Out of all the Light Novels I have read, The Devil Is a Part-Timer is by far the funniest. I have gotten weird looks on the train because I’m often giggling while reading this series.
I have heard the anime is a good adaptation, but I believe in the notion that the book is better. I will watch it soon, probably after I finish the fourth book and wait for the fifth to come out in the west on August 23rd .
The Devil King, and his right hand man Alciel flee from their magical world when they are defeated by the hero Emilia. They wind up in modern day Tokyo stripped of their demonic powers and to take over the world the Devil king, now known as Sadao Maou, has taken a part-time job at McDonald’s I mean MgRonald’s.
That has to be the best premise ever created. Or at least the funniest.However, the laughs don’t end there. What makes this series work is the fact it is filled with great characters.
Maou is convinced that he will rise from the ranks to become the head of McRonald’s and with the money and power that comes with that, he will return to his own world and conquer it. He takes way too much pride in his work, even when fighting to the death he is more concerned about keeping his uniform in good condition and being on time. For a guy with a title like the Devil King, he is such a dork.
Shiro Ashiya, formally Alciel the greatest General in the Devil King’s army has now become a househusband. Ashiya’s stern and almost parental personality plays of Maou’s gung-ho and optimistic attitude perfectly, the bromance between these two is strong. The pair of them act more like an old married couple than two demons who nearly destroyed an entire world.
While Maou is much more in-tune with how Japan works, Ashiya still retains his fantasy mannerisms, such as referring to Maou as His Demonic Highness. Maou only shows his demonic side every now and then and is often reminded “Hey, you are the Devil King, remember? Why are you so happy you got a promotion at a fast food joint?”. To be fair, they have fallen pretty hard. Their current ‘Devil’s Castle’ is a one-room flat and are just barely getting by.
Oh, and Emilia the Hero came to Tokyo too, she now goes by Emi Yusa and works in a call centre. Just because her holy powers are gone, doesn’t mean she is going to let bygones be bygones. Emi has a bit of a tsundere streak in her, she is extremely stubborn and does have the skills to back it up.
The last of the main characters is Chiho Sasaki, a fellow employee at MgRonald’s with a major crush on Maou. Normally characters like her are usually used as a narrative device to explain plot elements to, and to that extent she is, However she is given a likeable and believable character.
That is all I can say about the characters without going into spoiler territory. So this would be the part when I sum up the plot, but I already have. Like most good comedies, the story of The Devil Is a Part-Timer isn’t the focus of the series, that belongs to the jokes and the characters. Where else are you going to see an evil overlord that nearly took over an entire world be intimidated by a teenage girl?
If you want to read something funny, then check out The Devil Is a Part-Timer. The Light Novel is at most comic book stores with a big enough manga section and is available on Kindle. The anime is on Funimation and FunimationNow.
For more info on Light Novels such as release dates, reviews and where to get them, I recommend English Light Novels.
Nerd Rambles 