Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru: Washio Sumi no Shou 2 - Tamashii

This film is pretty much all about Gin, and there's a very, very good reason for that at the end.
Because Gin needed to be developed beyond a simpleton "nekketsu" Hero, the novelist gave her a big loving family, and a heart of pure gold-- she's late to school because she helps anyone in need that she comes across. You can't help but smile when Sumi and Sonoko find out why she's always late to class.

The plot is broken up in film 2 with side stories. I understand why they did this (they're hilarious, and they need to fill up time), and I feel of ... two minds about it. Usually I'm not thrilled with the plot going in weird directions, but I can give it a pass because Sonoko is funny. Thankfully, the editors didn't go too crazy here.

There wasn't much tear-jerking in film 1, so they made up for it in a big way in film 2. Grab your tissues. Fans of the series already know what happens at this point, and the film does foreshadow the ending (anime fans call it "flagging").

Now this is what I had wanted from the first movie.

Story get a 7 since I think it did good with the characters, continuing their bond and all of that. Gin is my favorite of the trio this time around. She's very cute for a sporty type of girl. There's not much else to really say about it. Cute girls begin cute.

The art gets up to a 8 for me, mostly for the fight scenes. I think the animators did really well with the fights and blending CG and 2D animation. I could hardly tell, and when I could it wasn't all that noticeable, I ... just have good eye for that kind of thing nowadays. I think it works really well.

The sounds is fine. Nothing made me cry really, but it's all good.

The characters are where this part does well with. Building the girl's friendships and what I do really like is the fact that the girls do act like little kids. It's not. Except for the fanservice. Yeah still bugs me.

I think this is a solid entry in the YuYuYu series and I'm excited for the final movie.

It's a curious thing, being the 2nd in a trilogy. Too often they get overshadowed as the "middle" chapter, sandwiched between a grand opening and a grand finale with only exposition as its purpose (Lord of the Rings), but sometimes the journey, the character shaping movements and setup for the finale are the strongest elements (Empire Strikes Back). Washio Sumi's 2nd chapter, Spirit, is already leaning toward the latter.

Following the friendship cemented at the end of the first movie, the second movie delves deeper into those bonds. Amusingly, it uses an omake-styled skit setting for the opening half's slice-of-life, giving us a fast-paced omnibus of ... character development, world-building and most importantly, juxtaposition, as the girls have a cutesy Vertex-free Summer to figure out who they are.

The universe of Yuki Yuna means that, at any point, the characters can be expected to be thrust into battle at the drop of a hat, indicated by the world's motion halting except for the main characters. This small ingredient makes the entire series' slice-of-life sequences incredibly tense, forcing you to watch the backgrounds for pauses. Watching the skits sections of this movie is incredibly stomach lurching, as you know at any point their world can be flipped upside down.

The movie isn't exactly subtle about what's to come, with very in-face foreshadowing. In fact, almost every skit can be considered as foreshadowing, either for later in the movie or the next one. But, despite all that preparation, it's hard to be ready for the finale.

The original series always put the girls on the backfoot, and while Washio Sumi's chapter is no different, it's more like they are on their last toe before they even start. The odds are even more stacked than ever before, and the brutality is even greater. It gets real dark, real quick.

Barring one or two of the skits flopping in the first half, Spirit is the finest moment of the Yuki Yuna franchise thus far, usurping the first movie with stronger characterisation and capturing the unique sorrow of Sailor Moon meets Hurt Locker only this universe can bring. Can the third movie do better still?