No banter for this article. Sadge.
Anyway, a strange thing happened in Overlord right around Season 4 and Volume 15. First Volume 16 was split off from Volume 15 despite his insistence on only 17 Volumes earlier. The second however was a strange set of comments from Editor-chan and Carlo Zen, Youjo Senki’s author, during Overlord’s Tenth Anniversary.
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Akiko Fujita(F-ta-san)- Novel Editor When I requested a comment for the tenth anniversary Maruyama-san gave me the comment you see on this website the same day. This comment overflows as a supreme example of Overlord. The large word count and betrayal of good feelings and focus on entertainment, it fills me with the same excitement(agitation) as when I read Obaro on the net ten years ago. Rather it’s become sharp(on edge), and actually feels interesting. That must because Maruyama-san constantly wrestles to make his work ”even more interesting”. ...Just now as this comment was being written Maruyama-san delivered comment ver 1.1 this comment was invariably filled with red, as expected the addition of situations and rules are interesting, and as expected the quantity increased. Maruyama has kept running with this strong spirit to ”make things interesting” for Overlord for ten years. I have continued to receive this exceedingly encouraging(provoking) and persistent mentality in the form of ”more interesting” myself. At this rate(konomama) I believe it will keep running for ten more years! [ZN: Uwaaaa! running is the only way to define those words, it’s not a flourish or metaphor for a different kanji reading btw. Also Ziggy is only half sure this is passive aggressive to the forty-first degree... Were they really fighting about stuff? It wasn’t all in Ziggy’s head... Omae Ga Shin De-Nani......... ]
[F-Ta]
So what do you think happened after that time passed 1 or 2 years later? Once again, Maruyama-sensei said with a serious face ”Carlo-kimi, I, well, will retire in 1 to 2 years. ” I was not prepared to hear that from sensei a second time. ”I see, so you will finally retire.” The Editor-In-Charge F-Ta-San that was doing her best seemed to have a feeling of loneliness at that firm decision. So what do you think happened after 1 to 2 years passed? ”Carlo-chan, after 1 to 2 years” ”Kugane-chan can’t say it like that” I exchanged such strange words that felt like a seasonal nature poem. F-Ta-San was filled with energy demanding the manuscript. That was quite reasonably a very different matter.
[Carlo Zen]
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Later, in 2023 Maruyama made a certain set of tweets right after the strange announcement of the cancellation of Overlord’s manga, the implication almost deriding his Editor openly:
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Q
Impossible [Dara-san], has the same editor as Kugane-chan sensei! I really like the frightening and comedic atmosphere.
A
It's INTERESTING how the wickedness is concealed in sugar coating!
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If you go back to Volume 15’s intermission however, you can also see a new perspective with how it repeated content from KBA, suggesting a link between KBA and the drama:
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And at least for now, no one had betrayed them yet. The fact that Banejieri and others were still alive was proof of that. Everyone here would have already been destroyed if they were betrayed. That one ruled the organization only to selfishly take Banejieri’s and the others’ research to strengthen itself. That one had been nothing more than a parasite feeding on them. Even so, that one would never think of tolerating their clandestine actions just because they were useful to that one. Without a doubt, that one would take action to wipe out Banejieri and other conspirators if it ever doubted them. That one didn’t have the leniency or openmindedness a ruler should possess. That one was too wary about everything. Therefore, the fact that they were safe showed that one hadn’t noticed their moves yet.
..
Don’t think you can keep extorting us forever! Banejier swept away the huge form of that one he just met from his mind along with his silent bellow
[V15]
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If you need help connecting the dots, you can almost take the snide way Maruyama never says THAT ONE’s name as an allegory for how he views Kadokawa and his editor possibly. Given the timing of Volume 15 and the bad blood between him and his editor at that point, it seems strangely plausible.
So why would Maruyama begin to resent his Editor?
Well one might be he keeps getting pressured to continue Overlord as it’s a market success. But he refuses.
Maruyama always intended for Overlord to end at this point, with the region and the Theocracy(the massacre at the Katze plains is meant to be the halfway point even back in 2011). If you reread Volume 1 you can sort of see why he wanted to get published in the first place as well as just a reason to reconnect to all his old buddies, something he was open about in the text.
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“...I see… then as long as the whole world knows the name of Ainz Ooal Gown…” If his comrades were here, then the name of the guild would reach their ears. Once they found out, they would come over. Momonga was that confident in the strength of their friendship.
[V1]
—My friends, what do you think of me using this great name? Are you happy? Are you displeased? If you have any objections, please let me know, tell me “this is not a name you can take for yourself”. I will gladly return to my old name of Momonga
[V1]
“Yes. Then, gentlemen. Taking over the syndicate is the foundation for achieving Ainz-sama’s objective; that is to say world domination. I trust nobody is stupid enough to not know that.” Ainz glanced down at everyone’s face. They all looked like they understood, without exception. Ainz was the only one who did not understand. “…World domination?” What the hell was that? When had things ended up like that? However, he could not ask about it. This was the greatest exercise of Ainz’s intellect in his entire life. He spent several seconds reflecting and searching himself. It had been far too unexpected, too difficult to accept. How had it ended up like this? All he had wanted was to keep a low profile, avoid making enemies, improve his reputation, and then find a way to communicate with his friends from the past who might be in this world. Those cute little wishes were all he had wanted.
[V7]
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Pay extra attention to:
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find a way to communicate with his friends from the past who might be in this world.
[V7]
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With the financial success of Overlord it goes without saying he likely got back in contact with some of them. That’s all Maruyama and Momonga ever wanted, just to be back with his friends again foremost. He had already given up on his dream of being a published author earlier in life. He just bumbled his way to success with Overlord, thinking it would be a financial flop.
That’s not something a company would tolerate however.
Here we come to a clash of perspective - Maruyama’s editor, the most likely inspiration for Albedo also greatly disdains Maruyama’s writing style. But how can Maruyama appease her when the entire point of Overlord is to be vague?
You see OVERLORD can mean two different things - in computer science Overload(another way to read Overlord in Japanese) is when an expression has more than two meanings for the same word or string. This is why Maruyama mechanically names the same class for YGGDRASIL and New World beings yet gives them distinct mechanical properties. However, Overload and Over lord is not the only way to read Overlord. You can also vaguely make it out to be Oborodo - as v and b are the same ‘letter’ or sound in Japanese. And do you know what Oboro means in Japanese? To be vague! Thus OVERLORD can literally mean “the vague way 朧道” as the suffix ‘do- means ‘way of’ or ‘the way’ as in Bushido. (well it can also mean the dim or dimwitted way)
Dun dun duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun.
So you see, Maruyama can’t exactly compromise as an artist when he LITERALLY named his series with double meanings and vague revelations in mind. Why else are misunderstandings and vague revelations so important to Overlord? Why would Maruyama stress he wanted Overlord to be something people reread multiple times, back in 2010 even before the light novel existed? It’s the whole point he wrote the damn series beyond reconnecting with his friends! THAT’s what Maruyama means when he wants Overlord to be ‘interesting’. THAT’s what his editor and Kadokawa do not understand. It’s sadge…
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To read it to that extent leaves me with a deep feeling. I want to make a fine quality work that makes people reread 8 times or even 12 times.
[Arcadia - 2010]
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Given how few people cared for Volume 15(one Maruyama said he preferred over Volume 16) we can see why. Few people understand why Maruyama writes the way he does. Also we see the divergence in what the fans want and what Maruyama wants. He prefers the sneaky revelations of Volume 15 and 4 over the dumb set piece foregone conclusion boss battles. He feels constrained by all the rules of the setting but that’s part of the challenge too.
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Up until now, the story had too much convenient intelligence gathering, the feeling [I was going for this time] was stumbling onto intelligence while doing his best in a minor role, to be comprised of a substantial amount of Maruyama’s preferences. Because it is what he finds most interesting. To be honest, I prefer Volume 15 over Volume 16. Doesn’t it just reek of TRPG? Was that not the case?
[V15+16AT]
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Here’s what Ziggy thinks happened - Editor forced Maruyama to cut the Dark Elf village arc(precisely for the reasons so many others dislike it) and Maruyama refused so they forced him to make a second volume to keep it and generate revenue AND to get back at him for KBA. This is possibly why so-bin complained about all the sudden work in Volume 15 and why Maruyama put in the Intermission he did there, almost not even hiding his disdain for whoever he meant it to represent.
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Next volume is coming out soon as well!!
Workload is very bad!!!!
[V15 so-bin]
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In Maruyama’s head, how can you be a fan of Overlord and not get there is more than meets the eye this late into the series? Look how sneaky he is revealing stuff in increasingly more esoteric ways. It’s like a DM making super hidden things in long going game sessions at the table, someone who values injokes and references like those fans who liked the Marvel movie easter eggs.
Overlord is esoteric and obtuse by design.
It’s intentionally autistic. We might disagree if a novel should be written this way but Maruyama has clear artistic intent as to why he does what he does. Ziggy is sad more people don’t see that… Ziggy understands some aren’t happy with the way things are going however… It’s a shame Overlord has to end on these sour circumstances outside it’s own writing…
In a way, can you respect Maruyama’s artistic integrity? Or do you think he’s being selfish not giving his fans what they want? Ziggy isn’t sure which side you will take factoring in Maruyama’s feelings if you consider what he thinks makes Overlord, well OVERLORD/Oborodo. Most fans actually take Editor’s side in fact, wanting Overlord to continue forever and ever and more chest beating slap down boss fights that end anti climatically.
Ziggy thinks Kadokawa or Editor-chan in particular axed the manga via peer pressure given the timing… But why would they be that mad? Well it might have to do with KBA being a limited release (not generating revenue) and delaying a volume for an entire year. This goes doubly so for how he refuses to release it in his lifetime and how magically Pleaides Days was re-released after this point outside the movie exclusive bonus. It almost feels spitefully done by the company who can’t understand Maruyama’s insistence on not re-releasing things literally telling them ‘over my dead body’.
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Maruyama Kugane-sensei, will Vampire Princess of the Ruined Country ever go on sale? A: The possibility it goes on sale depends on who the rights go to after Maruyama dies.
[KBA]
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Maruyama as well feels hesitant to write like he used to for many reasons. We can see there is some professional turmoil here but his personal life has changed too - first is he might actually be spending more time with his friends now but he might also have had changes in his private life. That being said, Maruyama’s fan base clearly does not see things like he does and more like his editor unfortunately, with all the feedback Ziggy has seen. There are problems with Maruyama’s narrative but if you understand why Maruyama writes how he does, it isn’t unsalvageable. The breaking point here is his relationship with Editor-chan has seemingly broken to a point of no repair and she isn’t really… guiding him the way she used to either though he has improved remarkably as a writer given how KBA compares to the WN.
Anyway, this was a short article but hopefully you understand a bit more about the strange circumstances of this drama we cannot see at the very end of Overlord’s run as a series. Can you admire how spiteful and true to his beliefs Maruyama is? Or at least you now can pull out the piece of trivia about Overlord’s title meaning being vague AND having double meanings as an icebreaker to all your friends when trying to explain this beautiful, autistic disaster to everyone!
This is Ziggy, wishing you well, irregardless. Buy bye!
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