Squid Girl 2
侵略!?イカ娘The nefarious Squid Girl is back to continue her self-appointed mission to invade the surface world. Or that's what she would do, if she could just stop getting distracted by squidding movies, reading squidly manga, and making friends as only a squid could make them. Squid Girl must overcome not only danger found at every turn, but her own squidly good nature as well. (Source: ANN)
Reviews
jstrosin - 2013-07-08 06:23:17
I'll come right out and say it; I enjoyed the first season of Ika Musume very much. But I'll try my best to stay fair throughout this review. Ika Musume season 2,like the previous season, provides 2 short stories/situations for each episodes. The show did a pretty damn good job at keeping each episode fresh with a different topic. Being limited to the beach, it's surprising how they can keep up with new things. Despite the fact that the setting was something that was prone to become boring quickly, Ika Musume season 2 pulled it off nicely. (well, so far.) I have to admit that the overall story is repetitive (Ika musume mistakes something for something, learns that it's actually something, while sanae stalking her blahblahblah) But in a way it is what strengthens character attachments. But I'll be honest, there's nothing to "wow" about. It stays in the borderline of plain and exciting. Now I'm not sure if the show was aiming for children, but the thing I appreciate about Ika musume is its absence of sexual content. I'm a bit tired of seeing ass shots every 5 minutes, so Ika Musume gave me a bit of a break from that. On a side note, the mini ika "series" were a bit of a pain to watch. It's just too sudden and forcefully cute. You want my true opinion? 10/10 because it gave me an excuse to watch more of Ika Musume.(Story: 8/10)There's not much to say about the art except that it adapted to the manga extremely well. Not the best, but not the worst either. For the animation, it's easy to notice that some parts weren't made with effort. But really, I can't complain. I honestly don't think the art should be the focus point of a comical show. (although it should be addressed if it's goddamn horrible or godly) If you have a phobia of choppy animations, this is the part where you let out a sigh of relief. (Art 7/10)Same goes with sound. I didn't find anything particularly amazing. It'd say its mediocre to a point that its almost unnoticeable. Nothing catchy but nothing horrible to rape my ears. The opening music was a bit of a disappointment, but the ending music compensated for it. Overall, nothing special to point out here.(sound 6/10)Characters are the shining point of this show. Already with the fact that Ika Musume is a unique character (well for me at least), the characters tend to stay distinct. There is always something else that can be described of the characters rather than just bluntly "nice" or "cute". I'd say that Ika Musume's ignorance of the surface world is portrayed very gently. I'm glad that Ika Musume's idiocy wasn't shown like those cliche air-heads supposedly aimed to be "moe". With a more realistic tone, Ika Musume does what any normal person would do with curiosity; go out and search for an answer. Her independence keeps the show fresh and entertaining. The way her knowledge piles up is pretty interesting as well. Indirect experience that gives you a feeling of progress I should say. But really, it's a personal opinion and I would appreciated if you wouldn't point fingers at me after watching it lol.(Character 8/10)(Enjoyment 9/10)Overall, it's safe to say that Ika Musume season 2 is much like its previous season, except the fact that the stories are new and fresh. Which comes to a conclusion that you'll have a hard time watching this show if you dislike its setting and characters (well I guess that goes for every anime lol) Don't be afraid to point out statements that you disagree with. And stay skeptical readers, this is my own bias opinion.
jo98 - 2013-06-29 02:36:39
The invader returns for a second season. What I'd call a surprise hit from late 2010 was not going to go unnoticed this time around, it had a lot to squid up to. If you've seen season one (which I'm assuming you have), season 2 is exactly the same. There is absolutely no plot outside of Ika Musume came from the sea to invade the Earth for polluting the ocean and is now working at a beach shack. All the characters from last time are back too, and pretty much the same. Eiko still has a tsundere relationship with Ika Musume, Chizuru is still scary, Sanae is still in love with her, Nagisa is still scared, Cyndi and the three stooges still want to run experiments, etc. Kiyomi also returns with some side characters, who get no development, but are there to show Ika Musume made friends. Like S1 there are some Mini-Ika segments too. While they are kawaii to the core, they do feel kinda out of place. As far as quality of the episodes (each one has about 2-3 mini parts like in S1) there are a few that are better than the ones in S1, but in my opinion, a lot of them missed the mark. Don't get me wrong, they are still enjoyable, and funny, but they just aren't as funny for some reason. It's really one of those things you can't judge unless you've seen both.While I normally don't go into the music, I do have complaints about the OP. It's just so... un Ika Musume like. The original OP was great, it was about invasion and really fit the show. This time around it's just... nice. The ED is pretty good though, like last time it's basically Ika (this time walking) and a stillish scene, but that changes based on what happened in an episode.Overall I'd say Ika Musume S2 is an enjoyable anime that will keep a smile on your face, but failed to meet the charm that S1 delivered.