Story:10
so now let's talk about the story. It continues where the first season left off. Itami is alerted that Tuka is wandering around town in search of her late father. He decides to go in searcg if the dragon to slay it in hopes of snapping Tuka back to reality. The show's main plot here is pretty simple: hit the road and go on a quest to stay a dragon. The premise is simple but the execution is absolutely thrilling.
What really stands out in terms of plot is the sub story that has been happening behind the scenes. The Empire is destabilizing and some clear power struggles are emerging between the candidates for king and those close to them. The way this involves the Japanese Defense Force is extremely interesting to watch play out. As Japan tries to reach peace treaties, the Empire reaches another setback preventing the talks from progressing. I'lol leave it at that so as not to spoil any details.
Art: 8.5
A-1 has done very well with the animation for this show. Nearly all the character designs are visually appealing. The color pallete is bright bringing out the adventurous side of this fantasy world. The backgrounds are usually inc dinky animated. Where Gate falls short probably stems from budget and or time constraints. It is not particularly uncommon to see an off model character or a stoic expression from background characters. This is what holds the art back from being great. Otherwise the art is very modern and enjoyable, so as long as you can stand the weekly off model background character for a few seconds, the time when the art shines will most definitely make up for it (especially those fight scenes).
Sound: 9
The soundtrack for Gate is very enjoyable, however, It is slightly underwhelming when compared to the first season. This is not because the second season lacks good music, it's simply because you cannot beat the incredible music of the first season: the original op, and the insert sing from the heli raid. That said the music is still very fitting for the show and never ceases to aide whatever tone the show is demonstrating. The voice actors are also all solid and Rory's seiyuu particular does a phenomenal job.
Character: 9
It's hard to rate the characters of Gate. Gate has a very large cast of characters, some of which are very well developed, some of which are underwhelming. One thing that is certain is that all,the characters in Gate are in an upward trend of development.
Itami: a very interesting main character who continues to be laid back but never falls short when it comes to protecting those he cares about
Rory: a very fun amd provocative character constantly teasing Itami. Not much development but still a very fun character.
Tuka: a character You WANT to love, but seems slightly out of place until this season. I'm Season one she never contributed anything notable. And in the beginning of this season it seemed as though she was going to maintain an annoying trend, however in the finale of the dragon arc she finally proved her worth and gets a pass the inconvenience she caused.
Lelei: a character who once was very boring and stereotypical, that recently became a temporary badass. It will be interesting to see how events in the finale of the dragon arc will impact her character progressing throughout the show.
The last thing I will mention is the diverse and very exciting cast if side characters. I've never been as invested in every individual character nearly as much as Gate has made me care about it's side characters with the exception of two wild cards, Zolzal and Tyuule. So far each has the potential to be great characters if the team continues to maintain the current trend, I just hope we don't see them turn into stereotypical throwaway antagonists. But alas I have faith in A-1 yet.
Enjoyment: 10
This show is an incredibly fun watch and will have you waiting for the next episode each weak. Never short of drama and action this show still knows when to be lighthearted without the use of slapstick gags or piss poor humor. This season Gate continues to hit the mark of being an extremely fun show to watch. It may not be nearly as complex or well written as Fate/Zero or Steins; Gate, but its damn good at what it does and that's the simple fun of the show for that reason I rate it a 10. It is not a masterpiece in comparison to some of the classics. But for what it has tried to accomplished, it has exceeded any and all expectations Incould have had so far for this series.
Conclusion
Ignore the conspiracy theorists. This shows politics are not meant to be taken seriously, they are a very small but neccessary plot device to keep the show going. It IS NOT PROPOGANDA. the empire is a fictitious land, they are. It colonizing it. Sure they are searching for resources and taking advantage of trade but such is the reality of the world we live in regardless, the show never tried to convince anyone that these things are okay or that they aren't, it simply is not important. The show is a fantasy/action/military/adventure. If you came into this expecting 100% peaceful relations or a show where violence is not the response, ,aube you should try reading the tags or description of a show before you watch it. And if a show is not trying to make a point about anything, stop drawing unnecessary conclusions about simple plot devices. The real world has enough conspiracies as it is, stick to stuff that isn't completely fictional or fantasy, at the point is it really a problem with the show or the viewer? Amyways 99% of you out there will enjoy this show and some of you may love it like I do! I hope this review was helpful, I would love feedback, thank you
