I will not go into details, but the first "arc" in this season had the animation studio taking numerous liberties with the storylines, story reveal timings, characters and plotlines. Things that didn't happen in the novel happened, things that happened in the novel didn't and were completely messed up. The characters and their relationships were also hurt, weakening the character writing that was present in the 1st season (because the 1st season mostly followed the novel)
The episodes may still be seen as "decent" or even "good" for people who haven't read the light novel, maybe you think that the storylines still played out well, but knowing the potential of the story, and seeing a mediocre use of it, just feels bad. They took a perfectly cooked filet mignon, threw that in the trash, and used a frozen slab of meat instead (still has good seasoning, but it's a crazy waste).
The action feels cheaper compared to the first season, there isn't as much detail, sharpness or depth to the character moves. It feels like it uses a lot more blurring of moves/characters, the moves don't translate well into proper sword moves/stances. The action screams "budget restraints", but no clue if that's actually the reality.
I will adjust this rating based on the following episodes, but currently, I'd recommend reading the light novel and just skipping this season based on what I've seen thus far. It's a 6/10 season, you can watch it, like the bones of the source material, but I still think it will hurt your overall experience of the original story.
