Originally Reviewed on Serializd
When it comes to the wide and horrible world of anime there are many shows that can be found that can catch the eye of the average viewer way more then others which could end up making the shows in question much more popular and beloved by many as a result given all of the effort that was put into making it a great product. There are plenty of other shows however that can be skimmed right on by and forgotten for how generic they look and really are at the end of the day with one example of one of these shows being Title Too Long also known as Killing Slimes. Due to the fact that the show was getting a second season four years after having its first season air I figured I would go ahead and give it a shot to see if it was really worth bringing back for a second goaround and when it came to the first season it was about as typical and generic as I wouldve expected. Sure there were some things to like about it such as the colorful cast of characters some of the jokes and more ridiculous scenarios that popped up throughout and for the show just having a generally cute vibe all around but it really wasnt anything special beyond that being just a typical Isekai show that does have its brief moments of excitement but mostly relies on a format that made it overall bland to watch from start to finish despite it still being generally good. This was probably what many other people thought about the show too back when it initially came out as it did go without any sort of second season for quite a long time but now fastforward four years after Season 1s initial release now fans of the series can finally rest easy with the arrival of that of a Season 2.
In terms of changes that were made to this season there was actually quite a bit that was added here but all of the changes that we do see here can pretty much be found in the character department. This season introduces plenty of new faces to this world that werent present in Season 1 with most of them usually appearing for only one solo episode and showing up later on in the season either as a quick gag or to just catch up on them after some time but there is one character that does end up playing a bigger role then just being a oneanddone addition and that character in question is that of Sandra. She is a plant girl or mandragora who is introduced properly in the episode promptly titled We Went Looking for a Mandragora who a lot of the witches in this world learn about and try to catch for themselves as soon as possible as apparently a mandragora can provide the proper materials needed to make valuable medicine. However before any of them could catch her she then quickly goes to Azusa the one witch who didnt try to hunt her down and decides to go on and stay with her adding yet another family member to this already gargantuan central cast of characters that we have here. From here on out she pretty much just acts like a third wheel that is added onto Falfa and Shalsha having some episodes and storylines revolving around her but mostly just being there to add some dialogue into some scenes and to provide more adorable moments for the audience to audibly say Awwwww to. As a whole she is a fine enough character and one that does have some entertaining moments here or there that make her more likable but much like with a lot of the other characters in this show she doesnt really add much to anything and is just sort of there for the sake of..... being there you know?
Which is pretty much the exact way I can summarize this entire season in a nutshell... it is just kinda there. I mean I myself wasnt really expecting anything too grand or epic to come out of this season as I already knew what I was getting into when watching the first season but when watching this season you get the feeling that there really doesnt seem to be any point to this existing whatsoever other then to just... exist. That in itself may seem like harsh criticism but that in itself is a result of what this season really is at the end of the day which is just one big ol nothing burger. The 12 episodes that we get this time around are once again just a bunch of different episodic misadventures that usually involve Azusa and whatever side character the show wants to focus on in that particular day to focus on such as with We Went to Beelzebubs House an episode where Beelzebub invites Azusa and crew to dinner they discover her house isnt exactly in proper condition decides to help her clean it up and get it more properly setup........ and thats it We Went Swimming in the Sea an episode that starts out as the typical beach episode that every anime ever gets but then the second half turns into a mission with the characters going inside of an ancient pyramid to find the leader of some kind of ancient civilization which may sound exciting but it is aaaaanything but and We Went to the Demon Kings Birthday Party an episode where it is the Demon Kings birthday Azusa goes to it she ends up staying the night and whacky shenanigans naturally ensue even if they arent quite as whacky as you would hope they can be. All of the episodes in this season are pretty much exactly like this and while some episodes are definitely more interesting or entertaining then others with there being some more interesting locations and plotlines thrown in along with maybe some action here or there there really is nothing else that you can really get from watching this that you hadnt already gotten from Season 1. Thats not to say that Im not a fan of shows with an episodic structure like this because thats not true at all but without that much proper substance to go off of this time around it just makes it feel like a show that goes in one ear and out the other which is definitely not what someone should be making a TV show to do. This makes it so that I cant really tell you what episodes were my favorite or least favorites of the whole season as they all just sort of blend in together and all work on generally the same level of quality that you kind of just end up not giving a shit.
If I had to name a few general problems that this season and show has in general though aside from those things that I did mention earlier then there are some things that I can throw out. For one thing this show has WAY too many characters. It was already bad enough when dealing with Season 1 what with each episode introducing a new face that would eventually become a new member of Azusas endlessly growing family to where it would obviously get to the point where the episodes would no longer be able to give everyone an equal amount of screentime and Season 2 is pretty much the culmination of that issue. A lot of the focus that is put on these characters is spread out so unevenly to the point where you will have characters that will get plenty of focus throughout the season and then you will have others who just feel like extras at this point despite being part of the main cast with Halkara probably getting it the worst here as she really doesnt do anything noteworthy throughout the entire season which is a shame and again further drives home this problem. Another problem that I also noticed throughout the season is that they would actually semifrequently reuse plotlines from Season 1 for episode storylines in this one too and I dont mean reusing them as in like making a similar storyline out of some kind of other element or character no I mean they use the EXACT SAME STORYLINE. There is one episode in this season called I Became Mama Yufufus Daughter which is an episode where Azusa turns into a child after eating some magical mushrooms which on its own would be a decent enough plotline despite being a tad bit generic except for the fact that this exact same storyline was done in the episode I Ate a Mushroom and Turned Into a Child from Season 1 except the main difference between the two is that the previously mentioned Mama Yufufu is involved this time around which really doesnt change up much and the finale of the season We Opened Up the Coffee Shop Again This Year as you could probably tell from the title has the exact same storyline for the most part as the finale from the first season. Now to give the show some credit I cant give it that much hate for repeating storylines like this as it is still based on a light novel so if it is just following along what happened in those previous novels then thats completely fine and its not like any of these repeated storylines are horrible or anything but at the same time when you have a show like this that has so much going on when it comes to the locations mythical creatures and worldbuilding that you have given us here there are PLENTY of potential stories you can make out of all this and yet you instead go for the most common and basic denominator again which isnt really all that exciting or interesting at the end of the day.
However with all of that being said despite all of my bitching and how I do consider this season to be weaker then that of the first season I still cant really say it is bad at the end of the day. This season doesnt really hide what it is at the end of the day just being yet another romp with these characters that you may or may not have grown to love from the first season and it works fine enough for what it is if you are one that did really like what you got from Season 1. Not to mention a lot of the general elements from the first season are still on the same level of quality too: the characters are pretty enjoyable even if they are very basic the voice acting is still solid enough for a show like this the animation is still cheap and generic but it is pleasing enough to the eyes and the more humorous bits arent necessarily too funny but I wont lie when I say they did make me chuckle or even laugh at several points throughout. Not to mention it also still has that really cute and chill vibe about it that made the first season relaxing to watch in the first place making it a nice breather to check out week by week in the middle of my incredibly busy schedule so hey if that is what this show was meant to be in the end just a breather show to check out week after week when you got nothing going on then it works perfectly fine for what it is.
Overall despite not really building on anything from Season 1 having a lack of proper focus when it comes to the gargantuan amount of characters here and with there being repeated storylines straight from Season 1 Season 2 of Killing Slimes is one that doesnt aim to impress or overshadow what came before it but instead is one that is meant to give you another simple yet charming and cute enough romp with these characters once again for those that loved them back in the original season and it works well enough for what it is giving us all of the previous elements that we have come to like along with a couple of new ones to make for a season that I will probably forget all about in like a day or two but it still managed to be a good amount of fun while it lasted. I would recommend it for those who were big fans of the original season as well as those who are big fans of these kind of more simple Isekai shows in general as while it will not do anything to really wow or amaze you it is one that you can just simply turn on and relax to while enjoying some fun little storylines with these characters at the end of the day which is probably more then enough for some people at the end of the day. Either way though now that thats all over with I assume that Season 3 will be coming out in 2029 if the time between this and the first season is anything to go by assuming we will get a Season 3 at all so I guess I will look forward to that eventually. Lets just hope that by the time that season comes out they actually get their shit together with what they have here and maybe also focus a lot less on the parenting side of things too........... seriously did you all notice how much they leaned into that stuff this time around? Not saying it was bad or anything but I dunno it all just felt a little...... off.
65
/100