If you're already familiar with my earlier review of the first season of Hell Girl, you should already know, that I loved the first season. It had it's annoyances, yes, but overall, it was very good piece of work. So, with no doubt, I was generally excited to hear that there indeed was a second season for one of my favourite animes... with original japanese voices, what whatever! I looked it up, watched it... and afterwards, I was so disappointed, that I actually cried blood!
As for a short recap... in the first season of Hell Girl, the Hell Link was just about this urban myth about a website where you can in the stroke of midnight write down a name of the person that you wish being sented to Hell - of course, no one knows anything about the subject of payment... which is stupid, but to me, it gives a really nice edge. No one took the rumors seriously, until our victim of the week had someone they truly wished for a revenge, and oh boy did they deserve to be punished - in the first season, mind you... not in this one! We had bullies stuffing that one girl's... undercarriage with a glass pipe, and threathening to brake it! We had that one crazy lady, that inherited big cash, killed her family, and took that one girl as a hostage, and killed her puppies, just for funcies, and that crazy family, with obsession for dolls... just to name the view! All royally fucked up people, and I just loved to see them being sented to Hell! What did we got in this season? Well... some dude spilled some coffee on top of some other dude, and scratched his car. Wow... that's hardcore (read my loud sarcasm).
The formula of the plot stays pretty much the same, as it was in the first season, but only in this season, the pay-up isn't even closely as satisfying, as it was in the first season. The Hell Link isn't anymore as much as some silly urban legend, but almost like some basic common knolewdge, as simply and freguently used, as facebook, or twitter! When the first season showed us some actual predicaments, with victims and true despair, this season gives us just some pesky nuicanses, with shallow means and little to no meaning, all easily removed by simply opening this one website, and sending that nuicanse to the Hell! I like revenge as a way to tell the stroy, or as a plot point, but only, if the revenge is deserved... and, in here, it really isn't! At some point, we do get this weird side story about this one kid, being called the Devil's child by his entire village, and soon afterwards, the whole town starts sending each other to the Hell... for whatever reasons they can come up on that day! Maybe the laundry isn't done! Maybe the rice is cold! Maybe he can't sing! Maybe I don't like her hair! It's all the same to me! "It's not like my grievance is brought to me by some psycho murderer, or a false marriage, or a rape baby... I'm just gonna use this link I wound from the internet, and send my neighbor to Hell, because his face makes my baby cry!" Is it already obvious, of why I hate this season so much?! It took that one thing, that it should have been kept the same, and it ruined it... in so many ways!
Another thing, that I wasn't so keen on, was the side stories of the Hell Girl's helpers - that old guy, hottie in japanese style, and and steaming-hot honey in kimono. As I said in my earlier review, I saw them more appealing to me, when I knew the absolute minimun out of them... which in return contradicts my absolute love and passion for deep, multi-dimensional characters. I didn't need to know, who they were, where they came from, or what kind of people they were... or are, for that matter - it was more scarier to me, when the victims were dealing with something that even I couldn't quite understand. In this season, we do get to know a whole lot more about all of them, who they were and how they came to serve Ai Enma in her guest - which could be a huge plus to someone else - but it really didn't bring anything interesting, or absolutely essetial to the story! I don't want these characters to be people, but some morally grey entities, that'll send me to Hell, if I happen to live in this looney-ville full of crazy people, and my happen to step on someone's shoes! And, oh... just to get this out of my system... I really did hate Kikuri! I really did! Brat...
But, since I don't wish any of the fans to write my name down to the Hell link, I guess I have to say something nice... about this season, that is. The art was indeed marvellous, and the music was beautiful - especially the ending song... so lovely! But, other than that, the merits end there. The stroy wasn't any good, the characters were given the time of day that I never ever asked for them to have, thus cutting down the energy to create actually interesting revenge-stories, and the enjoyment was... Well, let's just say that I still taste the piss-soaked cardboard! It was lazy, it was stupid, and that whole "town becoming crazy"- storyline was just laughably absurd, that I was just waiting, when the whole town sets itself to fire, thus sending them all to Hell all in once! Now that would've been funny... instead of drowning children in the lake!
I would have gladly skipped this season, and not miss a thing, if I would've known for the advance, what was coming to me! If I'd have to recommend this sequel to somebody... I couldn't do it, even if I'm being sented to Hell for it. It isn't any good, and if you already liked the first season, skip this and start with the third. Trust me... you don't wannt to cry blood!
Story: 3
Art: 9
Sound: 9
Character: 4
Enjoyment: 2
Overall: 4
