Out of all of the past anime that has since got revived for another season years down the road, there were two that got greenlit after the same amount of time: Isekai Smartphone (which first aired in Summer 2017, then its sequel in the last season), and Masamune-kun no Revenge, which first aired all the way back in Winter 2017. The prequel presented us with the anime adaptation up to Volume 6 of the manga, and the sequel is finally here to finish where the anime left off with the remaining volumes 7 to 10. That's 6.5 years of waiting for what seems like an eternity, especially with what the "R" in Season 2 is supposed to mean. No spoiler, whatever words that you can think of that start with that letter, you're probably right or wrong, the correct word is "Return".
I remember watching the anime when I first got into seasonal anime all the way back at the start of 2017, thinking that this show would be something revolutionary. Turns out, it was one of Winter 2017's hilarious turds that benign almost the majority of its audience, thinking that mangaka Hazuki Takeoka's work is a work of art...an overblown, dramatic, work of art, it seems. That said, everybody who had an involvement in the anime, from studio Silver Link's core staff to the VAs are back reprising their roles, and this is as much as I can say that it still honours what the original season had going for it all those years ago.
It's no surprise that Masamune Makabe and his "harem" team of girls are back, though this time with the one sole purpose of ending the farce that first spanned from the main characters of Masamune himself, the Cruel Princess Aki Adagaki and her loyal and faithful servant, Yoshino Koiwai. Where we left off with the whole Snow White culture festival business in school that leads to a somewhat unsatisfying cliffhanger back in Season 1 (since the manga still has aways to go), Season 2 leads to the Paris class trip, where the new characters of the Besson siblings, younger sister Muriel and older brother Frank make their official anime appearance, as well as the main villain of the story, the fake Masamune that is Kanetsugu Gasou. The remaining chapters of Volumes 7 to 10 may be a slow burn given that Season 1 took 60% of its content, leaving the remaining 40% to Season 2, is kind of a blessing in disguise that the sequel is able to properly continue the story on a storyboarding level that doesn't feel slow nor rushed, as Masamune, Aki, Yoshino and Gasou all attempt their own plans to resolve the "Pig's Foot" issue once and for all, which can feel intense because there is Masamune's reputation at stake, and the reason why the whole "Pig's Foot" and revenge issue was there to begin with. It still is a convoluted mess of emotions and feelings whether if you have read the manga and oversaw its completion back in 2018 or have kept expectations in check until the "long-awaited" sequel came out this season.
Otherwise, if you have watched Season 1 back in the day, Season 2 is pretty much more of the same indifference, although Silver Link's animation isn't the most stellar this time with considerably weaker production values, just for the sole purpose to get the anime done with the manga's story. Likewise, Ayaka Ohashi and ChouCho reprises the OST with new songs under their belt, though Season 1 is still the better of the two seasons.
In the end, am I surprised at how Masamune-kun's Revenge turned out the way that it is, having not read the manga and awaiting any hope for the sequel instead? Probably not, it's due to mangaka Hazuki Takeoka just feeling in either one of two camps: the anime flopped so hard that sales are absymal with the negative public reception, or that somehow, through this mess, the original work has to have a resolution forced either way. However, the notion, it's safe to say that out from the mess that is this show and the original manga, the subliminal message from this "boy against girl" showdown is just a dramatic affair at best.
A misunderstanding drama for the ages, that's all I can say about Masamune-kun no Revenge.
