal rest. However, Shizue lived on inside Rimuru, and Rimuru could now assume her likeness via Predator. Rimuru morphed into a somewhat androgynous version of Shizue with slime-blue hair and gold eyes, which at first confused his friends such as Rigurd.
Rimuru's new human form paid tribute to Shizue's former appearance, including borrowing her trademark mask, but with some alterations to this form. His new body seems to have no sex organs, and it has a flat chest too. Gobta, who thought Rimuru had turned into a girl, teased him about this until Rimuru punted him away. Rimuru didn't have body image issues of any kind, but then again, he didn't want anyone mocking Shizue's appearance, even as a joke. He then began dressing in human clothes, using his new body to meet human leaders and other important figures not as a slime, but as a humanoid with a real face.
The Symbolism Of Rimuru's New Body
On the face of it, Rimuru's new body is just the vestigial remains of Shizhue Izawa, but his new, androgynous appearance can be interpreted as more than that. Rimury's body not only pays loving tribute to Shizue and her dreams but also represents Rimuru's flexible nature as an isekai hero. His being a slime is an amusing novelty, but Reincarnated as a Slime goes far beyond the scope of a simple gag like that.
Rimuru is many different things to different people, from warrior to politician to friend and mysterious outsider, and his ever-changing body reflects this. It also proves that his humanity is still intact, even if he looks and fights like a monster. Rimuru is mentally a Japanese man, but he can be a slime when he must, and be a humanoid when he wants to. Not many isekai heroes can willingly shapeshift like that.
Rimuru's androgynous new body might have fooled Gobta and casual fans into thinking Rimuru had turned into a girl, but in fact, his somewhat androgynous body reflects his flexible and tolerant mindset. He discriminates against no one, and he won't harm anyone or view them as an enemy unless the other party draws blood first. He accepts all others for who they are, and like him, some monsters are not what they appear to be. Geld, for example, is a kind and helpful orc who may look like a beast but is more benevolent than any human from the Falmuth Kingdom or Western Holy Church.
Rimuru's androgynous body also reflects his personal taste in other people -- in particular, he appreciates beautiful women, especially elf maidens, but he also generously compliments handsome men such as Benimaru the ogre and his blacksmith friend Kurobe. That, and he doesn't mind wearing somewhat feminine clothes in everyday life (until Shion and Shuna trick him into wearing bunny-girl outfits and other ridiculous getups). Rimuru has a generous heart and an open-minded soul, and he doesn't have to look like a slime -- or his original Japanese self -- to prove it. He can be anything and everything, while leaving his physical manhood far behind in Japan.
