Kekkai Sensen & Beyond [Review]
The second season of Kekkai Sensen
Story:
Kekkai Sensen makes a return with its colorful characters and dynamic animation. The story is a continuation of Leonardo’s life in Hellsalem, featuring a series of one episode arcs and finishing off with a 3 story arc centered around Leonardo! As entertaining as the story is and the wonderful character development that is built in these one episode arcs, it seems to be lacking a larger overall antagonist, which should be a driving force in creating a lot of tension that the show, in the beginning, is lacking.
Artwork & Animation:
Similar to the previous season, the art and animation are articulate and flashy.
Character(s):
Our whole cast gets a chance to shine with the one episode arcs, with Leonardo getting the big finale towards the end. Character development is well done with the limited amount of time each character has throughout the show. Each character’s growth is meaningful and deliberate make the showing more impactful as a whole.
Sound (OST & Voice Acting):
I only write excessively on the soundtrack when the anime is centered around music such as K on, Idol anime, BECK etc. But Kekkai Sensen & Beyond’s soundtrack is so well done in the sense that it’s almost like its own entire story. It’s an ambitious album, not only featuring a wide range of genres but also several different languages: English, Japanese, Korean to name a few. The variety and diversity of the album speak back to the setting of the anime, Hellsalem where multiple races, alien-kind and human-kind, all mingle and live together. Even though the soundtrack does feature a range of genres, the main component and most memorable is their jazz pieces that give the show it’s laid back vibe. It’s worth the time to listen to the soundtrack by itself and appreciate the work that has been put into it! In the addition of Unison Square Garden and Daoko contributing to the opening and ending theme songs, the soundtrack is good as it can get.
Enjoyment:
I enjoyed watching Kekkai Sensen & Beyond, I only wish that there was a larger antagonist, similar to what the first season showed. Season 2 lacked the drive to make the show reach it’s fullest potential but regardless I still liked it a lot!
Overall: Score
9
A great sequel to the already amazing series that is Kekkai Sensen. While the one episode story arcs are interesting and create a good amount of character development for the entire cast, Kekkai Sensen lacks a bigger antagonist to really drive the story development. Though it’s soundtrack and animation easily make up for the lack in drive!
Best Girl: Watch Michella
Michella didn’t get that much screen time in the previous season, so I’m happy that she has a bigger role in this one! Her love for her brother’s well being and the sacrifices she makes on his behalf makes for quite an emotional ride.
Honorable mention: Sumeragi Chain
I always thought that Chain was cute but her story arc…..had me hooked.
KiritoNarukami 