Welcome to Demon School, Iruma-kun Season 2

Episode 1

Wait, wait, wait. Didn't the final episode of the first season of Welcome to Demon School, Iruma-kun show us that Iruma had turned evil? So why is he still his adorable, dorky self in the first episode of the new season? And, cliffhanger aside, is that even worth complaining about? Honestly, at this point I'm inclined to say no, and that's not just because given the long gap between seasons it's nice to have a moment to remember who everyone is; I suspect that the whole mess with his Gluttonous Feeder Ring is going to explain everything before too long.

As you may recall, that ring is what allows Iruma to further disguise himself as a demon by using magic, namely Grandpa Sullivan's magic, which he feeds into the ring. But because the ring is such a rare magical tool, no one, including Sullivan, realized that the ring gains sentience as its wearer rises in rank, and now that Iruma has attained gimmel (the third rank), the ring is able to manifest as a sort of familiar. (A less cranky one, if you remember who Iruma's other familiar is.) The ring itself is totally flummoxed by the whole thing, too, so apparently this is just something that's never happened before. Could that be because Iruma's a human? Or because the magic being fed into the ring isn't Iruma's own? Or is this just the latest goofy manifestation of Iruma's luck?

I wouldn't be surprised if the answer was a combination of all three, but I'm definitely thinking that Ali-san (the ring's manifestation, short for Alicred) had something to do with that cliffhanger from season one. At the moment he's more interested in getting Iruma to stop wasting magic power and to possibly develop a stronger imagination, which is probably where things will eventually go sideways with Grandpa's sweet grandson. In the meantime, seeing a tiny cyclopean butler attached to Iruma's ring by a magic umbilical cord is pretty great all on its own.

Most of this episode is a combination of reminding us who everyone is (and who could forget Dosa-chan, the sexy tentacle girl?) and setting up what's to come, specifically with Ali-san and Ameri, who is still reeling from seeing a girl who looks exactly like Iruma performing as an idol. Mostly she's aghast that Iruma seems to like frilly and fluffy outfits (the dress thing is fine, as it should be), and thanks to a misunderstanding this episode, that's going to be our first plot point as things build with Ali-san. This may not be a perfect return to the series, but it's still awfully engaging and funny, and I can't wait to see how things go weird for poor, hapless Iruma-kun in the weeks to come.

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Welcome to Demon School, Iruma-kun Season 2 is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.