Don’t feed the penguin, Dood!
The Netherworld has never seen a small demon with such large ambition! Prideful and power-hungry, Laharl, son of the former overlord, is determined to claim his deceased father’s throne and rule not only the demon world, but the realms beyond. At Laharl’s side is a polar opposite pair of gals: the demon Princess Etna and angel trainee Flonne. Throw in a trio of Earth Defenders and endless winged-penguin Prinnies for one odd and hilarious anime adventure!
Welcome to Disgaea –where the human, demon and angel worlds often interact more than is comfortable for any being. Sent from the heavenly Celestia realm, sweet Flonne strangely must earn her angel status by assassinating a demon overlord in the Netherworld. However, she instead awakens the former overlord’s son, Laharl from his coffin, buried in a pile of garbage. The boisterous and snarky demon seems unfazed by his father’s death, the angel girl trying to kill him, or being surrounded by trash. In fact, Laharl immediately sets out to gather as many vassals as possible, find the demon tome that declares royalty and take the throne of the overlord palace. Flonne, on the other hand, has a change of heart and senses there may be kindness lurking within the selfish demon prince. Though notions of love sicken Laharl, he allows the angel to accompany him. The odd pair encounters Etna, a spunky demon princess who professes loyalty to Laharl, but is about as trustworthy as a snake in the grass. Just the type of girl Laharl admires. Etna also comes with helpers: round penguins with demon wings called Prinnies; servants who can be summoned from anywhere. They will certainly come in handy, as the trio faces competing demons, backstabbing vassals, cheesy Earth Defenders, and tricky angel warriors in Laharl’s quest for power.
Based on the popular video games, Disgaea as an anime series has much of the character wit, cute design, lighthearted comedy and story progression of an RPG. Fans of the games are sure to love this version of Disgaea, as the central figures Laharl, Etna and Flonne are effectively fleshed out and the randomness and profusion of Prinnies is certainly upheld. That said, audiences unfamiliar with the games may find the pacing of the anime a bit on the slow side and the humor juvenile. Laharl’s major weakness, for example, is nausea caused by love …and large-chested women. The first half of the anime is pretty much the adventurers encountering traitors to Laharl’s father or seekers of a bounty on Laharl’s head. A few episodes, such as Laharl’s supposed sister and a Prinny rebellion are amusing but don’t advance the plot much. Only by episode 9 does the story turn serious and the pace picks up. The anime for its style of humor and basic story will most likely appeal to younger viewers, or those quite young-at-heart.
Highlights
As with most anime series, it’s best to watch Disgaea in order. However, by the second episode nearly all main characters have been introduced and the plot remains stuck in simple comedy until episode 9. The following episodes are therefore mentioned only for basic appeal or plot advancement.
- E07 Netherworld’s Sibling. Appearance of Laharl’s long lost (maybe) half-sister, Maharl. Nothing much to do with the overall storyline, but this little demonness with her scary doll is darn cute and brings out some interesting sides of Laharl.
- E08 The Prinnies’ Longest Day, Dood!. Viva la Prinny Revolucion! When the plump Prinnies rebel, it’s quite a scene. Fans of these weird little “dood” spouting penguins, will really get their fill with massive CG Prinny crowds and even giant robot Prinny, Pringer X!
- E09 Space Battleship Gargantua. (A two-part episode.)Finally, the plot gets somewhere. Corny Captain Gordon of the Earth Defenders has repaired his spaceship in time for Laharl to trick him into flying straight for the Overlord Demon Palace. Laharl claims the throne, increasing his powers and restoring the castle. But, Gordon’s partner, the sexy scientist Jennifer and her Lost in Space robot rip-off Thursday have alerted a fleet of human battleships –and their plans aren’t exactly kosher.
- E10 The Defender of Tomorrow is You! (Part two.) Human migration into space now comes at the cost of thousands of demon lives in the Netherworld. Captain Gordon, Laharl, Etna, Flonne and the Prinnies now stand against Jennifer, under mind control by her father, Gordon’s former colleague Kurtis and the massive battleship Gargantua’s deadly Astro Particle Cannon. Need to take a breath? So does Flonne, after realizing the cannon is angel-powered.
- E11 A Night Lit Up by a Red Moon. A planet draped in the light of a red moon reveals the source and destiny of the Prinnies and a deeper, tragic side of Laharl. Great, bittersweet episode.
- E12 Love…After the Fighting’s Over. Flonne pays the ultimate price for fighting angel warriors in order to defend her demon friends. When our adventurers reach Celestia, Flonne’s superior, Seraph Lamington, seems anything but merciful. Laharl makes a surprising sacrifice for Flonne and a sharp end to the series.
Special Features
Funimation has included a nice amount of extra goodies for their Disgaea, The Complete Series DVD, 2-disc set. The packaging is a trim, single case with reversible cover art and a slipcover. DVD special features consist of four English subtitled interviews with the Japanese voice actress for Laharl and series creator. The talks center on the world of Disgaea, both games and anime, character development and humor style. Also included is a trailer for the video game Disgaea III for the PS3, a Japanese promo trailer for the anime, textless opening and closing songs, and standard Funimation trailers.
Audio
Both English and Japanese tracks are in stereo. The English dub for the most part is squeaky and annoying for angel Flonne and demon Laharl, less so for Princess Etna. Most characters end up sounding bratty or put-on, so Japanese language setting is recommended. The opening and closing songs are average for an anime series, lively and easy on the ear but fairly forgettable. Series background soundtrack has an amusingly RPG style, great for fireball throwing and sword swinging.
Video
Appealing character designs are the strength of the Disgaea series. Though demon girl Etna’s crafty personality is not complex, her looks are darling. From Etna’s spikey red pigtails, skull earrings, little black wings and skimpy top, down to the tip of her demon tail, she just shrieks cute. Loud-mouth Laharl is a short bundle of fire, and a shirtless wonder -with pointy ears- whose long red scarf produces swords and ties up opponents. Blonde, blue-eyed Flonne in her white gown with angel wings is a classic goodie-goodie. The Earth Defender trio is basically a silly homage to Flash Gordon and Lost in Space. And the Prinny demon-winged penguins? You just want to squeeze the life out of those round little doods. Do, however, keep in mind that the animation style itself is simple and the quality on screen comes out flat. Save for the occasional CG, this is not a visually flashy anime series. Just super cute.
Overall
Compared to most anime based on video games, Disgaea, The Complete Series is a decent OVA. Fans of the RPG should appreciate this trek across the Netherworld and beyond, along with the evolution, though minor, of Laharl’s character. Anyone into penguins will likely faint with pleasure. For the rest of us, expect to find plenty of cute creatures and slapstick comedy, but not much depth in the way of storytelling or animation. It would have been especially great if the series expanded on Etna’s character, as she has the most visual appeal. By the end, she is still just a mischievous demon with an occasional soft spot. At least there is a satisfying, bittersweet conclusion to this often predictable adventure.
ComicsOnline gives Disgaea, The Complete Series 3.5 out of 5 Prinny Points, dood!
Get your copy of Disgaea, The Complete Series on DVD on Amazon now!
Get your Overlord on at ComicsOnline.com for more anime reviews and everything geek pop culture!
