(There will be slight SPOILERS in my review)
[Story]: (6.5/10) (SPOILERS)
Due to unforeseen circumstances, Yuuta and Rikka are now living together. Yuuta, who never even went out with a normal girl is worried on how to advance his relationship with Rikka and then everyone else has moved up a grade. Furthermore, a girl who calls herself "Sophia Ring Saturn the 7th" makes an appearance.
The story of the 2nd season picks up from the first season where Yuuta and Rikka are now a couple and are now living together..Wait a minute? Story? What story? Compared to the first season, this season basically has no plot at all. This season shows us what Rikka and Yuuta (plus the rest of the characters) are doing now that they are a couple. I can highly say that the sequel was highly unneeded and unnecessary but it is a treat that KyoAni gave to the fans or big fans of the first season. They're like "You want to see how the couple and the rest of the characters are doing? Then here ya go!".
In the first season, the first half was lighthearted and full of comedy and the second half, the tone was changed, the atmosphere gets serious and the show got dramatic. In this season however, pretty much almost all the episodes are lighthearted and comedic. In fact, the light-hearted/comedic atmosphere is revamped here. There are still dramatic moments in the show but compared to the first season, it's not a lot.
While reading the synopsis, you would think that Yuuta and Rikka's relationship would really advance but it didn't happen. In fact, 90% of the show is just your typical Kyoto Animation high school scenes, the 6% is dedicated to their relationship and the final 4% is the love triangle between Yuuta, Rikka and Satone (Stats pulled right out of my ass).God, not only is the love triangle horrible but it's unnecessary, it's so cliche and it's only purpose is to "advance" the relationship between Yuuta and Rikka. In other words, a grand excuse to advance their relationship.. I really REALLY don't want to say this but Satone seems more like a plot device to me even though she's one of the best characters I've ever seen and she's my favourite character in the series.
Even though the romantic development between Yuuta and Rikka is almost non-existant, I still enjoyed the show because of the lighthearted/comedic atmosphere of the show which I loved in the first season. There's more Sanae and Nibutani arguments, though I loved that episode where Sanae and Nibutani got along, more Chuunibyou battle scenes, Kumin is somehow a lot better in this season compared to the previous season and basically more of everything that I found hilarious in the first season.
To summarize, the second season of Chuunibyou is just a "kawaii", moe, slice-of-life high school show where almost nothing happens. Though I gotta admit, I did enjoy the second season for it's fun atmosphere. When it comes to story, however, the first season is better.
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[Art/Animation]: (9/10)
Kyoto Animation and their animation...What's there to talk about? Ever since they made Haruhi Suzumiya, their animation has been the second best in the anime industry, just behind ufotable and after Madhouse. The 2nd season of Chuunibyou is no exception. The Chuunibyou battle scenes looks way better than the first season, it's more fluent, and more smoother. The background has more lighting and the character designs looks almost the same as the previous season.
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[Sound]: (9.5/10)
Just like my previous review, the OST that I will only talk about are the battle themes. The battle themes in the first season was amazing and in here, it's more improved. The battle themes are like those themes you hear on a RPG/JRPG game. Smooth and amazing (Chuunibyou) Battle scenes with an amazing battle theme playing in the background..KyoAni could became a video game company. Now the OP and ED theme song(s)
The OP theme song is "VOICE" by ZAQ and the ED theme song is "Van!shement Th!s World" by Rikka Takanashi, Shinka Nibutani, Kumin Tsuyuri, and Sanae Dekomori. The OP theme song for this season is now one of my favourite anime openings. Not only is the OP theme song great but the OP animation is so goddamn great. I'm talking about the part where Rikka and Satone fighting in a battle. It's obvious that so much money and manpower was poured in the OP animation. I also love the ED theme song because it's catchy.
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[Characters]: (7.5/10)
Since I already talked about the characters in my previous Chuunibyou review, I'll only talk about the new character and briefly talk about the rest of the characters.
Satone Shichimiya or "Sophia" for short is the new main character introduced in this season. I prefer calling her Sophia because it's easier to remember, easier to write and easier to say. Sophia also has a Chuunibyou and turns out that she is a childhood friend of Yuuta. Well, I guess that proves that Yuuta wasn't a complete loner when he was suffering from Chuunibyou.
Honestly, after watching this season..Sophia is now my new favourite character in the series, kicking Sanae out of my "Number One Favourite character in Chuunibyou". She's just better in every conceivable way. Her personality is great and hilarious, her laugh is awesome and infectious (my younger sister is now imitating her laugh and it's annoying the shit out of me), and her appearance is perfect. Not that her appearance has anything to do with why I like her character. Too bad she was used only as a plot device to try and strengthen the relationship between Yuuta and Rikka. I would have preferred her being independent and not being involved in a love triangle.
The rest of the characters are mostly the same but of course, with some changes. Yuuta is trying to figure out how to advance his relationship with Rikka but of course, you barely see him do that because much of the show is focused on the characters fooling around instead of focusing on the goddamn relationship development. Rikka Takanashi barely develops in this season which is a disappointment because I loved her character development in the first season. Nibutani and Sanae still constantly fights, though I loved seeing them get along even if it was only for 1 episode. Finally, Kumin is a lot more likable in this season. She still sleeps a lot but she also talks more in this season and she also has more of an active role in this season. Kumin felt like a side character in the previous season whereas in this season, it felt like she was an actual main character.
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[Enjoyment]: (8.5/10)
I would be lying to myself if I said that I completely hated this season due to a lack of plot and relationship development. I'm also a fan of slice-of-life so seeing the characters fooling around and having Chuunibyou battle was quite enjoyable for me. I mean, that's where Kyoto Animation is good at..The slice-of-life genre.
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[VERDICT]
"Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shita Ren" is just a "kawaii", moe, slice-of-life high school anime series that Kyoto Animation is known for. Compared to the first season, the plot and the relationship development is very lacking. Although, if you're a fan of slice-of-life like me then you might enjoy this season..I definitely enjoyed this season due to the lighthearted/comedic atmosphere. Otherwise, you'd be very disappointed with the 2nd season.
[OVERALL]: (7.3/10)
Pros:
+Second Season can be enjoyed by slice-of-life fans and big fans of the previous season
+Comedy is a lot better
+Smoother and More Consistent Animation than the previous season
+Better Soundtrack/Better OP theme song
+"Sophia" is a likable character
Cons:
-Lack of plot
-Lack of relationship development
-Love triangle
-"Sophia" introduced as a plot device only
