Reviews

Shugo Chara! Doki!! is without a doubt, far and away, one of the worst useless sequel seasons to ever exist. Credit where it's due, the Embryo arc was put on hold as is standard by this point and did need a resolution; however, the use of 51 episodes to explain a plot that could have been completed in half that amount was inexcusable. Despite the first season's ability to thrive by building on the concept of the Heart Eggs, there's a reason it only worked once. At a certain point, it feels less like an enjoyable show and more like the writers wanted to cash in on Shugo Chara's popularity by keeping the series running as long as possible, at the expense of its quality. And Shugo Chara! Doki!! truly suffered for this.

A lot of character arcs that were expected to have a payoff are either completely abandoned, dragged out for nearly the entire season, or wind up extremely underwhelming. As an example, it was hoped by many that Nagihiko would reveal his true identity as "Nadeshiko" to Amu, a payoff which never arrived, even during the season finale. Other storylines were similarly abandoned, with even the anime-exclusive Lulu having her own redemption arc pushed off for a ludicrous amount of time, to the point she appeared several times remaining fully "evil" long after her redemption began. Despite what the season would incline us to believe, character interactions are, ironically, rather sparse; there are some great moments that have a wonderful setup here, yes. But these are overshadowed by a number of exceedingly blank storylines and episodes. Even Dia, who was promised to appear with a major role after the end of the first season, only had three canon appearances.

One of the biggest flaws is that the season itself feels unnecessary; a lot of the arcs that were covered in the first season could have ended perfectly fine there, and instead, it feels that the season has run out of steam. The finale is also particularly bland which is a true shame, especially given how well the first season did despite its low quality. I'm sorry to say this, but it's a case of a great magical girl series that's worn out its welcome. Not even cute characters and some truly amazing episodes could save this season. 2/10.