I couldn't become a hero....

Genre: Action - or lack thereof
Age Appropriate: Teens
Emotional Response: Ok, Ok, ROTFLMAO
Notable Features: comedy, demon king, hero, magical appliances
Language: Japanese
Length: 1 season, 12 episodes
Overall Recommendation: Great!

"I'm respected!" - Fino

Raul wanted to be a hero. He was even in a training school to become one, but then the worst (or best?) happened. The demon lord was defeated and there was no longer any need for heroes. The school closed, weapons stores closed and the heroes were forced to find work in different ways. Some attempted to go into security firms, but Raul had no such luck. He ended up as a clerk in the Leon Magic store, selling magical appliances to the general public. Despite having reluctantly
taken the job, when a new employee joins the team, Raul suddenly has a bit more purpose before.

The new employee is Fino-chan, shockingly also the demon lord's daughter! Despite his misgivings, Raul finds himself becoming more and more involved with her. He starts taking his role as her trainer more seriously, and finds himself enjoying her presence, annoying as it may be. Given his role as a former hero-in-training, and her position as the demon lord's daughter, one might think tension would rule the day, but their unlikely friendship makes for some interesting times - both in an out of the store.

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Since the series is only 12 episodes, with no likely sequel in the works, I don't want to share too much about the story. It was a lot of fun, though. There is a point in episode 11 that I was literally laughing out loud. I'm sure I sounded a little crazy, but it was worth it. Part of the show was a little slow, but by the time everything was finished it all seemed to be necessary. I could possibly see this lengthened a little bit with additional character development, but it wouldn't have been necessary.

I really enjoyed it, and I'm glad I gave it a try. Sometimes, it's hard to watch anime after anime, but I don't want to take real break. This series was lighthearted enough, short enough, and easy enough to keep my attention without worrying about anything. It would definitely be a good choice for someone looking for nothing in particular. I don't think I would set it up for a 12-year-old, but otherwise it's fine. I recommend it!

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What's next?: I have no idea, but I'll figure it out. (That's not a title. I really have no idea.)

Maoyu

Genre: Fantasy
Age Appropriate: Teens
Emotional Response: A little sad, a little inspired
Notable Features: humans, demons, technology vs, faith
Language: Japanese
Length: 1 season, 12 episodes
Overall Recommendation: Great

"I dislike insects." - Head Maid

Maoyu is a story with a strange mix. The main characters have no real names, only Hero or Scholar or Mage...etc. Hero is basically just that. He's the hero of the realm who went to battle the Demon King in order to save humanity. In the beginning the story reveals that in his efforts he was joined by friends and left them behind to finish his battle. It is the result of that battle that is the reason behind the story.

Hero has fallen in with the Demon King. Surprisingly, the Demon King is actually a woman - though her title is not Demon Queen. It appears that she wants to bring the human world and demon world together in some sort of harmony. Her desire for peace affects the Hero and he agrees to join her cause. Being the Hero, with special powers, and her being the King, with her own special powers, they enter the human world and start a path of scientific enlightenment. Her goal changes her title to Scholar within the human world. She brings new things to the world, like potatoes, meant to help serfs and common people help themselves without sacrificing their well-being to those above them. It's like an intellectual rebellion. Of course, this is not without consequences, and this is the conflict of the story.

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Since Maoyu is only 12 episodes, I'm trying to avoid giving too much away. I really did enjoy the series. It shows an interesting view of the terrible Demon King working to make the world populations independent beings. Of course, part of this is defying the Spirit of Light's church. The somewhat romantic connection formed between Hero and Scholar is part of the demon and human story. They're belief in each other makes some of the good things possible.

I have other favorite characters, though. In particular, the little girl serf who joins the household with her sister. She's cute and lively - excellent lighthearted relief. While their story is a sad one, it's part of the beginning of the series social commentary. I have mixed feelings about who to recommend this to, but I'll say probably best for those who don't mind a little thought mixed with some standard demon weirdness. There is a character who seems very interested in Hero, and also breathes fire. Merchant certainly likes to look at her. So, yeah, not in my top 10 or anything, but enjoyable .

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Woosh: HOLIDAYS - I will return in 3 weeks after the Holidays. I hope you all have fun and safe holiday fun.

The Devil is a Part-Timer

Genre: Action/Comedy
Age Appropriate: Preteens
Emotional Response: excitement and laughter
Notable Features: demons, heroes, magic, alternate realms
Language: Japanese
Length: 1 Seasons, 13 episodes 
Overall Recommendation: Pretty Good

"Is this really the Devil?" - Bel

In the other dimensional world, Ente Isla, the Devil has started a war to take over the four directional countries in a bid for world domination. However, he's met his match in the Hero Emilia, and they both end up in modern day Japan, traveling through a Gate. Upon arrival, Satan and his general, Alciel, find themselves in a place where they have no more magic, a different language, and without any resources. Emilia has followed them through said gate, and they meet up on a street in the rain. While the story revolves around the situations presented between Emilia and Satan (and co.), the center of the comedy is the fact that Satan has become a part time worker at MgRonald's, and originally believes that this will be his path to the top of his new world, Earth. Everyone from Ente Isla has changed their names, and ages, met new people and started some sort of job situation - except Alciel who is tending house and researching ways to replenish magic.

At some point, there are new Ente Isla characters added to the story, often people from either side betraying our favored protagonists. There is also a young lady character who works under Satan and has managed to fall in love with him. His commitment to protecting those "under his command" often leads him into situations where he becomes the heroic character, and confuses those on the other side in the process. The series has mini-battles, some emotional flashbacks and a comedy element that makes this series more modern day vs. fantasy genre.

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I throughly enjoyed this series. There weren't any points where I was teary eyes - either from hilarity or sadness - so the emotional components weren't that important, but it was fun. I got a big kick of out Lucifer's character the most, I think. He has a rather small part in each episode, but I could totally see him in a lot of guys I know. I wish there had been time for a little more character development, but I'm happy with what there was. I also think there could have been a little more to the potentially epic battles, but it seems they wanted to keep it to 13 episodes and with that amount of time I think they did a really good job. There is a part of me that wouldn't mind a second season, though I've heard nothing about it, but I'm pretty satisfied without one. I guess, if they'd done more it would change the overall feel of the series, and I don't know that it would've been a good thing.

Well, apart from Satan actually being a bit of an idiot most of the time. I found a lot of fun in each of the other characters, when I didn't want to throttle them. I just wish I'd been able to get a little bit more. I really liked the few moments when he shows how not-stupid he is, as much as I liked when Alciel acted like an irresponsible fool. There was a small book-by-uts-cover moral to the story, but not so overt as to be irritating. I'm really glad that I decided to give this one a try. I would seriously recommend it.

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Crazy, yo: Astarotte's Toy

Shuffle!

Genre: Fantasy
Age Appropriate: Teens
Emotional Response: quirky and painful
Notable Features: gods, demons, high school, ooo la la
Language: English
Length: 2 seasons, 24 episodes
Overall Recommendation: Good

"Well, my dad told me to wear it." - Nerine


Gods and demons and humans, oh my! Rin is a high school student who is originally introduced running away from other male students. They are stalking his good friend, Kaede, who happens to be the cutest girl in school, and Rin's roommate. On a daily basis, these creepy stalkers attempt to destroy Rin, as they see him being in the way of their love for her. Rin is completely oblivious to her feelings for him, but his protective friend instincts help him protect her from strange guys - including his own womanizing friend. His undying loyalty to his friends, and a desire to help anyone in need, actually gets Rin in quite a predicament.

Enter Rina, from the Realm of the Demons, and Sia, from the Realm of the Gods. They both show up in Rin's classroom, sharing that they've both come to Earth in order to become Rin's wife. This is fully supported by the kings of both realms because Rina and Sia are their daughters! The Kings of Gods and Demons have agreed that whichever daughter Rin chooses will include being heir to their thrones. Between Kaede, Rina, Sia and an additional wrench in the system, childhood friend Asa, Rin is being chased by a bevy of lovely young ladies. He needs to make a decision soon, or everything will fall apart!

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I really wanted to go with another fun-loving goofy comedy this time around. I did a series of not-so-much fun ones, so I was looking forward to this. Fruits Basket wasn't always hilarious, but it did the job quite nicely. This one was surprisingly depressing. There weren't a lot of laugh out loud moments, and the episodes past the first few seemed to focus on how heartbroken someone was, or their coming-of-age story - good for the story, not so good for my desire to laugh uncontrollably. It gets really dark and really emotional in the later episodes. Apparently, all of the girls are close to certifiably insane.

Personal disappointment aside, as it has nothing to really do with how well it was done, Shuffle! really is good. It's kinda quirky, and the Kings are hilarious. The King of the Gods, and his daughter's consistent violent reaction to him, has a great clown quality. The King of the Demons is a little more reserved, but with a sneakiness hidden behind it all. They make an interesting duo of bffs. Primula, a young lady pseudo-demon, seems to be interested in Rin, but maybe in more of a big brother sense. She's adorable, and I want her stuffed kitties. I don't even like cats.

There is some incidental nudity, but not enough to bother most, and  no vulgarity. It's pretty safe, in that regard. I don't know if I'd highly recommend this or anything, but I wouldn't mind watching it, if it was on TV or something. I certainly wouldn't stop someone from watching it. Maybe just a word of caution that it's not what it seems. It's a nice diversion, anyway.

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4, 3, 2, 1: Happiness!

Demon King Daimao

Genre: Comedy
Age Appropriate: Older Teen
Emotional Response: Hilarious
Notable Features: magic, demon king, a dragon, youthful misunderstandings
Language: English/Japanese
Length: 1 season, 12 episodes
Overall Recommendation: YAY!

"It's just a big misunderstanding!" - Akuto Sai

Oh, Akuto Sai. The poor kid starts as a transfer student at Constant Magic Academy. He meets his first friend, Hattori, on the train there, and she goes through a solemn ceremony to pledge their friendship. Constant Academy is very Hogwarts-like. There is a mix of magic and technology, magic classes, and the most important - a career sorting crow. This crow predicts the career the student will have in the future, and because this is an anime: Akuto Sai is determined to be the future Demon King (much different from the priest he wanted to be). After hearing this Hatori takes back her pledge and begins attaching him (after said youthful misunderstandings), and Hiroshi (friend #2) declares that Akuto is now his big brother.

Then there is a young redhead (Kena) who may, or may not, be an old friend from the past, a evil witchgirl (Eto) who wants to be by Akuto's side as he theoretically takes over the world and has a spirit ghost brother inhabiting a severed head, and a student council with strange connections. To top it all off, Horone is an android secret surveillance agent who follows her orders very seriously (including an episode of attempted seduction) and moves into Akuto's life, stalker style. When Akuto's powers begin to surface and the gang goes on an interesting treasure hunt, Peter Hausen arrives - a dragon who is the servant of the Demon King.

All of these characters, and more, lead to the supposed destruction of the world and domination of the Demon King. While Akuto's ideas are occasionally misconstrued as Demon King-like, it is often either a misunderstanding or something societally rebellious which is also misunderstood. He seems to have no desire to be the Demon King or act in a way that people feel he should as a Demon King. While demon beasts start cropping up after his powers start to awaken, he's often not the catalyst to an attack - AND Brave, a mysterious hero, makes the news with his demon beast battles. All of this leads to the endgame of Demon King destruction.

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If you haven't figured it out, I love this anime. It's short and sweet and hilarious. There are a lot of inappropriate goings on - mostly accidental but wow - and a lot of awkward moments. I feel bad for Akuto pretty much the whole time, and the female shenanigans are quite amusing. I don't really have a lot to share about the anime because it is relatively short, and it seems like the whole plot is really just a vehicle for the hilarity (rather than the other way around). I cared a lot less about what would happen with world destruction than what Korone was going to do next - and how Akuto would survive it.
Korone's creepy obsession with Akuto, and her living in his closet paired with her robotic speech and lack of understanding regarding bluntness, are some of the best parts.

There was a whole lot of head smacking going on, and some actual lol'ing. Don't expect anything important or deep out of this anime, but watch it. The end does get exciting! It's all a little weird and somewhat hard to follow, but I did find myself cheering the Demon King on! There is even a surprise twist (that's actually a surprise)! Seriously. It's awesome - not enough for a Top 5 but highly recommended.

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Now back to our regular programming: Kaze No Stigma