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EP. REVIEW: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? II


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pip25



Joined: 22 Sep 2017
Posts: 145
PostPosted: Sun Sep 29, 2019 6:20 pm Reply with quote
In Soviet Russia, the girls pick you up! (Not necessarily in a dungeon!)

Quite honestly, for me as an anime-only viewer, this season (while not horrible) was a step down from the first. I have no idea how much they skipped from the source material in the initial season, but the events were varied and the plot felt like it was going somewhere: Bell became a real adventurer, earner the respect of some people, the admiration of others and became the leader of his own party.
If you look at the second season, I guess the main development would be the Hestia familia becoming a (more) significant player in Orario, and Bell coping with the increased responsibility that comes with the fact that it's no longer just him and Hestia anymore. That is something, I suppose, but not nearly as much of a development as the first season was, especially considering how some characters, like Welf, were mostly ignored this season (due to screentime constraints if I understand correctly).

As far as events go, the second season was frustratingly repetitive. It started with a god wanting to have Bell for himself... and continued with another god wanting to have Bell for herself. And then it was pretty much over. Sure, the second arc also featured a damsel in distress, but the "there's this really strong familia who can get away with anything and Bell's team doesn't stand a chance" plot device got really old really quickly. It does not help matters that the second arc was basically solved thanks to a literal deus ex machina by Freya. Sure, Bell also did his part, and he received a lot of help in the past already - but it was never as painfully blatant as this. It is worth comparing the two "I want Bell for myself" arcs' resolutions, actually; with Apollo, Bell's victory felt a lot more earned and meaningful (even though he got plenty of help there as well), on the other hand, while his rescuing of Haruhime had its moments, the whole other half of the plot with Ishtar was just hopelessly dull.

Perhaps this would have been a case when the adaptation would have benefited from diverging a bit more from the source material. I understand that both arcs had some long term effects on the story, so they can't be skipped altogether, but couldn't the Haruhime arc be at least postponed, ideally into the next season? Or if not, perhaps they could've at least put some of these skipped Ares stories between the two, for a bit of variety. Or you know, some other story that, for some reason, takes place in the dungeon? Smile
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Key
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Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18135
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Sun Sep 29, 2019 7:55 pm Reply with quote
pip25 wrote:
Perhaps this would have been a case when the adaptation would have benefited from diverging a bit more from the source material. I understand that both arcs had some long term effects on the story, so they can't be skipped altogether, but couldn't the Haruhime arc be at least postponed, ideally into the next season? Or if not, perhaps they could've at least put some of these skipped Ares stories between the two, for a bit of variety. Or you know, some other story that, for some reason, takes place in the dungeon? Smile

Nope, because the Ares stories specifically happen after the Haruhime/Ishtar arc, and some things which happened in that arc affect those stories. Any switch in order would have royally mucked up the timeline.

Also, while I'll agree that this season cover arguably the weakest part of the overall series, it wasn't as repetitive as what you claim. The Apollo affair was very much about Hestia Familia becoming a true familia rather than just a one-man show, while the second arc was about two things: Bell getting caught in the middle of a bigger conflict (Ishtar only wanted Bell to get Freya's goat, not for Bell himself) and how Haruhime could rattle his ideals. Rather completely different focuses.

They also couldn't switch things around because the next three volumes form a single intact story arc. And you'll be pleased to know that the arc in some respects goes in an entirely different direction.
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jr240483



Joined: 24 Dec 2005
Posts: 4369
Location: New York City,New York,USA
PostPosted: Mon Sep 30, 2019 6:46 am Reply with quote
Key wrote:
^
So was that all announced in conjunction with the final episode, or before it?

Either way it's fantastic news, though nowhere near as unexpected as one Youtuber who was talking about it was describing. The mobile games has been successful, there's been a movie, and there's plenty more story to animate, so this is definitely a "strike while the iron is hot" situation. The four year delay before Season 2 probably happened because not a lot was expected of the franchise at first.

The final scene of episode 12 made it clear that the next season is going to cover novels 9-11. Hopefully the OVA will pick up one or more of the vignettes from volume 8 that were skipped over. (EDIT: Looks like it won't and it's going to be another original fan service fest instead.)

As for episode 12 itself, I'd rank it with episodes 8 and 13 of the first series as one of the franchise's best. I was impressed by the emotional impact it pulled and the way it both carefully set up that situation and linked it to Bell's own relationship with his goddess. We never see much of gods actually being godly in this franchise - we just have to take it for granted that they are - so Hestia's handling of the situation with Karm was a wonderful touch, and her words to Bell afterwards show the caring and sincerity she can be capable of when she's not being smothering. They even fit in the business about the Black Dragon scales, too, and the contrast between the reverence the villagers show and the disgust that Aiz shows. Really, I can't think of anything I'd change about how this story was handled.


which is why the sword oratoria is there since its further goes into detail on why she have a disgust for that one eye black dragon and all monsters in general!

it definitely was the main hint of what the outcome will be in the xenos arc after all. hopefully it wont end the clear shipping that everyone including the author is hoping for will happen!
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Covnam



Joined: 31 May 2005
Posts: 3627
PostPosted: Wed Oct 02, 2019 2:08 am Reply with quote
Definitely an excellent final episode. Also great to see we're getting season 3 in such a short time too. I wonder if we'll ever get more Sword Oratoria? Maybe in-between season 3 and hopefully season 4? Either way, hopefully Danmachi continues it's success =D

Quote:
Hestia tells Bell that human souls are purified when they return to Heaven, losing all of their memories before reincarnating back in the lower realm again


I was suprised to hear this while watching considering spoiler[the ending of Arrow of the Orion]. Omori wrote the script, so I wonder where the discrepancy is spoiler[as Bell sure seemed to remember Artemis roughly 10,000 years later. Though I forget if he had lived other lives too (and presumably that would cause even more issues)]. Is that not an absolute rule, or did he just forget for the script (perhaps intentionally?) or something else?...

pip25 wrote:
That's an extremely relativistic approach. If the morality of one's decisions would be based on their own outlook, a lot of real-world murders and other deranged acts could not be regarded as evil since the perpetrators themselves did not regard their actions as such. Even if one does not agree with there being some sort of universal/divine standard to morality, the views of the society in which the act took place should be considered, or, in the case of fictional works, the society of the intended audience. I think by both Orario's and Japan's standards, some of what Freya did was rather evil.


Wrong and evil are not the same thing. Regardless, that would not make her an "evil" goddess.

Punch Drunk Marc wrote:
Where I currently am in the novels, the incident in the Pleasure Quarter/Red Light District happened roughly a month ago, so the area is still being rebuilt.


Thanks for the info =)


Last edited by Covnam on Wed Oct 02, 2019 2:30 pm; edited 1 time in total
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GhostD



Joined: 07 May 2016
Posts: 998
PostPosted: Wed Oct 02, 2019 8:23 am Reply with quote
Covnam wrote:
Definitely an excellent final episode. Also great to see we're getting season 3 in such a short time too. I wonder if we'll ever get more Sword Oratoria? Maybe in-between season 3 and hopefully season 4? Either way, hopefully Danmachi continues it's success =D

Quote:
Hestia tells Bell that human souls are purified when they return to Heaven, losing all of their memories before reincarnating back in the lower realm again


I was suprised to hear this while watching considering spoiler[the ending of Arrow of the Orion]. Omori wrote the script, so I wonder where the discrepancy is spoiler[as Bell sure seemed to remember Athena roughly 10,000 years later. Though I forget if he had lived other lives too (and presumably that would cause even more issues)]. Is that not an absolute rule, or did he just forget for the script (perhaps intentionally?) or something else?...


Just because Omori wrote the script doesnt necessarily mean that its canon and nothing in the LN suggests Bell has lived other lives. At least not yet anyway. And its Artemis not Athena
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Covnam



Joined: 31 May 2005
Posts: 3627
PostPosted: Wed Oct 02, 2019 2:33 pm Reply with quote
GhostD wrote:

Just because Omori wrote the script doesnt necessarily mean that its canon and nothing in the LN suggests Bell has lived other lives. At least not yet anyway. And its Artemis not Athena


True, but if it's by the original author, I'd presume it to be canon unless stated otherwise.

Well, I wouldn't expect the LNs to talk about Bell's future lives (spoiler[which may be relevant 10,000 years later]) and his past lives wouldn't really matter either unless it became a specific plot point. Though this could also be his first life.

Thanks for the correction, got my goddesses mixed up :p
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Nordhmmer



Joined: 11 Feb 2017
Posts: 1028
PostPosted: Wed Oct 02, 2019 4:53 pm Reply with quote
Covnam wrote:
GhostD wrote:

Just because Omori wrote the script doesnt necessarily mean that its canon and nothing in the LN suggests Bell has lived other lives. At least not yet anyway. And its Artemis not Athena


True, but if it's by the original author, I'd presume it to be canon unless stated otherwise.

Well, I wouldn't expect the LNs to talk about Bell's future lives (spoiler[which may be relevant 10,000 years later]) and his past lives wouldn't really matter either unless it became a specific plot point. Though this could also be his first life.

Thanks for the correction, got my goddesses mixed up :p


The movie is not canon nor is the game that the movie's story ties into.
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