| “ | Fire bird and Fenghuang! The hell fire of our clan that was praised as being that of a Phoenix! Taste it with your own body and turn into ashes! | ” |
–Riser to Issei Hyoudou, Volume 2, Life ∞ vs Power ∞ I Came to Keep My Promise! | ||
Riser Phenex (ライザー・フェニックス, Raizā Fenikkusu) is the third son of the Phenex Clan after his elder brother and an unnamed second older brother. He is the youngest son of Lord Phenex and Lady Phenex, the younger brother of Ruval Phenex and an unnamed older brother, and the older brother of Ravel Phenex. He was the main antagonist of Volume 2 of the novels. He was once Rias Gremory’s fiancé who has inherited the powers of the immortal bird, Phoenix, granting him immortality and instant regeneration. His all-female peerage consists of fourteen members.
Appearance[]
Riser is a tall and handsome young man in his early 20's with short blond hair and dark blue eyes.
His outfit consists of a burgundy blazer with gold embroidery on the right with matching pants and black dress shoes. Underneath his open blazer is a white dress shirt that is not fully buttoned (just one button short), giving a slight view to his chest.
Personality[]
During his introductory volume, Riser is shown to be an arrogant, aggressive playboy with a holier-than-thou personality, tongue-kissing two of his girls just to agitate Issei and making improper advances on Rias. Kiba pointed out that Riser has no qualms in "sacrificing" his peerage members during Rating Games if it meant winning against opponents, being something he favors, taking advantage of the fact that he has a full set.
He is also condescending towards lower-class Devils, mocking Issei on his improper use of the Boosted Gear after the latter was defeated by Mira in one blow and labeling him as a weakling. Despite this, Riser does show an honorable side, as he allows Rias and her peerage ten days to prepare themselves for their Rating Game, knowing he would simply crush her and her peerage had she not accepted. Like most devils, Riser has no good opinion about humans or the Human World, in general, previously mentioning that he hated the wind and fires of the Human World.
Later, after his defeat by the hands of Issei, Riser fell into a slump following his defeat, not moving out of his house after the loss. It is also explained that Riser developed a fear of Dragons as a result of losing to Issei, and he became traumatized as upon seeing Issei and Dragons, he would quake in fear. Riser is also shown to be a pervert, not only purposely creating an all female peerage, but also his desire to see Rias and Akeno's breasts partially being what brings him out of his slump. After recovering from his trauma, Riser seems to have reformed from his old ways, showing a degree of respect for his former combatants, especially Issei. For example, in Volume 10, he gives Rias advice on Rating Games prior to her match against Sairaorg, and in Volume 12, he gives his condolences to Ravel and Rias after Issei's supposed death.
In the Extra Life of DX.1, during their rematch seeing how Rias' Peerage easily defeated his, instead of being enraged and insulting everyone, he humbly accepted the result. He began to show interest in fighting strong foes, especially Issei, despite the clear difference in power. Riser states that he does not mind losing, saying instead that he will use it a stepping stone to get stronger which is another sign of his maturity.
History[]
Riser is the third (and youngest) son of the Phenex family and the second-youngest sibling in the family, behind his sister Ravel. At some point before the start of the series, his family set up an arranged marriage between him and Rias (with her family's approval, as well) in an attempt to unite the two families and to preserve the bloodline of Pure-Blooded Devils.
Powers & Abilities[]
Demonic Power: As a Devil, Riser has all the common skills and powers of one, including the power to cast spells. It is shown Riser can teleport himself to any location. In the LN, Riser was stated to possess a rainbow-colored demonic aura. In DX.1, his demonic power increases after training and manages to fight against Issei in Balance Breaker evenly, managing to put up a fight against his Crimson Armor despite being overwhelmed by its power initially.
Riser regenerating from being hit by Rias' Power of Destruction.
- Immortality: As a member of the Phenex Clan, Riser shares his family's signature regeneration abilities, being able to regenerate lost limbs and recover from wounds instantaneously. However, his regeneration is entirely dependent on his level of Demonic energy and his mental endurance. Being drenched in enhanced Holy Water caused high amounts of damage which stopped his regeneration altogether, and he seemingly couldn't heal damage that was inflicted on him by Issei while he was using a holy cross. His regeneration was also the cause of his arrogance, thinking it makes him immortal. This trait combines his will to fight and lets him continue fighting after receiving critical damage from Issei's Crimson Armor.
Riser using his Hell Fire.
- Hell Fire: Coming from the Phenex Clan, Riser is able to create and control powerful flames. Riser's hellfire was stated to give off demonic power comparable to Rias, and his attacks left scratch marks on Issei's Overboost Scale Mail. Even later after training, Issei would still comment on the intense heat felt through his armor. In DX1, he produced much denser and larger flames. Riser can also create a defensive barrier made of fire.
Enhanced Strength: Riser is shown to be on par with Issei in his Scale Mail, even after Issei's training with Tannin.
Enhanced Durability: In their initial battle, Riser was shown to largely shrug off the blows of Issei in his Overboost Balance Breaker, requiring Issei to use a transfer-enhanced cross to even inflict damage. During his rematch against Issei, his durability along with his immortality allowed him to endure a punch from Issei in his Crimson Armor, although he still received great mental backlash from the attack.
Expert Hand-to-Hand Combat: In Volume DX.1, it is mentioned that he's trained in hand to hand combat with Sairaorg Bael. Riser was able to hold his own against Issei and can also combine his punches with the Phoenix flames to further increase the power of his physical attacks.
Riser manifesting pyrokinetic wings out of flames.
Flight: Being a Devil, Riser can fly using his fiery wings.
Quotes[]
- (To Issei): "H-Hold on! Do you even know what you are doing!? This engagement is important and necessary for the future of Devils! It’s not something a Devil brat like you can butt into!"
- (Upon experiencing his first defeat): "For me to lose like this……"
Trivia[]
- Riser is derived from "rise/rising" and the meaning in context relating to Riser, is something that rises or prominence.
- Riser's height is 180 cm. (5 feet 11 inches) according to the visual book with his data, making him the fifth-tallest male character recorded in the series, behind Dohnaseek, Azazel, Sairaorg, and Mil-tan.
- Riser's Rating Game record is 9 wins and 4 losses.
- According to Rias, Riser lost the first two games on purpose out of respect for one of the households his family was close to.
- In the Ophis side story "My First Errand", it is revealed that Riser likes hamburgers.
- A manga side-story reveals that Riser asked Ravel to be his Bishop so that he could have a full set of different "types" in his peerage, specifically the little sister and the tsundere.
- On the cover of chapter 71, he is seen watching the Rating Game match between the Gremory and Sitri teams scolding his sister while she cheers Issei on.
- In the anime, Riser has a green-winged macaw as a familiar.
- In the Funimation Dubbed version, Riser mostly refers to himself in the third person.
- In the "DxD" popularity election, his battle with Issei (the climax of Volume 2) was selected for 2nd place in the best bout category.[1]