Anime: Maou Gun Saikyou no Majutsushi wa Ningen Datta

The concept of a human living among demons, seeking to bridge the gap between two warring species, offers a wealth of narrative possibilities. However, the anime falls short in execution, plagued by various issues that prevent it from reaching its on-paper potential.

The series opens with the Demon King's army engaged in relentless battles against humans. Ike, the leader of the Undying Brigade and grandson of the great magician Romberg, is revered for his unparalleled magical prowess. Yet, his human identity remains a closely guarded secret, as its revelation could spell disaster. This central conflict could have set the stage for a compelling story of espionage and moral ambiguity, but the anime stumbles in its delivery.

Pros:

* The anime features a few war tactics and espionage elements, though they are simplistic and not particularly innovative.
* No LitRPG nonsense and nerd video game terminology; magic and spells are not explained unless necessary, which is refreshing.
* Morally grey conflict where human leaders, despite facing a great threat, remain selfish and divided. In fact, human leaders are more concerned with the distant future, focusing on securing their future positions after defeating the demons, leading to internal disputes and lack of teamwork.
* The Demon Lord, Dairokuten, has an interesting level-headed personality, believing how humans can have desirable traits (such as humility) demons could learn from to become stronger.

Cons:

* Dairokuten does nothing interesting besides sitting crossed legged on her throne. Leaving command to her minions, and by minions I only mean Ike, because he does everything, resulting him to be practically the de facto leader of the demon kingdom.
* Excessive exposition and thoughtless superfluous dumb dialogue.
* The so-called 'genius' protagonist and his 'intelligent' foes are disappointingly incompetent. Ike could have used his mind reading powers at numerous occasions but didn't for reasons, Ike explains his mind reading ability to opponents for reasons, and despite knowing Ike's mind-reading abilities, Jace the goblin foolishly orders an attack directly, only to act surprised when Ike finds out. Not only that, Jace could have at least pretended he was not involved, because mind-reading powers and interrogation are still not proof or evidence that he betrayed the demon kingdom by ordering his underlings to shoot Ike with an arrow, causing Jace's demise. He then challenges Ike as if that would do anything; Jace was already doomed from that point on, as he became wanted by both demons and humans with nowhere to escape. Jace then offers Ike alliance against Demon Lord, rendering all his previous actions unjustified; leaving you wondering why he attacked Ike in the first place. That's not a rational way to start a revolution.
* There is a noticeable lack of tension. Ike doesn't face threatening adversaries, and his human disguise is not convincingly dangerous. He is often seen casually removing his mask at home, making it hard to believe that he has maintained his secret for 20 years before being discovered by a random maid.
* The forced harem elements is non-organic and unnecessary, featuring a naive defenseless slave maid the protagonist protects from one-dimensional evil rapists, a flirtatious mentor witch who supposedly has an unrevealed history with Ike and does nothing besides infodumping and plot armouring Ike with her broken powers, and a succubus who constantly follow the MC begging him for sex, adding nothing substantial to the narrative beyond wish fulfillment.
* The CGI during action scenes is horrible to say the least.
* The opening song and visuals are overly sexualised and misleading, showcasing characters that are not introduced early in the story, which diminishes their anticipated importance.
* Traitors and spies are introduced at the moment they are revealed, leading to random and unimpactful twists. For example, episode 3's titular 'traitor' is a previously unintroduced goblin, making the revelation feel hollow.
* The title 'Strongest Magician in the Demon Lord's Army Was a Human' is misleading. Ike's human identity holds little narrative significance, and he is not the strongest magician by any notable margin. The difference between humans and demons isn't highlighted either, lacking contrast, with some demons resembling humans or being allies with Ike, fighting for his cause.
* The light novel is still ongoing, meaning this is likely going to be yet another incomplete adaptation with an open ending. It's not even a good adaptation, with some scenes lifted verbatim from descriptive narration, which isn't welcome in audio-visual mediums.

Although it is tagged as isekai, it doesn't reveal this element until later, worsening the story as the isekai aspect proves to be a needless gimmick (much like most contemporary isekais). The narrative could function perfectly well without a human being transported into a fantasy 'Dragon Quest knockoff' world; it could have been a generic low fantasy. Additionally, the series incorporates harem elements that add nothing serious or consequential, merely fueling the wish fulfillment fantasies of twenty-something male virgins. Despite its promising premise, it ends up being yet another otaku wish fulfillment power fantasy. It is not entirely without merit, offering some interesting ideas. It isn't complete trash, one step above average current isekai, but that's a low bar to begin with.