Spoilers for the first season to follow.
Love Live! School Idol Project Second Season follows μ’s as they get a second chance at the Love Live idol competition after their withdrawal from the first. Beyond that however, the girls are forced to look farther ahead and contemplate the future of μ’s as the third year’s graduation begins to rapidly approach. The story isn’t anything too original, but that’s overshadowed by the fact that it’s done well. Love Live!’s second season will make you laugh and feel good, but at the same time it can bring you to tears. There is a lot of emotion packed into its later episodes, and when the season comes to a close, you won’t want to see them go. The story is brought to a finish with an ending that wraps everything up nicely, making it a satisfying journey from beginning to end.
μ’s brings multiple main characters to the table, so there’s a guarantee you’ll love at least one of them, if not all of them. From genki girl Honoka to narcissistic Nico, there’s a lot of variety to be had. More important than that, however, is that the show still manages to bring some depth and development to these characters despite there being so many. The spotlight is given to the girls who weren’t featured during the first season, such as Nico and Rin, but development still continues for the others, such as in Honoka and Umi. Add to that some nice side characters like all the imoutos, as well as some actual presence from the rival idol group A-RISE, not to mention those amazing alpacas, and it is clear that the show does a wonderful job with its loveable cast.
Of course, this being an idol show and all, the music is a major component of this show, and I feel it doesn’t fail in this regard. The OP and ED are pretty good, matching the feel of the series quite well. The insert songs are really the standout though, with a mood and lyrics that depict the moments of the show magnificently. My favorite of the bunch definitely has to be “Snow Halation”; when it is being sung, I had shivers going down my spine. Of course, the rest of the bunch is great too, such as “Aishteru Banzai”, “Love & Peace”, and even a return of the opening of the first season, which is tied in nicely. The soundtrack is pretty great as well fitting the mood nicely and bringing the tension and emotion when it needs to be brought. Overall, the music of the series is great, as it should be.
The character designs are all nice to look at, and there’s probably going to be a design that you love because of the massive cast. The animation runs smoothly for the most part, and can be pretty beautiful at times as well, such as during the performance of the aforementioned “Snow Halation”. One problem that I did have with this show, however, is the CG that is used during the song performances. It is pretty jarring and takes away from what would otherwise be beautiful scenes. Thankfully, the usage of the CG has decreased and the quality has increased slightly from the last season, so it wasn’t as bad as before, but I still wasn’t a big fan of it. Other than that though, this is quite a beautiful show to look at.
All in all, this was a very entertaining show to watch. Even with the bothersome CG, watching the girls of μ’s working to win the Love Live and performing their songs was a wonderful experience. This second season made me fall in love with μ’s even more than the first season had. Anyone who liked the first season will definitely love this; even if you didn’t, I feel as though the second season was a great step up from the first, so you might still enjoy it. While the story is brought to a close for now, I can’t wait to see what the Love Live! series has in store for us next.
Ready?
μ’s music start!!
