Jaku-Chara Tomozaki-kun 2nd Stage

I watched this series because it exposed me to a completely different approach to characters and relationships than what I was used to, much more analytical, much more manipulative, focused on the psyche and how to penetrate it in order to fit in groups.
This series has a toxic message mixed with a quite accurate one, one of which is a valid reason for those who do not want to see it.
"You can't always be yourself if you want to be accepted by others" but at the same time "It's not right that everything you are is a lie."

One of the positions is always driven by ... Aoi with such toxic manipulation skills and perspectives, but the other is exposed by Tomozaki himself even from the first season.

These 2 premises constantly fight, generating a balance in our protagonist that drives him to change and at the same time prevents him from going over the line.
Tomozaki's evolution is quite satisfactory, from being a gloomy and losing boy, to being someone reliable and with enough balls to move things without the need to fall into lies or hurt others. It is observed how throughout the series how "changing" from each character implies something different and the motivations as well as the perspectives constantly put us in doubt if it is the right thing to do, reaching the point where both premises are summarized in.

"How much is right to change."

The truth is that I really liked this series because of the reflective content and the handling of characters that is so different that I have experienced compared to other works,
I understand that many will not like its story but for me it was a quite refreshing series that I had been waiting for since its first season, the characters become more and more defined, slowly adding depth to those that are required and leaving the others as constants as long as they are useful in this way.

I give it an 8/10.

It lacks emotional charge in many parts and I admit that I had to stop the chapters on many occasions because I couldn't stand the Cringe on multiple occasions. If you are not very interested in the dynamics of status and the interactions between characters, you will find this series more boring than the first since not all the focus is on the development of the protagonist, but I must highlight that its entire narrative until the final chapter seemed to me. extremely sensible and organic.

Jaku-Chara Tomozaki-kun 2nd Stage was a pretty good continuation of the first season even if it didn't quite go where I wanted it to. The main focus was shifted from the first season and dealt more with other characters rather than Tomozaki, which was cool to see but I do think some of the parts dragged on a little especially the second half. I did still have a lot of fun every episode and the charm of season 1 was still here I just think it lacked a little bit of depth to the story and general direction.

The first half was fun and I really ... liked how more characters kinda came together but I really think the second half let this season down a little, it all felt a bit slow and I got quite bored of the scenes with Kikuchi. Without spoiling I really was not a fan of the ending either, I guess I can see how it went that way but man from the perspective of how the season was set up I don't really understand why that happened.

I really do enjoy the cast in this show I think everything's handled in a way that's quite refreshing from most other anime I've seen, characters like Mimimi that completely steal the show are always so fun to watch and she had some really standout moments and jokes this season she's a joy to watch, the rest of the supporting characters are great too I think they all had their moments this season for sure and none of it felt forced.

Overall this is definitely worth watching if you've seen the first season, whilst I didn't really agree with everything that happened it was still certainly a fun watch!

Jaku-Chara Tomozaki-kun 2nd Stage - It's Round 2 of the social Game of Life! Shall we play a game of socialites? Because it's bound to become nasty this time.

Back in Winter 2021, novelist Yuuki Yaku's Jaku-Chara Tomozaki-kun a.k.a Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki didn't exactly set the season on fire, especially in a season full of heavy hitters like Horimiya, Mushoku Tensei and the like. Yet, the majority who can really appreciate this show (like me) reeling into the MC's thought process into the human society's evolution from a NEET to a friend, it basically "Character Growth" the Animation on a small scale. Now, with Season 2 ... after 3 years, has Fumiya Tomozaki improved his skill? In a way, yes, and by large, tremendously.

With Season 2 adapting Volumes 4 to 7 of the LN, Tomozaki-kun's character growth has seen an improvement in Season 1, but against the wills of his gamer-cum-social befriender guide of player IGN "NO NAME" alias and real-life school socialite Aoi Hinami, she claims that it's not enough and Tomozaki has not reached his peak, so the social lessons must continue. And the two huge lessons forming the base foundation of Season 2 that Tomozaki MUST overcome and be (in her eyes) the perfect social connoisseur: friendship-bonding cliques and in the most cliche of ways possible, find a romantic partner. In a sense, more character arcs that Tomozaki unfortunately lacks the experience and the social know-how of skills to deal with the matter and has to learn from his classmates and get better in the friendship game.

Let's tackle the friendship-bonding clique matter first. In every school, there're bound to be cliques formed because people do have the tangibility to be together, shared by common interests or just the way they do things. It's EVEN more a matter when you bring in the infamous superior/inferior complex that exists in so many shows, once you've seen one, you've seen it all, and Tomozaki-kun displays this in a natural and utmost raw manner that we all definitely had this experience once in our school days, for better or for worse. And the person in question is Erika Konno, the Queen Bee of the class, and quite literally, an untouchable presence in the class when it comes to cliques. She's the stereotypical gal who acts like one, and when someone gets on her bad side, she'll start to assert her bullying stance onto the people that she doesn't like. Case in point, the victim in question: Hanabi "Tama" Natsubayashi. Tama has always been the blunt and unsociable character, but unlike Tomozaki, has tried to get out of her comfort zone and make friends, which is how Minami "Mimimi/Minmi" Nanami reached out to her in Season 1, and both girls are besties by the end of it. Her being the most affected and influenced by Erika's unreasonable actions, and the entire class is clasped into a cold war of sorts, not being able to escape nor resolve the problem at worse.

That is where Tomozaki, neither out of options nor hope to resolve this crisis, decides to go straight to the side quests to figure out and break this cold ice for a much-needed icebreaker session. The person in question? Yuzu Izumi, the social and empathetic classmate who's a part of the queen bee's clique, she is a conflict-avoidant person who doesn't like conflicts at all, but she doesn't have the capability to stand up against Erika's whims. That's where Tomozaki comes in to help her partially resolve this conflict, as well as improve his interpersonal skills along the way. Likewise with the friends he'd make during Season 1, Tomozaki being part of Nakamura's clique after said de facto leader lost to him in the Smash Bros.-inspired imitation game, Takahiro Mizusawa, Takei and Fuuka Kikuchi, among others, vy their support for Tomozaki to help Tama build her social skills, especially since her blunt nature only fuels discontentment, and is the centerpiece for Erika's harassment until the bullying subsides. Even if this matter didn't blow into the monstrosity that it is, an issue is still an issue to resolve, and Tomozaki would end up befriending even more classmates than he once had before, a thanks in blessing and disguise of the consequential duality to the dire social circumstances that plague our very own world and lives to this very day, no matter the generation.

The second part of Tomozaki's issues: the romantic Game of Life. Ah yes, if socialite skills aren't enough yet, then having a partner will help improve his connections...if Aoi's really thinking on a positive level. There is no doubt that relationships come naturally when you have to deal with people different from you, and Tomozaki is no different in that regard. And the two viable candidates on offer that would strike a chord at his heart: Minami Nanami or Fuuka Kikuchi. I'm not gonna spoil anything on this regard, so watch the sequel if you want to know who will capture Tomozaki's heart the most.

Even after 3 years, Project No. 9 and director Shinsuke Yanagi's staff team have not faltered in giving Tomozaki-kun the adaptation it readily deserves, and to date, I would say is the most prized series of the studio by far. Even the idol girl group DIALOGUE+ came back for their new and updated song repertoires for the series, though I still find that Season 1 had the best of both OP and ED worlds with rather memorable and superior theme songs than Season 2, which while not a slouch, but is rather forgettable at best (though I kind of like the ED song, which is a good follow-up).

Still, Jaku-Chara Tomozaki-kun a.k.a Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki, is far criminally underrated even with Season 2, since most people bowed out from Season 1's themes, which the sequel improved upon by being a character class on not just the MC alone, but his fellow classmates as well. A good and redeemable follow-up of a sequel, if I say so myself.

A couple years ago, before first season of this show came out, I was 100% sure that nothing could top Hyouka as a psychological school anime. I was wrong.

Tomozaki-kun is an instant classic. It is very clever, it is subtle but powerful. There are no meaningless lines. There are no soulless characters. By the current school anime standarts, this should be considered a masterpiece. This season (winter 2023-2024)gave us four great titles: Apothecary Diaries, Tomozaki s2, Shangri-La Frontier and, as some may say, Frieren. That's why I can't say that this is the best anime of the season. But in almost any other season Tomozaki ... s2 would be a top dog.

Witty dialogues, outstanding character development, clever humour, awesome director work, a story that sometimes is almost detective—this anime has it all. Must see.

Tomozaki returns for a second season! This has been about 3 years if not mistaken. This series certainly grows on you. It is slow and can be at times too caught up in the machinations of social interactions between high schoolers but that is also the fun in that. Pretty straight forward. It does show how social hierarchy and social interactions work in a typical Japanese co-ed high school. All the usual drama and going-on.

The series is a bit more hard-edged at times with the bullying case and such. It deals with it pretty well and can be a bit too harsh aw well. ... In the meantime, it is inching towards romantic times for Tomozaki as he has to choose who he wants to take out for a date. Will it be Fuka or will it be Mimimi? Tune in to find out.

If you are curious about this series and haven't watched the first season yet I recommend you check out my review of the first season or the top reacted on review for more information. The tl;dr can be summarized as "great show with interesting characters focuses on character growth/development through a gaming lens." If you enjoy character dramas with well-done romance/comedy and are intrigued by the gaming hook you should give it a try!

I was honestly torn on whether to do a spoiler free review or not. I decided to have my cake and eat it too by creating this spoiler free review with ... a separate blog post that goes into more details on the show with spoilers.

Story/Plot 9

Continuing from where things left off in season 1, we start with a brief refresher of what happened last season, including the change between Hinami and Tomozaki on their arrangement going forward, with a review of his longer-term goals as well as a new small task for him as part of his continued growth and development. Although, there is a new wrinkle to things now, with Tomozaki pushing back on Hinami’s tasks to clarify that he won’t act fake or make a false confession of love to achieve the tasks Hinami sets for him. It’s a nice callback to the climax of the first season, and a reminder of how things will be different going forward. Expect more pushback from Tomozaki towards Hinami going forward, especially over their conflicting views on ethics. After that, we enter the first arc, the sports festival, as Tomozaki starts gathering information, creating a plan, and then implementing it to try to achieve Hinami’s tasks. Much like the 1st season, while his effort is always there, he manages to succeed and fail in a myriad of ways for all the tasks in season 2. After the sports festival, we get the bullying arc, as Konno starts lashing out in class in the aftermath of the sports festival. Once that is over, we get the longest and last arc of the season, the school festival, with a greater focus on romance as Tomozaki is pushed by Aoi to consider whom he likes so he can decide who to pursue a romantic relationship with as part of his medium-term goal of getting a girlfriend.

While this review is spoiler free, I do want to address the proverbial elephant in the room regarding romance. Whether it is in the reviews and/or comments on MAL, Crunchyroll, social media, etc. you will find a lot of discussion regarding the romantic direction of the show and Tomozaki’s decision for whom to pursue. Such is the plight of a dramatic romcom with multiple love interests. Watch out for that if you don’t want to be spoiled. Also, if you are the type of person whose enjoyment of a show is predicated on your preferred waifu/best girl winning, this might not be the show for you. While romance takes center stage in the last arc, this is still a character drama at heart. Romance just so happens to be the easiest way to add drama to a show given the emotions at play for the characters. I will go into greater detail on this issue with my blog post, so feel free to check it out after watching the show for yourself, or if you don’t care about spoilers. The one thing I will say here is that the decisions make sense to me given the developments across both seasons. I think part of the issue is the 3-year gap between the first and second season has left a lot of people forgetting some important details from the previous season, but it is ultimately a matter of differing opinions.

The other thing I want to quickly note about the plot is that the changes made to the story used in the school festival have symbolic significance to the plot. They may seem irrelevant in the moment, but you will grow to understand their significance in time.

On a separate note, it might just be my own bias since I read the source material after rewatching the first season with the dub earlier this year, but the pacing felt off for me at times this season compared to the first one. For reference, the first season adapted 3 volumes in 12 episodes, while this season adapted 4 volumes in 13 episodes. While the 4th and 5th volumes that make up the first 2 arcs are relatively short, it is clear the director prioritized cutting as much content as possible to end the season with the 7th volume. While I agree with his decision to end it where he did, the climax at the end is beautifully done and had me in tears when I first read it in the light novel, it feels like a little bit too much was lost trying to fit everything into 13 episodes. I thought a lot more of Tomozaki’s internal monologue was needed to help flesh out certain important scenes, including the climax itself. Some emotional depth from the LN was definitely lost in translation in the anime. Another testament to the brutally cutthroat nature of the anime industry? As if we needed more reminders...

Art/Animation 7

The character designs themselves remain gorgeous and stand out in the series. The overall production quality is mostly fine, but since the show is a character driven drama the focus is mostly on making the characters look good and their dialogue. I will note that there are a few occasions where the animation looks abysmal, usually involving hand clapping and characters running. The show does a good job of expressing the emotions of the characters through their facial reactions and body language, which is important given how much focus is on the dialogue of the characters.

Sound 7

Given the continuity with the VAs from the first season over to the second season, both the Japanese subs and English dub remain as good as the first season. Although I want to continue to shout out Ai Kayano again as I do strongly prefer her performance as Kikuchi’s Japanese VA over her English VA.

The anime continues to reuse stock tracks for the sound for much of the season, although there are a handful of times that it elevates an important scene using dramatic pauses in the sound and different music than the stock tracks.

Characters - 10

I really enjoyed the characters in the first season, and they continued to shine in season 2. They remain well rounded and act in a realistic way given how their characters were established in season 1. Mizusawa becomes an excellent best male friend to Tomozaki as he navigates the social hierarchy of school and his drive for self-improvement. Mimimi is the funny outgoing friend everyone either wishes they had or treasures. Aoi is as sadistic as ever as Tomozaki’s taskmaster pushing him onwards towards his goals. Kikuchi is still the adorably shy bookworm whose insights help guide Tomozaki. Tama and Izumi are charming to watch as they navigate their own personal struggles with changing who they are. All these characters mentioned, with perhaps a notable exception for Aoi, receive development this season as they continue their own personal journey of growth during adolescence, inspired in part by Tomozaki. It is a testament to the character writing that I can imagine all 5 of Aoi, Fuuka, Izumi, Mimimi, and Tama as viable love interests for Tomozaki under the right circumstances when Aoi starts questioning Tomozaki about who he is interested in. They have all received enough development, and Tomozaki has spent enough time with all of them over the 6 months that have elapsed since he started changing, to connect with all of them and establish chemistry in different ways, even if most of them will just be friends.

One of the great things about Tomozaki’s character is that despite the improvements he has had made over the past 6 months, he will backslide when confronted with situations that push him too far outside his comfort zone. He has spent too many years believing he is a bottom-tier character in life to overcome that self-doubt so quickly. For me, it is good character writing for him to fall back on his old ways of thinking and behavior in those moments until he starts making the biggest change of all: Changing his perception of himself via his own self-esteem.

Enjoyment – 9

Despite my complaints about a few issues with the show I still enjoyed it immensely. It’s a rare show for me that manages to be dramatic without feeling melodramatic, while also successfully balancing the romance and comedy together. It’s become one of my favorite series that I am happy to rewatch just because I enjoy the characters and story such that even knowing what happens doesn’t impede my enjoyment when rewatching it. That is an exceedingly rare thing for me to have for this genre of show, because too often these types of shows are either too unrealistic, too stupid, too boring, or just drag on way too long as we wait for the couple to finally get together for me to ever consider rewatching them, if I don’t just drop the show altogether. It is also notable that this show manages to stick out positively for me amongst the sea of self-insert wish-fulfilment fantasy shows that populate the genre. The girls are pretty, but they aren’t models with giant breasts flopping around everywhere for fanservice like a lot of shows. None of them are magically in love with the loser protagonist Tomozaki was in the beginning for little to no reason or are part of a harem of love interests. I could go on quite a while with these common lazy writing tropes, but you get my point.

Since the strength of anime as a medium for entertainment lies in its ability to show action in ways that live action series either struggle to replicate, or that require outsized budgets relative to animation studios, finding a show engaging enough to maintain my interest without standout animation or lazy writing tropes carrying it as a crutch is notable. This series could easily function as a live action drama with minimal changes compared to the anime. In a sense, that is the highest form of praise I can give the show: Good enough to stand on its own merits without the usual crutches used in anime that prop up lesser works.

Thank you for reading.

Tomozaki-kun is one of the animes that best represents school life.

The second season of this anime came to reinforce what was done well during the first. Reflect a real school life and not an idealized one. Tomozaki is a very real protagonist, because he reflects this desire for change very well. He starts out as a fairly introverted person, who changes thanks to the help of a classmate. Little by little he is generating changes in his life that allow him to relate better with his other classmates. I say it's real, because many of us also had that desire for change at some point ... in our school life. Regardless of whether we achieve it or not, the anime is responsible for showing Tomozaki's change but without idealizing it, since he also has the same difficulties.

When I say that it represents school life well, I mean both positive and negative aspects. On the positive side we have that circle of friends that we usually have, with the funny guy in the class, the girl who pretends to be perfect but about whom we know nothing, the dating couple and that friend with whom we share a single neuron. The classroom is so diverse that if you don't feel identified with the protagonist, sooner or later you will find a character to identify with based on the role you have had in your class. On the negative side, you can also see the issue of bullying, insecurities, jealousy, envy and manipulation that a person can generate in the classroom thanks to his or her status within it. The dilemmas that the work presents are dilemmas that we experienced when we attended school. Being the bully, being the victim, being the spectators, and in some cases, trying to be the saviors. The anime can touch your heartstrings if you were on the side of the bully or were the bully because it makes you recognize that those actions were and were wrong.

We cannot forget loving relationships. The play takes us along the path of being the spectators, seeing how a couple in the classroom is formed and how someone feels jealous because they were ahead of them and the person they like is now already committed to someone else. On the other hand, it also takes us on the side of being the protagonist. Being rejected by the person we like, and at the same time declaring ourselves to the person we like. What it's like to spend time with that special person, how the conversation flows normally and how we find each other's hobbies interesting while learning a little more about their life with each conversation we have. It is undoubtedly an anime that can awaken memories.

Regarding the topic of change, in the last chapters it touches on a quite interesting topic. Change for yourself and change to fit in with others. While the protagonist has this desire to change to be the best version of himself, there is another character who tries to change to reach the ideal version of him according to the rest of the class. Changing your favorite things and hobbies just to force a connection with others and have friends. In fact, something very interesting was said that I would have liked to hear in my school days. "Just because there aren't people in your classroom to share your hobbies doesn't mean you're a weirdo. It just means you're looking in the wrong place."

In conclusion, I may be getting carried away by the feelings that the anime generated in me and praising the work more than I should. It just has that touch that makes it too personal, so if it awakens good memories in you, you will have an experience similar to mine. On the other hand, if your school life was not so good, it is better that you do not watch it because the memories it may awaken may not be so pleasant.

Tomozaki-Kun continues to be one of the most criminally underrated series of this generation, which is crazy to me since it’s everything Oregairu is hyped up to be and better. Season 2 is a vast improvement in every way on season 1, which was already great. Tomozaki’s character development is apparent and you can’t help but root for the guy as he takes steps to become his own person in this season.

I am admittedly biased about Tomozaki-Kun as it’s my second favourite light novel series however, even putting that aside, this season is amazing. When you realise that our boy has gone from not ... even being able to talk to people, to solving classroom disputes and leading cultural festival planning activities, you can’t help but feel like a proud parents. What’s cool about Tomozaki-kun is that it doesn’t skip straight to this either. We’ve been on this journey with him, watching him as he stumbled but made gradual progress towards his goal. Even though I don’t agree with some of his actions in this season, I can’t help but respect that he chose his own path for once.

For me, Tomozaki is a better Hachiman. The reason I think that is because of how relatable he is. Yes, Tomozaki isn’t perfect and he does dumb stuff. But the stuff he does is typical of a young teenager who’s in this position for the first time. All kids that age make mistakes and do dumb things, it’s part of growing up. There’s a level of realism that his character emanates that most other MCs in this genre don’t.

This season is very much about him breaking free of Aoi’s directions and doing what he thinks is best. While Aoi helped him get to this point, he’s started to realise she’s not infallible and can be quite hypocritical. Instead of continuing to be a puppet, he finally pushes back and wants to handle things his way. This coming from a guy who could barely make eye contact at the start of season 1 just felt great. Really had a nice time seeing him grow closer with the other characters, particularly Mimimi, Tama and Fuuka over the course of the season and we even get some romantic developments! Again, while I’m not a fan of the choice he makes, I respect it. This season is all about Tomozaki being who he wants to be, not who Aoi or society wants him to be. He wants to be better and for himself, something we can all learn from.

I didn’t like the first half’s arc too much. I thought the drama with Tama and Erika dragged on a lot even in the light novel, but after that this season really got going and never looked back. The festival and play are some of my favourite moments in the story and Project No.9 nailed them. Couldn’t have asked for a better job. This is one of the first anime I’ve seen that has pretty much 1:1 nailed the big scenes from LN illustrations. FLY sensei’s art is stunning, but Project No. 9 got as close as possible to recreating those moments in the anime, capturing that same magic. Hats off to them.

Simply put, if you at all like Tomozaki season 1, you’ll really like this season too. You’ll probably find the first arc to be a little dragged out, but I hope you’ll see the significance of it and the impact it has on Tomozaki and those around him. The second half will no doubt be a joy for you, though. People who weren’t fans already probably won’t become fans now. This is more of the same, but even better. For which I’m grateful. Here’s to a season 3.

Tomozaki S2 gets a very easy 8 out of 10

Now I have completed the anime, I can really say that I'm satisfied.

As I mentioned in my preliminary review, this anime has a unique topic because of portraying everything like a game or dungeon to pass, calling every social interaction a misson and trying to level up. Some of the members thought that this doesn't belong the general society just the ones who play video games. But I think, this anime not just focuses on the gaming part. At the first season, okay, gaming sessions were a little bit more dominated but that's because they wanted to express the life Tomozaki had. This second season ... opens a new page and includes romance in our story. Fuuka is a bit more fore-staged here and last episodes are more about Fuuka, Tomozaki and Mimimi. Generally, they held the tides of the course of story sucsessfully, not even once get bored in any episode. The last thing I want to talk is information about life. What I am trying to say is, they gave us how emotions work, by hiding this behind a whole story. They build the story part of it, but also, we learned how to live. Fuuka mostly talked about her feelings, how she was feeling, how her world ideals are. She compared and contrasted other people's feelings, told her own idea honestly. Mimimi mostly symbolised the bright side of the life, she brought happiness to her friends and us, viewers. Tama was honest and solved her own problems with great courage. Erika was probably a nice girl, just trying to look like a badass thinking that this is cool. Aoi told us how to approach people, how to make friends, how to live on our own. Lastly, Mizusawa symbolised a person who doesn't have a problem talking to girls even he doesn't know. He guided Tomozaki, and probably he was the most helpful to him after Aoi. All these characters are maybe a person that really exists, or a way to live. Tomozaki listened everyone, thuought carefully, then took action. So, gathered everything up, this is when a theme approaches: Teamwork and Friendship.

Furthermore, the artstyle. Especially I liked the color picking for characters. Mimimi's long straight hair is blue and Tama's short hair is yellow. These colors are bright and relaxing to see. The animation is what needed for a slice-of-life and romance anime, not more or less.

Overall is a solid 9. This anime's world is too small to be a masterpiece, but we can't ignore the fact that it taught us important lessons sometimes. Comedy of it is really nice though. Especially Tama and Mimimi :D Well, that's all from me. See you at S3.

Tomozaki season 2 builds off of season 1 with tomozaki managing his school life and levelling up to be a function of his society it’s basically a continuation of season 1 and has the premise of season 3

Tomzaki’s quests get a lot harder, including which one he wants to date So the season explores all the options Rounding it out with a play It was pretty good and enjoyable, but there was some flaws with the stories telling

The only bad thing I have to say about it is if you watched season 1 when it released like I did it’s hard to remember As ... there’s no recap at the start with some shows, do but it fixes that around EP 3 When you can figure out what’s happening

Overall, it’s a good season Following from the first And a season three doesn’t seem off the cards

7 out of 10

Tl;dr it's a solid 8 and if you liked the first season, you'll like this one.

2nd Season of Tomozaki is here and it's been a 'second verse, same as the first' kind of experience, with our protagonist-kun still flowering socially among his Machiavellian class mates, diving through drama and friendships like a fish up a river, always fighting, always going forwards.
The story hook of the first season is nearly entirely gone, so if you expected development on the front that he's Japan's or even the world's best Smash player, that's not something the story wants to go into, despite it being a fairly significant ... achievement. Game or not, world's best is still world's best (or rather, rank 1, I guess).

It' also feels like the story is dragging out at this point with a romance plot being the red thread through this season with Tomozaki building up actual meaningful relationships with people with some substance to them in ... pardon my wording ... autistic detail.
Have you watched Lovely Complex? It's a comedy/drama/romance show from 07 that I love because it's just people being people, unreasonable, uncool but also a healthy amount of maturity that doesn't leave you thinking they're walking hormone bags.

My point is that Tomozaki, the show not the character, doesn't feel like it has real characters as much as it has idealized tropes from a visual novel and too much of their thinking is rationally explained.

What is interesting is the explanation of social dynamics in their class and how it's viewed from multiple perspectives, especially between Tomozaki and his rival/mentor Hinami Aoi. Tomozaki has grown a pair and challenges her on world views and values and both of them making good and bad arguments for good reasons.

Mizusawa, the blonde easy going and charming class mate, becomes a friend of his and has very interesting things to say that aren't necessarily obvious to people who find themselves to be similar reclusives and social outcasts, that the defensive behaviour you might pick up is repulsive to others. Don't talk yourself down, don't joke around all the time making yourself look like you're never serious, don't be a clown unless you want people to assume you're an idiot.
Do you want to be attractive to others? Not just romantically but socially? Then find confidence in who you are your achievements, what you've managed to accomplish and how you've figured things out. With every success you grow and become more confident and more outgoing.

And then you'll gain notice and it'll pick up, because once one person starts sniffing around you, others want to know what the smell is about and that's how you do it right.
These are crucial life lessons that a lot of people are missing in life, especially now as it's easier than ever to retreat into games or social media.

Story-wise there are interesting things going on and the drama is tense but never feels grating, so that's great, that's quality entertainment. As for the romance... Ever watch Quintessential Quintuplets? Does he go with the blue haired chick, the brown haired chick, the white haired chick, the other brown haired chick... It's all formularized to make you feel like anything could be possible. So that part is not terribly interesting.

The one negative that sticks out to me is that while Tomozaki has grown, he's still stupidly awkward and not always in a believable way. There are multiple bad scenes of him being weird in trying to accomplish set goals and it goes too far. Essentially he loses all his gained confidence and acts out of character, reverting to an annoying brainless stuttering idiot as soon as he's in an awkward situation and it doesn't play well.

Mild non-story spoiler:
The worst one by far is when he invites one of the girls out because he's supposed to take a picture of her eating ramen for his "pinstagram". He starts obsessing over the fact that she's ordered a different meal and it becomes this ridiculous mess of him trying to swap their meals and then making up this story about him taking a picture of her as proof so she doesn't eat his egg, all the while acting horrendously suspicious and having an annoying tropy stutter.
Even the most socially awkward outcast would just ask for a picture and not care about the specific food she's eating, mostly to get it over with and not have to make up insane lies along the way.

This stuttering "oh gee, oh no, oh golly no, what do I do, what do I do" trope repeats a few times and it never feels right. I get that some love this sort of cringe humor, but to me it's just not well executed.
Besides that we have some exposition hidden in an analogy that spans multiple episodes which is not my cup of tea and it overstays its welcome in my opinion. It's not exactly exposition, but it may as well have been.

Other than that, it's fun. Go watch it.

Season 2 of 'Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki-kun' continues the captivating journey of Fumiya Tomozaki, Japan's gaming ace turned social novice. Building on the solid foundation of its first season, the anime explores deeper into the complexities of human nature and personal growth, delivering a rich tapestry of drama, romance, and comedy.

The series cleverly intertwines gaming elements with real-life challenges, portraying social interactions as missions and character development as leveling up, adding a unique flavor to the narrative. While the first season primarily focused on Fumiya's individual growth, the second season expands its scope, delving into the intricacies of relationships and the dynamics of the larger social ... sphere.

One of the standout features of this season is its nuanced exploration of character arcs, particularly through the introduction of compelling side characters whose stories add depth and dimension to the overarching plot. The incorporation of romance into the storyline adds an extra layer of excitement and emotional resonance, further engaging viewers in the characters' journeys.

Visually, the animation and art style maintain the cozy atmosphere of a slice-of-life anime, with vibrant colors and expressive character designs. However, some viewers may find room for improvement in Fumiya's character development, hoping to see him gradually blend in with his peers both socially and visually.

Overall, 'Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki-kun' Season 2 earns high marks for its continued exploration of relatable themes and its ability to strike a balance between entertainment and introspection. Whether you're a fan of character-driven dramas, romantic comedies, or insightful narratives, this anime offers something for everyone.

Is it better than the first season?

Yes.


Is it the best of this season?

No.


... That said, I feel that many of the things in which the first season failed are repeated in this one but to a lesser extent.

Things like slow episodes or unnecessarily stretching out plots mean that in just one season you don't get to see and know as much about some characters.

I mean...
MORE THAN 5 EPISODES FOR A SLOW PLOT OF A BULLY?

Remembering that it's a 13 episode season, to throw away half of the series in a slow plot that could easily be solved in one or two chapters makes you less interested in it.

Even so, I think that this season is superior to the previous one because of the development that the protagonist brings in the first season, so in this one we see a different and new facet about him, that makes some chapters not only the protagonist learns to improve his problems and social anxieties. But also to be able to help people who are in the same or even worse situations than him.
And showing us making a contrast with his way of being in the first season and how to develop some romantic situations.

In the end this work, unlike the first season leaves aside the "personal development of the protagonist" and makes all the learning he got in the first season is reflected in this one.
It's a good thing, but only if you really got to connect with the series. Overall it's decent.

But I'm still waiting for something more...

I don’t understand why this anime is rated less than Classroom Of The Elites. The human nature insights that this anime provided are not only more abundant, but much more psychologically correct and grounded in a true knowledge of human nature. COTE can be more about scheming and manipulating, but the way it does is exploiting very simple people weaknesses, secrets or stereotyped character flaws. But JCTK is way more deeper in exposing and understanding the true psychology of the characters, and explaining how to deal with human instincts to become a better person. This anime is almost a perfectly crafted handbook on how ... to improve your social and romantic skills. It dispels all the seduction myths introduced by gal games, giving a true insight into what really moves people, including the hard to grasp fact that self-help books and tricks can teach you how to “fake it till you make it”, but in the end, your own self-esteem is going to stop you from getting better, and you cannot easily fake that. You really need to grow that slowly and on solid ground, otherwise in the very moment you are in a pinch, your mask will break and you will find that even if others believe in you, believing in yourself is the real hard target. This anime is not only well crafted, entertaining, and happily paced without even a boring moment, but if you pay more attention to what characters say or do, looking beyond the anime stereotypes used to create the narrative, you will discover that it is actually incredibly insightful and deep.
To sum it up: if I had to recommend someone a single anime to learn about human nature, this would be the one.

Bottom Tier character Tomozaki season 2 is honestly a really big upgrade from s1 in a lot of ways. It remains a series about self improvement and I really enjoy the main plots of Tomozaki, Kikuchi, Erika, Hanabi (Tama). Unlike season 1 being primarily about building up Tomozaki, we got to see multiple characters have their own self improvement arcs, which was really neat to see. I really enjoy the self improvement overarching theme of this series and it really fun watching other characters grow as people and not just the MC.

Obviously there are a lot of socially awkward scenes in s2 as the MC ... still doesn't fully understand social cues, but I think that adds dramatization and slow buildup of the character's "growth" arc. One point I really like is when the MC has to come to a realization that despite his low self image, there are other people who could possibly see him as attractive and he has to have that snap back to reality moment when called out on it. Really important growth moment.

The only downside I'd have to say to this season is probably the romance subplot in the second half, I've seen a LOT of mixed opinions on the romance subplot, in my opinion the romance subplot was really well done albeit slow at some times, but a lot of people take it a lot more seriously than they should (as it's only a subplot, romance is not the main theme of this show). I've seen a lot of mixed opinions on the romance subplot and people really not liking the season's ending because of how the romance subplot ended, but I think it was a satisfying conclusion.
However, I bring that up as a warning, that the romance subplot could potentially effect how you feel about season 2, seeing as it's half of s2.

Personally I think it's a really good season 2 and definitely a must watch.

Tomozaki is a strange series in a way; a lot of anime are about an outcast character like Tomozaki doing absolutely nothing to change and just magically becoming popular. It's strange yet refreshing that Tomozaki has to make an effort to improve as a person to get out of his funk, but the first season of Tomozaki missed the mark in a lot of ways. It was just barely decent enough to get me to watch the second season, which turned out to be a significant improvement over the first.

The second season is essentially split into two parts. The first part is definitely the ... weak aspect of the second season. It's focused on the most insignificant person out of the main friend group/supporting characters. That was a pretty questionable decision by the author in my opinion, but the second half more than made up for it. What I thought the first season was sorely missing was romance; it was basically "cut your hair, stand up straight, now you have friends". That's what the second half of the second season is about, and it's easily the best part of Tomozaki to date. All the girls are great to the point where I had trouble knowing who to root for.

One thing that really stood out to me over the course of this season though was that every character got a decent amount of development. That isn't something you really see in a lot of anime... in a lot of anime it's rare for anyone other than the main characters to get any development, if that. It was nice to be able to see the entire cast grow, and really made you feel more attached to everything going on in the show. They have the dime a dozen school festival arc during this season, and surprisingly I was actually interested in what was happening because it was just the author's excuse to put all the girls into a maid outfit.

So in conclusion, if you watched the first season and felt on the fence about the second season, I recommend it. At the very least it's worth giving a shot, even if the first half of the season might potentially put you off. Hopefully we get some more Tomozaki in the future because I genuinely want to see where these characters go. I give it a soft 8/10.