Overlord is unique in the landscape due to the fact It managed to get so popular despite subpar animation and its controversial subject matter. Overlord is known and recognised as Japan's Game of Thrones for a reason. It brings half of Kadokawa's revenues. It's an award winning work .

Overlord tells the tale of a villain protagonist, a true villain protagonist unlike Light from death note and Lelouch from Code Geass which is a risk.

Anime fans are used to see heroes winning, so the authors are afraid to change storytelling formula because they dont want to alienate their audience. Also, Overlord is a series which is low on action and slow paced.

So, it is not a serie for low attention span viewers. This is a recipe for disaster in this anime landscape so I must salute the balls of the author to not only write a story like this but also become successful. This is proof this is a story written with integrity and not to make money.

People complain about Nazarick being too powerful because according to them there are no 'stakes'. People who say that are shonen lovers who don't understand what stakes are. But, there are higher stakes for Nazarick and everyone in this new World.

Ainz has actual conflict which is not fighting someone stronger than him through the power of Friendship which is a boring conflict for a protagonist. Ainz has internal conflicts which is the best form of conflict.

He has to conquer this World while maintaining stability between the different kingdoms under him. Ainz also is at war with himself if he should be merciful or cruel.

He also has to maintain a façade as a ruler to control his subordinates. These are real stakes way better than your average shonen protagonist because these conflicts can not be resolved by strength like a lame shonen hero. I dare say they are impossible to resolve which make it better.

These struggles make Ainz not only one of the best protagonist of all times in anime but in fiction but also the best Isekai protagonist of all times. Not only are there stakes for Nazarick, there are stakes for the people of the New World. They have to find ways to survive Nazarick takeover.

The author uses Ainz in the story as an unreliable narrator. This kind of writing is tricky because it can be confusing if not done well. Not many authors can use unreliable storytelling. Ainz is gaslighting us throughout the story. Ainz is so well written some people still believe Ainz is a villain because of the system or because of Nazarick, lmao.

Poor Ainz, he is like this because of his condition. The guardians are forcing him to do evil because he doesn't want to be betrayed, lol. This shows the genius writing of Maruyama. He made some people sympathize and defend a psychopath like Ainz. Ainz was already a monster before the Isekai.

Overlord is one of the most unpredictable shows of all times. There are characters you even don't know exist acting behind the scenes. How can you guess their next move ? Ainz himself, being a complex character, is unpredictable.

You never know what he is planning to do next episode. If you tell me you predicted Ainz's travel route, Shalltear's mission, Swords of Darkness, Clementine and the Slane theocracy's attack this season, I will call absolutely bullshit. There is plot twist on top of another plot twist.

The greatest thing about Overlord is actions have consequences. The level of foreshadowing is unmatched. A plot point introduced in Season 1 becomes relevant in Season 4. In addition, each character in Overlord is important, every single one of them and each undergoes a character arc.

For example , in this Season Ainz is growing and the seeds of growth were planted in shalltear And Nabe. We also examined multiple characters such as Clementine, Nphirea, Sword of Darkness, Khajit.

And the best thing about Overlord is It is not the end of their character arcs. They will continue to grow in future Seasons. All these reasons make Overlord a masterpiece.