By the Grace of the Gods: Season 2 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

By the Grace of the Gods: Season 2 Blu-ray Movie Review

By the Grace of the Gods 2 is a charming and sweet-natured fantasy-adventure. The anime series is based on the Japanese light novel series created by Roy. The light novels were published in Japan by Shōsetsuka ni Narō. The By the Grace of the Gods novel series was also adapted into a manga (featuring writing by creator Roy). Original character designs are by Ririnra.

By the Grace of the Gods 2 features animation produced by Maho Film (A Playthrough of a Certain Dude's VRMMO Life, In the Land of Leadale). The theme music for By the Grace of the Gods 2 is performed by MindaRyn  (opening) and Azusa Tadokoro (ending). By the Grace of the Gods 2 features the voices of stars Azusa Tadokoro, Akira Ishida, Daisuke Hirakawa, Hiro Shimono, Junya Enoki, Kenichi Suzumura, Makoto Koichi, Manami Numakura, Marika Kōno, Nobuyuki Hiyama, Takuya Eguchi, Yuiko Tatsumi, and Yūki Kuwahara.

Ryoma (Azusa Tadokoro) returns for more adventures as a slime trainer hero. First living a quieter life as a man who met an unfortunate end far too early in his life, Ryoma is reincarnated as a younger boy. The boy is now living a different life and learning how to adjust to the new challenges that arise before him. Ryoma must travel and tackles a new range of challenges as his expanding journey continues.

Ryoma is running a smooth operation with his laundromat. Ryoma is using all the help he can get – the slimes helping Ryoma run his business as best he can. Even despite some business snafus, Ryoma is doing better than expected with the little round slimes working too.  

Ryoma brings joy to the lives of others around him and lives a life of a true adventurer – with Ryoma taking-on beastly creatures, training his slime friends, and entertaining his mind as a genius creator determined to excel as an innovator. The day is never over for slime-trainer Ryoma. Adventures continue.

The series finds charm through its lead character. Ryoma is a likable lead character and hero for the series. The character is someone audiences can appreciate – both for his goals and determination. Character designs by Kaho Deguchi (My Unique Skill Makes Me OP even at Level 1, In the Land of Leadale) enhance the character aesthetics – bringing the cast of characters to life. Deguchi is an impressive character designer and handles the series designs well.

The animation on By the Grace of the Gods 2 is cute and charming. The art style is serene and calming. The animation features quality art direction by Satoshi Shibata (Cutie Honey Universe, In Another World With My Smartphone) and chief animation direction by Kaho Deguchi (Cutie Honey Universe, I'm the Villainess, So I'm Taming the Final Boss). The animators did good work with the production and the artistry of the team helped to bring out the colorful aesthetic of the fantasy world.

The cinematography by Yukina Nomura (My Unique Skill Makes Me OP even at Level 1, In the Land of Leadale) also plays a notable role in the visual qualities of the production. The cinematography helps shine a light on the animation – the vibrant artistry of the world the animation team delivered. The cinematographer did something special with the series.

The score composed by Hiroaki Tsutsumi (Teasing Master Takagi-san, My Senpai Is Annoying) is a nice part of the series. The music is calm and serene and the score adds to the charming sensibility of the production. The score certainly adds to the production and its sense of wonder.

Written by Yuka Yamada (Digimon Universe: Appli Monsters, Tokyo Mew Mew New), By the Grace of the Gods 2 is a charming series. The series has a wonderful sense of magic in the characters and the joyous sensibility of the saga. Yamada does a good job with making the lead character a likable and enjoyable central protagonist.

Directed by Yūji Yanase (If It’s for My Daughter, I’d Even Defeat a Demon Lord, In the Land of Leadale). By the Grace of the Gods 2 is well-directed. The series has a nice sense of style that is calming fun. A relaxing anime series to sit-back and enjoy. A perfect sort of antidote for a rainy-day afternoon. For audiences who enjoy these types of anime series, By the Grace of the Gods 2 is well worth looking into.

By the Grace of the Gods: Season 2 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Crunchyroll, By the Grace of the Gods 2 is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The presentation is impressive and the transfer showcases the animation well. Colors are crisp and the cinematography is well highlighted on the release. The transfer capably handles the background animation and line art.

One of the strengths of the Blu-ray disc format is the superior picture-quality compared to streaming video services. Streaming video services tend to provide video quality with more compression and lower bit-rates compared to physical media counterparts. Home theater enthusiasts and videophiles seeking the best possible picture-quality will appreciate these gains –sometimes subtle but still appreciable for home theater connoisseurs seeking the best presentation available.

By the Grace of the Gods: Season 2 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options: English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround sound and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 (with English subtitles). The sound direction by Masanori Tsuchiya (Brynhildr in the Darkness, Restaurant to Another World) is well reproduced on the release. Dialogue is crisp and clear. The soundtrack is well defined and the score is a nice highlight of the presentation. The English dubbed option does benefit somewhat by having a more expansive 5.1 surround sound option but purists will still opt for the lossless 2.0 Japanese audio and be pleased with the results. The subtitles are well-done and free from egregious spelling or grammatical errors.

The lossless audio quality continues to be one of the selling points of the Blu-ray disc format. The format is championed and beloved by home theater enthusiasts and audiophiles who appreciate lossless audio quality. Streaming video services only provide lossy (non-lossless) audio quality and enthusiasts seeking the best possible presentation quality for the audio will find the superior bit-rates and encoding makes for a solid difference.

By the Grace of the Gods: Season 2 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The first print run of the release includes a nice-looking o-card slipcover. The o-card slipcover features unique key artwork that is different from the key artwork featured underneath the slipcover. The artwork highlighted underneath the slipcover is different from the slipcover art and adds to the packaging quality. Fans will appreciate the extra artwork provided with the slipcover.

On disc extras include:

Mini Anime Episodes (HD, 15:44)

Commercial (HD, 00:17)

Promo Video (HD, 2:23)

Textless Opening Song (HD, 1:32)

Textless Closing Song (HD, 1:32)

It is nice to see the inclusion of the mini anime episodes to add some extra value to the supplements on the release. Fans may enjoy the inclusion and find it does add something worthwhile the package. Yet the supplements could have still been expanded more – perhaps with audio commentaries, interviews with cast/crew, and behind-the-scenes featurettes. These sorts of inclusions certainly help to round out a release and make it more worthwhile to potential buyers.

By the Grace of the Gods: Season 2 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

By the Grace of the Gods 2 is a continuation of the first anime series. The second season finds more charming delights with Ryoma (Azusa Tadokoro) and his journey as the central protagonist. The animation is impressive and the production values are commendable. Fans of light and charming anime will certainly find something to enjoy with By the Grace of the Gods 2.

The Blu-ray release features an impressive high-definition presentation and lossless audio. The release also includes a nice o-card slipcover for the first print run. The box-set also provides a selection of mini anime episodes – something that adds a bit of extra value to the package and which may entice fans to consider a purchase. The other supplements on the release remain sparse so potential buyers may wish to consider that and weigh the pros and cons of a purchase. Recommended.