Shadows House 2nd Season

There is little doubt in my mind that Shadows House continues to be one of the more unique and stylistically sound series in the anime medium these days. The gothic and victorian setting, mixed with dark mystery and rather light hearted comedy is quite the balance, and it just works very well. Now, don’t tell me that you weren’t worried for how this season was going to play out after those rather sub-par last three episodes of Season 1. Knowing what CloverWorks did for Yakusoku no Neverland Season 2, we know their track record when it comes to deviating from the source material, but luckily, itseems we got back on track, and Shadows House is once again receiving the adaptation it deserves. While this isn’t your popular high-budget title, it made the most of what it had to create a rather captivating show nonetheless. My grading criteria: Story: /25 Art: /10 Music: /10 Characters: /20 Enjoyment /15 Thematic Execution /20 STORY: 18/25 Big improvement from Season 1 in terms of the writing. The mystery elements are handled well, and there are good plot twists as well. Some new plot points were introduced which were very interesting, such as some more finer details about the scorches, soot sickness, some backstories about the past of the children’s wing, and we get to know more about the living doll and shadow relationship. It’s a well done story that ties up most of its mysteries neatly like a package, and it makes sense as well. With mysteries, explanations and exposition are key, and most, if not all the mysteries and backstories were handled quite well, and had decent depth to them to make it quite the engaging watch. It’s also not very difficult to understand, which is good, because many mysteries fall into the trap of thinking the more difficult it is to guess the outcome, the better. This show isn’t very ambitious with its mystery, and that’s fine, because the journey was an engaging one, and that’s all that matters. ART: 8/10 The animation is well done, the scary scenes are done well, and the colours are good. The budget doesn’t seem very large, but what we got here was sufficient. MUSIC: 8.7/10 It was always going to be a tough task to top ReoNa’s incredibly catchy ending, “Nai Nai” from Season 1, and while this season’s opening and ending weren’t as catchy as that, it still captured the atmosphere quite right. The soundtrack itself isn’t all too impressive on its own, but it still works wonders for the show’s atmosphere nonetheless. CHARACTERS: 15/20 The characters had more depth and development this season, and that’s great to see. Kate remains a joy to watch, as she used her intelligence well, and had a lot of tricks up her sleeve to ensure that she would survive in the shadows house. Emilico is also such a wholesome, happy character, and very curious about things as well. They say “curiosity killed the cat”, but sometimes, it’s because of her curiosity that people are saved. John continues to be excellent comic relief as well. However, the side characters also had a large role in this season, and they were arguably the more compelling characters from this season. ENJOYMENT: 12.3/15 Really had a good time with this season, as it was just so much more compelling overall. THEMATIC EXECUTION: 16.2/20 Another thing I have to praise is how thematically sound this show is. The tension and suspense build with every episode, the characters are mysterious, and you genuinely might worry about what the characters might have to go through. The horror elements are also executed very well. They don’t hold back on the scary elements, and that’s great for immersion. Sometimes, you might even be on the edge of your seat. I will say though, one small gripe I have are the tonal shifts, and this was also present in Season 1. In a tense moment, sometimes, a comedic bit would happen, which would break the suspense. The comedy is usually done well though, it’s just sometimes a little awkwardly placed. OVERALL: 78.2/100 A solid improvement to Season 1, and I’m glad this returned to form after the rather rushed end to the first season. It was tense, the characters were compelling, the backstories were told well, and the resolutions make sense, and are quite satisfying. If you were worried about how Season 2 was going to go, I can assure you, this season was some quality stuff, and I can’t wait to see what comes next.

---I'm doing my best not to leave any spoilers, so some of what I wrote may seem vague so please bear with me.--- Shadows House S2 is easily one of the best shows this season and one that is not widely discussed and can be classified as a hidden gem given the number of big name sequels and highly anticipated adaptations that aired alongside it. S1 story barely scratches the surface. S2 delves deeper into the Shadow's history and origin, the Shadows House (Place), and how everything, from kids to living dolls to star bearers to adults, came to be and what their purpose is. New charactershave been introduced, and they are very well written. We learned more about the characters' backgrounds, how they came to be, their thoughts, how they function, and what their role is in the Shadows House. From S1 to S2, there is actual character progression and character glow up, most notably on Kate. Kate made an effort to become acquainted with her debutant classmates and comprehend their reactions when she indulges her whims and forces them to accompany her. Everyone in Kate's class had glow ups, and it is easy to see how their friendship grew as they got to know each other better. Things start to fall into place, and an intriguing storyline centered on the kids in Children's Building unfolded and appeared to reach a logical conclusion, or so the show wants us to believe. Though one could argue that the culprit in the mystery arc is obvious, given how all the hints pointed to a single entity, this doesn't detract from the enjoyment factor, and the way things were planned out and unfolded never ceases to amaze the viewers. The OP and ED songs, as well as the art, were maintained, if not improved, from S1, and you can see how the studio managed to keep the overall quality of the show. The show's sound and art are beautifully coordinated, which enhances the overall viewing experience, from suspense to surprise to a happy going vibe. The shadow cocoon scene, in particular, has left an indelible impression with its disgusting AF appearance, as if it came straight from a horror film. To be honest, not much can be said about S2 other than how good it is and how it blew my mind. Everything just screamed perfection. Shadows House S2 is easily my AOTS pick. If you liked S1, you'll like S2. In fact, you'll enjoy S2 even more. Obviously people like me can't wait for S3, where we'd like to see Kate and Emilico tandem, John and Shaun tandem, and more, as well as how Kate and her friends' personal relationships will be affected by how one may feel toward another and how the events in the Shadows House may affect their relationship. The show ended on a cliffhanger, so a S3 is almost certainly on the way. TIP for those reading the review who haven't watched the show: If you want to get more thrills and suspense from the show, disregard the poster/cover art and ED.

Despite really enjoying Shadows House season 1, I left season 2 feeling much more mixed about the series overall. The Good: I really enjoyed 3 of the 4 main characters (Kate, Emilico, and Shaun). They were entertaining and helped progress the story in meaningful ways. The world that was built also has a lot of potential left. Exploring the mysteries of the shadow house is the best part of the series and this season doled out enough information to keep the mystery entertaining. Most of the star-bearer and adult side characters are also strong. Some were more mediocre but for the most part they brought maturity which this seriesdesperately lacked. The ending also helped flesh out these characters a lot. I also think that the ending was very strong (spoilers about the ending in this paragraph). The last 2 episodes were definitely my favorite of the season. It deeply explored some of the side characters, taught us a lot more about the house and its past, and also set up the future of some main characters nicely with promotions. They were also the most entertaining episodes of the season. However, arguably the best thing gained from the ending was the introduction of Anthony. He is already one of my favorite characters with only a few appearances and will undoubtedly make season 3 a much better show. The Ok: The animation and soundtrack are both just ok. They get the job done, and aren’t very bad, but they don’t stand out compared to other shows. Most of the child side characters and some star-bearers like Oliver are just ok. They aren’t objectively bad but are EXTREMELY one-dimensional. Personally, I don’t really enjoy them that much, but they don’t make the show worse. The Bad: Despite this show being listed as a senien, the writing felt like it was meant for 5-year-olds. Characters frequently need to state out loud what they are thinking or planning, even if it can be easily inferred by the audience. Character growth is arguably worse, with characters doing something wrong, thinking out loud what they are doing wrong, and what they need to fix before slowly fixing it over the course of an episode. This incredibly streamlined character growth was extremely boring, felt very unnatural, and really hurt my enjoyment. There is also John (the 4th main character) and his changed usage. They decided to pin him on the comic relief role, which he really sucks at. He is loud = funny. He feels incredibly out of place around the other characters and actively makes the show worse during almost all of his appearances. In fact, the show has a humor problem as a whole. The humor almost always falls incredibly flat, and they desperately tried to fit it in every crack far too often. It even interrupts more serious moments far too often which was extremely annoying. Overall, the show is still ok, but much weaker writing hurt my enjoyment a lot.

Now this is how you do an adaptation. I can't believe this studio is the same studio that did Promised Neverland Season 2 since Shadows House season 2 couldn't be farther away from that train wreck of an adaptation. When Cloverworks adapts the manga faithfully, they manage to create great anime. Even Promised Neverland season 1 is indicative of that. Animation wise, honestly, there's not a lot to go off of. The manga is just a slow-paced one by nature, so capturing and pacing that in animation is difficult. Yet, Cloverworks manages to pace the anime perfectly. It's not too fast, not too slow, and includes allof the content that the original material consisted of. Yes, most of the time, people are going to be talking, but the art style, the backgrounds, the frames that the show decides to go with is all catered with care. It's not just frozen frames of people talking, but rather that the scenery, the backgrounds, and perspectives all change once in awhile. Story wise, I like it even more than the original first season. While the first season was more fast paced and had more content, it also felt a bit more silly. It's sort of a dystopian house, but there's more tension and pressure that you feel in this season compared to the first. Kate's walking on a tight rope, surrounded by brainwashed people that could turn her in any moment. She needs to carefully select her allies, else she get backstabbed. The Star Bearers and the adults all have a watchful eye on her. How can she persevere? The calculating and careful Kate gets contrasted by her living doll, Emilyco, who doesn't really think too much. She's the typical protagonist personality, yet paired with Kate as a partner, the pair becomes something bigger than the sum of its parts. Emilyco, however, is much more successful at pinpointing potential allies, as she doesn't think too much about it. It's naive, but again, paired with Kate, they manage to create the makings of a rebellion against the mansion. There's politicking, hiding of information, and analysis of the inner workings of the house this season. A much less flashier season than the season one debut arc, but important for the rest of the story nonetheless.

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