Hataraku Maou-sama! - Episode 5

Satan might have proved to be something of a pussycat having been dumped into our world, but it seems that his henchman Lucifer is anything but a pushover - what's more, he has grand designs on destroying both Maou and Emi in one fell swoop.

Having used the fear and negativity inherent to the planet's populace (and by creating a fair amount of fear himself) to power up his magic, Lucifer has a clear upper hand on his magic-starved opponents, and what's more he's even taken on one of Emi's comrades who has also defected with his own agenda in mind.  With little magic and only weak human bodies to hand, there's little that Maou and Emi can do except run... but to where?

The answer - the most crowded area possible, as Maou is already aware that he, too, can use the same technique to replenish his magic as Lucifer, thus feeding off a massive crowd of eyewitnesses to Lucifer's destructive capabilities so that he can unleash his own true form and powers.  Emi, too, now has an opportunity to go on the offensive, and with a magical barrier set up in the area our unlikely allies can go at it hell for leather to beat down Lucifer's rebellion and ultimately return the city to normal - albeit at the cost of virtually all of the power which could otherwise have returned Maou to his homeland.

Having previously worried about this series being a whole let less fun when it was focusing on its "serious business", along comes this instalment of Hataraku Maou-sama to prove me wrong - it blended action, menace and comedy wonderfully, and as per its opening episode showed a smart turn of hand when it comes to animating its action scenes, making effective use of the scenario, colour and so on.  Between the inherent amusement that comes from its concept (which the show never forgets to use effectively) and its strong characters who are utilised to their fullest, Hataraku Maou-sama continues to be a surprise delight of the spring season... and if anything, it keeps getting better still.