The Story

Despite the quality preconceptions, Isekai Maou to Shoukan Shoujo no Dorei Majutsu (How Not to Summon a Demon Lord) didn’t turn out to be a consensus steaming pile of trash like a lot of the community thought it would upon premiering. Actually, it has a healthy amount of support for it.

Really?

Yes. The support can be seen on a lot of platforms in the community all the way down to the top MAL review at the moment. 

Just to clarify we’re talking about that new Isekai show with a slave kink right?

Ummmm yes. That “slave kink” show is currently a top five rated non sequel show this Summer at the time of writing, along with Banana Fish, Hanebado!, Satsuriku no Tenshi and Hataraku Saibou. A lot of people are enjoying it early on.

But I heard it’s just a trashy Overlord

And I heard that Shichisei no Subaru is just Sword Art Online mixed with Anohana. Sure there’s some validity with both of those comparisons, but these sort of seasonal takes week one tend to be very broad, lazily applied and rarely tell the whole picture.

So what’s the whole picture?

Check it out for yourself and see if you haven’t already. Isekai Maou isn’t just another Overlord, Death March, Smartphone or whatever Isekai title comes immediately to mind when you check out its synopsis. Granted there will always be viable comparisons that can be made to those works given the nature of the genre space that they all share, but the reality of the situation is that it’s more of a culmination of some of the space’s brighter spots while mixing in ecchi beats. From comedic delivery to raw production, there’s more positives under Isekai Maou’s hood than likely to be expected.

The Bottom Line

Isekai Maou to Shoukan Shoujo no Dorei Majutsu is by no means outright “bad”- at least thus far. While time will tell how it ultimately ends up, its current offerings seem to be an above average entry into its genre.

 

 

“QUOTE OF THE WEEK”

–The average Banana Fish tweet. It’s going to be a thirsty Summer stay hydrated.

 

 

SEASONAL PRATTLE

Find what you’re looking for fast
Hanebado!
Banana Fish
Satsuriku no Tenshi
Planet With
Back Street Girls
Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa
Darling in the FranXX
Isekai Maou to Shoukan Shoujo no Dorei Majutsu
Island

Hanebado! (1)

Strong command of body movement, gorgeous set pieces and an understated sense of direction – Liden Films is doing a lot up front to elevate Hanebado’s relatively linear base writing. And that kind of effort is very reassuring to see in its genre space. Sports works lean heavier on dynamic movement than most genres, the moment to moment intensity they thrive on during a game can be quickly diminished with a flat visual outing. Thus it’s imperative to be highly competent when the lights are the brightest, an approach that I’m confident that Liden Films understands after this opening episode.

Worthwhile Prattle:

Hanebado anime adaptation is an ambitious, transformative effort

Banana Fish (1)

Ash was rightfully given much of this premiere’s care, and already feels like a sculpted lead – his acuity, disposition and mannerisms all came through clearly, making his interactions with the rest of the cast that much more engaging. Banana Fish in the bigger picture built a strong twenty minutes from start to finish, having the craft to complement a good batch of writing that gives viewers just enough of a hook at the end to tune in next week. Hard not to be satisfied with its handling.

Satsuriku no Tenshi (1)

On the brightside, Satsuriku no Tenshi definitely feels like a product that has a director who’s very comfortable with material like this. Kentarou Suzuki’s vision is highly effective for large batches of scenes – there’s a thick layer of confusion and intrigue created by the his framing that compels you to want to explore these floors. On top of that, Suzuki closes out this premiere well with a hook that’s not too reachy or miss timed. Despite that, on the not so brightside, certain plot beats have an inherent edge to them and Rachel’s situational awareness will likely raise some questions. This may shape up to be a work were you have to roll with the punches, but its potential payoff seems worth it.

Planet With (1)

Planet With is another case of an accumulation of details creating something greater than the sum of its parts. The look, the tone, the character interactions – all of that came across in this premiere with fine execution and oozes Mizukami’s style. Some of the beats are pretty standarish, but this episode has more than enough flavor to compensate when it’s all said and done. Combine that with Mizukami being a top tier writer and I’m easily looking forward to riding this one out

Worthwhile Prattle:

It almost doesn’t feel real, but it really is happening.

Back Street Girls (1)

If the limited presentation wasn’t already enough to hamstring a lot of the snap Back Street Girls’ comedic beats could have had, Chiaki feels really out of water with her direction. Scenes come and go in intervals that come off as more appropriate if the series was in short form, and this opening episode struggles to build a strong sense of momentum as a result. Perhaps if J.C. Staff made this fifteen minutes or less they would have had a healthier outing.

Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa (1)

This may be due to the high expectations that inherently come with being apart of Kaiji’s franchise, but Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa’s start is painfully underwhelming. From a recap that overextended its welcome to dialogue choices and sequencing that’s as flavorful as water – Tonegawa gives you plenty of ammo to write this off as just a boring entry. It’s almost as if Madhouse still has a hangover from being drunk off of A Place Further Than The Universe’s success.

Darling in the FranXX (24)

Due to how creatives, cultures and consumers interact, there’s always a variety of perspectives you can infer from a work. However, it’s fundamentally a media trap to hone in on that while losing sight of the frameworks creatives tend to operate from in the first place. Approaching a Mari Okada work and being surprised that it turns out melodramatic is just as silly as approaching a Gen Urobuchi work and feeling the same way when it ends up with heavy suffering.

Seeing a healthy chunk of viewers post finale still genuinely taken back by Nishigori’s mode of storytelling on FranXX, especially its outcomes and decision making in this genre space under a Trigger umbrella, leads me to believe that there was a major disconnect with expectations of this series from the jump. Darling in the FranXX is a “brittle” show – its strengths are based more in its visual craft, spurts of dramatic affection and the emotive power that carries, not in tight or compelling storytelling. It doesn’t shine in thematics or novelty and struggles at times with pace and execution. Ultimately it’s nothing amazing but far from a trainwreck. It’s an above average work with value depending on what you’re in the market for.

Worthwhile Prattle:

FranXX Deep Dive Playlist

Isekai Maou to Shoukan Shoujo no Dorei Majutsu (1)

Isekai Maou had a reasonable showing, offering more personality and responsive character acting than expected. The cast thankfully has a sense of charm that falls closer to the realm of Konosuba rather than Isekai wa Smartphone to Tomo ni, and its craft isn’t completely inept when illustrating that. There’s certainly more Isekai Maou could say, another intimate conversation or two between Diablo and friends could have done a lot for this show’s world, but for now the series just does a good job of embracing its genre space.

Island (1)

Essentially, outside of a select few exceptions (Steins;Gate, Clannad etc) visual novels tend to be a struggle to adapt – often losing too much texture and volume along the way to be wholly effective. Unfortunately Island’s premiere feels symptomatic of this; Hitting its more key beats but leaving the details that lend characterization and poignancy behind. Island may very well have a narrative worth embracing this Summer, but if it continues to flow like this, it’s going to be an uphill battle to get to that point.

 

 

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