There’s something that is painfully cold about Freezing Vibration. It’s not the temperature I’m referring to but the fact the show is stone cold in terms of storytelling, characters, and presentation. I tried to remain optimistic about what this sequel could bring because the establishment of season 1. Despite being clichéd and molded with unbalanced characters, the first season at least had some standards on its premise. The way it was orchestrated did not live up to its promise but if you thought Freezing was bad, season 2 is at another level of catastrophe. It’s like an avalanche heading for disaster and eventually buries itself
...
in this disaster of a continuation.
Freezing Vibration is the direct continuation of season 1 of Freezing, a manga based on the same name written by Dall-Young Lim. If you haven’t seen Freezing yet, then better get to that now if you’re curious about this series. The fact is that you’ll be a bit lost at what’s happening. Therefore, it is highly advisable to watch season 1 of Freezing before venturing on this continuation.
Season 2 takes off wasting little time with its plot. From the beginning, we meet our three main protagonists Kazuya, Satellizer, and Rana whom seem to be part of an expedition in a very frosty location. It’s soon we find that they were sent there to undertake and be part of an experiment for the “benefit of humanity”. I put this in quotation marks as this will be explained later. But as the plot begins to unfold itself, we find out there’s more than meets the eye especially for what’s going behind the scenes.
The anime is adapted from the manga as part of the “E-Pandora” arc that introduces many new characters into the show. New characters such as Amelia Evans and Gina Papleton are introduced as supporting characters and part of a project known as “E-Pandora Project”. Other prominent characters such as Chiffon, Elizabeth, and a returning Cassie Lockhart make their way in the show. What do they have in common? Nothing except their rankings in terms of fighting abilities that made the famous throughout the world. Altogether, they are in line to support the latest evolution in experimentation to combat the deadly Novas. That’s at least what they think anyways…
At the core of the experimentation is a research with extensive knowledge of the Stigmata. We learn throughout the show that the experimentations aren’t as they appear to be especially involving a powerful drug. It’s hard to categorize what kind of drug this is but the effects are malevolent. To make matter worse, there’s a line where E-Pandoras cross before they get themselves hurt. By hurt, I mean real hurt. For this sequel to work with a storyline this, there’s need to be a realization on the history of experimentation (or at least similar cases). Unfortunately, the series explores only its effects on the surface through actual combat. The fighting itself doesn’t hold any promise as most of the fights are one sided. Even when there’s a little glimmer of hope, it goes back to being stale again with predicable circumstances.
The plot of Freezing Vibration also apparently explores a bit of our main characters in particular Satellizer. We already know that she is nicknamed the “untouchable queen” for a reason in season 1. However, that element is really touched upon (almost in a literal sense…) in this sequel. To say the least, it’s disturbing, ominous, and distasteful to watch considering the relations involved. To make matters worse, it makes little effort in resolving the issue. Sure, there’s the emotions and symbolism that were involved. However, there’s little sense in who to exactly blame. Was it really the perpetrator, Satellizer’s own insecurities of herself, or just nature of humanity itself? It’s also unknown what sort of message it's trying to sent; especially with its odd coordination at the middle of the story. The premise is completely separate from the E-Pandoras or war against Novas itself. It seems like the series is trying to develop characters but rubs it in the wrong way. It’s literally forcing itself at the body of its plot to show the grim reality of Satellizer’s past. It’s excruciating to watch and makes us feel uncomfortable with its delivery.
At some respects, Freezing Vibration does give many of the characters screen time. Almost everyone gets a little action in whether you’re a Pandora, E-Pandora, or Limiter. Just be aware that the series is a one cour show so don’t expect any characterization on anyone. In fact, we only get a little glimpse at the true visage of a few characters such as Elizabeth and Amelia. Our antagonist of this show named Scarlett Ohara is also stereotypical with the lab coat, cynical personality, and ambition of a researcher just without the mad scientist glasses. With no sense of a personality she is about as stone cold as the freezing winds of Alaska. At various points, I question if the main problem of the antagonist is humanity itself because the E-Pandoras suffers by the products of humans’ inventions. Without them, the E-Pandoras wouldn’t even be there or have to live through a fear of being a human lab animal.
In terms of aesthetic values, Freezing Vibration does keep up with its science fiction theme well. Characters are designed to look and feel like they are part of the program. Because the show brings out the female dominance of the characters, most of them are designed to look compelling and can handle themselves. In particular, the top 5 Pandoras of the world distinguishes themselves by different nicknames that matches their personalities/abilities. On the other hand, there’s a subtext of cruelty related to the E-Pandoras as we get to see where some of them came from; not literally with background histories but rather what they are fighting for or why they’re there.
Similar to the first season as well, there’s fan service. It feels odd to see many pool scenes in a cold climate where the experimentations take place. Of course, with a pool filled with hot water can only mean one thing: clothes coming off. In more ways than one, a few of the characters goes on a more daring way to advertise themselves such as Elizabeth or Roxanne. Rana also follows this trend in order to “take advantage of Kazuya”. Oh and speaking of the relationship Rana and Kazuya, there seems to be no progression there as well except for the occasional tease that achieves little results. Similarly, Satellizer still remains unbaptized despite overcoming a crucial obstacle in her life. It’s factors like these that really degenerates the main plot together as viewers may be left with how to feel. In the end, I felt unsatisfied. The way some conflicts are resolved are also questionable with predictable results left with clichéd holes. It’s a cold stone reality and the E-Pandoras doesn’t like it either.
Artistic wise, most of the designs are generic although fits with the overall science fiction theme well. There’s not much change in any of the main characters’ designs although a few of the new Pandoras introduced give them a distinguishing appearance. These include the scarlet hair of Roxanne, the short stature of Charles, or the glamorous figure of a nude Elizabeth Mably. On the contrary, we don’t get to see a lot of Novas in this season as the show focuses on the E-Pandoras so it’s hard to tell if they underwent significant changes. The setting of this season goes well with its style though in the cold climates of Alaska. The freezing snow depicts the cruelty of the experimentation and the reality of E-Pandoras like the frozen winds.
Soundtrack isn’t entirely impressive but is tolerable enough. Music director Masaru Yokoyama returns for his role and does a standard job. The OST is only tolerable at best during the action scenes and less so during emotional subplots. The choreography of the action scenes rises above the standards though especially for moves such as the rapid Tempest maneuver or Accel Turns. The OP song ‘Avenge World’ balances itself with a sense of science. On the other hand, the ED song ‘Sekai wa Kizu wo Dakishimeru’ is saturated with fan service that makes the sinister style of this season look like a joke.
Freezing Vibration is one of those shows that I only recommend for completion’s sakes or if you want to see what happens after season one. It’s really hard to not feel disappointed after seeing the weak characterization and its mess of a plot. The plot itself also doesn't end well with a rushed conclusion and hinting a possible continuation. There are many inconsistencies related to the E-Pandora arc such as to who to blame or its main purpose. Sure, it might be to save humanity but who is to save the E-Pandoras themselves? Thankfully, the show introduces a diverse amount of characters that fans might get accustomed to along with some intense action and feuds. But ultimately, Freezing Vibration doesn’t live up to its name. If Freezing is a prototype, then Vibration would be the defection. Clearly, evolution is NOT the solution.
Alternative Titles
Synonyms: Freezing Season 2
Japanese: フリージング ヴァイブレーション
More titlesInformation
Type:
TV
Episodes:
12
Status:
Finished Airing
Aired:
Oct 4, 2013 to Dec 20, 2013
Premiered:
Fall 2013
Broadcast:
Fridays at 21:30 (JST)
Licensors:
Funimation
Studios:
A.C.G.T.
Source:
Manga
Demographic:
Seinen
Duration:
23 min. per ep.
Rating:
R+ - Mild Nudity
Statistics
Ranked:
#59972
2
based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity:
#1507
Members:
172,187
Favorites:
207
Available AtResources | Reviews
Filtered Results: 11 / 36
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Your Feelings Categories Dec 21, 2013
There’s something that is painfully cold about Freezing Vibration. It’s not the temperature I’m referring to but the fact the show is stone cold in terms of storytelling, characters, and presentation. I tried to remain optimistic about what this sequel could bring because the establishment of season 1. Despite being clichéd and molded with unbalanced characters, the first season at least had some standards on its premise. The way it was orchestrated did not live up to its promise but if you thought Freezing was bad, season 2 is at another level of catastrophe. It’s like an avalanche heading for disaster and eventually buries itself
...
Feb 2, 2015
"Freezing Vibration" attempts to pick up where its predecessor left off, at least in some ways.
As It begins, you are quickly jumped into a relatively new plot, and you quickly find out that the show has little to none relevance to "Freezing" The Important characters that remain from Freezing are: Satella, Rana, Elizabeth Mably, Chiffron, and and Kazuya. But don't misunderstand, The Only people to be considered "Main Characters" should be Elizabeth, Satella, and a new character name "Amelia Evans" Along with this, there is absolutely no character development improvement from "Freezing" Story:1, there is more then one way at looking at this, you could consider the story a ... Nov 1, 2014
This anime is probably one of the worst animes i have ever watched in my entire life.
The fanservice is forced and is really just useless, the only reason this anime is half worth watching is cause of tits.. The story is bad, there is nothing else to say. Characters is bad as hell to, the main character is strong as hell, but he lets the girl fight until she is half dead before he stops the fight, witch he could have done before it started. For some fucked up reason there is alot of girls that likes him although he is a shit person and a bad ... Jul 30, 2015
First off i'll just say that, well I stopped this one short, I just couldn't handle it. I can force myself to finish off an anime, even if I do not like that anime, but for this one I just couldn't. Even if their clothes do get ripped off in almost every scene.
I wrote this, from watching the first season, to watching this season up until episode 10, hopefully you did the same, but actually finished this season. If you want an actual review with the reviewer actually watching all of it (12/12 ep.) then feel free to skip this. For those of ... Jun 20, 2015
What is Aoi Kazuya doing here?
He was annoying in the first season, but he had something resembling an arc. He was a terrible character, but he was a character. Here, he’s an empty shell that does nothing. There are episodes where he hardly appears and he contributes nothing to the climax. Remove him, and the only thing that will go away are the two worst episodes. Freezing always had a funky relationship with sexualized violence. It boasts some of anime’s sexiest characters, but isn’t it more fun to see them swing their cool weapons with swooshing backgrounds? This could have been a really fun series about ... Feb 2, 2018
This series is painful to watch, especially compared to the first season.
No spoilers... I will be making plenty of comparisons with the first season. However, this is still meant to be a review of this season specifically. The comparisons are only there to illustrate and highlight some of the points I make. Also, I highly recommend to watch the first season before considering to watch this one. First off, the art and the music. They were pretty good, like in the first season, and did enhance the experience wherever possible. They're not really exceptional either. But the writing, oh dear... This series was confusing and tiresome to watch. Before ... Nov 19, 2020
I rated the first season a 6 as an average/ok attempt for its genre, and I expected this one to be just "more of the same" with potentially some story conclusion that could affect my score by a point up or down.
And for the most part we get just that, unfortunately the "conclusion" is a disappointing "read the manga" cliffhanger for the overall plot combined with a terrible "deus-ex-vagina" solution to the season's focus points, but coming from the wrong vagina thus making not just the already useless MC but even the FMC completely irrelevant to the story this time around. And as if this was ... Oct 18, 2016
SCORING
story: 7 art: 7 sound: 8 characters: 7 enjoyment: 1 overall: 1 great math right? from story to character has good scores. but the overall rating just "1"?. Let start this right away. I'm not good at reviewing and I'm not a passionate reviewer. But because I want someone to know what I feel about this anime(2 or 3 readers is okay). I just can't help myself to make a a review. ... May 4, 2022
Where did they go wrong? I watched season one and I enjoyed it for what it was, an anime that was focused on boobies and it was good. This second season is so much worse and for what??? For starters, the shit with the half-brother is SO FUCKING bad and then instead of killing him, they try to redeem him??? how and why would the writers do this? Why would you make a comically evil rapist villain who has ruined his sister's life because he was such a shitty human and then boom! we are just supposed to be chill about it?? Also, they just
...
Jul 21, 2017
Its hard to rate with numbers, considering the fact that the reason i don't like the second season of freezing is because is totally goes against all the good vibes (no pun intended) i got from the first season. Without spoiling anything, I feel that the second season is not only weird in itself, but it also ruins the first season, and therefore I would recommend just watching the first season, and leaving the rest to imagination.
I also found the ecchi to be totally irrelevant to the plot, which I don't like, because when ecchi is irrelevant, all it serves is to take away from ... Jul 25, 2020
I usually don't write any reviews here on MAL, but this anime deserves one.. for being such a failure. First of all I like ecchi harem genre, but this was a letdown, this can't even be called a harem, I was misled, the guy who is supposed to be the MC is not really the MC. I was waiting for him to shine or something but all he did was stand everywhere like an idiot and wait until Satella got injured. I mean like ok this series came out in 2011 and 2013, and is old, but what in the freaking world? All the
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