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The Devil Is a Part-Timer Episode 12 Review: The Pervy Angel

Quick Summary of The Devil Is a Part-Timer Episode 12

In The Devil is a Part-Timer episode 12, “The Devil Carries Out His Duties,” Mitsuki Sarue tries to use torture to convince Emi Yusa to give him her celestial sword. As you can imagine, she’s reluctant to cooperate. When Sadao Maou arrives and encounters a magical barrier, Mitsuki sends Suzuno Kamazuki to intercept him. She’s mortified when the first thing he does is take off his uniform! As an assassin, you think she’ d be a bit less prudish. Finally, Olba Meyer escapes the police guarding him and finds Hanzou Urushihara, who he recruits to help him support Mitsuki. With Mitsuki’s angelic powers waxing, even if Sadao can get past Suzuno, will he have any chance against the angel? Or will he and Chiho Sasaki have to miss their next shift due to injury — or worse?

Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.  

What’s in This Post

3 Favorite Moments in The Devil Is a Part-Timer Episode 12

Moment 1: Suzuno and Underpants

Suzuno. Bel of Ente Isla. Seasoned assassin, who blushes at the sight of underpants! It’s almost too precious for words. Capture from the Hulu stream

After crushing Sadao’s bike Dullahan in her initial attack, Suzuno chases him to a causeway between two buildings. He begs her to stop for just a moment (6:30), and the sheer audacity of his request made her pause. They were in the middle of battle! Why would he just need a minute?

Then she blushed and looked away in embarrassment. All we could hear was a zipper, then we see Sadao put his neatly folded shirt and pants aside. He was removing his McRonald’s uniform! Still mortified, she demanded an explanation, so he taunted her for not having a job (because she would have known what he was talking about!) and explained that if anything damaged his uniform outside of work, he’d have to pay for it. “The Devil’s Castle doesn’t have that kind of money lyin’ around!”

Of course, she’s furious and attacks anyway, ripping off his shirt and leaving him just in his underwear. Then she has the nerve to complain to him about it! The show took its time setting up Suzuno as the murderous assassin who didn’t have a lot of life experience, and that helped the moment seem so funny in spite of being right in the middle of a dramatic situation (what with Emi being tortured on the roof and all!).

Moment 2: Suzuno Helped in Spite of Herself

At least the underpants helped her resolve her inner conflicts! Capture from the Hulu stream

Speaking of Emi on the roof, my second favorite moment comes right on the heels of the first. Back in my review of episode 8, I mentioned how this show’s use of overlapping dialogue reminded me of the original M*A*S*H movie. This show in general and this episode in particular remind me also of the M*A*S*H television series in how it uses comedy to soften you up for the dramatic punch.

Suzuno had been under the impression that she had fooled Sadao, Shirou Ashiya, and the others by pretending to be a girl from the country. But when Suzuno tried to berate him for being a pervert after she blew his shirt off, he said that he’d been willing to let things slide, but now she was threatening his crew, so he was going to put a stop to it. She was shocked and couldn’t believe he had known who she was (7:22).

Now, he hammered on her psychologically, saying he’d had high hopes for her when she’d gotten along with Emi, but now she was much more like Olba — ready to sacrifice anyone to obtain or preserve their power. She was furious, and you could see in her face how she was more furious at herself, because his arguments were hitting her in the same place her conscience had attacked. He intentionally goaded her into attacking him — and then he intentionally let her hit him! The results of her act of violence — especially since she’d expected him to dodge — froze her in place.

Why is this one of my favorite moments? Because of what came next: She couldn’t bear to continue, so he said he was going to go save Chiho. “And really, you’re countin’ on me too, aren’t you?” he asked (9:17). That one question, along with him saying that he already knew she purposely didn’t stop Chiho from calling him, helped her solve her own inner conflict. I love this kind of moment of clarity! 

Moment 3: Hanzou, Hero of the Moment

Hanzou looking – and acting! – kinda heroic? Yeah, it took me by surprise, too! Capture from the Hulu stream

I will admit, the first time I saw this episode, I was convinced that Hanzou would betray Emi and Sadao again. Remember the smile Hanzou gave Olba when the priest went to the Devil’s Castle and asked if the demon still wanted to go to Heaven? I was sure that smile was the equivalent of a yes!

Apparently, so did Olba, because as he stood atop the skyscraper and brought a projection of the moon closer to Mitsuki (the Angel Sariel), he thought Hanzou was protecting him. Olba had Emi’s purse, because he wanted to drink some of the celestial force-replenishing drink that Emeralda Etuva had given her. He was confused when Hanzou asked for Emi’s bag (18:11). He happily handed it over and asked why he wanted it.

“Huh? Give it back to Emilia,” he said, adding, “I mean, if I don’t, she’ll kill me.” It only took a split second for Olba to realize what that meant. Olba tried to leap away, but the chaos in the streets below hadn’t only replenished Sadao’s magic. It had done the same for Hanzou, who delivered a very satisfying punch to Olba’s jaw. His “NEETs rule!” was just icing on the cake.

Thoughts about The Devil Is a Part-Timer Episode 12

Awesome Moments Galore!

This was one of those episodes where I could have gone on and on with favorite moments. Choosing three was hard! Just off the top of my head, there were moments like:

  1. Sadao running face-first into the magical barrier
  2. His list of demands to Suzuno for wrecking Dullahan
  3. Emi and Chiho lambasting Sariel for treating them disrespectfully 
  4. Chiho’s voice when she saw Sadao in his underwear 
  5. Emi’s reaction to the same thing
  6. Sadao modeling his underwear for Chiho and Emi
  7. Sadao almost suffocating Chiho with his power, along with Suzuno taking him to task for it (and his tiny “Sorry!”)
  8. Sadao’s finishing move on Sariel
  9. Shirou arriving uselessly late

She might have been exhausted and in pain from the torture, but Emi had enough energy to be freaked out at Sadao’s entrance. Capture from the Hulu stream

But I’ve set a limit of three for myself, so I’ll stick to it! Even if I just cheated a little…

Redemption Arcs are Cool

Aren’t redemption arcs are awesome? More specifically, aren’t they awesome when they’re done right? I really think this show did it right with Suzuno. The previous episodes dramatized her inner conflict, and I honestly didn’t know which way she’d go. I had hopes because I really like the character, so I was like “Yes!” when she decided that if Sadao could try to avoid being ashamed, so could she. 

What kind of relationship do Emi and Sadao share? Do they even know? In the past, Emi bristled whenever anyone suggested she might be Sadao’s ex, to the point where I recalled a quote from Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “The lady doth protest too much, methinks!” She gave off a similar vibe in this episode, but I almost got the sense that she was getting more comfortable with not knowing. For example, she warned Sariel about what would happen if he hurt Chiho — Sadao would protect his McRonald’s underling! Almost seemed like she thought well of him! Then he strode onto the roof, ready to save them, in what should have been a triumphant moment. But he was in his underwear, so Emi told him to stay away from her and not to look because Sariel had unfastened some of her shirt’s buttons (12:58). 

Kinda conflicting evidence here!

Emi’s Range of Emotions

But I’ve come to expect that range of responses from Emi. What I didn’t expect was the subtle change in how Sadao seemed to treat Emi. During the run-up to his fight with Sariel, he only talked about Chiho, which is what I expected. But things seemed to change when his strike on Sariel accidentally blew Emi off the roof. 

Just what are they to each other? I don’t think they know! Capture from the Hulu stream

When she opened her eyes, she was in his arms. Remember the last time he caught her back in episode 7? She punched and kneed him in the face! Maybe that’s why his expression looked hesitant, even as she said she was exhausted and wanted him to put her down. Or maybe felt bad that he nearly sent her plunging to her death! 

Or maybe it was because he was having a hard time looking past her open blouse. “Hey, Emi… Your shirt’s open.” 

She was exhausted from being tormented and tortured, but she still had the energy to blush and pull her shirt closed! 

Sadao’s Finishing Move: Sans Emi

But that’s not all. As Sadao, still holding Emi, closed in on Sariel, he sounded confident and dominating. Then Emi interrupted him, asking him to put her down, and afterward, he sounded almost dejected! 

I don’t want to speak on behalf of Sadao, but it had to feel pretty cool. There he was, holding the damsel and giving his powerful but about to be destroyed enemy the equivalent of last rites. To have the “damsel” remind you that she has already asked to be put down and that she had no intention of being in your arms longer than she had to be? That had to sting his ego!

Emi may have stung his ego by demanding to be put down in the middle of his speech, but he seemed to recover quickly! Capture from the Hulu stream

I love the complexity of their relationship. I love the depth of their characters. I love the mix of comedy and drama and action. And I’m saying this after having watched the series start to finish at least five times!

Not sure there’s much more I could ask of an anime!

Did you enjoy seeing Sariel defeated? What were your favorite moments? Let me know in the comments!

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