Demon Lord 2099 is an fantasy/sci-fi anime that centres around the Demon Lord Veltol and his resurrection in the new world of Fantasion. The anime was released on the 13th of October 2024. I recall adding it to my list of shows to watch but only recently got around to actually watching it.
It is based on a light novel of the same title by Daigo Murasaki and was animated by J.C.Staff. Currently, it has 12 episodes and I’m not quite sure if more are planned.
The first episode introduces us to a great war between immortals and magic-wielding mortals in the fantasy world of Alnaeth. The war has apparently been raging for some time, claiming countless lives and causing destruction. The battle comes to an end, however, when the Demon Lord Veltol Velvet Velsvalt is defeated by the hero Gram.
As Veltol “dies”, Gram declares that the reason he lost to a human is because of the perseverance and grit of the human race.
That is not the end of the Demon Lord though, as he is resurrected by his loyal servant, Machina, about 500 years later. After appreciating her faithfulness, he rises, eager to conquer the world once more.
He is, however, warned by Machina that things have changed while he slumbered. This is a different reality. The magic of Alnaeth and the technology of Earth have fused to create Fantasion, a new world. This fusion did not come without its troubles. Civil wars broke out due to prejudice between the races, resulting in city-states, which devolved into more conflict. Despite the dark past, Fantasion is now a stable environment, balanced between magic and technology.
Together, they set out to understand how Veltol fits into this new reality.
The scenes after this are quite typical. Veltol absorbs the new city-state of Shinjuku. In a fit to display his strength, he fires a magical spell, triggering alarms all around the city. Machina springs into action, leading him away from the scene before enforcement arrives.
While they hide, she explains to him that magic has been outlawed in the major cities and that immortals have been hunted down and killed. The whereabouts of most of his followers is unknown. Notably, when Veltol asks about Marcus, one of Veltol’s Six Dark Peers, Machina dodges the question, dashing away to get him a drink.
While he awaits her return, the billboards and displays around him are hacked to display risquƩ images. Veltol tracks down the hacker and after a bit of talking, asks her about Marcus.
The hacker points him in the direction of Ishimaru Heavy Magical Industries, stating that Marcus is the director of the company. Veltol heads to the building and is welcomed by Marcus’s secretary who takes him to Marcus. Veltol tries to get Marcus to rejoin him in his quest for world domination but Marcus refuses, calling the Demon Lord weak and obsolete.
He then demonstrates this by striking out at Veltol, much to the latter’s surprise. Marcus explains the “familia” technology, a tool that allows normal humans to utilize magic, despite lacking magical affinity.
Veltol is expelled from the tower with a wave of Marcus’s hand, landing harshly in the city down below. Machina rescues him and leads him to her apartment. Initially believing the space to be a storeroom, Veltol is disillusioned by her living conditions. Eventually, he promises to repay her loyalty and conquer the world once more.
My thoughts on the first episode of Demon Lord 2099
I didn’t enjoy it.
In my opinion, the premise is common enough but there is nothing new under the sun so I wasn’t expecting a completely unique plot and storyline. The delivery, however, is what I find fault with.
The worldbuilding was fine. The opening of every anime, show, manga, novel and film typically carries a lot of information for the consumer.
What I found lacking was the dialogue.
When Gram, the hero, defeats the Demon Lord, he gives a speech about human resilience and courage. I found the speech to be bland and uninspiring. Later, when the Demon Lord is conversing with the hacker, the dialogue was basic and lacked wit and direction. It felt like the writers forced the scene just to show us that that hacker would become important later in the show.
I had similar problems with his conversation with Marcus. The revelation of Marcus as the antagonist, I felt, was too sudden and lacked any kind of flair. Even worse, Marcus devolved into a sales-like presentation to explain to the Demon Lord why Veltol’s magic was no longer powerful enough.
The animation was nothing special but I am not one to comment on animation quality, as it is not one of my concerns. If the plotline is good and the characters are intriguing, that’s enough for me. Animation quality only comes into my mind if the show meets those benchmarks.
The opening song was nice. It suited the cyberpunk/fantasy theme well, serving as a nice soundtrack to the opening sequence.
Verdict
I don’t think I’ll carry on with this anime, especially as there are many others on my list that look much more promising. I typically apply a 3-episode rule but the first episode did not do enough to draw me in.
What do you think about Demon Lord 2099?
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