English Dub Season Review: The Misfit of Demon King Academy Season Two

Based on the light novel series written by Shu and illustrated by Yoshinori Shizuma, The Misfit of Demon King Academy follows Anos Voldigoad (Aleks Le).  Anos is the demon king who makes a deal with the human hero, Kanon, to sacrifice his life to bring peace to the world after countless years of war.  Two thousand years later, Anos is reincarnated into a society that values Anos’ pureblood descendants over lower-class hybrid demons.  Now, as a hybrid, Anos seeks to reclaim his former title after learning about the declining magic and his descendants being weaker than usual.  To accomplish this mission, Anos must first graduate from the Demon King Academy, where they train young demons from the Demon King’s bloodline.  He’s joined by several students in his quest to graduate, including twin sisters Sasha (Kayli Mills) and Misha Necron (Brianna Knickerbocker).

The series’s sophomore season, titled The Misfit of Demon King Academy II, sees Anos continuing his journey to graduate from the academy with the help of his classmates.  Now joined by the exchange students from the Hero Academy, Eleonore Bianca (Abby Trott) and Zeshia Bianca (Lisa Reimold), Anos faces a new enemy threatening to destroy the Demon King.  That enemy is the Heavenly Father God NousGalia, who’s reincarnated into the academy’s history teacher, Erdomaid DittiJohn.  Along with the Evil Royals, NousGalia seeks to find the “Child of God”, who’s destined to destroy the Demon King of Tyranny.  As a result, Anos and his comrades set out to find who the “Child of God” is.  Along the way, the crew sees the unexpected return of self-proclaimed Demon King Avos Dilhevia, who’s revealed to be one of their own, Misa Ilioroagu (Jackie Lastra).  

The second half of season two sees Anos continuing classes disguised as a transfer student after exposing himself to the entire world as the Demon King of Tyranny.  While the school goes through the “Great Demon King Drills”, Anos and the group confront the gods, whose motives could spell disaster for the world.  They also discover more secrets involving Anos’ past, including his younger sister, Arcana, who coincidentally shares the same name as one of the gods.

It was odd that the second season of The Misfit of Demon King Academy is split into two parts, considering that season one was released as a whole.  However, following the show’s delay in February due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this idea became much clearer than I anticipated.  Regardless, the Demon King Academy crew was back for another adventure.  This time, they’re taking the journey outside school grounds, which is enough to provide some variety and higher stakes into the second season.

I binge-watched the entire first season of The Misfit of Demon King Academy following the first episode of season two to get more context on its world-building and characters.  It follows a similar pattern as the other shows involving reincarnation and magic academies, but besides that, the first season was a fine watch.  The show featured solid animation from Silver Link, likable characters, and a good representation of class discrimination.  Despite a few convoluted moments, it impressed me to the point where I was intrigued with its current season. 

The show maintained a few elements that made its first season a worthy student attending the anime academy.  One is the animation by Silver Link, which is the same company behind other shows like The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated and Bofuri.  The style continues to be compelling through its bleak and vibrant environments and flashy action sequences.  However, the only part of the animation that didn’t work for me was the CGI effects, mainly for the Great Tree Spirit Enyunien in “The Spirit’s School Building” and “The Spirit’s Trial”.  The CGI for that character looked stiff and sluggish compared to the rest of the animation.

Another example that stuck with me was during the season’s second half, where the Hero Academy students battle the horde of dragons.  I thought the show’s CGI couldn’t get much worse than Enyunien, but I was proven wrong when I saw the dragons in action.  They provide an uncanny feeling that’s neither funny nor low-key.  The best way I could describe it was “frustrating”.  Besides that, the style is respectable for portraying its eye-opening visuals.

The other element is the English voice cast, which continues to deliver decent vocal performances for the characters.  Aleks Le provided a performance that reflects Anos’ sly yet charming personality amid his tremendous powers.  While he’s focused on reclaiming his title, Anos also strives to protect his friends along the way, making him another selfless character who’s seemingly cunning and unstoppable.  Kayli Mills and Brianna Knickerbocker also continue to provide solid voice work as Sasha and Misha, respectively.

But what about the seasonal narrative as a whole?  After countless months of experiencing it, I would say it’s a bit of a mixed bag.  Regarding its hit-and-miss animation, voice cast, and stakes, The Misfit of Demon King Academy II is a somewhat enjoyable yet flawed continuation of Anos’ misfit adventures.  However, it does return to its familiar elements from season one for some episodes, mainly one of Anos’s friends being Avos.  Regardless, the second season delivers the same tolerability factor as the first season while diving deeper into Anos’s past and the show’s themes.  

Its second episode, “The Demon King’s Duel of Intellect”, was the best of the bunch due to the stakes given to the characters defending the academy, with its fifth episode, “Between Royalty and Mixed Blood,“ being my second favorite.  “Between Royalty and Mixed Blood“ offered a surprising twist of Misa being Avos Dilhevia, who seeks to destroy the half-blood demons so the royal bloodline can reign supreme.  More importantly, it showcased plenty of development from former pureblood royal turned hybrid Emilia Ludowell, carried by Dawn M. Bennett’s decent performance, as she gradually understands the torture the mixed-blood demons received from her.  As for the weaker episodes, I would choose the ones involving the CGI dragons due to how ugly, uncanny, and low-key they looked compared to the 2D animation.

Some people would mention the delays hindered the show’s influence and consistency, mainly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and they were partially correct.  But I wouldn’t say it’s the main reason for the quality.  The CGI and the narrative arc were why the season’s second half faltered at the finish line compared to the first half.  It certainly has its merits regarding the stakes and Anos’ relationship with Arcana.  Unfortunately, amid its convoluted world-building, the emotion struggled to reach the same heights as the first half, which offered a compelling relationship between Shin and Great Spirit Leno.  But, yeah, I can agree that the long waits between the episodes made me feel weary of the show itself.

So, in a way, the second season of The Misfit of Demon King Academy isn’t as strong as Anos’ demon king abilities.  However, that doesn’t mean it’s without its merits carrying its complex world-building.  The first half started strong with its compelling arc involving Misa’s Avos identity and Shin and Leno’s relationship.  Unfortunately, the second half involving the gods struggled to maintain its narrative consistency with its godlike powers.  As mentioned, it’s not just because of the delays that took a heavy toll on viewers’ intrigue in the show.  It’s also because the second half’s quality is a bit of a downgrade from the first half, including the uncanny CGI effects and the complex plot.  If you liked the first season regardless of the flaws, you might feel the same about season two.  If not, you’re better off watching the other Magic Academy anime instead.  There’s no word on whether a third season will happen, but I won’t be surprised if they decide to leave it alone based on how it concluded.