ReviewBonfire

Princess Connect! Re: Drive Second Season

The first season impressed me with its gentle and amusing nature. This is exactly how I want to see a slice-of-life comedy. And the second season did not disappoint me. In fact, the animations have gotten EVEN better and more dynamic. The humor and characters remained the same and in general, this was a very enjoyable experience.... well at least until episode 7. Then everything went downhill.

The animations became almost average, the pacing died and there was no atmosphere at all. It was a rushed final battle with no real build-up nor climax. These last 3 episodes have actually been so boring and sluggish, that I felt the need to skip them. And this in an anime where I rewound several times and watched some scenes twice because they either made me grin or I simply wanted to admire the fascinating animation.

And as I expected, there probably won't be a third season and thus the anime adaptation ends with more of a closed ending. Of course, that means for viewers, if they want to know the story, they'll have to use Wikipedia or play the game. I personally won't be doing either of those.

The concept of the world was fine, it was just average. No world-building but a lot of scattered puzzle pieces about the "False Truth" of this world, allowing you to slowly build up certain theses. I personally liked it, as it reminded me of a mix between Genshin Impact, KonoSuba, and additionally Kingdom Hearts.

[Characters 4]

While the first season had significantly more focus on presenting characters (even if it was mostly comedy-based) the second season had more noticeable weaknesses (especially towards the end). In the last episode, you even got to see more new characters you didn't know. Honestly, who cares about a character that shows up in the final fight to secure the first 20 seconds of screentime?`

The rest of the characters were carried by their charisma and chemistry with each other. It was really relaxing to follow their daily lives, which were filled with so much silliness and wit. In particular, Pecorine was practically a female Tanjirou and thus the defined sunshine of the show.

But most of the secondary characters also possessed one or another amusing trait that made them a bit more individual. In the game, you might see more, in the show, most of them came up way too short.

[Animations 7 / Music 7]

I would have given the animations an even 10/10 had it not been for the last 4 episodes. There the animation became weaker and weaker and finally almost average. Thereby it was until episode 6 still absolute top dog.

The intro is the same as in the first season, I like that they wanted to keep it. The outro is average, but still fits the style of the series, like the outro of the first season.

And you again the problem with the Osts. Everything was perfect until the last episodes. There the Osts were used so bizarrely and incoherently, that it already seemed like a parody. Opponent attacks (Dynamic Endgame music) Opponent talks shortly after (music stops) Opponent attacks again (again the same music from new) stops again. And so it went for 1.5 episodes and then it improved a bit.

[Conclusion 4]

It breaks my heart, but I expected that. Even though I find the basic idea decent and interesting, the story has only ever been conveyed to the viewer in an average way. And the finale was no exception. The strengths of the series were all based on animation, character, humor, and relationship. And in the end, all of that was robbed. What was left were clichés, stereo-type villain dialogues, and more clichés.

It's still enjoyable to watch, though. However, if you want to spare yourself the stupid ending, don't watch it after episode 8, it's not worth it.

[Enjoyment 5]