D-TIER: The Devil Is a Part-Timer!
Premise:
The Devil is a Part-Timer! is a harem/comedy disguised as a supernatural isekai. The main cast of characters, most notably Satan-the leader of a demon army, is transported to modern-day Japan along with his second-in-command and arch nemesis Emilia, the hero who sent him to Japan.
Upon arriving at earth all the characters from Ente Island (the supernatural world where most of the main characters come from) Satan, Emilia, and the others who follow, lose a majority of their power, forcing them to find jobs and disguise themselves as normal human beings.
The show follows Satan (who takes upon himself the Japanese name Sadao Maou) as he begins working at a MgRonald's (an uncopyrighted fast food joint). It focuses on the relationships he develops with those who follow him from Ente Island including his supporters, enemies, and rivals.
Animation:
Produced by White Fox Studio (Steins;Gate, Akame Ga Kill) the animation quality for this show is above average at best and forgettable at worst. The characters are recognizable and emotions are easily conveyed, its a few tiers above a YouTube fan-animation, but not very memorable.
There are a few moments where the animation goes above-average, but fore the most-part, the animation has no sub-par moments but it simultaneously offers nothing memorable.
Story Critiques and Other Thoughts:
The Devil Is a Part-Timer! has *three fundamental issues that brings this anime down into D-Tier, the first is that the character's make unrealistic decisions when compared to their established character traits, the second is that there are no consequences for character's actions, and the third is execution of the story.
Number One:
The biggest critique, and the one that harms this story the most, is that the characters make so many non-sensical decisions when compared to their established character traits. Almost every-single main character acts in complete opposition to his or her established principles. Most especially the titular devil. In the first scene, along with other expository dialogue, (and the fact that he shares a name and title with one of the world's biggest religious groups manifestation of evil incarnate) is shown to be a caring, hard-working, chivalrous man, who cares for his comrades.
Now if this was the only discrepancy in the show, it wouldn't have been an issue, the devil is a good guy when he comes to earth-as part of the premise this would be fine-but when every single character sacrifices personal integrity for no reason, it becomes hard to ignore.
Emilia, the enemy of Satan, has one goal, to kill Satan. She never does this. Is there a reason given why this character who has shown to have an undying hatred towards Satan chooses to spare him? Not any that stand up to even a tiny bit of reason.
Ashiya, the demon general, and Satan's second in command was set up to be a tactical genius, but during the show, he is only there for comedic relief by being painfully idiotic.
When a show sacrifices character development, retcons its own characters mid-show, or treats its characters without respect, it goes down in value and the story its trying to tell becomes predictable and hollow. The only humor found in this show are easily resolved conflicts that are created by unrealistic character developments.
Number Two:
No consequences for characters actions. This anime has the "My-Hero-Academia-Symptom" meaning, that no matter what happens to the characters, the overall situation will not change. New characters may be introduced, people may suffer, or people may confess their feelings for each other, but it will not effect the overall situation. This negates whatever meaning may be found in the story, and hollows out any comedic effect sacrificing your character's IQ might do. If there are no consequences to character's actions, then there's no reason why that character should have done that.
Number Three:
the biggest issue that the animation has is that it builds up a fight, and manages to get the audience invested in the action, but then hides the deciding blow, making for a very disappointing climax.
This happens twice, the first time, during the fight between Lucifer, Satan, and Emilia, the animation jumps up in quality. I was pleasantly surprised when Satan's character design changes, not only in size but also in detail, it was as if it was drawn by completely different studio, and its effect was profound. It got me invested and excited for the fight. Then 7 minutes later at the literal climax of the two-episode arc, the final blow is a zoomed out, poorly executed, and unsatisfying.
The way the mid season finale was handled is repeated in the actual finale of the show-there's a great build-up and a sudden jump in animation quality, and then it zooms out and hides the climax of the fight.
Instead of focusing on the climax it's as if the studio is trying to hide it, make you ignore what they have been building up to in the last two episodes. It's weirdly handled and deeply unsatisfying, so much so that it detracts from the shows overall enjoyment.
*the other fundamental critique is that I have never seen fast food workers smile when working at M(c)gRonalds
Conclusion:
The Devil Is a Part-Timer! is a comedy/harem disguised as a supernatural isekai. Fundamentally broken on a narrative-level, this show makes up for some of its lack of story with passable animation and hollow humor. Overall the show isn't bad but it's the kind of show that puts more money into animating the female's chests than the climatic battle at the end of the show.
This show is not one that will get you emotionally invested in its characters or challenge your world-view, but if you are looking for a fairly well-animated in-between anime without a story, then this show is for you.
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