I’m an avid fan MMORPGS. I grew up playing them, non stop in the confines of my own room so this Overlord was a joy and a breeze to watch. I finished this anime in a couple days.

The story centers on Momonga, an unidentified Japanese man lingering on the servers of the soon dead Dive Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game or (DMMORPG), Yggdrasil. The game is known for its unusual freedom given to the players making it the most popular game in Japan. Our Main MC, Momonga is reminiscing about the great times he has had playing the game for some unknown reason is being shut down. It is never explained why the game was coming to an end but I’ll leave it to later seasons to explain why this was the case. The catch is when the servers finally shut down Momonga finds himself stuck in the world that was once Yggdrasil. He has no idea why this occurred yet he is thrust into a chaotic world as the ruler of a despotic kingdom surrounded by inhuman servants that serve as Guardians to the Tomb of Nazarick. His goal is to reach potential allies who might also be stuck in this fearsome world and to do that he plans to spread his name across the lands. A badass premise, eh?

I was reluctant to get into this anime since most anime about being stuck in a game are kinda shit. (SAO, I’m talking to you.) I was pleasantly surprised to find that this anime was unique and interesting. No harems, no overpowered characters without justification, and no bullshit! The MC is indeed overpowered but not without reason. It is shown that he was level 100, most likely a cap level for the game, therefore, it is perfectly reasonable to suggest he is god tier in terms of abilities. It was nice to see that Momonga is a spell caster when they could have easily shot for a warrior even though is very capable of playing the role. Momonga now taking on the role of Ains Ooal Gown is my favorite part of the entire series. He stands out because he is what I always wanted in an MC who is thrusted in a video game world. Confident, intelligent, a complete badass but a dork at heart because at the end of all this he is still a nerd playing a video game rather than being social so basically me. Time and time again he’s shown his prowess in a way that isn’t overbearing. My gripes come with the other characters.

There are only a select few of Guardians that I care for and it isn’t Shalltear. Cocytus and Albedo are ones that stood out for me. The condescension towards the humans was a constant annoyance. Albedo and Nabe were constant edgelords that would not shut up about humans being shite. We get it, Ains Sama is the epitome of greatness. Let us move on. I found the Guardians loyalty not to be endearing but sheep flocking to a wolf. And that’s why I found it laughable that the Guardians look down on humans so much. But perhaps that flaw is what “humanizes” them in the end. If that’s what they were going for, so be it. It was just too annoying for me. I appreciate the inhuman servants being different from one another difference in personalities and abilities. It gave life to the cast even though I had some minor problems. Overall they were alright. Oh, thanks for the loli elves. I very much appreciate it.

I don’t have much to say about the world building since it’s pretty simple so far. Where the worldbuilding shines is when it’s compared to the likeness of what it once was, an MMORPG. The animation was great because of how it was executed the CGI never really affected me too much. However, the final fight scene when it came to magic buffs felt a bit dragged even though it was necessary.
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6/10.

I thoroughly enjoyed this. My love for MMOs really helped which is why I give this a 6, not a 7.