KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World!: The Complete Second Season & OVA Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World!: The Complete Second Season & OVA Blu-ray Movie Review

The series returns with a second-season of RPG adventure.

Konosuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! Season 2 continues the adventures of the characters fans came to know and love in the first season of the hit anime series. The second season continues to explore the role-playing game alongside a fantasy-adventure backdrop with plenty of action and surprises in store for fans. From producer Rie Ogura (Konosuba!: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! - Legend of Crimson, Strike Witches: The Movie), Konosuba: Season 2 features even more fan-service and RPG mad-cap fun.

The journey isn’t over yet for Kazuma Sato (Jun Fukushima). After defeating the evil Destroyer, Kazuma finds himself in over his head with a new situation he never counted on experiencing: he is now in an enormous pickle (figure-of-speech) as he is now in jail, forced to take a lie- detector test, and even humiliated in front of a vile court of (public-opinion) menaces. Where are his friends?

No one is prepared to fight for Kazuma and he is left to die. (Until he isn’t.) Rock bottom isn’t the end for the adventurer and his old friends will re-join him on a new mission against the Devil King. Can the cute blue-haired Aqua (Sora Amamiya) help to save the day? Quirky heroine Darkness (Ai Kayano) joins the thirteen year-old Megumin (Rie Takahashi) on a bigger quest that will test the strength of all of these heroes. Yikes!

The animation on Konosuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! Season 2 is one of the strengths of the series. Konosuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! Season 2 is an impressive looking anime production. The series has excellent art direction from Masakazu Miyake (Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku o! Kono Subarashii Choker ni Shukufuku o!, The Helpful Fox Senko-san). The art style impresses in spades and makes the series more engaging to experience. There are wonderful idiosyncratic elements to the RPG video-game world. The characters have unique designs as well. Each character on the program fits a specific role within the framework of the story. The character designer did an excellent job.

"Ask for a do-over."

The series editing is one of the elements which could have been a little bit better on the whole. The series jumps around quickly at times with its sense of comedic timing and the style can feel a little sporadic at times. Even so, editor Kashiko Kimura (Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, Okko's Inn) has understood the assignment on the whole, so the effort fits the program nonetheless.

The original television score composed by Masato Kôda (Maria the Virgin Witch, Radiant) isn’t one of the better anime scores. The music is a bit standard and doesn’t make much of a distinct impression. There simply isn’t a great sense of originality on display with the compositions. The music stands as background music which is about on par with an average-quality RPG (not something in the upper echelons). Most audiences will consider it serviceable (even if it could have been a little better).

The screenwriting duties are handled by Natsume Akatsuki (Kemono Michi: Rise Up, Isekai Quartet). As the primary screenwriter behind the production, the second season builds on the foundation of season one and delivers more of the same formula which fans of the series have come to expect. The anime has an interesting concept revolving around the world of RPG’s and online video-gaming. Yet the series isn’t one with the most original concept or execution. The formula is fairly common in anime and seems to fit several check-boxes. Nonetheless, Konosuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! Season 2 offers fans exactly what they are looking for – goofy characters and action-packed role-playing fantasy.

Director Takaomi Kanasaki (Tokyo Ravens, Is This a Zombie?) remembers to bring fans of the series the same formula that audiences have come to expect from Konosuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! The second season of the series unfolds with more shenanigans that pulls viewers into the dramatic world of the game. The directing remains focused on comedy, fan-service, and action. Discerning audiences might feel as though the series leaves a little something to be desired. It’s a reasonably engaging series for fans of the genre nonetheless.

KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World!: The Complete Second Season & OVA Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from distributor Discotek Media, Konosuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! Season 2 is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The series has an outstanding high- definition presentation. The series exudes wonderful color reproduction. The presentation has an excellent encode by Discotek Media.

The release preserves line art and detail nicely. The release showcases a bright and vibrant image which is a nice fit for the RPG setting of the anime series. The encoding simply works overall and there are no major issues with regards to macroblocking or banding. Konosuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! looks great and Discotek Media continues to be a great distributor for anime.

KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World!: The Complete Second Season & OVA Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The second season of Konosuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! includes two lossless audio tracks. Both options are provided in 16 bit depth. The audio is available in English and Japanese uncompressed PCM 2.0 stereo (with English subtitles). The presentation is a strong one with a wonderful sense of depth, clarity, and imaging. The LFE is a little light but it is not a significant complaint. The release simply isn't as bass-heavy as some productions. The dialogue is crisp, invigorating, and engaging. Clear and concise. A good audio presentation.

KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World!: The Complete Second Season & OVA Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Title-free Opening (HD, 1:31)

Title-free Ending (HD, 1:31)

Full-length Next Episode Preview (HD, 4:40)

Promos (HD, 5:21)

Sponsor Screens (HD, 3:29)

TV Commercials (HD, 00:48)

KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World!: The Complete Second Season & OVA Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Konosuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! Season 2 continues to provide fans of the series with more role-playing-game fun. The second season explores the same formula established in the first season of the series. The anime checks a lot of teen-boy fantasy check-boxes (becoming a hero / surrounded by beautiful women / exploring distant lands, etc.) Fans of silly Shonen anime with fan-service will find this something worthwhile (even if it is not the best anime out there). Worth checking out.