Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
Ivan_Khudoy
I enjoyed Daemons, but the slow pacing and messy tone drag this show down. I can't name many interesting characters either. I was only amused by cute mascot pets and tiny daemon chibis. Hard to relate to Kagemori members and laugh at their quirky jokes when they casually murder innocent people. 24 episodes in, we still haven't learned why Higashi deserves this much smoke(which is why Kagemori's emotional moments and quirky jokes fall flat). Hard to care about political games when every faction is filled with the same type of scumbag. So far, Yuru's quest to find patents is most relatable by default. The animation is one of the best parts, especially in later action scenes. Decent show overall, but I expected something more compelling from the author who gave us Fullmetal Alchemist.
Read at the sourceemberreviews
Daemons of the Shadow Realm is an exceptionally engaging action/thriller drawing on many of Hiromu Arakawa’s best strengths as a mangaka, as well as being dogged by her occasional weaknesses as well. Its brisk pacing and constant introduction of new elements to make more standard situations a bit more complex and engaging make this a compelling watch that rarely leaves you bored, especially with the massive web of characters that it weaves. The complicated nature of Yuru and Asa’s relationships with both each other and the many factions they interact with in this struggle over their legendary powers adds several levels of moral ambiguity to many of their thoughts and actions. That said, for as much as the show likes to emphasize this point, there is very clearly a “good side” and “bad side…
Read at the sourceTacoTruck10
For me and my friends who watched this, this is the most disappointing anime of 2026, without a doubt.
The reviews are mostly from the first couple episodes, which have artificially inflated the score beyond what it deserves. This is a 6 anime at best. It's mid, and I'm rather shocked that people forgive this anime for things that people normally criticize other animes for, which gets them a lower score. So I'm here to even the scales a bit.
First - Main character is beyond generic. A main character is important and they need to be extremely well done in order to have a good show. At first he starts off pretty interesting, but midway through he just becomes a caricature of himself. A bland tool simply to move the plot forward. He has nothing on strong main characters like Ed from FMA, Y…
Read at the sourceHvar
"(...) And it’s dangerous for everyone within a clan to be in total agreement."
Went into this with a fair bit of hesitation, mostly because of my lingering gripes with «Fullmetal Alchemist»: the humour here initially gave me the same impression, even if it's better timed and far less disruptive, so I wasn't sure whether I wanted to commit to it.
Glad I stuck with it, though. Somewhere around the halfway point it won me over little by little. The cast settled into their roles, the sibling dynamics and Hana & Dera's refreshingly professional relationship became easy highlights, and the soundtrack and animation are pretty good too. Considering how many recent action shounen I've dropped, it’s nice to have found one that genuinely keeps me engaged.
That said, Arakawa's particular brand of…
Read at the sourceKyonia12
Good aspects
Characters and their companions are well-written and interesting.
Relationships between the characters are well-written and intriguing as well. Especially I like the sibling relationship between Yuru and Asa. It's realistically written. Also some of the companions are adorable, like the bunny and Zashiki-Warashi. I love fast-paced series.
Sometimes hilarious. I wasn't bored even for one second.
The mysteries are intriguing.
It just has one bad aspect... I like fast-paced series like this, but sometimes pacing is confusing. I can't make heads and tails of it. It could have been better if it had a more structured pacing. It's a tiny flaw, though. I'm looking forward to the second season.
Read at the sourceMelunn
It was genuinely good compared to recent anime releases; even though there were clichés, they were handled well enough that they didn't become an issue.
The pacing is a bit slow, but what’s the rush? :D To be honest, the season finale wasn't really my style; I prefer stories with a clear beginning and end. It tries to build mystery, but I don't know—it just didn't quite appeal to me.
I couldn't decide if 24 episodes were too short or if the execution was just a bit scattered—it felt like things were happening, yet nothing was happening at the same time.
Anyway, despite everything, it was a good anime; you should give it a chance.
Read at the sourceajinkya_reddy
I'm shocked by the fact that this sits below 8.5
I generally don't do reviews, this is probably my first in 10 years of being on this site.
I think it's an amazing anime with great world building, characters, fights and even has some really funny moments. Definetly better than most shounen's which have come out recently. I can't believe the rating on this honestly.
The story is good, The pacing is on point, every episode keeps you waiting for more.
The animation and art style is great as well, have no complaints with that. The daemons are unique and some have really standout designs.
Anyone who like battle shounen's should enjoy this one thoroughly. Probably watch this once the season ends, it might be a better watch when you binge it.
Read at the sourceSSJester
It’s fine. Honestly, there isn't much more to say about it. Naturally, expectations for the creator of Fullmetal Alchemist are set extremely high, but the mediocrity of Daemons of the Shadow Realm isn't strictly tied to that.
Watching the first episode, the setup caught my interest. I thought I was in for a fairly gritty, mature narrative, but after just a few episodes, cliché and average moments started flooding the series, making it rather boring to watch. That doesn't mean the anime is bad - as I mentioned, it’s just okay. It will find its audience and take its place, but in my opinion, the era for this kind of shonen has already passed. The anime offers nothing new, falling back on overused tropes and "eternal" conflicts. None of these elements are inherently bad on their own, but whe…
Read at the sourceGrapeGoose
Daemons of the Shadow Realm is sloppy; not in a good way like messy food but in a bad way like a 1st grader's handwriting.
The show's vibe, characters, logic, events, fights, and everything else I forgot have NO consistency. I have way too large a list of gripes to fit here, but I'll do my best to do them all justice.
Yuru and Asa are not great MCs. Calling Asa an MC is generous; she is reduced to a gimmick character that fawns over her brother. Yuru is capable, but everything else about him screams cliché 2010s anime MC (shouts a lot, tough guy, shoddy writing). Pretty much every other character is lame.
The daemon gimmick is cool, but they don't properly utilize it. There are practically no good fights because nobody ever strategizes around the 'pairs' gimmick. I seriously don't un…
Read at the sourcebrwhyan
It's not Fullmetal Alchemist, but why is everyone dogging on this show? All the top reviews I see on MAL are complaining about Daemons, but it's bucking modern shounen trends that I'm completely sick of. It's got slower pacing than its contemporaries, but that gives time for its characters to breathe. Daemons has set up an intriguing world where characters don't know who to trust and slowly build out relationships. These are trademark qualities that made Fullmetal Alchemist an all-time great story with some of the most memorable characters in anime. Hiromu Arakawa hasn't missed. I love Daemons so far.
As I write this, the top reviews for Yomi no Tsugai on MAL insist that the show has no themes, that it believes in nothing, it does nothing consistently. These reviews cite how the show's ac…
Read at the sourceChuy_diazz
Comparisons are odious. So, let’s forget for a moment that *FMAB* exists.
A new work by Hiromu Arakawa. Expectations were as high as they could possibly be. For some, they were met; for others, the series fell short. With that in mind, let’s discuss the anime without considering the reputation of the creator behind it. To get this out of the way quickly: the worst parts of the anime are the first episode and the finale. The first episode relies too heavily on shock value by completely upending the premise we had envisioned. The whole village massacre sequence catches you off guard. Suddenly, you realize that what appeared to be a medieval story is actually set in the modern era. Many viewers might have felt betrayed or misled by such a radical shift—a completely valid reaction. For others…
Read at the sourceuchu_no_otaku
I really like how the story is built and how everything in the world works. The whole plot and the way the different pieces connect are really interesting, even though I'm still pretty confused about some things.
The biggest question I have right now is what actually started this whole war against the villages. 😂 I feel like there are still a lot of things that haven't been explained yet, so I'm hoping the future episodes slowly reveal what's really going on.
I also like that the anime doesn't just throw every answer at you immediately. There's clearly something bigger happening behind everything, and that makes me curious about where the story is going. The characters and their abilities are also pretty interesting, especially with how the whole Daemon system works.
Read at the sourcexShiningxMoonx
7.5/10
Daemons of the Shadow Realm feels hallow and incomplete. On the surface it has a compelling setup, fun characters, and drops hints of colorful lore and the life or death battle to come. One also can’t deny its high production values, consisting of crisp animation, score and direction.
The problem? The viewer is pulled on the string too much and barely given any breadcrumbs of story. It feels as though we are watching a series of events instead of experiencing compelling characters and themes. Yuru, while extremely likeable, is essentially passionless and directionless as the plot tugs him from point A to point B. Arakawa-sensei’s world-building leaves also much to be desired and the show continually throws us more questions than answers. By the end it’s very unclear why the twins…
Read at the sourceHotDoggoneit
Sigh. This is another one of those anime that starts extremely strong and then completely fades and nosedives not even five or six episodes into it. I'm getting really tired of this, and I know a lot of you are as well. The rugpull. The disappointment. A BELOW AVERAGE COMEDY SHOUNEN that masqueraded as a Mature SEINEN earlier to hook you in and then they completely turned into a lame Shounen you've seen 1000 times. When the author can't think of an actual plot point he just shoves a joke or cringe comedy bit in there which kills tension and does nothing to move the story forward. That's not writing. You're just destroying your anime because you can't write a coherent plot.
Yoshihiro Togashi the writer of HunterXHunter is seen as the GOAT because he doesn't do this. His series doesn't lac…
Read at the sourceVentus_S
Carefully Crafted, Entirely Forgettable: Why Tsugai of the Underworld Misses the Mark:
Tsugai of the Underworld is a textbook example of a 7/10 anime: it features solid production from Studio Bones, consistent pacing, zero narrative collapse, and the prestigious name of Hiromu Arakawa. Yet, unlike Fullmetal Alchemist, it leaves almost zero emotional resonance or memorable peaks.
The issue isn’t bad writing—it is an absence of friction, pain, and stakes.
- Consequence-free Power & Zero Stakes: In FMA, power always carries an agonizing price tag (Equivalent Exchange, missing limbs, human sacrifice). Here, claiming supreme divine spirits takes little more than dropping some blood on it. There is no training, no physical toll, and virtually no backlash. When power is handed out effortlessly…
Read at the sourceSkyBlue1012
AN INTERESTING WORLDBUILDING CONCEPT WITH STORYTELLING ON THE VERGE OF BECOMING GENERIC
What I Liked:
- Great opening and ending songs, especially the first ED. They’re both easy to vibe with.
- I like the concept of Daemons being a pair and being invisible to most people except Daemon wielders. I also like the idea that not everyone can possess a large number of Daemons because of compatibility limitations between different pairs of Daemons.
- I loved the reference to FMAB. It was funny and nostalgic at the same time.
- The show accurately portrays how someone born and isolated on a mountain would behave if they were suddenly introduced to modern civilization and technology.
What I Disliked:
- First of all, I hated Aya-chan’s severe brother complex. It’s seriously alarming and, honestly…
Read at the sourceAce_2020
What happens when a young man discovers that the life he has been living till now has been a lie, and something far bigger is brewing behind the scenes for him, because of him. If I had to sum up Daemons of the Shadow realm, this would be it. So let me just preface it by saying that I loved it a lot, and from the ratings on MAL and the general consensus, it seems like I am kind of the minority, which to be fair isn't surprising when the writer of the story also happens to be the writer of freaking Fullmetal Alchemist.
Hiromu Arakawa is one of the few mangakas who feels like she is still in love with the work she does, and that shows here. This premise, while not exactly unique, is an intriguing one, and the world the Arakawa builds around it is even more fascinating. The first episode of…
Read at the sourceCaptainKenshiro
Well would you look at that, a Hiromi Arakawa show that was initially kinda hyped based on its author and didn’t exactly meet its expectations. Some people were expecting the next Fullmetal Alchemist based on name and studio, but the story is quite different and the series never really tried to be the successor of that colossi of a manga. Plus, it’s not like Gin no Saji, Arslan Senki, Hyakusho Kizoku or Moonrise released since…but ok, I get it, the mangaka only designed the characters for two of them, a medieval epic and a failed sci-fi epic, and the other two are slices of life in farms, nothing like the next fighting shounen coming from her.
But is Yomi no Tsugai even a fighting shounen? It is a shounen and there is fighting so it’s definitely an action adventure shounen, but it otherw…
Read at the sourcemikaeil
Daemons of the Shadow Realm was one of the two anime that started airing this spring that had a very heavy weight of expectations on their shoulders because of the previous works of their creators. Because of that, they naturally experienced many different comparisons, and sometimes those comparisons were pretty unfair. In the case of Daemons of the Shadow Realm, the creator of the series is Hiromu Arakawa, the creator of one of the most well known anime and manga series in history, Fullmetal Alchemist. And when it comes to expectations, the common way people usually look at something like this is that if a new work is expected to be good because of its creator's previous work, then it should either be better than the previous work, be around the same level, or be somewhat below it and sti…
Read at the sourceMarinate1016
Whenever you write one of the most iconic stories of all time, it’s always going to be difficult to follow it up. While this is the first Arakawa work I’ve seen since FMA 03, I think this is a really good story on its own merits. Right off the bat I’ll tell you that it’s not as good as full metal alchemist, but that was lighting in a bottle which will always be hard to recreate. Instead, this is a very good battle shonen that gets progressively better as it goes on. It did start a bit slow for me and it wasn’t until episode 6-7 when I really started to get invested in the plot and the characters, but once I did, it became one of my anticipated watches of the week. I absolutely loved this entire cast, the lore, world building, action and everything else. It’s not the best story ever told, b…
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