ryan.euna - 2016-10-10 17:58:16

Un buen anime que respeta la estructura de la anterior temporada. Buenos personajes y curiosas referencias a otros animes o caricaturas. Eso si, la trama a veces es algo aburrida y monótona y el relleno es súper aburrido.

zhahn - 2015-01-26 00:55:56

Have you seen season 1? If not, why not start there.

TWGOK Season 1 - Review

Prologue:There are many ways to make a sequel to a successful series. Sometimes you get a series that evolves the concept of its predecessor, introduces new concepts and cranks it to 11. That would be your Zeta Gundams. Some series just ride the coattails of its predecessor and for the most part is just a rehash of season 1, for better or for worse. That would be your Bakuman. 2. Now both options are completely valid ways on making a sequel as some series really just need to be season 1 again. As that is all we want. Sometimes attempting to re-energizing a series through these new concepts can make a series even better, or potentially lose the reason why people loved the original. My charm this is Wexter, and today we are looking into TWGOK II and seeing if it rests on its laurels or evolve into something even more amazing than the original.

History:
Since not much had happened with the series or the production between seasons, the history section will be host to some interesting facts about the series I learned while researching its history. If you do not care or just want to know my opinions on the season you can skip this section. So, you hardcore TWGOK fans ready? Ok lets do this. Did you know that a number of the heroines of this series maiden name come from train stations? The Kosaka from Chihiro Kosaka comes from Kawachi-Kosaka Station. Still don’t believe me? Ayumi's last name Takahara comes from Takanohara Station, Sumire's last name Uemoto comes from Ōsaka Uehommachi Station and Kusunoki's lastname Kasuga comes from  Kasuga Station. One of the few exceptions to the maiden name rule is Minami Ikoma where her full name is in fact taken from Minami-Ikoma Station, instead of just her last name. Did you know that Shiori’s kiss scene with Keima back in season 1 was not fully shown? Yeah the kiss itself was shown in shadows, but if you look up one of the PVs for the series you will see the full kiss between the characters is shown. Elsie’s design had gone through a number of changes between the one-shot and the manga’s serialization. In the original one-shot Elsie’s design was more buxom and her outfit was more revealing. Now here is the interesting part, Elsie did not have her trademark broom in the one-shot, she had a scythe that would seems to have been re-purposed later on for the design of fellow devil Haqua. Here is a cool one, Chihiro’s arc happened in the manga earlier than Wakaki had planed. Turns out his editor was so enthusiastic about the character Wakaki decided to do her arc early. Ok here is a really obscure one, I am sure most people would not realize this unless you read Wakaki’s previous work Holy Crystal Albatross. Future heroine Tenri’s design was based on the character Pigeon who was the villain of Wakaki's first serialization. That is not the only reference to another work in Tenri’s design, when Tenri does not have her ribbons in her hair, you may notice that her hair style closely resembles that of Diana Berry from Anne of Green Gables. Funny how many nods and references to real life or other fictional works there are in The World God Only Knows.

Plot and Characters:
For those who have not read my S1 review, or for those who have not seen the first season in a while, here is a refresher. Our story follows Kemia who is an otaku of dating sims/visual novels. He was contracted by hell to capture loose souls that had escaped, and was assigned a buddy named Elsie to assist with this task. Kemia with the help of Elsie, finds these souls and Kemia must use to his knowledge of dating sims/VN to get the host to fall in love with him and by doing that expel the loose soul. If Kemia does not comply to the contract both he and Elsie shall lose their heads. Got all that? Good!

TWGOK II, does not really do much to change that premise. That is both a pro and a con, as the series does not really evolve and for those expecting that next big step may come out of this season disappointed. Though the comedy of Keima applying the knowledge of dating sims to real girls is still just as funny as it was in season 1. On the bright side the series still feels right and adds new ideas to the mix, such as the longer it takes for Keima and Elsie to expel that loose soul, the deeper that girl falls into depression, the more powerful that soul will be when it gets out. Unfortunately the formula is getting a bit stale, still fun, just not quite as fresh as it used to be.

Keima is still just as great of a character as he was in season 1, he goes through some great development in this season as well. In season 1, Kemia can sometimes come-off as insensitive to the feelings of those girls he is attempting to conquer and treat it too much like a game. In season 2 we noticeably see Kemia get more attached to the girls and see him being more sensitive to their feelings. Kemia is showing signs that he is warming up to the real world, escaping from his NEET and cynical life style. Elsie goes through some development here as well, as we see her paired up against Haqua (a new devil introduced this season) and we get to see her own insecurities shine through thanks to that. She wants to be acknowledged for her work and show she is not a failure. This is a nice continuation of the development path she had in S1, where she wanted Keima to acknowledge her as his sister.

TWGOK II, also fixes some of the problems it had in season 1 when comes to the supporting cast. Seasons 1’s biggest problem was that after a girl was introduced and had her arc wrapped up, she was gone. In season 2 we get introduced to a new recurring character named Haqua. Haqua is a fun new character, she is brash, well educated and confident. This is a nice contrast to Elsie as we get to see the two of them interact like a pair of sisters. Haqua being the elder sister and Elsie being like the younger one. Though Haqua is not just a one note tsundere, as we see that her overconfidence has made her not too efficient at her job and seeing Elsie succeed where she has failed is a blow to her ego. It is nice to see the two characters develop together over the season. We also see some characters return from season 1 and they get more of the spotlight. Ayumi returns and she plays a good supporting character in one of the new arcs this season. That and Chihiro, graduates from a one note background character to a full blown heroine this season. She plays the “normal girl” archetype well and her arc is the best of the season, as her interactions with Kemia are adorable and really well done. Overall a much better usage of characters this season over its predecessor. 

Music and Sound Design:
The sound design this season is at the exact same quality as it was last season, no real notable improvements here. Hayato Matsuo returns to compose for this series. Even though this season reuses a number of tracks from S1 we do get some new compositions this season. The tracks sound a bit more somber this season, which I think really works well. I do wish we had a more original songs made for this season, but the new tracks we got are not bad and are really good. The opening theme does not standout as well as in did in S1. “A Whole New World God Only Knows” performed by Oratorio The World God Only Knows, is a fine track, I just personally did not enjoy it as much as the original seasons opening, unfortunately. Strangely enough I did enjoy the ending theme “Ai no Yokan" a lot more than last seasons ending theme. Just like last season the ending theme is sung by the main heroines, plus this time with the VA for Haqua and Elise.

The Opening Theme - “A Whole New World God Only Knows” Performed by Oratorio The World God Only Knows

OST Track - Koi ~ Kuchizuke Made no Kyori II

Sub vs. Dub:
Chris Patton and Luci Christian return for their roles from S1 and they are noticeably more comfortable in them. Chris is getting to the point that he can give Hiro Shimono a run for his money as Keima. Lucy is also I would say on par with Kanae Itou performance as Elsie. The casting by Sentai was also much stronger this season, by recasting most of the characters returning from season 1. (For a sample of the complete changes, check out this video.) Jessica Boone does a great job as Haqua, bringing both a similar take of the character as Saori Hayami (the Japanese voice of Haqua), but also bringing her own sense of energy to the role. The dubs directing is still a little weird, not quite on par with the original Japanese, but they are getting close and the dub is a perfectly valid alternative now. I still prefer the Japanese dub, though for people who like to partake exclusively in English dubs will notice the improvement.

Art Design and Animation:
The animation for TWGOK II is very well done… again. I would like to note while the series is very colorful and vibrate, season 2 is slightly better with its lighting. One arc in particular is very muted till the very end of that arc where Keima kisses that arcs heroine and the brightness returns to the world. A nice touch to help visually show how that character feels, and this series overall has a much more effective use of lighting then last season. Akio Watanabe once again gives some great character designs and there are some nice touches like Chihiro’s eyes now looking like more of a traditional anime heroine, over just that of a background character (thin pupils vs. enlarged pupils). This season is once again filled with little nods and references to game companies, visual novels and other anime in general. Just as great animation and visual design wise this season as it was last season, if not a bit better.

Epilogue:
Overall the second outing of this series is just as good as the original, this season even improves upon certain aspects of the series as a whole. Though the concept and formula is getting a bit repetitive as unfortunately the series only flirts with the idea of making the next big step and does not do enough for it to not only be just remembered as a good second season. The question now is if TWGOK will remain in that comfort zone or if it will leave it and give us something really special?

Maybe a little OVA might just be the shot in the arm, this series needs. We will have to find out next time.  

Pros
+ A Fun Parody of the Harem Genre
+ Likable Characters
+ A Fantastic OST
+ Vibrant Visuals, with improved Lighting Techniques
+ A Great Japanese Dub
+ An Very Improved English Dub
+ MC Owns the Series
+ Great cast of Recurring Characters

Cons
- A Safe Sequel
- Reuses a Noticeable Amount of Tracks from S1
- If You Have Never Played a VN You Might Not be in on The Joke
- Flirts with Change, but Does Not Commit

Where can I watch or purchase The World God Only Knows II?
- You can purchase the series over on Amazon or Rightstuff
Can I legally stream it anywhere?
- Yes you can find it on Crunchyroll for free legal streams.

For those who enjoyed The World God Only Knows check out either
- Kaichou wa Maid-Sama (2010, J.C. Staff)

- Amagami SS (2010, AIC)

myrtle01 - 2013-03-15 08:28:53

The World God Only Knows tells of the wacky adventures of Keima Katsurai, a kid who literally does almost nothing with his free time but play dating sims. Because he's so good as dating sims, he refers to himself as the “Capture God,” claiming that he can beat any gal game imaginable. Elsea, a demon from hell, mistakenly thinks that the specialty of the Capture God is to seduce real women, and enlists his help to retrieve lost souls; demons that hide in the hearts of women, and can only be retrieved by filling the emptiness in the woman's heart. Keima never actually *wants* to help retrieve the lost souls, but is forced to due to a contract that he has signed; if does not oblige to the contract, he dies.This all gives an interesting twist to the “Monster of the Week” dynamic, in that instead of having the main character fight monsters every week, the series has him seduce women.There's a nice mix of drama and comedy; most of the drama and serious aspects come from the emotional issues that the love interests face–whereas most of the comedy comes from the wacky personalities of Keima and Elsee. The transitions from dramatic to comedic scenes can be abrupt, but most of the time it doesn't feel too forced.During a comedic scene, the characters (particularly Keima and Elsee) often switch to a much more cartoony art style, which helps to add comedic affect. There's also a lot of shout outs to various media, which will probably warrant a chuckle or two if you manage to understand any of the references.The two protoganists of Keima and Elsee, although actually quite likable, come off as a bit one-dimensional. Keima is a genius boy wonder who considers reality “a shitty game,” and Elsee is an adorable demon who screws-up at everything…and there's not really much else to these characters, as there is barely any character development throughout the series. This is justifiable in that the anime only covers the first 40 chapters of the manga, which as of this writing is an ongoing series with 174 chapters released. So when watching this 24 episode series, think of it as the beginning of a larger story than it's own standalone thing.The level of enjoyment watching this sort of depends on how willing you are to suspend disbelief to the fact that Keima uses his knowledge to win the heart of a woman not once, but multiple times. The fact alone that Keima uses his knowledge of dating sims to win the heart of women will probably come as a little implausible. Nonetheless, it's interesting to see how Keima strategize, and to see *how* he uses his knowledge of gal games.With each story-arc by itself, each of the heroine's love for Keima doesn't really feel forced or unnatural–especially when you consider that these are women who have their emotional weaknesses amplified by an infesting demon. Each love interest is quite likable, and goes through a fair amount of character development; its somewhat remarkable considering that none of these characters get more than three episodes of screen time.Overall The World God Only Knows is a fun and enjoyable series, albeit one that might challenge your suspension of disbelief depending on how you look at it (although only a little.) It has a nice blend of drama and comedy, and manages to make good use of its premise. If you like romance-centered cartoons, you'll probably like this.