The following contains spoilers for Episode 1 of The Devil is a Part-Timer Season 2, “The Devil and the Hero Inconceivably Become Parents” now streaming onCrunchyroll.
The Devil is a Part Timer! season two continued with the drama caused by Alas Ramus. This time focusing a bit more on how a baby affected the daily lives of those around her. Viewers were able to see both Emi and Mao trying to decide just how muchof a parental rolethey were willing to shoulder, and how their peers judged them for it. True to the nature of the show, there was stalking, learning about society, animosity between the demons and humans, but unusually no real hint of magic. Also lacking in this episode was the trademark humor that pervaded season one.
The Devil is a Part Timer!follows the escapades of Satan himself as he adjusts to a mundane life in the all too human Japan. He fled there after failing to conquer his homeworld of Ente Isla, and was pursued by the hero who defeated him, Emi. Along the way he has gathered a fair portion of his generals and converted more than one of his enemies to a tentative truce and perhaps even trust. Season two kicked off with the introduction of Alas Ramus, a being whose allegiance is currently unknown.
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A Filler Episode?
The biggest issue with this episode was the lack of anything that really drove the plot forward. Viewers were able to see a glimpse ofhow the Devil’s Castleis adjusting to life with a toddler, since this was the main focus of the episode, but those conflicts weren’t really played out on screen. The closest was a brief montage of frozen images depiction snippets of their time together. In general, the adjustment was simply depicted in the wan look on Ashiya’s face and some minor complaints from Bel.
The only conflict that really happened in this episode was when Mao and Chi’s boss pulled them aside to encourage them to stop hanging outtogether simply for appearances. While this could have been an interesting element to the plot, perhaps creating tension as she tried to avoid him and vice versa, it was immediately negated by Mao simply asking her to continue helping him.
The Pacing
The pacing of this particular episode was also not in line with the first season. By the end of episode two Emi and Mao are on their wayto an amusement parktogether with Alas Ramus. Compare this to the first season when the characters all go to a water park.
They learn about it, plan to go, and go all in a single episode. This season they simply make plans to go, with the implication being that the park will be the majority or entirety of the following episode. While slower pacing isn’t necessarily a bad thing, the previous complaint about plot makes it clear that they didn’t fill the remainder of the time with anything meaningful.
Humor
There were still a few jokes in episode two, mostly at the expense of Urushihara of course. Overall, however, this episode focused a bit more on real life than cracking jokes. The interaction between the manager, Mao, and Chi had no levity in it at all, nor did Chi’s interaction with Ashiya about diapers.
Towards the end, there was joking when Chi made fun of Ashiya for his stalking, and thenthe whole crew pokes funat Emi for getting dressed up. However, this final moment felt more friendly than funny compared to the pointed humor that usually comes across between the various factions. This friendly tone carried through other moments as well such as when Chi and Suzano are interacting with Alas Ramus together.
In All
The one thing that this episode has the potential to have done well is setting up episode three. There was a lot of time spent world-building the impact that Alas has hadon the main cast, and in setting up this park that the three of them are going to together. Hopefully, the framework that was set out in episode two leads to a very strong episode three, otherwise, the episode would be a bit of a letdown. Of course, this was still a fun episode to watch, and the reactions of the characters to their various awkward situations were still well developed and in line with their established personas.
This may have the appearance of a filler or bridging episode, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t still going to be important to the overall plot of the show.While no new conceptswere introduced in this episode, it did solidify some newer elements for this season, Sauriel and Bel in their new roles, and of course Alas Ramus and her impact. In all this episode is worth watching, perhaps not on its own laurels but simply because it clearly will serve to set up and bolster episode three which promises to be full of everything that fans enjoy about this beloved anime.
