Another fantastic season of anime has come to an end with Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2. This season made us laugh, made us cry, and most of all, made us wonder if there was a way that we could make it last forever. We’ve already gone through the entire series episode by episode, and it is now time to look at it as a total package. Let’s see how it did in this review!
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2- A Brief Overview
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 was produced by Kyoto Animation as part of the Summer Anime 2021 Lineup. The series acted as the direct sequel to its 2017 original. It was directed by Tatsuya Ishihara, well-known for directing various Kyoto Animation anime such as Air and Clannad. Season 1 director Yasuhiro Takemoto also shares billing for the director after his untimely death due to the Kyoto Animation arson tragedy.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 is also known as Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon S, and Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid S. It marks the return of KyoAni to anime production after the horrifying tragedy that took place in 2019. If you want to read all our reviews by episode when they first took place, you can start here with our review of the first episode of the season.
– Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 review does not contain spoilers –
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 Review- The Plot
Season 2 of Dragon Maid had the tall task of following up the bombshell that the ending of Season 1 was. Was it able to do that? Yes, and No. It just didn’t address any of the events that happened at the end of Season 1 and moved on to bigger and better things. Normally, the story in a slice-of-life anime like Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid is either one of two types- One where the episodes don’t share any visible connection and are mostly standalone entities, and the other where one or more plot threads link all the episodes together.
While Season 1 of Dragon Maid was strictly the second type, Season 2 combined the elements of both storytelling styles. Season 1 had to be that style because of the many new characters that had to be introduced. Season 2 had the benefit of inheriting a beloved world that was already a functioning entity. That functionally meant that Season 2 couldn’t go wrong in its plot even if it tried since all the prerequisites for a fantastic slice of life were already well established.
But exactly because of the mixed nature of the show, some episodes were decidedly less interesting than the others. Specifically, the episodes like Kanna’s adventures and the Comiket Episode felt less important and noteworthy because these were the episodes dedicated to the side characters who were only tangentially linked to the main plot thread of the season. This meant that there was a definite sinusoidal wave in the qualities of episodes in Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2.
But there were still no bad episodes in Season 2 of Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, and every episode was at least good, if not great. Some highlights of the season were Episode 9, with the deciding confrontation between Elma and Tohru and the Final episode. The main threads of the season were The friction between Elma and Tohru and the parameters of Tohru and Kobayashi’s relationship, with Ilulu drifting in and out of consciousness throughout the season.
All these threads were not of the same quality, however. The Elma and Ilulu arcs were the bright spots of every episode they took place in, whereas the Kobayashi-Tohru arc just started and ended out of nowhere. Overall, the plot of Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 was great, with definite bright and dull spots spread out evenly. Every episode was at least worth watching, however, and that’s more than we can say about most other anime going.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 Review- The Characters
The characters are always a highlight in Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, and Season 2 was no different. Every character got at least some time to shine, except Fafnir for some reason. Kobayashi and Tohru tackled their relationships with each other and some others, all the while demonstrating that they truly are one of the best couples ever written for an anime. A lot has to be said about the only new character introduced in this season, Ilulu.
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I was not too fond of Ilulu when she was first unveiled, her character being one of the key factors in me rating Episode 1 the lowest I have ever given a Dragon Maid episode. However, she massively grew on me as the season progressed, and KyoAni introduced more intricacies of her character. However, her appearance seemed to have only happened because Kanna was too young for what her arc initially was, a dragon who never really lived the life of a young’un.
Shouta, Saizawa, and Kanna were all featured about the same amount of time, which was surprising. Last season, Kanna was a part of the core cast, who was relegated to side-character in Season 2. This was surprising when considering her popularity as a character but understandable once you consider that she’s a literal child who isn’t going to have many adventures most of the time. What we see of these characters was great, and Shouta really grew a lot in this season, which was nice to see.
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Elma got a boatload of development alongside Tohru as their backstories were revealed. I adored the dynamic those two shared, past and present, and all of my favourite episodes this season involved them in some form. On the other hand, Lucoa still sucks, and I can’t stand whenever she’s on my screen. I’m sorry for not liking child molesters, okay? Sue me. Overall, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 did right by most of their characters, who were the bright spots of the entire season.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 Review- Art and Music
Kyoto Animation is one of, if not the best, anime studios to have ever existed. As such, even if most people were prepared to give them a break following the tragedy that occurred, they came back swinging with Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2. Every frame this season was crafted with meticulous detail, almost better than anything KyoAni has done before. It was almost a statement of “We have come back better” that reverberated throughout this season.
A few episodes especially deserve a lot of praise, as it seemed like KyoAni went hard at animating them and made them into their masterpieces. Episode 5, where we head to the past, Episode 9 with the big fight sequence, and the Finale were all tremendously animated and a treat to the eyes. KyoAni outdid themselves with this one, and it shows.
The music in Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 was also fantastic. While the opening wasn’t as great as Fhana’s previous classic, the ending made it up for it and then some. The ending to this season was one of the best endings to any slice of life show ever, in my opinion. The background OSTs were also phenomenal, and the sound director deserves a ton of credit to make it as good as it was. A definite highlight to the package.
Verdict
Despite not being as consistent as the first season, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2 had better highs and was overall just as good, if not better, than the first season. Oh, what I would give to watch the third season right now. Oh well, you know it’s just a matter of time.
Click here to read our retrospective of Season 1!