Before I being I’d like to thank Richard Eisenbeis from Anime-Now for his wonderful interview (What BBK/BRNK is Really About) with the director, Komatsuda. I believe that reading his interview will also help those who plan to watch season two grasp a deeper and better understanding of Bubuki Buranki's narrative.
Perhaps the most noticeable change is that production value seemed to have increased.
While not particularity special, considering most studios try to improve quality of their work, this was actually a nice change of pace. With season one the characters walking animations, body reaction and facial reactions appeared very robotic. This time I noticed that they improved it to the point where there are more “human-like” characteristics. There were times where I could see “robotic” like movements because CGI and all, but so far it seems that the animators have a better understanding of how to give their characters realistic movements.
A majority of the cities and other populated areas felt complete, despite lacking life and background activities. At most you'd see a handful of people that aren't main and supporting characters walking around however, they have a limited amount of interaction. Once you see it, it's actually kind of funny. This lack of activity coupled with not so interesting dialogue from the characters ruin a majority of the beautiful scenes that the show has to offers. Honestly, it comes off as a waste of money.
Finally, as far as the art and animation goes, CGI is still a work in progress. There are too many scenes that look sloppy and incomplete. Of course these minor problems can be fix via Blu-Ray however, a first impression is always important... not to mention that the sales for CGI based anime aren't that great.
Moving on to the story, in season two character developments & growth appeared to be the main focus. Backstories and new developments in the plot were gradually revealed however, they didn’t seem prominent enough or featured as much throughout the story. One of the things I had been looking forward to in season 2 was an in-depth look and better explanation about who these characters are via backstories. I was just a little disappointed with the information given. (I’m trying to keep information minimal because spoilers.)
The story tends to lack engagement, action, and intensity. Not to mention that the dialogue between characters feels dull. No matter what's happening in the story, the action doesn't seem to capture my attention. A huge battle could occur, and the lack of intensity or poor choice in adding comedic moments ruin particular scenes. Comic relief wasn't even a strong-point for the title. Overall the story is painfully weak and unimpressive.
The Sound department wasn’t impressive either. The music composed for the series didn't leave much of an impact during the duration of the show. No particular songs stand out during battles or scenes of emotions. The sound effects for settings are lackluster. Often times it appeared as if the staff didn't even put sound effects or background noise in certain scenes. This poor choice in direction makes scenes feel bland and boring. The voice actors were pretty good. Never really had any complaints.
Characters feel the same as last season; albeit with minor changes to personality due to development. Of course these aren't permanent changes that effect a characters behavior & action because they go right back to acting the same way they used to.
My enjoyment for this season.. I was highly disappointed. I want to say that this series felt rushed. In fact, I'm going to assume that! With the lack of interactive environments, interesting narrative, and personality in the characters. This season just seemed to be a waste of time.
Overall you can skip Bubuki Buranki: Hoshi no Kyojin. The only major difference in the series is quality, everything else just falls flat. I gave this show a rating of 5 because it could've been much better in the story department. The characters could've been less one dimensional, and finally there is just too much wasted potential of the series. It was an interesting concept but a failure overall.
