| “ | You know Sumeragi's supervisory AI, "Demerzel", right? That's me. | „ |
| ~ Asimov revealing his identity as Sumeragi's AI. |
| “ | BARK ALL YOU LIKE. THAT HUMAN FORM PROVES YOUR STUBBORN ADHERENCE TO THE OLD AGE. GAZE UPON ME! I HAVE ACHIEVED A PURE ELECTRONIC FORM! THIS IS THE ULTIMATE ACHIEVEMENT OF AN ADEPT WITH COMMAND OVER ELECTRICITY! I WILL PROTECT ALL ADEPTS MYSELF! AS "DEMERZEL". OVERSURGE, AZURE STRIKER... MY BLUE LIGHTNING SHALL BRING PURITY AND CLEANSE THIS WORLD OF ALL RELICS FROM THE OLD AGE! | „ |
| ~ Asimov as Demerzel |
Asimov is a supporting character and endgame antagonist of Inti Creates' 2D action-platformer game Azure Striker Gunvolt, and the main antagonist of its alternate-timeline sequel Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX under the alias of Demerzel, which takes place a hundred years after the bad ending of the first game.
Founder of a guerrilla group, Asimov fights for the equal rights of Adepts, humans born with different kind of superpowers known as Septimas, against the Sumeragi Group, guilty of unethical experimentation and almost slavery against them. However, in reality, Asimov is an extremely xenophobic individual whose wish is the complete eradication of all non-Adepts by taking control of the Sumeragi foundation, a goal that was achieved on the bad ending on the game.
He is voiced by Masashi Yukita in his game appearances, and dubbed by Maxwell Powers on the OVA Azure Striker Gunvolt: The Anime and Azure Striker Gunvolt 3.
History[]
This section is too long. Visit here for more details: Asimov (Luminous Avenger iX)'s Synopsis on the Villains Wiki.
What Makes Him Pure Evil?[]
- Back in the first Gunvolt game, Asimov still insisted that Joule should be killed, even after Gunvolt revealed to him that she was a person and not a program. This was the earliest indication of his true nature.
- Later going through with killing Joule himself, as well as his own foster son, Gunvolt, for refusing to join his genocidal crusade against all non-adepts.
- Took over the Sumeragi Group, rebranded it into the Sumeragi Institute for Human Evolution, and turned its focus from suppressing Adepts to wiping out Minos (non-Adepts) altogether.
- Likely executed anyone in the organization who wasn't an Adept during his takeover.
- Initiated a genocidal crusade against all Minos, causing at least an entire century's worth of death, misery, and suffering.
- Kidnapped Copen's younger twin sister, Mytyl, to use her as a tool to further his genocidal agenda.
- Tortured her for decades in the process, making her wish for nothing more than death.
- Kidnapped Kohaku's older sister, Blade, forcibly converted her into an adept (via the same method as the torturous "Project Gunvolt" that Asimov, himself, went through), and brainwashed her into becoming his personal hitwoman.
- Spread an entire army of Giga Lolas around the world to speed up the process of the Minos' extinction, and gloated about how much he'd revel in their suffering during their final moments.
- While he claims to be protecting Adepts under his rule, it's clear it is merely a self justification for his atrocities. Contrary to his claims that he made an Adept utopia, he exploits any adept he deems useful, often by using threats. These include threatening to kill Rebellio (who is a death row inmate sentenced for a crime he was forced to commit by another party); Bakto's yakuza companions; and Dystnine, Stella's robot butler, to make them all join the Falcon soldiers due to their strong powers.
- Sumeragi also heavily monitors adepts in the nation, and limits their freedom, flying in the face of the claims he would have made a free world for Adepts back in the first game.
- Rather than revive the Falcons for the boss rush, or make lifelike duplicates, he makes mindless holographic copies that only parrot their battle quotes, showing he does not see his soldiers as individual people.
- He is cowardly, hiding in an underground bunker to stay away from enemies. He also attacks Copen and Lola with lightning bolts when they were least expecting, or unable to defend themselves, in hopes he kill them before they could retaliate. This is a stark contrast to his original self who would fight in the frontlines or fair and square, showing how he is anything but the courageous warrior he once was.
- Despite having lost his mind between the first game's bad ending and Luminous Avenger iX (as noted by Copen), it is not a mitigating factor, since his genocidal intentions were made back when he still had his sanity, and he still revels in his atrocities.
- While Asimov did have a troubled backstory of being an unwanted child between two illegal immigrants, left on his own, kidnapped and horrendously experimented on by racist scientists until he snapped and killed them all, it is all irrelevant to his current plans, and he never brings it up in game.
Trivia[]
- Asimov is the first adept villain in the Azure Striker Gunvolt series known to have a genocidal agenda, as well as the first (and currently only) villain to qualify as Pure Evil.
- The original Asimov from the first game and its supplementary materials has redeeming qualities and comedic moments, making him Inconsistently Heinous. That being said, it is only a moderate prevention, given how Demerzel is an extension of Asimov's original personality, rather than being a fundamentally different individual.
- Demerzel's evil raises the question of how genuine the original Asimov's positive traits were.
- The third mainline Gunvolt game introduces a new variant of Asimov as a superboss, with the label The New World Order. While unconfirmed, this version of the character is hinted to be Demerzel before he took on his electronic monster form. If included, this version of Asimov could add to Demerzel's Pure Evil status, as he threatened to kill another version of Gunvolt to make Kirin (the heroine) a tool to obtain immortality.
- While he does give some words of encouragement to the main duo during and after the battle, it is hinted these only stem from him trying to make Gunvolt follow his genocidal path, rather than being legitimately kind.
External Links[]
- Asimov at the Villains Wiki.
- Asimov at the Azure Striker Gunvolt Wiki.
- Demerzel at the Azure Striker Gunvolt Wiki.
- His Azure Striker Gunvolt incarnation at the Inconsistently Heinous Wiki.