How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord

Episode 9

The basic plot of How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord remains relatively straightforward, but it's interesting how as more characters and elements have been introduced, the world of this plot becomes more layered. This latest episode starts off with a couple of shockingly gruesome scenes that make you wonder if you're watching the right show, followed up with some minutes dedicated to reminding us that Alicia has a backstory and motivations too. This show is no stranger to playing things straight, especially when Diablo isn't around to do his anxious comedy routine, but this tense confrontation between Alicia and her Paladin cohort Saddler is notable for how serious it feels. How that tension actually plays out in the rest of the episode, however, may not merit such dour build-up.

At face-value, much of this episode could come across as thinly strung-together vignettes of Diablo, Rem, and Shera's actions in the wake of their last big adventure. They practice summoning, they bathe together, and there are a couple confrontations with enemies both old and new. What separates this slice-of-life structure that turned lesser series like In Another World With My Smartphone into utter slogs is a sense of purpose. Sure, the scene of Shera learning summoning from Rem is cute in how Diablo teaches her some in-game tricks to get better use out of her little turkey servant, but it also lays down details that could be useful later. We might get to see Shera use that Turkey Shot ability in actual combat, and the summoning stone Rem gives to Diablo practically screams “This will be important later!”. It probably speaks to the goodwill this series has built up that I have reasonable confidence these are setups to be paid off in the future.

The bathing scene is probably the least relevant in terms of plot information, but frankly speaking, the show knows why its audience is here. It's a fun enough bit, with the girls' cavalier attitude toward communal nudity countering Diablo's basement-dwelling reactions that are made more funny in their delivery. There's a nice reversal in the usual way things are enforced in this scene, where the girls actually want him to strip down and hang out with them, but he willingly excuses himself. (Dammit!) The whole scene is basically made to be the kind of thing you're watching when your roommates happen to walk in, but it's in the fun mold of Demon Lord fanservice and leads directly into the episode's main plot.

The show continues to be good about maintaining continuity. Edelgard returns, apparently having reformed the clothes that were disintegrated in her last fight with Diablo, and her new purpose is to move along that whole demon-inside-of-Rem storyline that's been around since the first episode. There is some mild confusion in the conversation between parties at first, since I was unclear whether Diablo intentionally wanted to summon Krebskulm, but the plan thankfully gets clarified over time. There is something amusing about the haphazard nature of Diablo's goals; he's mostly focused on getting the demon out of Rem first, and he'll figure out how to actually beat it later. It speaks to the camaraderie that's grown between their group, further exemplified by Shera finally being brought up to date on the whole situation and taking it in loving stride.

Oddly, the finishing segment to all this plot setup is perhaps where this episode stumbles most. The inevitable confrontation with Saddler is entertaining enough on its own; the new enemy brings clear malice and tension to the stage, and Diablo's compulsive confession of his demonic nature is a great laugh-out-loud moment. Saddler also gets beaten in a way that's technically sound in terms of storytelling, utilizing Diablo's game knowledge as well as his reflect spell that we keeps coming in handy. But for all the build-up Saddler got, it feels like an anti-climax to take care of him this way. He'll probably be back, but to have a clear threat like this built up and dispatched by the hero barely even trying rings more of the simplistic wish-fulfillment type of isekai than the more unexpected balance that Demon Lord tends to turn out. It might all be in service of setting up more complex issues on the horizon, but we don't know that for sure yet.

There is a ton of foreshadowing that Alicia's supportive reaction to the reveal of Rem's secret might not be as genuine as it seems, but the episode is very wishy-washy on committing to any foreboding tone. Yes, it's a funny detail that Diablo attributes his own unease to his social anxiety rather than recognizing RPG cliches when he sees them, but I think that undersells the situation in a way that's confusing. Am I misreading the situation myself? Are we really supposed to take Alicia at face-value? That lack of commitment leaves the episode feeling like it trails off at the end. I'm hoping the next episode or two will resolve these concerns satisfyingly, and hopefully also explore Alicia's barely-teased backstory.

Rating: B

How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.