Overlord

Overlord (オーバーロード, Ōbārōdo) is a Japanese light novel series written by Kugane Maruyama and illustrated by so-bin. It began serialization online in 2010, before being acquired by Enterbrain. Sixteen volumes have been published since July 2012. A manga adaptation by Satoshi Ōshio, with art by Hugin Miyama, began serialization in Kadokawa Shoten's manga magazine Comp Ace on November 26, 2014. Both the light novels and the manga are licensed in North America by Yen Press since 2016.

The novel has been adapted into an anime television series adaptation by Madhouse, consisting of four seasons with thirteen episodes each, with the first season airing from July to September 2015. Two compilation anime films recapping the events from the first season were released in Japan in February and March 2017, respectively. The second season ran from January to April 2018, the third season ran from July to October 2018, and the fourth season ran from July to September 2022. An anime film has been announced.

Synopsis
Yggdrasil is a virtual reality game renowned for the freedom it offers its players. After a simple tutorial, players are left to explore the world and can customize anything and everything, from their classes to their weapons. However, in the year 2138, the game sees its final hours as its servers shut down at midnight.

Momonga, a devoted player of Yggdrasil, decides to spend the game's last hours inside his guild, Ainz Ooal Gown. Strangely, at the stroke of midnight, the game does not log him out. Instead, Momonga finds himself transported to another world, one that is seemingly identical to that of Yggdrasil. Facing an already abnormal situation, he discovers that the NPCs have gained sentience.

Trapped in his avatar's skeletal body and desperate to uncover the cause of his predicament and find other players like him, Momonga sets out to take control of the new world with the help of his loyal subjects.

Light Novels
The light novel series written by Maruyama, with illustrations by So-bin, began its serialization online in 2010 via the novel publishing website Arcadia. It was also uploaded to the novel publishing website Shōsetsuka ni Narō in 2012, prior to Enterbrain's acquisition. As of July 29, 2022, the series has been published by Enterbrain in sixteen volumes, with the first volume released on July 30, 2012, and the sixteenth volume released on July 29, 2022. Yen Press announced its license to the series in October 2015 for North America and began publishing the novels in English, with the first volume released on May 24, 2016. Maruyama has stated that the series will end in its seventeenth volume. In the afterword in the second part of the 16th volume, it was announced by the author that the series will end at its eighteenth volume.

Manga
A manga adaptation by Satoshi Ōshio, with art by Hugin Miyama, began serialization in Kadokawa Shoten's manga magazine Comp Ace on November 26, 2014. Overlord has been published in English by Yen Press since June 28, 2016, in Italian by J-Pop since May 18, 2016, and in Spanish by ECC Ediciones since October 31, 2017.

Spin-off
Overlord: Fushisha no Oh! (オーバーロード 不死者のOh!, Overlord: The Undead King Oh!) Serialized from "Monthly Comp Ace" March 2017 issue. Juami is in charge of Illustrate. Spin-off 4-panel gag. Overlord: Fushisha no Oh! has been published in English as Overlord: The Undead King Oh! by Yen Press since November 12, 2019.

An anthology comic of Overlord: Koushiki Comic à la Carte (オーバーロード 公式コミックアラカルト, Overlord a la Carte) by various mangaka "Araki, Kanao / Mizuki, Maya / Sakano, Anri / Araragi, Ayune / Itou, Nanami / match / Fuyuno, Kei / Sonoda, Yuri / 7zu7 / Tsuneishi, Tsuneo / Burio, Michiru / Oimoto, Jirou". Overlord: Koushiki Comic à la Carte has been published in English as Overlord a la Carte by Yen Press since August 27, 2019.
 * 1) The First edition was published on January 10, 2018 (released on the same day) - ISBN 978-4-04-106385-9
 * 2) The First edition was published on February 10, 2018 (released on the same day) - ISBN 978-4-04-106386-6
 * 3) The First edition was published on July 26, 2018 (released on the same day) - ISBN 978-4-04-107170-0
 * 4) The First edition was published on February 26, 2019 (released on the same day) - ISBN 978-4-04-107898-3
 * 5) The First edition was published on September 26, 2019 (released on September 24) - ISBN 978-4-04-108686-5
 * 6) The First edition was published on April 25, 2020 (released on the same day) - ISBN 978-4-04-109624-6
 * 7) The First edition was published on November 26, 2020 (released on November 25) - ISBN 978-4-04-110816-1
 * 8) The First edition was published on July 26, 2021 (released on the same day) - ISBN 978-4-04-111591-6
 * 9) The First edition was published on January 26, 2022 (released on the same day) - ISBN 978-4-04-111592-3
 * 10) The First edition was published on July 26, 2022 (released on the same day) - ISBN 978-4-04-112705-6
 * 11) Released on March 25, 2023 - ISBN 978-4-04-112706-3

Character
The main character of this work. In the real world, he was a dull office worker named "Suzuki Satoru" (high school graduate in the web version, elementary school graduate in the book version). Since he was an Overlord, the pinnacle of the undead race in the game era, he is revered as a "transcendent" or "demon king" by those who know his existence, coupled with his mighty power. In the real world, he seems to be alone in the world without family, friends, or lovers (specifically, his mother died from overwork), and due to his own circumstances, he was transferred to another world. Even after realizing this, he is not obsessed with returning to the real world. On the other hand, he is obsessed with Nazarick and his guild members, who were his place and companions, and that is one of the principles of his behavior.

During the game era, he played in VR online game called Momonga, but after transferring, he named himself the name of the guild "Ainz Ooal Gown", in which he was the head of organized opinions. This means that he, who is the only one remaining, will carry all the members who are no longer with him, and that "By making the name of 'Ainz Ooal Gown' widely known, he may be transferred to another world other than himself." This is because he intended to find out the players of Yggdrasil. He basically speaks "Watashi/I" in the first person, but changes to "ore" when he speaks as "Suzuki Satoru" in monologues or when he gets angry.

He usually has a gentle personality and does not like useless killing, and will spare the lives of those who are in a dying position if it is useful. This is partly due to the fact that he is a subordinate of his, but there is also the aspect that he still has the spirit of a human being. Due to the undead transformation, there is no expression, and the ups and downs of emotions are suppressed. In addition, there are few "human race" in Nazarick NPC, and there are many people who "hate people", so it is difficult to appease them who expose their hostility and murderous intent toward humans. On the other hand, if it leads to Nazarick's profit, he will not hesitate to mass murder. Even if his subordinates call him a "lower life forms", he shows a certain amount of sympathy in return for the kindness he received, is that of a parent who cares about their children, and when they hurt the pride of them and Nazarick, they reveal their rage and retaliate severely. These dualities are said to be due to the loss of most of the spirit of the time when it was a human due to the transformation into an undead, which caused discontinuation of emotions for people other than those with whom it interacted. It is a sense of degree. For that reason, in the book version, he himself goes to the front lines and has friendships with various people and shows a certain degree of humanity, while in the web version he sits in Nazarick and doesn't move, his indifference to people being trampled is more pronounced.

After transferring to another world, when he discovered that the residents of the "Human Village", Carne Village, were being attacked by soldiers disguised as Baharuth Imperial Knights through the magic item "Remote Vision Mirror", at first Although he was about to abandon him, he remembered the time when he was rescued by Sebas "creator", Touch Me, and in order to repay him and grasp his own fighting ability, he rescued the villagers. It was also around this time that he changed his own name from "Momonga" to "Ainz Ooal Gown". When Ainz travels incognito as an adventurer, he uses the alias Momon the Dark Hero.

Abilities
"I will announce the goal for everyone to turn Ainz Ooal Gown into an eternal legend. If there are many heroes, then we will replace them all. Let the entire world know that Ainz Ooal Gown is the true hero!"

- Ainz announcing his goals, setting all of Nazarick into motion.

During his gaming days, he was focused on character creation, so he emphasized the atmosphere of a magician as part of role-playing rather than pure fighting ability. For this reason, even in the game age, without having the necessary countermeasure skills, the direct magic attack power was inferior to that of professionals. Yggdrasil was mid-upper-upper-lower-class strength if the equipment wasn't taken into account. He seems to have a lot of experience as a player, and in the match against Shalltear, he overwhelmed him with his tactics even though he was at a disadvantage due to his specs and poor compatibility. Therefore, I am aware that I am not good at domestic affairs. Albedo and Demiurge manage Nazarick, but to his subordinates, he must act as an omniscient and omnipotent absolute being, and his weakness is that he cannot convey what he still does not understand.

It looks like a skeleton on the outside, but reddish-black light dwells in the depths of its eye sockets, and there is a pulsating reddish-black spherical jewel that is a world-class item below the part that corresponds to its heart. In the web version, it is not a complete skeleton, but a thin skin. As he has the form of an Elder Lich, he doesn't need to eat or sleep, and can't be poisoned or killed by conventional means, along with his emotions and empathy being suppressed, Ainz remembers having a "heart" and thus keeps his humanity in practice. Because of his formerly high level in YGGDRASIL, he can easily overpower even the strongest of magic casters in the New World; and while he lacks the skills of natural warriors, he compensates for it with raw strength. Over time, he has learned how to improve in fighting with physical weapons, but his greatest asset remains his strength. Ainz also has access to a wide variety of instant death and summoning spells which, though ineffective against fellow players, work very well against the inhabitants of the New World. He also has an array of items he purchased with real money back in YGGDRASIL, which give him abilities ranging from summoning extremely high-level items (most of which belong to his guildmates) from the Guild's bank to instantly cast a spell that usually has a long casting time.

The staff he carries is a guild weapon called the 「Staff of Ainz Oool Gown」, and by adding seven Sacred Treasure-class jewels to the Sacred Treasure-class wand weapon in the shape of seven intertwined snakes. It possesses stats comparable to world-class items and various skills, including an automatic engagement system. He usually carries a replica made during the prototype stage. In creating this wand, the cooperation and efforts of everyone in the guild, as well as the hardships and troubles in the real world, are mixed with joys and sorrows, and Momonga has a fondness for this wand. If the guild master were to start equipping this type of weapon, it grants that user enhancement over their own racial skills. For instance, once equipped by Ainz, it can strengthened the effects of Despair Auras, a racial skill to the point wherein which, this staff's power is able to affect even level 100 NPCs. While so, this guild weapon too could increase his stats to higher numbers.

On the other hand, it also grants the guild master the rights, privileges, and accessibility to the various parts and functions within the Great Tomb of Nazarick. Given its authority, it can even override certain restricted settings or access and then re-edit them like the Custom NPCs' backstories.

Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown's most potent feature is its automatic engagement system. In combat, Ainz can initiate it to undergo automatic interception mode. After the staff obeyed his order, it will begin moving on its own independently from Ainz to attack his enemies. Sharing a mental bond with Ainz, the staff would automatically select the most appropriate spells to utilize and cast on his foes without requiring himself to perform the casting. This staff can read and understand Ainz's thoughts or way of thinking, knowing full well what he is asking for and does it accordingly without waiting for the user's command.

TV Anime
A 13-episode anime television series adaptation by Madhouse aired between July 7 and September 29, 2015. The opening theme is "Clattanoia" by OxT, and the ending theme is "L.L.L." by Myth & Roid. Both are bands of the musician Tom-H@ck. The anime adaptation covers light novel volumes 1 to 3. A 30-minute original video animation was bundled with the eleventh limited edition volume of the light novel series, which was released on September 30, 2016.

Season 1 (2015)
The series is directed by Naoyuki Itō, written by Yukie Sugawara, and music composed by Shūji Katayama. The series aired from July 7 to September 25, 2015 on AT-X, Tokyo MX, Sun TV, KBS Kyoto, TV Aichi, and BS11. Two compilation films acting as a recap to the anime television series were released in 2017; the first compilation film, titled Overlord: The Undead King (オーバーロード 不死者の王, Ōbārōdo: Fushisha no Ō), was released on February 25, 2017, while the second compilation film, titled Overlord: The Dark Warrior (オーバーロード 漆黒の戦士, Ōbārōdo: Shikkoku no Senshi), was released on March 11, 2017. The films' theme song, titled "Crazy Scary Holy Fantasy", was performed by Myth & Roid.

A second season was announced at film screenings of the second compilation film. It premiered on January 9, 2018. It ran for a total of 13 episodes. Outside of Asia, Funimation has licensed the second season for a simuldub. Following Sony's acquisition of Crunchyroll, the series was moved to Crunchyroll. In South and Southeast Asia, Medialink holds the rights to the series. The opening theme is "Go Cry Go" by OxT and the ending theme is "Hydra" by Myth & Roid. The second season of the anime adaptation covers light novel volumes 4 to 6.

Season 2 (2018)
A third season premiered on July 10, 2018. The opening theme is "VORACITY" by Myth & Roid, and the ending theme song is "Silent Solitude" by OxT.

Season 3 (2018)
With 13 episodes as with the previous seasons, the third season of the anime adaptation covers light novel volumes 7 to 9.

On May 8, 2021, a fourth season and an anime film were announced, with the film covering the Holy Kingdom Arc of the series. The staff and cast members returned to reprise their roles for the fourth season, which aired from July 5 to September 27, 2022. The opening theme is "HOLLOW HUNGER" by OxT, and the ending theme is "No Man's Dawn" by Mayu Maeshima. On July 18, 2022, Crunchyroll announced an English dub for the fourth season, which began streaming on July 19.

Season 4 (2022)
Overlord IV was released on Blu-ray and DVD in Japan from October 26, 2022 to December 23, 2022. The fourth season covers light novel volumes 10, 11, and 14, while the movie adapts volumes 12 and 13. A comedy crossover anime, Isekai Quartet featured characters from Overlord in a Chibi style, much like the OVA. It also featured characters from the light novel series KonoSuba, Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World, and The Saga of Tanya the Evil, all published by Kadokawa Corporation. The anime began airing on April 9, 2019.

Web radio
Both are distributed by Onsen.


 * The first season, "Overlord - Oath of Loyalty to the Supreme Radio", aired every other Monday from July 6th to September 28th, 2015. The personalities are Emiri Kato, who plays Aura, and Yumi Uchiyama, who plays Mare. In conjunction with the release of the theatrical version of the anime, it was specially distributed as an SP episode on February 8 and March 11, 2017.
 * The second season, "Overlord II: Nazarick Underground Tomb Regular Report" was delivered every other Tuesday from December 26, 2017 to June 12, 2018. The personality is Satoshi Hino, who plays Ainz, and the assistant is Shunichi Maki (nickname: True Tree Fast One).
 * The third season, "Overlord III: Nazarik Underground Tomb Regular Report" was delivered every other Tuesday from July 10th to October 9th, 2018. Personality and assistant are the same as the second term.
 * The fourth season, "Overlord IV: Ainz Ooal Gown Magical Country Strategy Conference" was distributed every other Wednesday from July 6, 2022. Personality and assistant are the same as the second and third period.

Games
A mobile game Mass for the Dead was launched in late 2019 in Japan, with a global (English) version launched in early 2020. It received poor reviews, with reviewers noting it was rather simple and did not offer anything new compared to many other similar gacha games. The global version has been shut down as of March 31, 2021.

A Metroidvania game titled Overlord: Escape from Nazarick was announced on December 17, 2021, for Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam and was released on June 16, 2022.

Overlord: Momonga Quest & Albedo Quest, A mini game using the Twitter account deployed on the anime official website from July 22, 2015. Momonga Quest is a quiz, Albedo Quest is a dungeon adventure, and each is divided into levels I to III. The quiz question is completely supervised by Natsumi Iwasaki of 『If a high school baseball girl manager reads Drucker's 'Management'』. An original ring "Ring of Ainz Wool Gown" will be presented to the top ranking players. 『Albedo Quest: Level II』 from August 2nd of the same year, 『Momonga Quest: Level II』 from August 19th, 『Albedo Quest: Level III』 from September 2nd, "Momonga" from September 16th "Quest -Level III-" started.

A RPG Maker MV x Overlord Original RPG, An RPG that has been produced and distributed using RPG Maker MV since August 1, 2018. A PC download version (both Windows and Mac are available) and a browser game version (RPG Atsumar) that can be used on PCs and smartphones are provided. His goal is to control Momon and Nabe and become Adamantite-class adventurers. First, episodes 1 and 2 were released, followed by episodes 3 and 4 on August 5, 5 and 6 on August 8, and the final episode on August 10.

Overlord: Dungeon of Nazarick, A 2D action game produced and distributed using Pixel Game Maker MV, a sample of which was released on August 31, 2018. The sample "Pixel Game Maker MV x Overlord [Sample Game] DUNGEON OF NAZARICK" is only available as a download version for PC (Windows), and after Stage 1 was released, Stage 2 was released on September 4th of the same year. The full version will be released at a later date, and will be available for pre-order on Amazon starting in late December 2018, or sold at the "Comic Market 95" KADOKAWA booth.

Pachinko (Pachislot, パチスロ)


 * OVER-SLOT 「Ainz Ooal Gown Absolute Ruler Korin」 (August 2019, Oizumi)
 * Pachislot OVERLORD 「Absolute Ruler Korin II」 (March 2023, Oizumi)

Reception
In June 2015, prior to the release of the anime and manga, the light novel series had about 600,000 copies in print in Japan with eight volumes. By August 1, 2015, the light novel and manga series had a total of 1 million copies in circulation in Japan. On August 4, a 600,000-copy reprint of the novels was announced. As of August 20, 2015, the nine-volume Overlord light novel series and two-volume manga series have, together, more than 1.5 million copies in circulation in Japan. As of September 18, 2015, Overlord light novel and manga has over 2 million copies in circulation. As of May 2016, the Overlord light novel series had 2.5 million copies in print. Overlord has since been named the top-selling light novel series of 2015. As of April 2018, the light novel and manga combined had over 7 million copies in print.

The light novel ranked first in 2017 in Takarajimasha's annual light novel guide book Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi!, in the tankōbon category. It ranked fourth in 2018.

In reviewing the anime adaptation, Kotaku called the Overlord anime a "magnificent power fantasy" which "brings up a very relatable theme for anyone who has played an MMORPG before."

External Link

 * Overlord Part 1 ─ Official website at Shōsetsuka ni Narō (in Japanese)
 * Overlord Part 2 ─ Official website at Shōsetsuka ni Narō (in Japanese)
 * Overlord ─ Official Manga website (in Japanese)
 * TV Anime "Overlord Season 1" ─ Official Website (in Japanese)
 * TV Anime "Overlord Season 2 & 3" ─ Official Website (in Japanese)
 * TV Anime "Overlord Season 4" ─ Official Website (in Japanese)
 * TV Anime "Overlord" Official (@over_lord_anime) - Twitter
 * Overlord: Mass for the Dead ─ Game Official Site
 * Overlord: ESCAPE FROM NAZARICK ─ Game Official Site
 * IOS/ Andriod Game Overlord ─ Official (@overlord_ch) - Twitter
 * Overlord Channel ─ YouTube Channel
 * Overlord ─ Wikipedia  JP 
 * Overlord ─ Wikipedia  EN 

Trivia

 *  to be added. 

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