This spooky season sees the return of 2014’s guilty-pleasure anime, Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei (The Irregular at Magic High School), with season 2! This unique twist on magical anime is set in a world where magic is more like an engineered technology in addition to being an innate ability possessed by certain people. The story follows Shiba Tatsuya, an enigmatic non-magic user who somehow enrolls at First High School despite being magically inept.
At First High, students are sorted into their courses via their entrance test scores. Those who do well are the “Blooms”, who are assigned to the First Course, while the “Weeds” are relegated to the Second Course. Tatsuya is assigned Weed status at First High, where he attends with his Bloom sister, Miyuki, a powerful ice magician. Tatsuya has no magic ability but possesses incredible know-how, physical combat ability, and some secret magic techniques that make him the Irregular at First Magic High.
On the other hand, this year has also given us The Misfit of Demon King Academy, an anime with thematic elements like those of The Irregular at Magic High School. After 2000 years, the demon lord, better known as “The Founder”, has reincarnated! However, when the month-old reincarnation of Anos Voldigoad has his abilities assessed at Demon King High, everyone is shocked to see that he has 0 magic power, rendering him magically inept! On top of that, it seems that the “Founder” living in the minds of every single demon is an impostor! We will explore both shows, with a little bit of emphasis on The Irregular’s continuation this year, and at the end of that, we will tell you which show we think is better! Off to magic high school!
The School
Both The Irregular’s First High School and The Misfit’s Demon King Academy feature segregation on some level based on a student’s academic performance, as well as social status. In Demon King Academy, “Royal” demons are pureblooded individuals said to outrank their “Hybrid” peers. The two groups even have contrasting school uniforms, which is the same situation we see at The Irregular’s First High. These segregated curricula also have social implications, as seen with the consistent belief in Royal supremacy exhibited by characters in The Misfit, how “Blooms” treat “Weeds” in The Irregular, and the elevated social positions of the “Blooms”.
Characters
Anos Voldigoad and Shiba Tatsuya are both overpowered protagonists who are first considered “inept” or completely hopeless when it comes to magical power. The world of Misfit at Demon King High is set in some strange version of Hell, unlike The Irregular, which is set at a magic high school in a late-21st century setting where magic and technology go hand-in-hand. Both protagonists are fundamentally incompatible with the respective magic system of their worlds; however, they possess unusual traits and abilities that make them unstoppable. On a less serious note, these guys even have the same haircut.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12432936/mediaviewer/rm3193808641
There are also some complicated family relations for certain characters in both shows; like Shiba Tatsuya’s relation to Miyuki and the rest of the Shiba clan through a less prominent branch of the clan, or Misha Necron’s strange initial distance from her older sister, Sasha, who called her a “lifeless, soulless doll that is neither human nor demon.” For The Irregular’s Shiba Tatsuya, this odd dynamic leaves space for a rather uncomfortable incestuous crush harboured by his younger sister, Miyuki. There are also incestuous undertones to certain aspects of Anos’s relationship with his mother in The Misfit.
Misfit, or Irregular – What’s the Verdict?
Ultimately, we have to be real and talk about preference. While both shows are entertaining and filled with action and exposition about interesting lore, they do present enough similarities for comparison – so who’s the better outcast? Who makes the better overpowered main character? In a head-to-head based on various aspects like their overall influence in their respective world.
Tatsuya is immensely powerful; however, Anos Voldigord is the ancestor of an entire society of powerful demons, capable of bending time to his will and winning over death. On that front, the stakes feel immensely higher in The Misfit, giving it just a little bit over the tamer world of The Irregular. However, on the other hand, Shiba Tatsuya’s overpowered status is much more interesting experience in The Irregular because he is magically inept, rather than merely an aberration. Our winner? The Irregular at Magic High School, Shiba Tatsuya!
Needless to say, if you’ve seen either The Irregular at Magic High School or The Misfit at Demon King Academy, the other is an interesting watch and comes recommended if you enjoy stories with overpowered main characters. If you’ve seen both, which one do you think is better? Drop a comment below and tell us what you think!
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