Level 1 Demon Lord and One Room Hero - Reviews

Alt title: Lv1 Maou to One Room Yuusha

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AustinDR's avatar
Aug 31, 2023

"I chose my path, you chose the way of the hero. And they found you amusing for a while, the people of this city. But the one thing they love more than a hero is to see a hero fail, fall, and die trying. Despite everything you've done for them, eventually, they will hate you."

-Green Goblin

This quote best exemplifies the premise of Level 1 Demon Lord and One Room Hero. The Devil Lord wages war with mankind with the intent of taking over the world. However, he is thwarted by the Legendary Hero Max and his party. Vowing to return in ten years to settle the score, the Devil Lord/Maou reawakens but lacks some of the powers he had in his prime. His servants, aside from his personal secretary Zenia, are still in hibernation. Not that Maou could care because he was ready for round two.

...Except, Max let himself go. He is a pathetic loser who lives in a run-down apartment; has gotten himself into several predicaments that got him canceled; and no longer cares about saving the world. As we soon realize, after he had taken down the Demon Lord, things went awry for the hero. His party goes their separate ways; he is treated as a joke. And so, Maou winds up sharing the apartment with him doing some housework and cooking.

The show is pretty funny. I always wondered what happened in a series where the hero had saved the day by slaying the great evil, Here, it shows that Max had basically become worthless to society and so, he had to try adjusting to the fact he was no longer needed becoming bitter and pessimistic.

Admittedly, I was confused at first about how modern and high-tech society had become in those 10 years since Maou was absent. Initially, the flashback paints it as being in a medieval-like fantasy setting, but then all of a sudden, society improves to where it is similar to the real world. But then again, since it takes place in a fictional setting and not the "Earth," it was easier to understand. The first few episodes typically consist of the lead characters having it out for each other, with some nuggets of Max's backstory and the Gamma Republic, but things really start shifting into gear in the seventh episode.

The characters I like. Max and Maou's dynamic is hilarious. While it is something that is not new for mortal enemies to end up helping each other down the line, it is funny here, my favorite moment being when Maou tries helping Max make videos to get money and it leads to his account getting terminated.

My favorite character is Zenia, though it goes without saying exactly why that is. While she is a demon, she has weaker magical prowess. She makes up for this with the use of her brass knuckles and raw strength. By far my favorite episode is the seventh one where she goes on an espionage mission that would make Loid Forger cringe.

The voice work is also pretty good for the most part.

7.5/10 story
7/10 animation
7.5/10 sound
8/10 characters
8/10 overall
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