Monogatari Series: Second Season

[some spoilers]

Monogatari Series: Second Season was a wonderful return to form for me, discounting the Kizumonogatari trilogy (which I ended up watching right before this because I watched things slightly out of order). I found Nekomonogatari and Nisemonogatari, while not bad shows, to be inferior to the original. I can appreciate some good fanservice every now and then, but Nisemonogatari went a bit too far in that regard. I wasn't watching the series just to see Karen and Tsukihi sleeping together naked, or for extremely weird toothbrush scenes. Although looking back on it and looking at it for what it is I find it kind ... of funny. Except for the siblings element of it, that's still weird. In any case, I found Monogatari Series: Second Season (from here on referred to as Second Season) to be a great return to form, it evoked many of the same feelings as the original, and even surpassed it in some areas in my opinion.

The story of Second Season is a bit all over the place, and isn't told strictly linearly (but I like Boogiepop, so that isn't necessarily a problem for me). I was intrigued by almost every arc, and they were all great from a story standpoint. Since all of the arcs were told together in one big season it made everything fit together much more easily. I also got plenty of great twists and turns from the plot, just the thing I like from Monogatari, mystery.

The characters of Second Season are all the same as the previous entries in the series, although there was the return of Kaiki, a character I expected to just slip back into the shadows, never to be meaningfully seen again. It was great to see his character and motivations explored a lot more fully, something that happened quite a bit in this season. Sengoku also received much more in terms of a character and screen time. Overall, Second Season takes the characters I already love and builds on them.

The art a sound for this show was also wonderful in true Monogatari fashion. The show itself had the unique style and feel of monogatari as it always does, and the soundtrack was as good as ever. The OP's and ED's were all amazing. Each had an amazing style and great music. (although OP 4 had kind of boring music) One of the best parts of this series continues to be its amazing art direction and music/sound design.

Second Season was amazing, I enjoyed pretty much everything about it, and am hungry for the next chapter of the story.

The first thing to mention about this season is the naming of it, which is the same as its source material but it’s actually the fourth in the anime. I will include Nekomonogatari: Kuro as part of it as it’s clearly part of it even if was released separately.

The second thing to mention about this season is how the plot structure is a rehash of Bakemonogatari, as it also consists of five arcs, and all of them are based around the same girls from that season.

Visually, Nekomonogatari: Kuro is a step back from Nisemonogatari for some reason, despite coming out later and being far ... shorter. The artwork is not as polished and although it had the action scenes that the previous season lacked, they weren’t as well made as the ones from the first. Second Season is the best one yet in that regard, as it has the same level of detail and polish as the previous full series, with, occasionally, what that one was missing. Also, there are permanent changes in the character designs which are directly related to the plot and characterization, which is a plus. Oh, and I noticed more CGI than in the earlier seasons, but it was integrated in a way that most anime can’t pull off.

In terms of sound, the franchise retains the same level of quality since it began, so I won’t bother mentioning it again moving forward unless I notice a drop or increase of it.

The problem with Nekomonogatari: Kuro was that, even though it wasn’t a bad season on its own, it combined the main issues of both previous ones, as it was mostly a setup like Bakemonogatari, and it had slow pacing while being heavy on fanservice like Nisemonogatari. The point of that entry was to expands Hanekawa’s character arc, show the circumstances of her family, and how her mary sue type of know it all and kind and intelligent girl archetype is nothing but a façade that she built around her to hide her pain and mental stress, and for the sake of easily get the attention and love she was never given, something that only ends up making things worse, as keeping the fake image of herself that she made only aided in worsening her condition regarding her aberration.

This is good stuff but overall the season still felt slow and not very serious, since for whatever reason it had plenty of gratuitous fanservice, even for secondary characters. Not only that but it also leaves an aftertaste of being incomplete, since whatever point was brought up in it wouldn’t get a proper closure until the next series, plus, despite what it was trying to say, Hanekawa was still running from her problems and very reliant of Araragi to solve everything for her. On top of that, since chronologically goes before Bakemonogatari, whatever tension it tried to build felt fake and artificial, not intense in the least. Which is why I find it pointless to talk about Nekomonogatari: Kuro and Second Season separately.

The beginning of the latter builds upon the character fleshing she had on the previous seasons, and I have to say that it did a much better job at what both Bakemonogatari and Nekomonogatari: Kuro tried to do. The first arc is not only about exploring Hanekawa and delivering the message that only you can solve your own problems, but also finally bringing a closure to that and having legit character growth for her.

The main reason why it works better now is having her being the actual protagonist of her own arc, as Araragi is absent for plot reasons and thus she actively has no choice but to face her problems herself. Also, since she is temporarily the narrator, the viewer gets to appreciate her perspective and introspection in full detail. Regarding this point, the exposition is overall decent although it could have been better. The aspect is shown in three or four different ways, with the first one being her inner monologues and also easily the best one, the second and third ones are the scenes where she talks metaphorically with other characters about her different views, with the better ones being those that felt significant and well written, while others felt more subtle, ambiguous and not very serious. And finally the fourth way, and the worst one of them all, are the scenes where Black Hanekawa speaks to herself out loud, which is plain bad exposition and could have been easily fixed by simply having them replaced with more inner monologues.

Anyways, Araragi being absent during this arc not only meant having a different narrator and forcing Hanekawa to do things on her own, but it also allowed the viewer to see her from different perspectives, both her own and those around her, while it also let the characters have interactions amongst them without the protagonist around. I mean, at the end of it he still has a last minute apparition and save, but to the most part this portion of the anime had the image of the perfect girl being absolutely demolished while she was confronted by everyone around her to stop running from her problems, leading her to face them and accept everything and the aspects of herself and her responsibilities that she was avoiding so far, with even a permanent change in her own appearance, and this time it did feel like Koyomi only gave a hand instead of fixing the issues of someone else himself.

Not only that but the arc still keeps introducing new characters like Izuko Gaen and anticipating future events, while also calling back to past ones, that weren’t adapted at this point yet for some reason. This is very good stuff for this franchise and genre, and honestly, the major problems in it were the fanservice, which was still nowhere near as bad as it was during past seasons, and the confirmation that the Araragi sisters have a brother complex, he himself has an Oedipus complex, and that Senjougahara has an Electra complex, basically, that everyone directly connected to the main character has incestuous tendencies. Gross, but at least all of that is rather secondary and nothing of it is directly related to the main point of what is going on.

The second arc shows what Araragi was doing while that was happening and I have to say that unfortunately it goes back to the usual stuff and is thus a step back in terms of quality. Its beginning is a mixed bag, since it also introduces more characters that will be important later on, or shows a bit more of others that were very irrelevant up until this point. The problem is that it does that with some pretty tacked on and seemingly irrelevant conversations.

Ougi is the creepiest looking and sounding character in the franchise so far and every time she was shown on screen it was equally uncomfortable and interesting to watch and wait for her own arc that would come out two to four years and three to five seasons later. With that said, her conversation with Araragi felt very pointless and the way it was tied with the plot was rather forced.

On the other hand, Ononoki, who so far was a character so minor I didn’t even bother to name her when she appeared on Nisemonogatari, changed her stupid way of talking, as the series itself addressed, and brought some very interesting and quite existential questions about herself and the main characters of the current arc, thus her dialogues felt better integrated than whatever nonsense Ougi was talking about. Too bad everything was left unanswered but at the very least it made me interested to watch her own story after this season.

Anyways after that, this arc lost me completely with three things. First, it started with something trivial and very silly. Second, it introduced time travel, one of my most hated plot devices in writing because it can only mean that the characters have to either make sure that something happens, or prevent it from happening and most likely erase all consequences at the end. Meaning, it can only be a type of story where the characters are reactive at best, they aren’t allowed to have free will because they are forced to make sure that events take place in a premeditated way, only to most likely be erased or forgotten by the end. This pisses me off, it even goes against the message of the show and the previous arc. Thank you Noein for being the exception with your bittersweet as fuck ending.

And finally the third, it was focusing on Hachikuji. She had the worst arc in Bakemonogatari because it was the most disjointed with the message, narrative and plot progression, as it was mostly pointless stupid talking before getting a conclusion that wasn’t satisfactory, since she didn’t pass away nor did she get any meaningful character progression, and she herself was a very passive character that wasn’t even aware of her own situation, so of course and she didn’t do shit for her own and others had to do everything, only for it to not matter in the least in the long run. Plus, seriously, this girl is completely irrelevant to the big picture, and is mostly an excuse for pedophile humor and letting the protagonist to be at his worst, which in this arc it wasn’t even limited just to her, as it was also shown through other girls, Needless to say, I wasn’t expecting anything from this arc in the least.

To its favor, I have to admit that having the characters realize how much they fucked up out of something trivial, showing more people living and appearing in this mostly empty town, making everything prior feel important and that it happened for a reason, and sending the overall message that you can’t use time travel to fix past shit or you’ll end up making everything worse is always welcomed. Too bad it wasn’t very serious about it, as a big part of the arc is silly comedy, and Hachikuji is still left as a very passive character that doesn’t do anything on her own. The arc may revolve around her, but she still barely takes part of it, she isn’t allowed to do anything even when she is the focus of the story.

The third arc is centered on Nadeko, who in Bakemonogatari had one with good messages, but also the most disgusting and highest amount of fanservice, and silly comedy, even referencing memes. Still, since I more or less already knew what was going to happen here, I was actually more interested in it than with the one before it.

And what an arc it is, as it basically combines the best aspects of the previous ones. It also has the main girl of it being the narrator, which allows for more introspection and characterization, it keeps making Ougi a mysterious but interesting character, while tying her to the main plot in a much more organic way, it shows more people in the city that no longer feels oblivious to the main characters, while visually making it clear how secondary they are in a much better way than simply making it seems like the important cast lives in a ghost town, it draws parallelisms between Hanekawa and Nadeko by putting the latter in a similar situation, it explores and criticizes her, it exposes how Shinobu, Oshino and Araragi messed up in some of their past actions, and it finally moves the story forward, while also being serious and free of fanservice to the most part.

It even flips on its own at some point making everything that you assumed about it to actually have happened in a different way, while also expanding on how messed up the main girl of the arc is since she can’t even discerns reality from her own made up illusions.

It also explores a scenario that’s rarely touched upon in the harem genre, what would happen if one of the girls does not accept not being the girl for the protagonist and snaps and turns on everyone else? Nadeko gets tired of being seen as the cute imouto type of character and gets overwhelmed by people placing responsibilities on her, while she is also confronted for always playing the victim, similar to Hanekawa, but while the latter was able to talk back and face herself, a younger, more immature and more emotionally closed and unstable Sengoku can’t do that, making everything go horribly wrong. And it presents everything not as edgy bullcrap like a certain ending of a certain infamous perverted school romantic dramedy turned into gore schlock in the last episode.

Heck, it even feels meta for Kana Hanazawa, who usually plays that same cutesy type of character, as she was tasked to perform as the snapped version of her usual self. Of course and it isn’t like that, as she would later on keep on playing the same kind of dere archetypes and act all cute in real life, but during the arc, it gave that extra feeling and value. Even the opening and ending were interesting, as the latter changed the usual art style for something visually distinctive and more creepy looking, while the former became a dark version of Nadeko’s intro in Bakemonogatari, with even some pretty messed up lyrics.

The only things I have to criticize in it is how it still feels like everyone else forced what happened onto Nadeko, and her change was kind of very sudden, but that does end up matching well with her petty reasoning and how she kept running from her problems and playing the victim to the point of no return. Another mixed element was the conclusion, which made me appreciate Senjougahara for how cunningly she can completely change a situation, but it also remained open because otherwise the franchise would be over, in a way that felt like one big plot armor. But other than those kind of passable issues, this was easily the best arc yet.

The fourth arc keeps on happening around the same time of the first and it’s the direct sequel of the second, it’s called Shinobu Time but it doesn’t focus on her, the name is just misleading to surprise the viewer with what eventually happens, and I got to say that it did a fine job at that. Unfortunately that means that she is still not fleshed out like the rest of the cast, because her story that started it all wouldn’t be adapted until three to four years and four to five entries later.

Not to say that nothing revolves around her however, since her backdrop story as Kiss-Shot Acerola-Orion Heart-Under-Blade is told, and that is the best part of the arc as far as I’m concerned. Notice that I wrote told, instead of shown, as it is one big narration of her, which is why I found the manga version of that backstory better, simply because while it is still being told in-story, the reader is shown the events as a mini flashback, instead of what is done here.

The thing that stands out the most of this arc are the aesthetics, sometimes showing everything with one color or the complete lack of it altogether, or Kiss-Shot’s background in Japan 400 years earlier as scroll drawings, which is very appropriate for the time period, the previous ending being reused but with the relevant characters of this time, and even an opening that has the same creepy looking visuals and the best theme in the franchise so far, although with very limited lyrics.

It’s hard to talk about it without spoiling everything but basically, this arc has the same issues as the one that chronologically goes right before it, not much is going on in it, it’s just four characters occasionally being chased around by a ball of darkness, it has a lot of meandering with pointless conversations, it’s not very serious most of the time, Araragi is nothing but a pedophile throughout the whole of it, it is full of pedophilic scenes, both comical and dramatic that are supposed to be seen as serious and romantic, and the characters are not allowed to be proactive, as they are forced to followed a predetermined path.

At the very least, it has three positives, which are building up future events, reinforcing the message and theme from the second arc, and ending with a seemingly permanent death, but other than that, it is the worst part of the season, and the worst since Nisemonogatari, although nowhere near as bad when considering the whole of it.

The fifth and final arc is the direct sequel of the third, so this season has two patterns in it, it copies the plot structure of Bakemonogatari like I said, and it jumps around arcs across two points in time. For some reason, it goes for an opening with an early 90s art style mixed in, and a duet for the vocals done by the seiyuu of the main characters from the arc, which are Senjougahara, something welcomed, since she remained a rather secondary character since the first series, despite technically being the main girl, and Kaiki of all people.

Hitagi End once again has the positive of not having Araragi as the narrator nor even an active part of it, choosing instead to focus on his girlfriend trying to find a solution for their problems by herself, while also showing her at her most vulnerable and sincere, breaking her tsundere persona that she usually lets others see.

With that said, the actual protagonist and narrator of the arc is Kaiki, and what an interesting choice is to give that role to one of the main antagonists such as him, as it allows to flesh him out. Plus, giving his personality, view of the world, and age, from his perspective, everything that the rest does is childish and petty, which is true, and it is so reassuring and refreshing to see someone point it out, even if it is done in a kind of comical way.

Even though they are the main characters throughout it, the arc also shows the perspectives and action of other characters like Hanekawa, Gaen, and Ononoki who for some reason went back to talk in stupid ways and I like how Kaiki had her cut it off. Though I guess that could have been her way of trying to be, well, someone, and in a comical and meta way, trying to find her own character archetype.

Anyways, thanks to this narrative choice, it doesn’t feel like only one or two characters exist at the moment while everyone else does nothing, and because of the way it plays out, it gives a satisfactory ending to the arc chronologically right before it, while it also continues criticizing the pettiness of Nadeko and giving her a character growth, all while it sends a decent message, especially for the harem genre, it has Araragi realize how he can’t do everything for everyone else, explains certain actions and events from earlier seasons, and it still continues to anticipate future arcs and happenings, such as the importance that has built around Kanbaru throughout the whole season, which makes sense since the next one seems to be all about her.

Now for things I have to criticize about it. While having past occurrences happen because of the actions of some characters is good, it’s bad when that takes away a bit of the proactive initiative of some others. Also, Kaiki’s plan and logic was so flawed, it was obvious it was going to fail from the very beginning, but at least it led to Sengoku breaking his preconceptions and thus challenge him as well, and the overall resolution was good.

As for the finale, it doesn’t end the franchise as a whole, obviously, but for its own season, it feels appropriate and satisfactory, something that the previous ones didn’t have.

As a whole, Second Season has the best visuals, intros and outros, plot progression, characterization, writing, theme exploration and messages, while it builds itself well upon what was already shown, and it also does a good job in anticipating future events. It’s not free of issues of course, as it still has lots of pedophile shit, Araragi is insufferable throughout the whole of it, there are three unneeded recap episodes of previous entries, some arcs are not on the same level as others, and there is still stuff to cover. Besides that, it is by far the best season so far, and even though I still don’t enjoy this franchise, this was the first time that I felt like at least some of it was worth watching and recommending, and I now have the motivation to keep going with it. I give it an above average score that would be higher if it weren’t for the inconsistent quality among its arcs, as my ratings for each one will prove next:

Nekomonogatari: 5/10 for Kuro as a single entry and 7/10 for Shiro/Tsubasa’s Tiger, so 6/10 as a whole.

Hachikuji’s: 5/10

Nadeko’s: 7/10

Shinobu Time: 4/10

Hitagi End: 7/10

Final score:

(Minor Onimonogatari spoilers)
Monogatari Second Season was a competent and decent followup in the Monogatari series. Since Second Season was split into 5 parts, so to shall this review. Do bear in mind that each part is of varying quality, hence, the average score may undermine how good some of the parts are.

Of course, before I begin, given this is part of the Monogatari series, the animation quality is without a doubt superb. Shaft's surreal animation style works wonders for otherwise long and boring dialogue sessions. Off model characters are off putting though, and it seems that off model characters do appear more often particularly in ... the Onimonogatari arc.

Nekomonogatari Shiro : Tsubasa Tiger -

Nekomonogatari focuses its story on Hanekawa Tsubasa, now with short hair and no glasses! This arc's quality was fairly decent. Though it did dip a fair bit near the end. Hanekawa's interactions with the aberrations and the revelation on the true identities of said aberrations were well done. The resolution to this arc was quite poor though, as Hanekawa, despite growing stronger in terms of character, still requires the assistance of a secondary character for the arc to completely resolve. Not a fan of that approach and it does rub me off the wrong way.

6/10

Kabukimonogatari : Mayoi Jiangshi-

Despite its title, this arc focuses more on Shinobu, where Mayoi herself is a plot device and her character isn't explored much. Definitely the weakest arc of the five. While we do learn quite a bit on the world that Monogatari takes place in, the characters simply aren't interesting enough to drive the plot. Shinobu comes across as whiny and unlikable throughout, and the serious moments are fairly cringe worthy and difficult to watch. Its ending was passable if not decent, but even that is not enough to save the whole mediocre arc.

4/10

Otorimonogatari : Nadeko Medusa-

One of the strongest arcs in the series. This focuses on Sengoku Nadeko, the childhood friend brat of Araragi. Nadeko's character is simply fun to follow, and her being the Unreliable Narrator would mean that events in the arc are (slightly) distorted due to how mentally ill this girl is. The subversion to Nadeko's character is so well done, but is foreshadowed well back in Bakemonogatari so that it doesn't seem out of place. And the plot twist to this arc is magnificent, playing into the Unreliable Narrator trope and showcasing just how twisted and insane this girl is. For how much her seiyuu is typecasted into always losing innocent childhood friend roles, this change in character is simply magnificent and plays with audience expectations so well. The arc even ends with a lovely fake preview done by Nadeko, still narrating and still insane.

8/10

Onimonogatari : Shinobu Time-

Similarly to Kabuki, Oni focuses on Mayoi rather than Shinobu, who is also reduced to a mere plot device. Onimongatari is very heavy on world building ,giving great insight as to how the Monogatari world functions as well as leaving enough mysteries to keep the viewer interested in future installments. Character interaction is passable, borderlining on weak. Mayoi's sudden declaration of love felt so unnecessary that it dampens the scene it takes place in, making an otherwise serious scene a tad bit cringe worthy. Still, it ended on a very high note, and I am very pleased with how they resolved the scene.

5/10

Koimonogatari : Hitagi End-

Without a doubt the best and most entertaining arc of the five. Unlike the rest, this arc focuses squarely on Kaiki Deishuu, one of the most interesting characters to follow in the series. Taking place immediately after Otorimonogatari, it mainly revolves around Kaiki helping out Senjougahara on her problems. Kaiki's interactions with the characters are simply brilliant, and he definitely provides an insight to the world from a mature and realistic perspective, unlike the rest of the cast. The actual arc itself was extremely enjoyable, with plenty of twists and turns as well as insight into Kaiki's character. It's just a brilliant arc.

8/10

In fact if you wanna enjoy Second Season to the fullest, just watching Otorimonogatari and Koimonogatari is sufficient. The other arcs if anything dampen the overall quality of the entire season, so it's only the best course of action to just watch the two I just mentioned.

Final score
7/10

Yeah, I don't have a "It literally means..." line for this one.



But man oh man. Was it a blast! Monogatari Series: Second Season exceeded all my expectations. I will try to make this review as much spoiler-free as possible. I will also give a sort of episode guide. So bear with me, please.

Monogatari Series: Second Season is based on 5 NisioIsin novels. This means within 23 episodes, there are five different arcs. I said 23 because there are 3 recap episodes in the total of 26 episodes. So the anime actually has 23 legit episodes. Let's discuss the story by arcs.

1. Tsubasa Tiger (Based ... on Nekomonogatari 2nd volume): Episode 01-05

Remember how Hanekawa used to turn into a cat demon because of all the stress in her life? Well, there is a new demon in the town this time and it is a tiger. In this arc, you will get to get a glimpse of Koyomi's mother. She is a rude bitch. So don't bother.

2. Mayoi Jiangshi (Based on Kabukimonogatari): Episode 07-10

August 21 is the date the school will be opened after summer vacation. But Koyomi has not done a single homework. So he curiously asks Shinobu if she could arrange a time travel so he would have one more day to finish all the homework. Shinobu the Godly demon she is, arranges time travel. But instead of a day, they travel back 10 years in the past.

3. Nadeko Medusa (Based on Otorimonogatari): Episode 12-14

Now, after watching this arc, I have come to the conclusion that Sengoku Nadeko is indeed the most (or the second most?) complicated character in the franchisee. And who is this Oshino Ougi? Is she really the niece of my Meme-sama? Is she a she? This arc ends with a cliffhanger.

4. Shinobu Time (Based on Onimonogatari): Episode 17-20

A darkness has come to the town. It has come to serve retribution to the oddities that have strayed from their paths. But this is not the first time the darkness as such has come. Shinobu recalls a memory from her Kiss-Shot Acerola-Orion Heart-Under-Blade days, where she almost got swallowed by the same darkness.

5. Hitagi End (Based on Koimonogatari): Episode 21-26

The story continues from the Nadeko Medusa arc. Senjougahara contacts Kaiki Deishu to save her and Koyomi from Nadeko. After watching Nisemonogatari, I didn't know whether to like Kaiki or not. But trust me, you will definitely love him after you watch this arc. Also, my oh my, Miki-shin did such a great job!!! Though this arc resolves the cliffhanger of Nadeko Medusa, the arc itself ends with a cliffhanger which I am hopeful will be solved in Hanamonogatari.

My Personal disappointment is there was still no news of my beloved Meme-sama and not enough screen time for the fire sisters.

And I would really like to know about Kaiki's past.

Happy Watching!!!

*1. This is not a review just my commentation, so there will be no spoilers just opinions. 2.I'm Commenting on this as it is the second season as a whole(Which includes 'Hanamonogatari')*

[Nekomonogatari: Shiro]-Girls have it tough, huh? When I'm stressed I just beat my meat; But when she's stressed she feel the need to kill numerous people.-- I quite liked listening to the story from the perspective of Hanekawa... It gave a better sense of realism to that "Pure white" personality that she once had. I have only two complaints about Shiro-- 1. Hanekawa looks too cute with the short hair striped white. ... 2. Senjougahara lost her visual edge when she cut her hair. Of course she will always have that cold tsundere-ness too her, but she doesn't LOOK as cold, and that coldness was her sexiness. Overall: 9.5

[Kabukimonogatari]- That's it. Shinobu is the best girl of this series I am 100% sure of this. Kabuki wasn't exciting but it was nice to watch something different. Overall: 7

[Otorimonogatari]- The character development within Sengoku was entertaining but by no means positive. If anything she became worse than she was before-- From acting the victim, to being the wrongdoer. The Opener 'Mousou Express' is absolutely fire, It is based around her change in Medusa Nadeko while maintaining her cute side, The opposite of 'Renai Circulation' even though in some parts they share references. Overall; 8

[Onimonogatari]- Hachikuji's ending is so sad, as she was one of the funniest characters. But I think it was necessary and it only made the story better. Soooo Overall: 7

[Koimonogatari]- I never thought that Kaiki's narration could be entertaining but I swear to god it was. Hearing the private talks between Hitagi and Kaiki was also interesting because I got to see a side of Hitagi that you don't normally see. The ending to the second season with Koimonogatari is fucking legendary. When Kaiki was talking to Sengoku about giving up being a god I was thinking if this works he's a legend, then Araragi came around looking like a bitch. Then Kaiki got shanked by a 10 year old🤣🤣🤣 The overall rating totally depended on how the season ended and I think this was a good ass ending. Honestly Kaiki is probably the most relatable character in this show(Besides maybe Kanbaru), so I'm glad he ended everything on a positive note. Overall: 10

[Hanamonogatari]- In my opinion Hanamonogatari was the easiest and best story to watch in the second season of monogatari. Listening to Kanbaru discern her life and her morale was really nice; On top of that she's a far gone lesbo and nudist-- the best type of fanservice. Hanamonogatari is easy to keep along with the storyline and nothing crazy is happening so I don't have to rack my brain to get the full experience on it. And Kaiki is alive! I've ranked other monogataris an overall 10 before so in this case I'd give Hanamonogatari-- Overall: 11 (I'd also like to listen to Kanbaru narrate a lot more.)

As a watcher of the previous seasons of Monogatari, in my opinion, Second Season is the best season ever made of Monogatari Series.

Story: 9/10
The story focuses too much on the main protagonists like Araragi and Shinobu, giving more references and details of stories from past seasons, in addition to having a good relationship between different characters, making the story very interesting to watch. Also, Second Season gives more details for new seasons in the future and besides being very detailed, but it is kind of limited in some aspects even.

Art: 10/10
The art of the Second Season of Monogatari Series is perfect, as well as many ... of the seasons, which brings the essence of anime as well. The art is very fluid and very interesting for other viewers, in addition to having great animators that can stand out in the part of the illustrations, I believe that Shaft did a great job in the animation part of Monogatari Series even.

Sound: 10/10
The voice acting fits many of the characters too, everyone sees that there are no defects, in addition to having experienced voice actors in many of the characters such as Araragi and Senjougahara as well. The opening and ending are also very good and fun to hear, have good background sounds and on top of the background music of the anime.

Character: 8/10
The characters in Monogatari Second Season are good, though, with somewhat limited personalities. The personalities of Shinobu and Hachikuji are the ones that I liked the most as well, I found them very good to fit the plot of the anime. Araragi's, for example, was a little limited and I don't understand why, but in addition he is a good character whose fits well with the plot and the events of the anime onwards.

Enjoyment: 10/10
The best part of all this is that Monogatari, and especially, Second Season, is an anime / manga series that needs to be much more valued than it already is. For example, I see that many fans of Japanese animation that are entering the "anime world" need to see Monogatari right away, it is a very detailed anime that shows a great story. In addition, it is an anime that misses its fans a lot and even has space for more stories ahead.

Overall: 10/10
In addition, it is an anime very well done with a great job in animation and the plot even, I see that Shaft did a great job with this season and with the entire Monogatari Series.

While I've enjoyed all of the entries in the Monogatari franchise for different reasons, Monogatari Series: Second Season is the absolute highest point of the show, in my opinion. This is a layered, amazing collection of stories about (but not limited to) self-love, self-expression, regret, jealousy, hatred, and sacrifice. There is a story in this series for everyone, and I've always felt like that's the point of the Monogatari series.
Every story takes its protagonist somewhere unexpected and unique. This is in great part to the interesting and wonderful animation by Shaft, as well as the fantastic voice acting and soundtrack. I cannot recommend this show ... enough, but its hard when its right in the middle of so much other content. I think everyone should give the Monogatari series a chance at some point. It's a show with a little bit of something for anyone (I know I said this already.)
I'd like to talk about my favorite part of the second season that keeps drawing me back. I really think that the last arc of the series, Hitagi End, is the best in the franchise, behind Suruga Devil.
The story focuses on the money loving, con man antagonist of Nisemonogatari, Kaiki Deishuu. He is asked by Senjougahara to save the lives of her, Araragi, and Suruga from the wrath of young Sengoku. It could be said that Kaiki must save Sengoku from herself, as well. The arc takes on a detective story angle, which is reflected in how Kaiki changes his appearance, as well as the overall noir-esque tone that permeates the already stylistic animation. He is trying to figure out how to trick Sengoku, and it is never a boring task to watch.
The arc is also called Koimonogatari, or love story, and that theme of love really comes through in everything Kaiki does. He is a very stoic, reserved person, and the story reveals much about him that brings certain decisions he made, that had been painted as evil in Nisemonogatari, into a new light. It is a fantastic story that could exist outside of the Monogatari franchise, but it is made all the more whole by being in it.
The climax of the arc, which is in essence, just a conversation Kaiki has with Sengoku, is one of my favorite scenes in all of anime. The impact it had on me when I first saw it has never left me. Shinichiro Miki's voice work as Kaiki in the scene is gut wrenching, and has to be heard to be believed.

The best aspects of the series are all present, here. Of course, everyone has a favorite Monogatari story, and that's fine. This one holds several of mine, and Hanamonogatari is right beside it. Consider this a recommendation for that arc, too!

This show is definitely one of the most unique out there, and luckily, really good.

The Monogatari series is an allegorical show about a boy who helps different girls experiencing paranormal activity as a result of voids within them that they cannot fill. These voids become manifest in different characters throughout the show, where these characters get their own arcs, making for very remarkably well written stories with their own unique narrative, and nicely done within the same universe, still relating to an overarching theme with interweaving connections through our main character without losing their individual identity in their own, personal arcs.

It's really hard ... and weird to explain, but that's the best that I can manage.
If I could explain it any other way, imagine a show where each character is one of the seven deadly sins, where the sins manifest as the characters' underlying natures when one of the characters is either unconscious or allows their negativity or void to come out.

In a nutshell, it's a show on the negative aspects of our humanity that we all contain within us, addressing characters who have a stronger negative aspect than others, and it's done really well.

I've just finish watching this 26 episode anime, I ain't gonna fuck around and just present it the way it is. Oh and btw this an edited version.......3rd time co'z them ....you know who, orders me to do it.


Story- Very Good 8

I like the way how this anime was divided into 5 mini series ( not including the summaries), basically it didn't follow the usual arc it did with its previous monogatari seasons.


Art- Fair 6.

Well, I got to hand to studio Shaft, the first miniseries "Tsubasa tiger" was intense to say the least especially with Hanekawa's skinship thing with Hitagi, and that's as good ... as it gets.


Sound- Fair 6.

Well, I kind like the opening theme "Chocolate insomnia," but not the rest of the opening and closing themes that were featured in this anime.


Character- Very Good 8.

Because it wasn't just confined to Araragi and Shinobu alone, here we get to see Kaiki and Nadeko in a whole new light, so the score is for them.

Enjoyment- Good 7.


It was enjoyable to some extent, but the recall summaries ware just a drag, in fact I don't see any point as to why studio Shaft has to include it. Frankly it just adds as useless filler.


Overall- Very Good 8.

What can I say its "VERY GOOD! And I have nothing more to say.

Another touching and amazing season of this great series. So far the best in the series, this season touches the true epitome of what anime entails, both in story, emotion, and art, you can even finding yourself in love with characters you were earlier made to hate.

The bits of reckless art that were toyed with in Bakemonogatari have settled down to a reasonable rate. In short, they improved from where they left off with Bakemonogatari, leaving Nisemonogatari aside.

Story: (9) Without giving anything away its difficult to talk about. There are a few stories that occur, sometimes switching the characters focused on. The storylines are more ... focused and push the emotion, drawing you in to want more and more at the end of each episode.

Art: (10) These series always get a 10 from me. The quality of animation is far above the norm. In terms of the reckless art and story mixing that was common in Bakemonogatari, they've toned it down so its not so all over the place, allowing us to fully enjoy what the story and characters have to offer.

Sound: (8) Great, but nothing far out of the ordinary. Sets the tone, the music is good, and the like.

Character: (9) I love the characters in this anime. They are well developed, and you learn to love them down to the repetitions that are just there for comic relief.

Enjoyment: (10) Each episode ends in a way that makes anyone watching feel compelled to immediately watch the next episode.

Reclusive in my room, a modern day NEET who quitted her job after a mental breakdown, hello everyone. Pleased to make your acquaintance. It's my first review on here so I do hope I become of help. Now, don't get me wrong, I chose to take it easy after the episode where the eruption of accumulated stress happened rather than work with a crippling sense of impending doom each day and now-- in short yay me.

I consider it luck to have watched Nekomonogatari first among the others, being an ex-otaku finding her way back - no knowledge whatsoever from where I left off - of ... the whole Monogatari line up. I was stunned (I am a fan of any sensually pleasant anime) at the beautiful artwork and at how short it was. I wasn't quite satisfied with Nekomonogatari tbh so I almost forgot about it until later on after endless hours of soul searching I read about Bakemonogatari. I thought "well, this sounds like something I've seen before," so I went ahead and checked it out. It was the sequel. The thing ran on. 3 more seasons. The 4 episode thing actually had--

I was glad it did. As it's got great artwork, humour, characters, storyline, scenes, music, voice actresses and actors (name all the contributing factors to good anime by my sensual standards), it's made it's way to the top of my favorites list. The way Monogatari portrays scenarios where two people are merely talking to each other and makes it look, feel and sound like how they want the watchers to feel about it is stunning.


I guess that's all, everyone. What are you gonna do with all these irrelevant opinionated thoughts?

To kuuurt from the previous reviews, Gaen Izuko is not Oshino's niece.

Bakemonogatari is easily one of the best anime I have ever watched, that being said I expect great things from every new season. This season really let me down. I mean where was Araragi the whole season? Nadeko kind of just became the most pathetic type of yandere ever. The Hanekawa arc was such a bland and boring way to start the season. The one girl just knows everything to ever happen anywhere ever just because she knows?

This season featured some of the absolute worst writing I've ever witnessed. The traditional monologues were ... boring, the logic was broken, and the characters where all needlessly deceptive and sneaky. I mean if you have to say something just say it, please. No one ever just says what they're thinking in this season.

I mean maybe it was always that bad, but at least we had Araragi to speak his mind before. This season really just felt like they wrote out whatever they felt like with zero thought, then wrote some random lines trying to tie the terrible writing all together.

I give Monogatari Season 2 a 5/10 overall.

Man, do i need to say more

2nd Season is a damn good show, its the longest of the monogatari series with 26 episodes, its probally one of the most enjoyable times that ive watched an anime

The show really and i mean REALLY digged the characters lore really deep, (again i dont want to spoil anything) the show made me love every character in it.

The first 1 to 14 episodes were one of the best episodes in the entirely of the monogatari series, it was really enjoyable to watch it, the rest of the episodes were pretty okay, i didnt get invested to the last arcs ... however,
while yes it may had a huge impact, in sight it was just a minor change to a specific character's development in the arc that i dont wanna name cause spoilers.

I cant think of any critism other than maybe the second half of the show
either way the show is one of the most enjoyable to watch in the monogatari series

Overall a perfect 10 for me.

Before I start, I want to say it’s been two years since I last wrote a review here, not because I wasn't interested, but because I thought my writing and judging skills were bad, but well, two years passed and here I am writing a review again, I’m writing this because as soon as I finished Monogatari Second Season, I felt an urge to write something telling how incredible this anime was to me, how many things it teached me and maybe, motivate more people to know the series.

If you’re reading this, I guess you already watched Second Season prequels and enjoyed them or not, ... or maybe you haven’t watched even Bakemonogatari, or you are reading this after you finished watch this or the entire series and is looking for overall opinions. Why I’m saying this? Simple, if you liked the prequels you will like this one and should read further, otherwise you should stop reading because Second Season is has the same style as Bakemonogatari. Almost the same goes for someone who haven’t watched the prequels and for someone looking for opinions on the matter, so read further if you want.

Story (10/10): Monogatari has a unique story and dialogues, that’s for sure, anyone that watched at least 1 episode or a random scene somewhere, knows that a simple dialogue can end up turning into a complex discussion that defies principles and the true nature of mankind, or even a dumb fanservice scene is able to become hot all of sudden.

Monogatari Series Second Season truly stands out for me for one reason, it focuses mostly on one thing, “happiness”, as opposed to the prequels that had many messages and issues to talk about. Focusing only on one emotion allows for a much more intense reflexion about principles, what the society think it’s right and how you should act to be like a “normal person”, and more importantly, understading other peoples feelings and learning that even if someone says that they are ok, they might not be ok at all, for example.

That’s why I think every anime fan should at least give it a try and enjoy the story, chances of you having a change in your personality are high, especially since hapinness is a relatable thing that almost every single human being has felt, as opposed to parental abuse that is something that appears many times during the series. So the series doesn’t stand out because of the dialogue, but because of how almost every single dialogue has a meaning, and this season takes it to the next level.

Characters (10/10): There are a lot of characters in Monogatari Series, and every single one of them is different from each other, that makes almost impossible for the viewer to hate all of the characters, but I’m not going into details about this, I’m going straight into the point of this topic.

The characters in this season are much better presented and developed, often you will found them doing something that contributes to the arc that they first appeared on the Season and even to arcs that they don’t appear, even the smallest action makes a difference at some point, they have a much bigger background overall, specially Shinobu and Kaiki playing an even bigger role than in the prequels, doing this certainly makes the viewer cares about the characters, understand their reasons and emotions, making a great build up to major events.

Art and Animation (10/10): The art is almost the same as the prequels, but they clearly made a constrat on what’s important, so the viewer can always know on what he should put his focus. About the animation, it’s incredible as always, smooth movements and amazing fight scenes.

Sound (7/10): Monogatari Series soundtrack in overall never was a great point for me, and this doesn’t change here, in fact you you would expect that Shaft would make a new soundtrack for the Second Season, but it’s full of reutilized tracks. Personally I think the way the characters talk is pretty realistic, so when they are screaming because of pain for example, you are able to know that hurted like hell.

Conclusion: Monogatari Series Second Season is a masterpiece, that should be watched by every fan of the series, and almost every anime fan obviously, I’m talking about every anime fan that has patience to watch 2-4 episodes with only dialogues basically, think about them and enjoy the build up that those episodes prepared to the clímax. Anyone that is able to do that, can appreciate the series.

For me the ultimate lesson that this season thaught me was that it doesn’t matter if you can’t be what you want to be, because you can be anything you want except that, so why become sad? Everything in this world is replacable even your dreams.

Final Rating: 10/10

Monogatari Series :Second Season review

Across years the anime industry provided to its viewers shows like Utena , Neo Genesis Evangelion, Serial Experiments Lain , etc. who offer an insight on the human nature and relationship using philosophy , morals,visual vocabulary and a wide range of themes explored. As I dare to say Second Season deserves his place amongst those unique pieces of art .

Second Season is a unique and important series from Monogatari , it uses a different and eccentric manner of story telling , a rich and beautiful visual vocabulary to portray a message for the viewer and animal symbolism ... to portray the problems ,worries , struggle of our characters . It’s main purpose is to connect all the events and subtle details from the other series and use them for the characterization , plot and story revealing the big image of Monogatari Series.
SS is divided in 5 different arcs ,each of them is a play where our characters take part and act to offer the best performance for its viewer. They are all connected and every detail and character influence each other connecting the dots and delivering the main message.

The curtain rises and the first act begins :Nekomonogatari Shiro where the main focus is on our character Hanekawa . Connecting the events and all details from the other series the anime manages to finish polishing her characterization. We are presented an insight on her family life , revealing her disconnected relationship with her parents .The dialogue scenes contribute further in revealing more of her character and emotional mindset.With the use of the beautiful symbolic aesthetics and theme of identity we are presented her struggles to find a place to belong a place where she can be her true self a place called home. The conclusion of the first act is a lesson of philosophy and morals about human mind and heart and a relief for Hanekawa’s weight that plunder her heart and mind for so many years.

It’s time for the second act now Kabuki monogatari , a eccentric and fascinating play where our the bond between our two actors Araragi and Shinobu is questioned. The author used elements from the sci-fi domain such as time travel and parallel worlds to portray a message about bonds, memories, sacrifice and encounter.The weight of losing someone dear to us is portrayed for its viewer using a metaphorical content such as world destruction and a eerie atmosphere to signal a warning and message about us human who notice the important things for us only after we lose them. As we reach the conclusion of the act the play creates an emotional atmosphere to convey a message about sacrifice and the weight called loneliness .

It’s time for the third act , a play about selfishness and human nature portrayed with the help of our character Nadeko. The story reveals an insight about her life and the way others perceive her in the society . She is the realistic embodiment of the foolishness and indecision of many teenagers in our society . The script is meant to make her be hated by the crowd and her actions help further in her characterization .

We take a break from the third act and go into the fourth act Onimonogatari where we go further into the aberrations world. As our character Shinobu tells her story we found out more about the rule of the aberrations and what gives meaning to their existence. The story turns into a philosophy lesson about the balance in the world and morals about what is the best course of action to save a person who is dear to us. Again the details and dots from the other series are connected and help with the conclusion of the fourth act .

It’s time for the 5 and final act in our play Koimonogatari a story told from the perspective of our main star Kaiki.It’s a story about the contrast between fake and real a story that gives a purpose to all the actions and subtle details from the other series giving a meaning . In this play we are shown a different side for our two main actors Kaiki and Senjougahara that contribute in their fabulous characterization across the play. Kaiki’s actions and confrontation between him and Nadeko bring forth a message about decisions, dreams,love and wishes.

The play portrays the contrast between gods and humans from the Japanese society portraying the habits and customs of the people . Those customs turn into a lesson of philosophy and morals about the limits of a god and the advantage of being a human. The conclusion is a strong message about dreams ,love and wide variety of things life brings forth for each person. A lesson of moving on and not being stuck into the past overcoming the struggles that lie ahead and enjoying the benefits from it called happiness. The curtain falls and the play is over but the final message is delivered through the last scene with the help of our character Kaiki. It’s a cruel and realistic lesson about the fact that you reap what you sow .

In conclusion SS of Monogatari Series is a unique medium of story telling from the anime industry . It uses rich and beautiful visual vocabulary and animal symbolism to portray the characters emotional state and mindset , a different style of writing from the author in each series and finally the dialogue and details from other series to connect every piece of puzzle creating the big image called Monogatari Series .
A masterpiece both in visual story telling and characterization.

Overall 10/10.

A series as long as Monogatari typically loses a lot of the original energy and entertainment value as it progresses. With four iterations thus far, Monogatari shows no signs of letting up and I’m happy to eat up whatever is thrown at me. While this season provides a lot of what made the previous seasons so successful, it also is plagued with some weaker arcs, some bad characters, and a loss of the character neutrality that I enjoyed so much in the previous seasons.

For those not in the know, Monogatari is a character driven harem/comedy and horror hybrid that centers on Araragi Koyomi and the ... girls he picks up on his strange adventures. This second season further emphasizes the development of some of the best loved characters while throwing others on the backburner. It’s not that we don’t see them, it’s that they show up once in the series and are left forgotten for the rest.

What the story does do right, though, is focus on characters we want more of. This sounds pretty ridiculous considering I just condemned the show for not paying attention to certain characters, but let me explain. The first season and Nisemonogatari did a pretty good job of making every character in the series seem important in the grand scheme of things. Even if it were just a quick, pointless visit, Araragi would go to see them and the audience would feel like that character would come up at some point, for some reason.

Kanbaru, despite being talked about, is given no screen time but for one tiny scene. The same can be said of Araragi’s sisters. I spent a lot of the series wondering what they were up to and trying to understand whether they were important to the plot any longer, or had been used to their fullest extent.

And that’s not even my biggest problem with the story as far as presenting characters go.

This season doesn’t emphasize the romance between Senjougahara and Araragi. It mentions it, and Senjougahara herself tries to protect it, but we’re not seeing the two together. Why does this bother me? Because Araragi is fucking around with four or five other girls. In a harem-esque anime like this, it’s imperitive to give some importance to the main romantic thread. Ignoring it completely instead of giving the audience some general sense of what is happening in that relationship makes us feel like it doesn’t matter. And truthfully, the romance between Senjougahara and Araragi does matter. He is Senjougahara’s everything and we get a lot of her side of things, but nothing on Araragi’s end, nor any synthesis between the two.

Character relations and attention to them may be a little off, but the stories are good, right? This season doesn’t just focus on Araragi, and gives us a look into the minds of some other characters. It starts with a new story concerning Hanekawa and her cat form, a pretty good story that addresses her insecurities and love problems. It continues to a time-traveling, apocalypse scenario. This story wasn’t in any way my favorite. A whole lot of Sengoku in the third arc. It’s not a bad arc, but it does have Sengoku in it…

We finish it out with an arc concerning Shinobu that becomes really emotional in the end, and a final arc from the perspective of Kaiki, one of my favorite characters.

There are some issues pervading the story. The time travel arc, as I said, wasn’t that great and I feel like anything concerning Shinobu is just exposition for the sake of exposition. She has a whole episode dedicated to her past that gives some perspective on her, but ultimately serves as nothing more than more plot explanation. Shinobu seems to be everyone’s favorite character, but I don’t think she has enough character to even give a damn about.

I love the fact that this season jumps around but everything comes together. There are big time gaps that are filled later on and questions that are asked but not answered until another arc. It feels very natural.

Now let’s focus on the characters proper and not their place in the story.

Sengoku is still one of the worst characters ever. The resolution to her problems is ridiculous, her intentions and motives are idiotic, and she’s overall a piece of crap who should have died.

Shinobu, as stated, is nothing but loli exposition.

Episode and Gaen are characters who…just don’t have a place, especially Episode. I don’t think Gaen was very interesting either, though I can see her and Episode playing bigger roles later on.

Other than them, the other characters are all really good. There is a large enough range of characters that you can find a favorite. The inclusion of Ononoki is a good choice and she provides more added cuteness and the Yuki Nagato type character the series was lacking.

I won’t go through a best girl game. No point doing it every time. This season’s best girl is Hanekawa. Runner up is Ononoki.

Though plagued with a variety of minor issues, Monogatari is still an enjoyable and highly watchable continuation of a series that doesn’t seem to be losing any steam. It’s animation, directing, writing, and characters are all (for the most part) top-notch.

With a new short series coming this year, as well as a film, there’s no better time to pick up Monogatari and give it a whirl.

(8.0/10)

This isn't Bakemonogatari. This definitely isn't Nisemonogatari.

In its second season, the show i've struggled with coming to terms with (see my Bakemonogatari review for more information) has changed completely.

Perhaps its my willingness to "go along" with whatever the show will throw at me, but i felt significantly less confused watching this new show. There was no more "Uhh... that 12 year old girl is naked and i don't even know how to feel about what's going on." Or, "so these characters are terrible right? They're tropes. Cliches. Bullshit. Then how come I like them so much?"

No more. Instead, the show builds upon ... its predecessor, Bakemonogatari, as if it was simply the groundwork for the show to come. This is the building that the creator wanted to build and Bakemonogatari served as simple introduction to almost every single character that gets used in this series.

With my confusion gone and my wits about me, I quickly noticed just how many things changed with the second season.

Fan service - GONE

Action - GONE

Pervasive Animation - GONE

A lot of what made this show what it was has slowly drifted away and what we have left is a show wearing the skin of its predecessor. Or so I thought.

I won't be breaking up this review like my original Bake/Nise-monogatari review, separating all the different categories. Instead i'll simply go over my general thoughts with four different parts.
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If Nisemonogatari was the show at its most indulgent, this season felt like it was the show at its least indulgent. Especially when it comes to fanservice.

I never thought i'd say this, but after the first arc I found myself missing it, too. Not because I wanted to bop the balogna to the creator's specific fetishes. But because it certainly added a... feeling to the show.

I described Bake and Nisemonogatari as exploitative, gross, sleazy, sexist, beautiful, fascinating, memorable, and confusing. A lot of the time i felt like I was watching something that I should feel bad about watching. I felt like i was both becoming everything i hated, but also understanding a little more about myself.

It was a really unique experience. The second season, I didn't. There was structure, storytelling, fucking EXPOSITION. It baffled me. I hated it at first.

I want my god damn sleazy guilty pleasure back! Until I began understanding the direction.

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[PART 1] : The First Arc & Change


I'm not going to lie, the first arc of this second season was awful. In fact, it was so horrible that i found myself longing for the days of Nadeko's first arc, where she was sexually assaulted by an invisible snake for the entire episode.

In this first arc I saw my absolute favorite character twist and contort into an amalgamation of writing that was attempting character growth, while not showing it at all.

At risk of massive spoilers (but still be warned), the entire story was about overcoming something and not needing anyone to help you. To fight your own battles, in a way. Even the theme song asked the protagonist "not to wait for a prince to save you from your castle."

So while the story was predictable, it would have still been fine for character growth. Instead the writer chose to completely ignore everything they were building up to and have the protagonist of the story get saved from everything she was trying to fight against... and if that wasn't enough salt rubbed in the wound, she was then treated like some fucking barn animal and patted on the head for being a 'good girl', or some shit.

What.

For once I felt like the show's innate focus was on the story and they BLEW it. The character left with a shoddier character design, a worse personality, and worst of all, changing very little. It was a bad episode. Most likely my least favorite.

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After this disaster of a first arc I began to harbor reservations for what this show is going to have in store for me in the second season.

There were multiple things clear. The three things i listed above being completely nixed from the show, as well as the fact that the show was generally not remotely as happy as it was in Bake/Nisemonogatari.

Since the writer/s want to tell a serious story, they decided to take out a lot of the comedy. I once again never expected to say this about anime but this is one of the few animes that actually has made me laugh. So that was another disappointing change they made.

What I got instead was a five episode arc ruining my favorite character, with slow, meta dialogue that constantly refers to the well-being of the missing main character - who, in this scenario, was being used as a vessel to talk about the audience.

In one of the shows more extended scenes in this first arc, the two titular girls in this episode decided to bathe together for the sake of Araragi.

Araragi being the viewer. The show was handing us a fanservice scene. Maybe that's why I had so much issue with it? Maybe it was a clever way of foreshadowing that nothing in this show is like the previous season? Regardless, it felt strange, and thinking back on it I find myself marveling at the fact that the writer and creator was kind enough to tell us that, "Yeah, Nisemonogatari was a mistake, here, have this story."

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Talking about characters, lets talk Araragi.

In Nise he recieved a small overhaul. Instead of acting as more of a straight-man and self-insert, he instead was given a bit more of a playful personality.

And by playful I mean sexual assault-y.

Araragi went as follows : Self-Insert>Lover boy>Pedophile

In that order.

Believe it or not, i prefer pedophile over blank slate. So i was fairly happy with the fact that at least he now has a presence on screen and isn't just overshadowed by the vastly superior supporting characters.

While they definitely toned down the creepy ass pedophilic Araragi, what we got was a more brooding and serious Araragi, which fit this more dialogue-indulgent shows second season.

He still was a pedophile though, in the most basic sense anyway. The dude gropes and kisses every underage girl in the show at least at some point.

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[PART 2] : Episodes

So with that out of the way, I was definitely skeptical. I don't know what I got myself into, and not in the intriguing way. I was just hoping they wouldn't ruin another one of my favorite characters.

Oh look, my other favorite character's episode is right after the first arc!

Joy.

___________________________________

Going into the second arc i was uneasy. But i was pleasantly surprised that i was greeted with more shinobu/Araragi chemistry.

But now that this show has ditched trying to be a parody of romantic comedies, it now has to focus on being a drama. I have to judge it on its ability to tell a dramatic story.

The amount of exposition in the first episode of this second arc was a bit jarring to anyone that has seen Bake/Nise, but not jarring if you've seen any other anime ever.

So that's fine.

And thankfully, the story itself was a drastic change from the more boring, character-ruining story that came previously.

It was also probably the most "out there" story, as it didn't feel grounded in the world around the characters from the first season.

That being said, the story was engaging and showed that the show has gotten back to a "new normal", as a call it. It returned to form, but the form that it returned to isn't a show that's similar to the previous season.

No character ruined.
_________________________

With that settled, the arc after was even better. It acted as my favorite arc at the time. They managed to take one of the least remarkable characters in the show and change her setup from the first season into a full-fledged story in the second.

With that, the episode had a bit more laughs, as well as a more interesting story. I felt the show began to blend its more indulgent half from season 1, and its more focused half with season 2.

___________________________

The penultimate arc was another detour from the norm, with an absolutely staggering amount of exposition. Specifically the second episode, which was where the show was at its most boring. It was literally just a scrolling still image.

But boring doesn't necessarily equal unnecessary, and it set up the conclusion of the arc nicely with what was the second season at its more heartfelt.

It was a melancholy end and I appreciated the shows maturity when the credits rolled.

____________________________

Finally, the last arc, to be blunt, was spectacular.

The final arc helped me come to terms with the shows change, and actually appreciate it. I don't think the show in its more Bake/Nise form would have been able to tell Hatagi End arc in a convincing way.

Once again, much like a lot of this seasons episodes, the focus of this arc wasn't really Araragi. This made room for more character developement and a really well thought out story with an absolutely shatteringly good ending.

I adored these episodes, they were by far the best episodes of the season and the best arc of the show. Combining the storytelling chops that the show has been building up with very pretty animation, likable and increasingly interesting characters, and a narrative that I can't wait to see more of.

It solidified this second series as being a step above the first, even if it was almost nothing alike.

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[PART 3] : Beast

Monagatari Series : Second Season was a wildly different beast than the first. Apart from its first arc, it was generally solid throughout and didn't have filler.

The show no longer has fanservice and while i still maintain that the absolutely crazy mother-of-all-fanservice first season was necessary, I've grown to really think the second one is an evolution.

Its almost as if the creator was working tirelessly to rid the show of the glaring mistakes from the first season, and he mostly succeeded.

The final arc determined that the show was here to tell a story now. You are to be invested in these characters, not because they're adorable lolis half the time, or restrained tsunderes, or whatever other trope I'm not weab enough to know the name of yet... but because they're engaging characters.

I suppose that's the struggle with this show now. I had such a hard time judging the characters from the first season, it feels almost unnatural to just think of them as characters now. Characters like any other, in a show that's a bit more structured, while maintaining a distinct style that I haven't seen in animation before.

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The combination of crazy trope-based characters in the first season and the more realized characters in the second makes an interesting commentary on character portrayal in any television show.

Mixing these two aspects together is very strange, and it creates a very memorable experience.

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If you are to take one thing from this review, and maybe my Bake/Nise review I wrote before this, its that i've come to terms with a medium I was never really into before.

That medium being anime.

I feel like with this show, i've went through a character arc. Now i don't know if it was remotely as interesting as a few that happened this second season, but its important for me as someone wanting to make television in the future.

I'll attempt to sum it up here.

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[BONUS PART] : My Arc


The country, genre, or medium a piece of entertainment is created in does not dictate whether its good or bad.

I've realized that now and i feel stupid that I didn't before.

I hold a grudge against anime for being so "escapist", so "self-pleasing", so "masturbatory" in the most unnatural way. Its something that's made to please a demo. To get blue-ray sales, to sell as many figurines/merchandise.

But that doesn't tell you whether the medium is good or bad.

It instead just means the medium experiences massive content bursts. Unlike western television, there are upwards of fifty anime's a season. Each one having that goal.

The determining factor of quality is time.

It always was time, and it always will be time. What lays in time is effort, talent, and refinement.

Anything can be good and engaging if those principles are thrust upon it.

The creators and animators have put the time into any television show, its chances of being something a lot of people remember skyrocket.

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I feel like if this show did anything it allowed me to realize this.

I just hope I see more things that get time put into them. It doesn't matter if its romance, action, adventure, or comedy. Monogatari proves that any kind of genre can be good with time.

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That's my wrap up, I hope you enjoyed the read and if you did and haven't watched the second season of this show, I highly recommend it. I haven't seen anything like it before.

Peace, Peace!

Holy hell that was a great experience to witness, easily the best season in the series so far as it's a culmination of everything the series has worked on so far and it does everything mono tries to attain, and executes it to perfection
The season straight up had everything I wanted from the series and more
It had the entertainment value, it had the character interactions i adore, it had the dialogues, it had the wholesome moments, it had the emotional moments, everything i wanted from the series is presented in such an organic manner in this season
Entertainment is subjective that's for sure and to me ... this season was definitely the most entertaining
The dialogues were awesome as always and mono never fails in this department, nisioisin is an absolute master at manipulating Japanese language and twisting it in such a fun and entertaining way
The characters were absolutely at their best in this season, individually and with each other
Nisioisin has finally become able to explore them in both writing and entertainment departments
Literally all of them are just amazing here, Hanekawa's development in tsubasa tiger, shinobu and araragi duo in hachikuji Jiangshi, kanbaru's growth in suruga devil(yes I considered hanamono in this season, don't judge me), sengoku's downward spiral in nadeko medusa, hachikuji's phenomenal exploration in shinobu time, kaiki's pleasantly surprising role as basically the protagonist of hitagi end, and senjougahara, proving herself to be one of anime's greatest female characters to be written
This season, by making araragi step down as the series' sole protagonist, managed to explore each and every character to such a profound level and transmitted the overall theme of the series in general that each and every person has their own problems and issues in life that they would rather keep secret and said season beautifully presents the solutions to said problems
Episodes 5 and 17 of this season are seriously two of my favorite episodes in anime period
I'm absolutely in love with this series and this season somehow made me love it even more

“Humans have a desire to know the truth. Or they have a desire to believe that what they know is the truth.”

I first watched Bakemonogatari 3 years ago. I thoroughly enjoyed it, I found it to be a quirky and refreshing take on the harem genre with some interesting Japanese folklore thrown in. I later decided to watch Nise and was much less satisfied, although there were moments of true greatness present (I particularly enjoyed the scene with Mayoi in the first episode). While I thought of the Monogatari series as "good" at this point, I never understood why it was considered to be great. ... Why time and time again I had been recommended it by several friends. I never saw the series fulfill its true potential.

Monogatari Second Season surpasses any expectations I could have ever had for such an experience.

A recurring trend throughout this season is arcs focused on narration from a perspective different from the protagonist of Araragi that has become the normalcy for the series. I will come outright and say that this decision is a genius one, and the series is elevated to a completely new height everytime Araragi is out of the picture. I don't actively dislike him, in fact I did enjoy the two arcs he had this season, but the three in which he is barely present are without a doubt some of the strongest stories I've seen told through anime.

Hanekawa Tsubasa takes the helm at the first arc, and from her viewpoint we see a new side of both herself and series staple(hah) Senjougahara. Its touching to see their friendship that has developed, even if it had at first only started as a result of Senjou's fear of Hanekawa. Hanekawa's narration is thoughtful and flows elegantly; very reflective of her intelligent personality. I will say I was not very invested in the supernatural aspects of this arc but Hanekawa's development comes to a nice close here.

Here's where we get to the good stuff: Nadeko Medusa. This is where my opinion on the Monogatari series as a whole would change forever. This arc manages to deliver the complete unexpected without relying on shock value or anything as shallow as the sort. Nadeko's perspective and experiences with the rest of the cast had my opinion towards them shift drastically, I actively disliked the people around her for treating her this way. I wanted her to fight back. I wanted her to kill Araragi and his smug ass companion. This shift is something I've never really felt before in a show, and it could only have been accomplished with such a different point of view as Nadeko's. Truly excellent anime.

You may think the past paragraphs have been my true opinions on the series but no, you're completely wrong. Those arcs are mere time wasters, comparative to trash, when brought up against Hitagi End. Kaiki is the best goddamn character I've come across in years. He completely changes the show with his presence; raising every single character he talks with to a new height and revealing their flaws - even those of the perfect Senjou - for all to see. Hearing the cynical viewpoint of the previous season's villain as he narrates his tale of lies and deceit is an experience I will never forget. Truly enjoyable anime that every fan of the medium has a right to see. Nadeko's character arc comes to a surprising and, honestly, inspiring end here as well. And Kaiki ends the arc with fulfilling his promise of acting as an unreliable narrator by killing himself, the reluctant protagonist we have come to love, off in the most unfulfilling and boring way possible. Except he didn't die, as he appears at a much later date in the series. Kaiki cons you out of the ending you desired. Fucking brilliant.

Anyways this is really all just late night ramblings after I finished a great series that I wanted to talk about, and the score I've given is pretty meaningless, I don't really believe one's enjoyment can be measured by a numerical value alone. What matters is I enjoyed this show a hell of a lot.

Well, well, it's been a long run for another great season of 26 episodes for a beautiful series and it's time for a quick review:

Story: If you are one of the persons who's been watching the bakemonogatari series from the beginning you should know better this season delivers another great story where "heavy dialogue" is one of best things and what matters at most. As we all know, Monogatari is divided in arcs in which you have to pay attention to even small details to fully understand what's involved and for the events to come. This season demonstrates one more time why people love this ... type of series and the similarity with its predecessor Bakemonogatari itself; unlike Nisemonogatari, there wasn't the need to put fan-service to the max to reach the audience or rating and that's always a good thing. As a viewer, you can easily manage to marathon this series since the storytelling keeps you in your seat interested and wanting to know more. (9/10)

Animation: Dude it's Shaft. We might never get tired of the epic SHAFT head tilt, who knows (9/10)

Character: There's not too much to say about the characters. Each one of them has its own personality, beliefs and point of view which is one of those things that makes this series interesting. However, I must give Kaiki' seiyuu ( Miki) credit for the outstanding character performance and Nadeko's seiyuu (Kana) for the memorable school-snap moment. They deserve it. By the way ,did I mention the Loli fetish this season? DUDE, you know it (9/10)

Music/Soundtrack: Another season, another OP/ED for each arc.The music was really appealing for my ears, somehow I'm the type of person who enjoy this songs at most while watching the animation [OP or ED] only, it just suits it perfectly. I didn't manage to pay attention to the soundtrack/insert songs [ if there was any to begin with] , and to make a note aside, the OP song for Kaiki's arc got me laughing hysterically because initially I thought it was a troll song lol. Anyhow, the music was great. (8/10)

Final Thoughts:
As the story continuous, Monogatari was easily one of the best series this year. I enjoyed watching every episode with a little taste of action, romance, life lessons and other great things. I highly recommend this to anyone even if he/she is not into it. As for the fans, definitely this is a must watch and to archive ;]