AnimeSuki Forums

sorrowsiren · 2008-05-12, 21:00

I rather liked season 1 but this show got the dragon ball Z virus.. I seriously hope there's no 3rd season now...

Edit: Sorry, I use term "DBZ virus" to describe shows that use too much filler and drag nearly zero content through several episodes with nothing resolving.

This was way to dragged out for how little actually happens... If they had compacted it to 12 episodes it would have been so much better, well, it still would have been mediocre, but much better none the less..

I watched all 24 episodes, but I totally gave up on this show after episodes 3-7 that focus completely on the jealousy subplot... for over 3 episodes it's nothing but 2 stupid anime stereotypes that can't figure out "what this hot feeling in their chest" is.... I really just wished that the plot would resolve and move somewhere.

Actually saying this I think this entire show suffered badly from way to much stereotypical anime indecisive character syndrome.

oompa loompa · 2008-05-25, 05:45

I actually enjoyed the second season quite a lot. admittedly, i didnt like the first 13 episodes, but it picked up quite well after that. I am quoting this , Im not quite sure from where, but ' Shakugan no shana always provides you with a little more than you expect '. this is pretty much true for the second season. Shana does not provide anything revolutionary or spectacular, and certainly nothing that will change your life. Having said that, it has a solid plot, solid protagonists, and some great villains. It scores high on epic points, and there is certainly room to take it a long way. its a very enjoyable watch, the last 6 episodes of the show were great, especially the sabrac episodes, and the last scene before the credits in the last episode, where hecate messes up. it was a good way to end a season, rather than the ol ' main character suddenly powers up and wins. the episodes always start great, cos of the kickass op's ( i think shanas the only show where ive liked all the op's). It manages to kick off again just when it seems like its beginning to drag, and never gets you bored enough to leave it. a solid show, and id love to see another season of it, even two, if the plot develops in an interesting direction ( which, according to the way the novels are going, will)

My only regret is not seeing more hecate XD

Sotobrastos · 2008-06-10, 02:02

The first 12 episodes... after watching the first season in two days, the first few episodes of season two were very jarring, simply because the first season had such a nice hectic pace. But after Pheles enters the picture, the series picked up, and I enjoyed it to the end.

Did anyone think that in the end, the footsteps disappear because Yuji with Shana, or Shana by herself, flew away?

Onchuu_Norin · 2008-06-10, 09:01

For me, Shakugan no Shana (first season) was very entertaining with the whole plot with substitute souls "torches" are placed into bodies who have already lost their soul. I was disappointed at first after finishing the first season, but the second season was worth the wait. This anime is packed with action, romance, and a bit of comedy here and there.

othera · 2008-10-10, 02:29

This series was AWSOME.

The ending was no match for season 1, but i loved this.

10/10

kim8268 · 2008-10-21, 12:59

well somekind of excelent nor perfect because of the ending is still bugging me
I gonna ask if the novel's ending was the ending of season 2 in the anime

othera · 2008-10-24, 11:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by kim8268

well somekind of excelent nor perfect because of the ending is still bugging me
I gonna ask if the novel's ending was the ending of season 2 in the anime

No, the novels go in a bit diffrent way from what ive heared(There are many small change and some major) and they go further into the story - so they go beyond the end of season 2(I aint sure how much further they are)

Spoiler for What happens in novels at end of season 2:

Raiyushi · 2008-11-29, 00:35

Overall I rated the season itself 7/10 because the 2nd Season was pretty good, but I don't feel it was satisfying and I didn't like how it deviated from the novel quite a bit.

Spoiler for How I feel Season 2 should've been.:

On a plus note. I loved the first OP with JOINT, and music was great as expected.

kawaii_mg · 2008-11-30, 02:12

the story is kinda disappointing

kyon.haruhi.suzumiya · 2008-12-08, 08:47

I actually thought SnSII did better than SnS, if only by that bit, nonetheless, it was a great series, but still, it has one or two shortcomings that it needs to fulfill:

The theme songs all sound VERY similar, for some reason.
The ending, it doesn't feel like an ending, it feels like an opening to another plot curve, so that's where I'm waiting to see if there's going to be a SnSIII, after all there's already 16 volumes. 17's on its way.

Still, a 9 for a great series overall.

Quote:

Originally Posted by oompa loompa

II am quoting this , Im not quite sure from where, but ' Shakugan no shana always provides you with a little more than you expect '. this is pretty much true for the second season.

I know, it's ANN's review of DVD Vol 2.

Quote:

Originally Posted by othera

Spoiler for What happens in novels at end of season 2:

No, it's actually

Spoiler for that...:

Appurukami · 2009-03-08, 16:15

I found season 2 to be very good so I threw it an 8/10.
A lot of people complained about the first 16 episodes being too slowly paced and lacking in action but without developing Kanoe the rest of the series would make absoloutely no sense what so ever. The only real complaint I have is the lack of development in Pheles and Johan's relationship. Its kinda hard to explain but they were meant to be madly in love with each other but it just didnt show through.
Apart from that I really liked season 2 (the first half just as much as the second) and would say it definately lived up to my expectations after seeing the first season.

Ryuou · 2009-03-12, 03:37

Quote:

but without developing Kanoe the rest of the series would make absoloutely no sense what so ever.

The problem is she shouldn't have been there in the first place though.

I guess since I haven't done so (even though it's kind of past the point where it matters); I was disappointed with the second season compared to the first. For me, it wasn't as good. But I look forward to the 3rd season that's supposedly coming out, and the craziness that’s to come (if it's not screwed up via JC Staff magic), which I unfortunately spoiled myself with.

Raiga · 2009-03-12, 07:45

They should have handled Kanoe the way they did in the Shana-tan shorts.

"... We should kill her."
"Yeah."

The first half of the series was kind of slow, and I really didn't like Kanoe, not just for wasting time but also for her character itself. But I loved the rest of the series, especially the Sabrac arc (which they ought to have ended on, or cut down on the first seven episodes and properly developed the last arc).

And I'd watch anything with Shana in it. =D

Ryuou · 2009-03-12, 15:34

Yeah pacing and time allotment were probably the things that bothered me the most about the second season. But there were some really nice parts in it. Sabrac was tight, and the twist with Yuuji and Silver was surprising. How they handled most of the season though (including those two aspects), could have used work though. But it’s been a while since I’ve seen it and I should probably get around to a rewatch before I start criticizing it, more.

I will say though, my initial watch through of the second season made me think I may not buy the second season. Which is a hard thing to accept as this is my favorite series.

Justin Kim · 2009-03-26, 04:42

Kanoe was entirely annoying throughout the second season for me, and I have to concur with Ryuou. The pacing was a little slow, and their were a bunch of side - stories that seemed pointless, although they did improve character progression it just belatedly dragged the season along. Almost seemed like an entire filler, except the part where Shana and Kanoe were dressed in Yukata's for the festival. I loved the ending, it was a nice twist - but unfortunately that was only for the people who haven't read the light novels produced, I suspected / predicted that to happen.

Helm · 2009-05-22, 06:47

How disappointing. I mean the over all plot.

Archon_Wing · 2009-06-23, 20:34

Now that Shana III is coming, I might as well remind myself of this series.

When I voted on this poll last year, I had given it a 5 with in retrospect was a bit too harsh. It was more of a knee jerk reaction due to rage and disappointment. But surely if something is below average to me, I wouldn't go back and rewatch parts of it? To me, it's a very mixed series and thus hard to rate.

The first two episodes were filler but still very entertaining. It had a nice "welcome back" feeling to them. Unfortunately, Kazumi for some reason got more and more annoying, and she didn't really seem to grow as a character. It just got really repetitious with the triangle stuff and we just got constantly reminded over and over again that Yuji is indecisive (At least Ike has the good sense to call him out on it), Shana's kinda just herself, and it became impossible to give a damn.

I won't complain too much about the Konoe arc just because it's a dead horse by now. They really could have drew her a little more diffrent though.

Then we skip to Margery's little flashback, which was kind of cool. Though I was wondering what the hell was the point of this story? Well, we learn why Margery prefers to be a loner. Nice, though maybe a bit aimless at times.

So the series randomly flies around for a bit as "The Melancholy of Shana" But eventually we got to the moment everyone was waiting for-- Pheles. This part was very well done not just because of the very cool music, but because Pheles being so weak was actually part of a plot twist. She really showed herself to be a cold-hearted selfish bitch and that made her one of the most interesting villains that showed up. Even Yoshida gets a bit less annoying as she contemplates more interesting things like her role in the story instead of whatever the heck she was babbling about before.

The series cools down into more slice of life, but unlike the Konoe Arc, this part remains very intresting. Keisaku wants to stay with Margery while Eita wants to live a normal life away from all these dangers especially since he has fallen in love. I mean if you were an ordinary person stuck in a situation like this, how would you react? The exploring of these two side characters is excellent. It's great when the story stops taking itself for granted and explores how people should react.

Shana II raises the bar for character development even more, as Yuji stops being less idiotic and snaps someone's neck. That in itself is enough to redeem his character as he finally makes a decision. Everyone drops the BS and moves on to what they want to do. I consider the part between Pheles and Sabrac to be the best part of the series.

Not that the fight against Sabrac wasn't cool, as Wilhelmina gives one of the best fights ever. For some reason I didn't like the part when Joint played. The song is great, but made it kind of cheesy since that makes it predictible. But still, a great fight where every major character is utilized is hard to find these days. None of this "leave him to me" 1v1 BS. He's a threat, and kick his ass!

Now if the series just ended here, I might have just given it 8-9 (I think season 1 is an 8) Unfortunately the episodes after this were lackluster with the annoying triangle thing coming back and nobody seeming to learn anything. Sabrac's not really dead, making the last part entirely pointless, but whatever. Though the moment when Shana asks Yoshida about a baby is funny as hell. The Bal Masque crew for some reason just seems horribly not intimidating in the last part and the fights were pretty anticlimatic. It also seemed too similar to last season's ending but even less cool. And then it just ends. The part when "sense" plays is nice to wrap the series up

Overall: 6/10 ---> Horrid start and extremely unsteady near the end, Shana II is not a trainwreck. After all, the best fights in this season were more exciting than the ones in the first. Shana II at its best is dramatic and exciting, helping advance character development. At its worst, it's extremely boring and aimless. I'm not really sure if it's that much worse than the first season as I had orignally thought as I feel these problems were always there, but they just get triggered more here. I would recommend skimming the first 12 episodes to get the gist of it, and enjoy the second half.

digger314 · 2009-06-30, 04:14

I liked it because I liked season 1. Much of the plot is pretty painful. They really milked the love triangle dry. It was just irritating because it's obvious what the intended pairing is. But the latter half wasn't too bad. The plot moved quicker. In fact maybe a bit too quickly and should have been spread out more. Still enjoyable though. I really like the characters and music. The better animation quality was a plus too.

Qilin · 2009-09-12, 04:19

I'll give this a 7/10 since I don't bother finishing anything that comes below that.
If it weren't for that really long and tedious first half, I could have given an 8 or 9 instead. Such a shame. The action was certainly engaging, although they could have spread it over a few more episodes. Another good point is that I hardly got to hear Shana's favorite (annoying) catchphrase. You know what I'm talking about.

I really liked the character development they had going in the series. Shana and Kazumi's relationship evolved to being friendly rivals from just being jealous of each other. A good sign of maturity. Yuji, himself, gained a couple of levels of badass wielding a rather impressive BFS. an impressive change given that he used to be a damsel in distress. A few other characters managed to make a resolution after finding their own paths.

Disregarding the 1st half, SnS II was an entertaining series for me. It wouldn't compare with any of my favorites, but I liked it nonetheless. I do hope for another season to appear sometime.

Akka · 2009-09-16, 17:16

Misvoted 6 while I wanted to give a 5.

All in all, this was not a good season. I quite liked the first, but this one suffered from two grievious flaws that quite canceled the good parts.

- Though, unlike many, I was not adverse at all at the slice of life, the way it was handled was just a disaster. The characters were, simply put, butchered. Yuji-the-human who fails as a human being, Shana-the-outlander who is able to give him lessons about how humans behave, my god.
Yuji carried the idiot ball in such a painful and caricatural manner that it nearly destroyed the entire show. It was frankly unbearable. He was reduced to a big blob of passivity and idiocy, he didn't even looked like a character and more like a plot flowerpot.

- The overly-used, cliched-to-death, ultra-predictable and way too excessive dragging of the supposed romantic relationship was dreadful. It's just so boringly common in practically every single serie, and each time stretched way past the breaking point when it comes to suspension of disbelief.
The love triangle (and even painful square if you count Konoe) has become frankly comical (in a not-fun-at-all way), the constant change of mind ("I will definitely tell him ! No, I don't have the courage ! Well, I'll do it ! No I won't !") ridicule the characters, and the systematical interruptions when they will finally spit it out are reaching such a height in predictability that the only surprise I will get will be when they will actually manage to make a single step in their relationship.
The whole romance has become a dreadful bore. It's hardly the only case, sadly, as it seems to be a required part of any anime involving a man and a woman, but it's irritating and annoying just the same.

What SnS has for it, is that they still have likable characters when they are not stroke with the idiot ball (sadly, Yuji was demolished by it this season), Oga-chan and Tanaka save the day by stealing the spotlight and proving there is at least some people not completely dumb, Chigusa is just awesome as usual, the father is a good character, and Wilhelmina is lovable.
The fights are not too dragged-on, which is a relief (though, as usual, Bal Masqué's interventions tend to make the pace slow to a crawl, and are generally not very interesting because of the predictability of what will happens).

All in all, it was more irritating than rewarding, using all the overused common tricks to preserve the statu quo, and breaking the suspension of disbelief. The result is that, rather than enhance the tension and make me care, it detached me from the characters - I do not really care anymore about Shana and Yuiji, they were far too passive and, frankly, dumbs and stupid, which damaged deeply their characters.

They got nearly no progression, and are basically at the same place now than they were in the first season. Yay.

View Poll Results: Shakugan no Shana Second Total Series Rating
Perfect 10	38	15.90%
9 out of 10 : Excellent	53	22.18%
8 out of 10 : Very Good	46	19.25%
7 out of 10 : Good	53	22.18%
6 out of 10 : Average	29	12.13%
5 out of 10 : Below Average	7	2.93%
4 out of 10 : Poor	7	2.93%
3 out of 10 : Bad	2	0.84%
2 out of 10 : Very Bad	0	0%
1 out of 10 : Painful	4	1.67%
Voters: 239. You may not vote on this poll

2008-11-29, 00:35	Link #48
Raiyushi Yami No Tenshi Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Toronto, Ontario Age: 33	Overall I rated the season itself 7/10 because the 2nd Season was pretty good, but I don't feel it was satisfying and I didn't like how it deviated from the novel quite a bit. Spoiler for How I feel Season 2 should've been.: Biggest problem and disappointment with Season 2 I believe is the first 7 episodes... I don't think the Light Novels really spent that long introducing Konoe Fumina, who in the end is absorbed for the Silver anyways... What KyoAni could've probably done is shorten that to 3 Episodes and that leaves 4 episodes of free space where they could've instead brought in SnH Yuji into the picture instead of killing the Silver for a quick end and left Season 2 at a cliffhanger where SnH Yuji kidnaps Shana, or even leave it at him beating on Shana and pick it up in Season 3 where he kidnaps her. On a plus note. I loved the first OP with JOINT, and music was great as expected. __________________

2009-03-12, 07:45	Link #53
Raiga tl;dr Join Date: Jan 2009 Age: 32	They should have handled Kanoe the way they did in the Shana-tan shorts. "... We should kill her." "Yeah." The first half of the series was kind of slow, and I really didn't like Kanoe, not just for wasting time but also for her character itself. But I loved the rest of the series, especially the Sabrac arc (which they ought to have ended on, or cut down on the first seven episodes and properly developed the last arc). And I'd watch anything with Shana in it. =D __________________

2009-06-23, 20:34	Link #57
Archon_Wing On a mission Author Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Not here Age: 40	Now that Shana III is coming, I might as well remind myself of this series. When I voted on this poll last year, I had given it a 5 with in retrospect was a bit too harsh. It was more of a knee jerk reaction due to rage and disappointment. But surely if something is below average to me, I wouldn't go back and rewatch parts of it? To me, it's a very mixed series and thus hard to rate. The first two episodes were filler but still very entertaining. It had a nice "welcome back" feeling to them. Unfortunately, Kazumi for some reason got more and more annoying, and she didn't really seem to grow as a character. It just got really repetitious with the triangle stuff and we just got constantly reminded over and over again that Yuji is indecisive (At least Ike has the good sense to call him out on it), Shana's kinda just herself, and it became impossible to give a damn. I won't complain too much about the Konoe arc just because it's a dead horse by now. They really could have drew her a little more diffrent though. Then we skip to Margery's little flashback, which was kind of cool. Though I was wondering what the hell was the point of this story? Well, we learn why Margery prefers to be a loner. Nice, though maybe a bit aimless at times. So the series randomly flies around for a bit as "The Melancholy of Shana" But eventually we got to the moment everyone was waiting for-- Pheles. This part was very well done not just because of the very cool music, but because Pheles being so weak was actually part of a plot twist. She really showed herself to be a cold-hearted selfish bitch and that made her one of the most interesting villains that showed up. Even Yoshida gets a bit less annoying as she contemplates more interesting things like her role in the story instead of whatever the heck she was babbling about before. The series cools down into more slice of life, but unlike the Konoe Arc, this part remains very intresting. Keisaku wants to stay with Margery while Eita wants to live a normal life away from all these dangers especially since he has fallen in love. I mean if you were an ordinary person stuck in a situation like this, how would you react? The exploring of these two side characters is excellent. It's great when the story stops taking itself for granted and explores how people should react. Shana II raises the bar for character development even more, as Yuji stops being less idiotic and snaps someone's neck. That in itself is enough to redeem his character as he finally makes a decision. Everyone drops the BS and moves on to what they want to do. I consider the part between Pheles and Sabrac to be the best part of the series. Not that the fight against Sabrac wasn't cool, as Wilhelmina gives one of the best fights ever. For some reason I didn't like the part when Joint played. The song is great, but made it kind of cheesy since that makes it predictible. But still, a great fight where every major character is utilized is hard to find these days. None of this "leave him to me" 1v1 BS. He's a threat, and kick his ass! Now if the series just ended here, I might have just given it 8-9 (I think season 1 is an 8) Unfortunately the episodes after this were lackluster with the annoying triangle thing coming back and nobody seeming to learn anything. Sabrac's not really dead, making the last part entirely pointless, but whatever. Though the moment when Shana asks Yoshida about a baby is funny as hell. The Bal Masque crew for some reason just seems horribly not intimidating in the last part and the fights were pretty anticlimatic. It also seemed too similar to last season's ending but even less cool. And then it just ends. The part when "sense" plays is nice to wrap the series up Overall: 6/10 ---> Horrid start and extremely unsteady near the end, Shana II is not a trainwreck. After all, the best fights in this season were more exciting than the ones in the first. Shana II at its best is dramatic and exciting, helping advance character development. At its worst, it's extremely boring and aimless. I'm not really sure if it's that much worse than the first season as I had orignally thought as I feel these problems were always there, but they just get triggered more here. I would recommend skimming the first 12 episodes to get the gist of it, and enjoy the second half. Last edited by Archon_Wing; 2012-03-25 at 04:11.

2008-05-12, 21:00	Link #41
sorrowsiren Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2008	I rather liked season 1 but this show got the dragon ball Z virus.. I seriously hope there's no 3rd season now... Edit: Sorry, I use term "DBZ virus" to describe shows that use too much filler and drag nearly zero content through several episodes with nothing resolving. This was way to dragged out for how little actually happens... If they had compacted it to 12 episodes it would have been so much better, well, it still would have been mediocre, but much better none the less.. I watched all 24 episodes, but I totally gave up on this show after episodes 3-7 that focus completely on the jealousy subplot... for over 3 episodes it's nothing but 2 stupid anime stereotypes that can't figure out "what this hot feeling in their chest" is.... I really just wished that the plot would resolve and move somewhere. Actually saying this I think this entire show suffered badly from way to much stereotypical anime indecisive character syndrome.

2008-05-25, 05:45	Link #42
oompa loompa Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: 28° 37', North ; 77° 13', East Age: 33	I actually enjoyed the second season quite a lot. admittedly, i didnt like the first 13 episodes, but it picked up quite well after that. I am quoting this , Im not quite sure from where, but ' Shakugan no shana always provides you with a little more than you expect '. this is pretty much true for the second season. Shana does not provide anything revolutionary or spectacular, and certainly nothing that will change your life. Having said that, it has a solid plot, solid protagonists, and some great villains. It scores high on epic points, and there is certainly room to take it a long way. its a very enjoyable watch, the last 6 episodes of the show were great, especially the sabrac episodes, and the last scene before the credits in the last episode, where hecate messes up. it was a good way to end a season, rather than the ol ' main character suddenly powers up and wins. the episodes always start great, cos of the kickass op's ( i think shanas the only show where ive liked all the op's). It manages to kick off again just when it seems like its beginning to drag, and never gets you bored enough to leave it. a solid show, and id love to see another season of it, even two, if the plot develops in an interesting direction ( which, according to the way the novels are going, will) My only regret is not seeing more hecate XD

2008-06-10, 02:02	Link #43
Sotobrastos Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2007	The first 12 episodes... after watching the first season in two days, the first few episodes of season two were very jarring, simply because the first season had such a nice hectic pace. But after Pheles enters the picture, the series picked up, and I enjoyed it to the end. Did anyone think that in the end, the footsteps disappear because Yuji with Shana, or Shana by herself, flew away?

2008-06-10, 09:01	Link #44
Onchuu_Norin Clandestine Otaku Join Date: Jun 2008 Age: 34	For me, Shakugan no Shana (first season) was very entertaining with the whole plot with substitute souls "torches" are placed into bodies who have already lost their soul. I was disappointed at first after finishing the first season, but the second season was worth the wait. This anime is packed with action, romance, and a bit of comedy here and there.

2008-10-10, 02:29	Link #45
othera Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Australia,Queensland	This series was AWSOME. The ending was no match for season 1, but i loved this. 10/10

2008-10-21, 12:59	Link #46
kim8268 Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: 218 nielo street platero biñan laguna phil Age: 35	well somekind of excelent nor perfect because of the ending is still bugging me I gonna ask if the novel's ending was the ending of season 2 in the anime

2008-11-30, 02:12	Link #49
kawaii_mg Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Philippines	the story is kinda disappointing

2009-03-08, 16:15	Link #51
Appurukami Member Join Date: Jan 2009	I found season 2 to be very good so I threw it an 8/10. A lot of people complained about the first 16 episodes being too slowly paced and lacking in action but without developing Kanoe the rest of the series would make absoloutely no sense what so ever. The only real complaint I have is the lack of development in Pheles and Johan's relationship. Its kinda hard to explain but they were meant to be madly in love with each other but it just didnt show through. Apart from that I really liked season 2 (the first half just as much as the second) and would say it definately lived up to my expectations after seeing the first season.

2009-03-12, 15:34	Link #54
Ryuou 進む道は武士道のみ Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Dying to get back to Japan (but currently near Chicago) Age: 36	Yeah pacing and time allotment were probably the things that bothered me the most about the second season. But there were some really nice parts in it. Sabrac was tight, and the twist with Yuuji and Silver was surprising. How they handled most of the season though (including those two aspects), could have used work though. But it’s been a while since I’ve seen it and I should probably get around to a rewatch before I start criticizing it, more. I will say though, my initial watch through of the second season made me think I may not buy the second season. Which is a hard thing to accept as this is my favorite series.

2009-03-26, 04:42	Link #55
Justin Kim Senior Member Artist Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Orange County, California	Kanoe was entirely annoying throughout the second season for me, and I have to concur with Ryuou. The pacing was a little slow, and their were a bunch of side - stories that seemed pointless, although they did improve character progression it just belatedly dragged the season along. Almost seemed like an entire filler, except the part where Shana and Kanoe were dressed in Yukata's for the festival. I loved the ending, it was a nice twist - but unfortunately that was only for the people who haven't read the light novels produced, I suspected / predicted that to happen.

2009-05-22, 06:47	Link #56
Helm Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2007	How disappointing. I mean the over all plot.

2009-06-30, 04:14	Link #58
digger314 Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Vancouver, Canada	I liked it because I liked season 1. Much of the plot is pretty painful. They really milked the love triangle dry. It was just irritating because it's obvious what the intended pairing is. But the latter half wasn't too bad. The plot moved quicker. In fact maybe a bit too quickly and should have been spread out more. Still enjoyable though. I really like the characters and music. The better animation quality was a plus too.

2009-09-12, 04:19	Link #59
Qilin Romanticist Join Date: Aug 2009 Age: 33	I'll give this a 7/10 since I don't bother finishing anything that comes below that. If it weren't for that really long and tedious first half, I could have given an 8 or 9 instead. Such a shame. The action was certainly engaging, although they could have spread it over a few more episodes. Another good point is that I hardly got to hear Shana's favorite (annoying) catchphrase. You know what I'm talking about. I really liked the character development they had going in the series. Shana and Kazumi's relationship evolved to being friendly rivals from just being jealous of each other. A good sign of maturity. Yuji, himself, gained a couple of levels of badass wielding a rather impressive BFS. an impressive change given that he used to be a damsel in distress. A few other characters managed to make a resolution after finding their own paths. Disregarding the 1st half, SnS II was an entertaining series for me. It wouldn't compare with any of my favorites, but I liked it nonetheless. I do hope for another season to appear sometime.

2009-09-16, 17:16	Link #60
Akka Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2008	Misvoted 6 while I wanted to give a 5. All in all, this was not a good season. I quite liked the first, but this one suffered from two grievious flaws that quite canceled the good parts. - Though, unlike many, I was not adverse at all at the slice of life, the way it was handled was just a disaster. The characters were, simply put, butchered. Yuji-the-human who fails as a human being, Shana-the-outlander who is able to give him lessons about how humans behave, my god. Yuji carried the idiot ball in such a painful and caricatural manner that it nearly destroyed the entire show. It was frankly unbearable. He was reduced to a big blob of passivity and idiocy, he didn't even looked like a character and more like a plot flowerpot. - The overly-used, cliched-to-death, ultra-predictable and way too excessive dragging of the supposed romantic relationship was dreadful. It's just so boringly common in practically every single serie, and each time stretched way past the breaking point when it comes to suspension of disbelief. The love triangle (and even painful square if you count Konoe) has become frankly comical (in a not-fun-at-all way), the constant change of mind ("I will definitely tell him ! No, I don't have the courage ! Well, I'll do it ! No I won't !") ridicule the characters, and the systematical interruptions when they will finally spit it out are reaching such a height in predictability that the only surprise I will get will be when they will actually manage to make a single step in their relationship. The whole romance has become a dreadful bore. It's hardly the only case, sadly, as it seems to be a required part of any anime involving a man and a woman, but it's irritating and annoying just the same. What SnS has for it, is that they still have likable characters when they are not stroke with the idiot ball (sadly, Yuji was demolished by it this season), Oga-chan and Tanaka save the day by stealing the spotlight and proving there is at least some people not completely dumb, Chigusa is just awesome as usual, the father is a good character, and Wilhelmina is lovable. The fights are not too dragged-on, which is a relief (though, as usual, Bal Masqué's interventions tend to make the pace slow to a crawl, and are generally not very interesting because of the predictability of what will happens). All in all, it was more irritating than rewarding, using all the overused common tricks to preserve the statu quo, and breaking the suspension of disbelief. The result is that, rather than enhance the tension and make me care, it detached me from the characters - I do not really care anymore about Shana and Yuiji, they were far too passive and, frankly, dumbs and stupid, which damaged deeply their characters. They got nearly no progression, and are basically at the same place now than they were in the first season. Yay.