In any fantasy world, some beings just don't get along. Take for example, demons and humans. In order for two races to co-exist, they have to accept each others' values. Yet that dream is an overwhelming task to achieve because let's all face it, some things just don't mix well. It's been fifteen years since the war waged by the humans and demons have begun. After an awkward meeting and the revelation that the Demon King is in fact a female, the duo forms an alliance after some reluctant arguing. Hence, let the tale of a human male and demon female begin!
Mayou (Maoyu Maou Yusha, aka Archenemy and Hero) is an anime adapted series from a light novel that was originally “serialized” on 2ch. The series is written by Mamare Touno who is not well known but has recently made his debut. The LN has sold over 450,000 copies and here we are, the anime adaptation. As one of the first full length series to debut in 2013, it definitely needed to set the bar high. So without further ado, let's see if Maoyu lived up to the hype.
Maoyu follows the story of a hero and queen of demons as they seemingly join forces to bring about a new world. They desire a world of peace, a world without conflict, and a world where values and ideas are accepted without violence. The series begins with a lot of promise as in the format of a preview as to what's to come. In fact, our two main characters (from the poster) takes up most of the tv time as they engage in humorous dialogues and discusses their ways of changing the world. It is actually quite fresh and entertaining as viewers can see that the demons and humans are not so different. For instance, the demons themselves has their own code of ethnics and politics. They have their own ideologies and ways of thinking. To top it off, they also don't have actual or maybe I should say..physical features in the way some people may originally see them as.
To me, the series takes off with strange tropes and turns it into a rather refreshing series at first. I mean, we have an ordinary human and meets a not-so-ordinary demon king. Hero also gets a surprise from the fact that the Demon Queen is actually a female rather than what he originally expected. (a rather big breasted one if I may add...) The Demon Queen herself is shown to be not violent but rather trying to persuasive for her goals. It also sets up a state of prejudice at first between the races but as time goes on, it's shown that the duo can get along quite well. Even from the pilot episode, Hero seems convinced enough to join the Demon Queen despite her rather sophisticated dialogues. The dialogues themselves contains lengthy references to politics, economics, and a historical lesson rather than any violent backgrounds. In a entertaining way, it transforms the tale of struggle between humans and demons into a story of that almost seems to be educational at times. It's almost like watching the fantasy version of the Discovery Channel as the Demon Queen educates about trading and her ways of inventions.
The series maintains as a small cast of characters. Obviously, we have the two main stars of the series, Maou and Yuusha. They often go by their titles, Demon Queen and Hero respectively. In fact, many of the supporting cast seems to follow this trend. We have Onna Kishi known as the Female Knight, Onna Mahoutsukai known as the Female Magician, etc. Their names matches their respective titles and defines the role they play in. But perhaps the most interesting relationship in the series is between Hero and the Demon Queen. This is because they are nearly nothing alike, even in terms of being the same race. Hero seems to be a guy of using action rather than words of persuasion. On the other hand, Demon Queen seems to play the role of a politician and uses her intelligence. Yet upon closer examination, they get along quite well and intimate at times. This brings a problem of their relationship being too rushed. As a matter of fact, there is strong hints of romance between the duo already after the initial episode. To add to this relationship is a strong dose of fan service. The term “useless meat” becomes a recurring joke for the Demon Queen as she takes on the role of an eye candy. With or without horns, she retains her stature as a female that seems to allure viewers. This shouldn't come too much as as surprise though as the production studio Arms handles the series. Arms is known for its rough and sketchy ways of presenting fan service such as in Elfen Lied, Ikkitousen, and Queen's Blade. Their stance of producing lascivious visuals has been a long standing trend. In this case, Maoyu isn't off their charts.
As being labeled as an adventure genre, the series takes the fantasy theme well. There are the old medieval like architectures and maintains that feeling of being in a fantasy world. The way the characters are dressed reflects this theme of being in simple wear in the case of servants, modern in the case of the maids, and fancy in the case of high level authority figures. Hero's design sees him as a warrior and 'hero' as the title suggests him. On the other hand, there is Demon Queen who is dressed in an ornamental way that is elaborate and eye-catching. Unfortunately, some of her appearance is played as a joke like the “horns” on her hand and once again, the useless meat.
Speaking of useless, I find the fan service of this series to be just that. Even with the light humor, romance, and sweet moments, I find the fan service part of the series to be in the way and preventing Maoyu to shine itself. It is distracting and seems manipulative in some of the sweet dialogues that moves away the balance.
Other problems I've ran in to the series is the rather weak story based off the original premise. Some of the preceding episodes from the narrative prequel pilot almost seems like filler. It doesn't also help the fact that some of the jokes made throughout the series becomes a bit stale. Furthermore, Hero seems to attract other female characters of interest and creating some unfriendly rivalry for our Demon Queen. It falls under a track of insubstantial romance with a seemingly love triangle between her, Hero, and the Female Knight.
Maoyu also seems to adapt many of the same themes as another popular title that debuted a few years back. Fans of Spice and Wolf may notice many similarities such as the adventure style storytelling, theme of economics, fantasy setting, and even the main female protagonist shares the same seiyuu. It can make an impression for viewers who once again desire a taste of economics and adventure rather than the typical “save the world with swords and magic”. It does have some of that though but the majority of the series focuses more on the politics, economics, and the interactions between the Hero/Demon Queen.
In terms of artwork, the series did its job right. Despite some of the characters being serialized with the fan-service and presented in a gratuitous way, it maintains its background of the fantasy setting well. There is the elaborate landscapes, the majestic rivers, and plain rural backgrounds. The way the characters are dressed reflects off that old and classic feeling from the Dark Ages. It's the way that an adventure should be and maintains that theme well. At times though, it does look like the visual qualities of the show slows down. Yet, it maintain its fantasy posture well.
For soundtrack, I found the series to be only mediocre. Toshiki Kameyama plays the role of the sound director and he seems to give that feeling of smoothness and melody of the medieval ages. However, it is hardly noticeable or distinguishing itself from other fantasy theme series. The OP and ED songs also presents a style of primitive artwork in the style of the old medieval ages. It is just too simple and not unique enough in my estimation.
Ultimately, Maoyu is an adventure series that I have mixed feelings on. From one standpoint, it is a fun and entertaining series with our lovable duo. Their interactions and dialogues makes a first impression but that later becomes repetitive and stale. The way fan service is presented becomes a source of diversion rather than some comedic fun. It is comedic in some ways though but ultimately, it doesn't achieve its goal. However, there are instances where the series launches itself with its fresh way of adventure story. It is a story about a Hero, a Demon Queen, and the plan they hope to achieve in order to make the world a better place. I just hope they succeed and achieve glory for what they strive for.
