Hataraku Maou-sama! – 12
So beautiful it hurts.
That sure was a flashy episode! Between awesome battles and shifting alliances, there wasn’t a single dull moment. And I do appreciate the little bits of comedy that the show managed to sprinkle in. It could be argued that it detracts from the battle, but I personally thought it very fitting of the show.
The Showdown
So Mitsuki is revealed to be the archangel Sariel. He’s probably not quite as well-known as Michael, Gabriel, or Raphael, but sure enough, he is in fact an archangel. That said, Maou-sama! opts for the “not so holy” approach. I’m not a particularly religious guy myself, but it’s rather overdone so I find myself rolling my eyes whenever classically “good” beings are portrayed as being quite twisted themselves. I get that it’s kind of a cool “twist”, but could we have something less stereotypical instead? With a show in which the main character is the demon lord, however, I guess this is unavoidable. It really helps Maou look better if his enemies are no better than him, even though I’ve said before that this still technically doesn’t make him any better. He’s just comparatively “not as bad”. In any case, I thought the whole showdown was very well done. Sariel was so brimming with confidence and full of himself that I was glad to see him get his bottom handed to him by Maou. I will say I was a bit disappointed that Chi-chan appearing to wail on Sariel was really just Maou using some kind of illusion. It would have been so awesome for an ordinary little girl to beat up someone as high and mighty as an archangel, but I guess I’ll just have to settle for an illusion.
Moving on, Suzuno’s heel face turn wasn’t too much of a surprise, but I still can’t say I rather liked her development. The whole thing just felt weak and lacking in impact overall. We already see that she’s doubting her preconceptions of what’s “right” and “wrong”, and her lack of conviction only made her confrontation with Maou feel unimportant. I would have liked to see a real change of heart, but as it was, all Suzuno needed was a very slight nudge. It was nice, however, to learn that Maou was actually sharp enough to realize that she was an agent of the Church. If he’s picked up on this much, maybe there’s hope for Chi-chan yet. And it seems the theory of Suzuno poisoning Ashiya was technically correct, although I don’t think she was consciously putting her sacred power into the food. On the other side of the spectrum, we have Orba’s attempt to win Lucifer over again with promises of returning to heaven. It wasn’t too hard to imagine that Lucifer would decieve him, but it was still very satisfying to watch Orba’s plan backfire miserably and Lucifer sock him a good one. Harnessing the panic from the masses when the moon is suddenly pulled towards the earth really was some quick thinking on the part of the fallen angel (and also a laughable oversight on the part of Orba).
What’s Left?
So now that all the baddies have been defeated, what’s left? I had previously expressed my desire for Maou to return to Ente Isla to make ammends to the people there, but it’s entirely possible that he and the rest of the crew might just remain on earth and live out the rest of their days in relative peace. After all, the town needs fixing after Maou and Sariel’s rumble, so the demon lord obviously won’t be opening a gate back home any time soon. Ente Isla still has some pressing matters regarding the power struggle and corruption within the Church, however, so I can see Suzuno returning to set things straight. Of the group, she’s really the one in the best position to make much needed changes to the organization. As for Maou and Emi, it might be for the best if they never returned to Ente Isla. As much as I would like to see Maou apologize to the people, maybe they’ve just had enough of demon lords and heroes. In spite of the political turmoil, the humans are living in peace now (though the fate of the demons is never elaborated upon), and the last thing they need is a relic from the war to show up and remind them of the tough times they had to go through. So maybe it’s all well that Maou and Emi continue their “feud” on earth, well out of the way of Ente Isla. And this way, Chi-chan will also have all the time she needs to finally win over Maou’s heart.
Extras
After forgetting about the romcom for a while, Maou-sama! weans us back into it with some interspersed laughs throughout the battle. Emi and Chi-chan mouthing off at Sariel for being a pervert was one such moment. Ashiya arriving fashionably late to the show was also great. But I think what takes the cake has to be the fact that Maou pretty much went through the entire episode with only his underwear on. The magic fight in the sky was epic and all, but just the sight of a beefy Maou in his underpants cracked me up a bit too much. Good job on that one, Maou-sama!
About Sumairii
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
The fight was epic and the jokes were great. I’m going to miss the show dearly. There wasn’t a dull moment anywhere. Moau is the only guy I can see fighting in his underwear and look good doing so. Those boxers are overpowered. Did he get them from Mondaiji while Shiroyasha was making that abominable fanservice-proof skirt?
I’m glad Maou cleaned Sariel’s clock. He really pissed me off torturing Emi like that. For an angel, an archangel no less, he’s nothing but a hypocrite, no better than Orba and both reaped what they sowed with a well deserved Mortal Kombat style uppercut.
He may be keen on picking up trouble but Maou is still dense in the romance department. Poor Chi-chan getting friend zoned like that. Those tears of hers were too much to handle.
LOL at Lucifer’s reason for crossing Orba: “Heaven is a six-tatami, one-room, second-floor apartment on Earth”. I guess giving up the internet and tracking equipment was out of the question for him.
Suzuno’s change of alligiance was expected and I can’t say I blame her. Her development was acceptable enough. I mean, she was getting tired of doing the church’s dirty work and was looking for a way out. That was already much of an impact. I guess she’s now inclined to believe it’s not what you are that matters but who you are.
POWUH: 800-899 and Mad Scientist with 814 comments
Hahaha! Maou could very well have gotten his underpants from Shiroyasha! And now that I think about it, a Maou-sama! and Mondaiji crossover would be absolutely epic and also completely possible. Both shows do involve jumping to different worlds, after all. =P
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
You’re really something special if you can make fighting while wearing just underpants badass. If he’s so adept in battle here then it makes me wonder how Emilia was able to corner him in Ente Isla forcing him to retreat.
POWUH: 800-899 and Mad Scientist with 814 comments
I think it’s like rock paper scissors. Sariel’s wicked light can nullify Emi’s sacred powers, Emi’s sacred powers can overpower Maou’s magic, and Maou’s magic is unaffected by Sariel’s wicked light.
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Quick heads up Sumairii, there will be more adventures in store for Maou, Emi, and crew.
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POWUH: 800-899 and Mad Scientist with 814 comments
Oooh, that’s very nice to know. I’ve already said that I would be excited for a second season, so if there’s that much more material to cover, maybe we really will get one!
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
First fanservice,
Then manservice,
Today we got MaouService. ;p
POWUH: 800-899 and Mad Scientist with 814 comments
orz
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
MaouService, eh? Someone go and patent this! And be quick about it!
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
no comment ( O // v // O)
POWUH: Metanorn Lover with 175 comments
Urushihara doing the shoryuken on bald guy http://i.imgur.com/lhlrbii.gif yea being neet really got it goods.
indeed maou-sama good grief wonder if need a nice S on it
http://img1.ak.crunchyroll.com/i/spire1/e91af4df3f94e46136e1a6f18255f7e91371815759_full.png cause he super-maou the next man of steel when all power-up.
POWUH: Metanorn Regular with 107 comments
Maou has made it clear that he wants to take over Ente Isla eventually, and living on earth will not change that.
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The difference this time is that he’s not going to make the same mistakes.
POWUH: 800-899 and Mad Scientist with 814 comments
Really? I’ve gotten the impression that he’s pretty much stopped caring about Ente Isla. Heck, there’s even been barely any mention of taking over earth since he first made his bold claim to Emi.
You do sound like you’ve read the source material though, so maybe this is just me.
POWUH: Metanorn Regular with 107 comments
First he has to rise to the top on earth and he doesn’t need to be that concerned about it. He has plenty of time to rise to the top on earth. His lifespan is much longer than a humans so time is no issue for him.
POWUH: Metanorn Regular with 95 comments
Shuzuno idolizes Emi because she is a real hero. That’s the main reason that she switched sides.
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
guess what ..i bet my PSP for the second season
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
That’s a brave bet. Are you prepared for the consequences should you lose? LOL.