IS: Infinite Stratos 2

With an ending as open as Infinite Stratos's was, there was a lot to expect when the sequel was announced a little over a year later. As with most sequels, people come to expect that with the introductions and character building out of the way, a fresh start can open new possibilities for the title to showcase with more air time. Unfortunately, there are titles that take advantage of this gargantuan amount of free space and use it to try and attract a larger audience through obscene amounts of fan service and the unnecessary plot devices that arise out of it. While these types ofsequels are fine and dandy toward those who expect nothing of the series, Infinite Stratos 2 tries to do the unthinkable: combine illogically contrived fan service with a full-fledged plot focus. Infinite Stratos 2 starts off where the debut season ended; with Ichika Orimura and his band of merry miracles flying through their schoolwork as if it didn't mean a thing, and to all fairness, it probably doesn't. What this anime likes to portray, especially in this current season, is the mirage of a typical harem/slice of life series with some added robotic plot devices for good measure. However, later on, it tries to force itself into a plotline involving an unknown team of evil-doers that really have no purpose in the series except for driving Ichika, the bland, uninspiring main male character, to show off his use in times of dire need; in typical shounen fashion. When a large amount of time spent on a series is contributed to fan service and moments of unrivaled bliss, it's hard to incorporate a necessary dose of serious scenarios to it. With Infinite Stratos 2, it's the equivalent of driving a monster truck into a library; it's loud, obnoxious, and ultimately as far a match as anyone could imagine. To spice up more of the fun that is Infinite Stratos, the series takes it upon itself to introduce two new characters: Tatenashi and Kanzashi Sarashiki. Conveniently enough, these two characters are sisters, which only provides an excuse to give some characterization to the younger of the two, Kanzashi. Somewhat of an instigator of the fan service that arises, Tatenashi is the self-proclaimed student body president of the school that all of the original characters attend. With that symbol of invincibility, Tatenashi places Ichika into inconvenient situations that most other males of his age group would probably trade for anything. As Tatenashi causes trouble for our hero, Kanzashi is the complete opposite, as most series like to portray this template for sisters. Kanzashi is timid, vulnerable, an introvert, and a whiz with computers. She gets the most amount of character development than any other character in the series, but only for a limited time, as is typical of harems. While Kanzashi's entire arc feels natural and fresh, Tatenashi seems to pop up out of nowhere whenever both trouble and an instance for fan service comes to fruition. Overall, they're mostly remembered for their blue hair. Of course, all of the fan service can't be compared to the original source of the madness. Cecilia, Laura, Charlotte, Houki, and Lingyin are as presentable as ever whenever meaningless plot shows its ugly face. Throughout this season, however, each of these character don't get an equal amount of screen time. During the first season, Ichika's childhood friend, Houki, was focused on as the prime suitor for Ichika's affection, and it seemed as though she had a good shot at him as a romantic interest. Unfortunately for those who cared, Houki is barely even shown outside of scenes where Ichika is placed in a precariously obscene situation. Lingyin is also noticeably missing from most of the series as well, with her being the least shown original character out of all of them. Cecilia, Charlotte, and Laura all get their own individual arcs of varying lengths and substance. All of them are forgettable to a point and laughably silly. It seems that Infinite Stratos 2 wanted to put more emphasis on the original characters' assets and Tatenashi moving the chaos along than trying to develop these characters into more than simply plastic. With this series being notorious for fan service, it's safe to say that the art suits the desires of those who view it. With two years difference, Infinite Stratos 2's artwork is noticeably more full of shine than its predecessor. The character designs remain the same, as though the series wanted to remain nostalgic, with the student uniforms and shaky CGI looking as though they were cut straight from the first season. What was noticeable to a point, however, was the CGI itself. What's different about the CGI within the second season is that the quality isn't different whatsoever. During minimal movements, the machines are still shaky and lazily bulky. The animation comes to shine when the action comes into view. Although, with the amount of time spent on the characters' assets, those watching could forget that the IS machines even exist. For those who are expecting any action from this series could look forward to the ending sequences of this anime. Whether or not the ending disappoints you, at least it will look presentable. Why not try and make it better? While fan service and an overexaggerated amount of female body parts isn't enough to completely disregard an anime's effort, it's hard not to cringe when an anime tries too hard to be something it isn't. Infinite Stratos 2 wants to be something fantastic, something so fantastic that it can combine fan service and dramatic, life-threatening predicaments into a giant heap of animated excellence. The harder it tries, the easier it is to expose its flaws, and it certainly has them; lots of them. Perhaps if this series tried to be one or the other, maybe it wouldn't seem so forced. Instead, it's everything in one and it couldn't feel any more like wasted potential.

You know, for quite sometime now, I forgot about this anime...since there is nothing memorable about garbage. This sequel to IS has the same amount of bullshit as Old McDonald's farm. Once you're on the tip of your chair or what ever you're sitting on, it pushes you back down making you say "Really...you're really going to do that". Of course this isn't the first time it did this *cough* season one *cough* but this time I was really,really, really let down. The story from season one.... really didn't move. Even though the series did have some highlights like mecha fights, getting chased...by girls, misunderstandings...., andhow Cecilia can't cook to save her life. All those high...lights... But don't worry guys and girls! We have two new characters! Like most sequels to any animes, Infinite Stratos also gives us new characters, two new characters. You guessed it! A student council president and her sister! The Sarashiki sisters (Tatenashi and Kanzashi) both have blue hair and are totally "totes" for Ichika...you know like how the rest of the school is....The other characters, that play as the villain,Madoka Orimura, who obviously is not Chifuyu and Ichika sister, does not get much screening time. And once she does, she is there to just make shit happen. Leaving out explanations, and leaving the viewers with sooooo much questions just to be turned down with ass and tit shots. (Did I mention that Ichika forgets his own birthday. Seriously, who does that?) You know the art was the only thing this anime could have kept going on. The art was pretty much on par as any 8-Bit producers want it to be. Seeing how this anime is one who like to show off cleavage, I could pretty much tell that they were going to emphasize on the "jiggles" and they did deliver on the "jiggles". The sound was fine. Nothing special, it's pretty much the same as season one but it seems like there was not enough "umph" into it anymore. I like harems. I like ecchi. "If" (huge if) they are done right. Examples are Zero No Tsukaima, Sekirei...Hell, I could even say Highschool of the Dead had more plot than this pathetic excuse for a harem. Honestly, my thoughts haven't changed since season one nor has my enjoyment. I have read a few pages of the light novels and they are pretty much the same. Really disappointing but really I wasn't hoping much, just a little. And that little hope got tossed out to the nearest four way intersection, right in the middle of street. The reason why I was hoping just a little change, was because of some other series with the same genres and elements, changed during the second season. Examples are Boku wa Tomodachi, Sekirei, Kore wa Zombie Desu ka?. Would I recommend IS: Infinte Stratos. Yes, only if you like to lose more brain cells.

Infinite Stratos 2 is the anime equivalent of a lobotomy. An anime so insipid, so devoid of intelligent thought that a trip to the garbage can would likely yield something more interesting. Maybe you'll feel dirty afterwards, but hey, at least you won't receive brain damage for it. I struggle to think of a single good thing to say when describing Infinite Stratos 2. Even the absolute worst of the medium (from the infamous Mars of Destruction to the nonsensical Cipher) can at least be laughed at in their awfulness. Not Infinite Stratos. It is everything wrong with the harem genre and the anime industryas a whole, assembled into one cretinous pile of filth. You would need standards so low that they pass the Earth's core and leave the other side of the planet in order to appreciate this trash. Nothing went right. Everything went wrong. Hell, this is awful even by the first season's standards. Allow me to describe one of Infinite Stratos' most asinine scenes. In the sixth episode, Charlotte finds herself in a situation where her panties have magically disappeared. Rather than simply tell Ichika the situation like any sensible person would, she convinces herself that lifting her skirt and directly showing him is the only way to get her point across. Ichika does as she asks and looks. Her response? "Pervert!" Another scene involves Ichika being forced to take body measurements of all the girls in the school (which every single one of them is happy about for some incomprehensible reason). He closes his eyes, so embarrassed by female cleavage, thinking to himself that a measuring tape does not require eyes to see. His complete lack of understanding about human anatomy results in him fondling the girl. Every single member of his harem then appears out of thin-air and catches him in the act, screaming and assaulting him as the camera pans away. Even from the very first episode, we know that a trainwreck awaits. The antagonist walks down a dark corridor and meets five soldiers armed with assault rifles. They open fire... and all the bullets somehow manage to land in front of her feet or behind her. She jumps into the air, pulls out two pistols and shoots them all with perfect accuracy. Yep. Even the most brainless of Hollywood blockbusters aim for better than this, but I suppose Infinite Stratos never cared for quality in the first place. The final episode is the most brain-damaging of all. The antagonist's sidekick willingly reveals to one of the girls the location of a hidden bomb, and the main antagonist then unleashes a laser attack on thirty or forty armed mech soldiers, annihilating them all instantly. Of course Ichika (the most worthless soldier in the entire school) and the members of his harem can take her on in a one-on-one fight, however. As the final insult to the audience's intelligence, a deus ex machina unfolds, placed in direct sight of the enemy at the most convenient time possible. They then escape, and the story ends with a random onsen scene wherein Ichika passes out in the girl's bath. OK. I do not know how a show so stupid could have ever been produced. Even putting aside the abysmal writing, the harem aspect (the anime's sole appeal) fares no better. The two new additions to his harem (Tatenashi and Kanzashi) suddenly fall in love with Ichika for no bloody reason at all. In the case of Kanzashi, all Ichika ever had to do was smile a lot and play the white knight role once for her to be head over heels for him. There are so many damn members to his harem that you may as well just throw in the entire school at this point. What do they even see in Ichika, anyway? He is one of the most insipid protagonists ever created, absent of any personality. The animators should have just drawn a rock instead - at least that way there would be one less thing to infuriate the audience. Aside from having the intellect of a toddler, Ichika has the maturity of one, too. He is so adverse to any female contact (even visibly cringing in one scene where a girl's breasts rub against his arm) that you would ordinarily assume he is a homosexual. The fact that he has seven girls blatantly chasing after him and does not recognise it is a testament to how dreadful his characterisation is. A decent harem series would have the protagonist aware long before this point, if not already actively pursuing one of the girls. Future harem anime should take notes from Sora no Otoshimono and HenNeko, and treat Infinite Stratos like the plague that it is. Unsurprisingly, the female characters are just as bad. Even the two with a brain (Houki and Charlotte) inevitably fall victim to the show's abysmal writing. The most obnoxious is by far Cecilia, her voice so excruciating that it would be more appropriate in the 9 Circles of Hell. Lin on the other hand has about as much presence as a shadow while Kanzashi lacks any sort of personality or defining feature except "has glasses". Infinite Stratos 2 is terrible even from a technical perspective. All of the action scenes are rendered in low-budget CG and many times the characters' faces will look as if they were drawn by a 10-year-old with a cheap "How to Draw Manga" textbook. The soundtrack is also rubbish and comprises mainly of elevator music and a tuba endlessly making the same two-three notes. During the action scenes, the music is so turgid and over-dramatic that it almost becomes hilarious when combined with the infantile dialogue. It is rare to find an anime as bad as Infinite Stratos. It is the exact kind of tripe that gives anime such a bad image in mainstream society. Regardless of whether you enjoy the harem genre or despise it, absolutely nothing of value will be found here. Even as mindless entertainment it fails miserably. Avoid it like the plague, or better yet, convince yourself that it doesn't even exist. You will save yourself some sanity that way. If this is the future of the anime industry, then god help us.

Chances are that if you are plan on watching Infinite Stratos 2, you probably want to see how the story goes on between Ichika and the friends he has made at IS Academy in this brand new adventure. After all, season 1 didn’t end with an exactly a high note with its indecisive conclusion. Yes, I’m talking about Ichika and his dense mind along with the irrational decisions he makes. The story itself only had some moments that shined while others fell under the typical harem tropes with little development. Unfortunately, Infinite Stratos 2 doesn’t get any better. In fact, it went backwards and becameeven worse. It’s a continuation of a story that set itself on a time bomb ticking away at its destruction. Infinite Stratos 2 is the sequel of the first season based off of the light novel in the same name written by Izuru Yumizuru. The series continues directly from season 1 with a young man named Orimura Ichika. To refresh some memory, Ichika is the first male pilot of the exoskeleton mech known as the IS (Infinite Stratos). Because the system was designed for female pilots, Ichika becomes the first user of the technology. The government obviously has plans for him and sent him directly to the world famous IS Academy. That means it’s a paradise for him because he is set to an academy where everywhere around him is: girls. Like I mentioned previously, this series begins exactly where the first season left off. Ichika is still the talk of the academy because of his status and kindness. It’s no surprise that girls are interested in him in some way because most if not all of them came from a girls-only school previously. Among these girls include the return of the five female protagonists known as Houki, Cecilia, Ling, Charlotte, and Laura. Although most of them had some spotlights in season 1, this sequel puts them to shame. Their development is in ashes because the a big chunk of the series concentrates on some nonsense where everyone tries to get Ichika’s attention. Unfortunately, Ichika is dense as ever and hardly understands any of the girls’ attempts. In fact, he seems them a sign of gratitude while all the while being ignorant of its intentions. This comes early in the series in many shapes and sizes. These include the typical pool episode, absurd cosplays, surprise party extravaganza with absurd gags, and even an entire episode dedicated to a pair of panties plying around the lost & found game. While all this seems to fun at first, it quickly grows old because of the lack of depth in its fun.The comedy is also killed thanks to Ichika’s dense personality. On more a directional side, the series does contain a story that expands further somewhat. Even in harem series like this, there is a story because the concept is serious with the IS being part of the system. In this sequel, the story introduces two new characters - one of them with an authoritative control, skill of a pilot, and ability to flirt with Ichika like no tomorrow. There’s some problems wrong with her character though. For one thing, she seems almost too perfect. Furthermore, Ichika is confused throughout the series as to her true intentions. Her smile often seems to be a like a mask that hides her purpose as a facade. But behind that smile also lies a girl whose skills is unrivaled in IS combat. To make matter worse for the girls though, she seems to be also possesses the skill to tame all of Ichika’s harem. Initially, she stands out as the boss of the series, like a game that the girls must overcome. On the other hand, there is also another character that represents the opposite of her. It’s quite odd seeing Ichika interact with her as someone that hardly gives him any attention. In many ways, she represents the opposite of the typical girls in this harem anime. To say that Infinite Stratos 2 completely sicks under the ocean with no chance of salvage is also an exaggeration though. Despite the lack of development or engaging storyline, the sequel does expand on a more darker side as the characters learns the existence of an organization. Their purpose stands for what terrorism is and their actions speaks louder than words. In fact, this organization declares war against IS Academy along with Ichika and his friends. There is also some mystery related to one particular member of this organization whom bares a strikingly similar appearance to another character from the series. Calling herself by a name that shocks Ichika, she becomes a pivotal antagonist that brings out the dark side of IS. Action wise, Infinite Stratos surprisingly has some decent movements with its mechanics. The system itself is designed to fight efficiently in almost any circumstances. Also depending on the skill of the user, each IS has its own specialization or customized weapon that can inflict additional damage. In this sequel, new models are introduced with even more devastating abilities. The new models also gives them an impressive look from its exterior with its threatening design. Even with the harem tropes all over the place, the IS does stand in as a prominent factor as each time they are shown on screen, the camera angles focus exclusively on them with a more detailed look. Unfortunately, that’s not where the only place where the camera points to... The fanservice is all over the place in this sequel. It shouldn’t surprise viewers considering the way season one was handled. However, the show goes on with even from the beginning such as Laura crawling into Ichika’s bed or the swimsuits coming off just because. Cosplay also seems to make its way into this sequel because the show wants to try out some new ideas to cover all the field of a harem anime. This includes the form of odd animal outfits with skin bearing. There’s a hidden reason behind this but is definitely one that Ichika is not pleased with. Even when he doesn’t try it, Ichika is the center of attention just because of who he is. There’s almost no credibility in any of the characters’ attachment to Ichika in this sequel either thanks to a lack of exploration in their past/histories with Ichika. The characterization is shallow and doesn’t get anywhere. Even when there’s some hope, there are those moment killers (thanks to our new characters) that ruins the fun for Ichika; if he even depicts as fun in the first place. It’s absurd, idiotic, and a disgrace to the main story. Artwork wise, the series maintain the same style as the original. What that means is the characters all retain their generic designs. Most of them retain the way they still look while new characters make their way with their flashy introductions. The new threat that is presented in this sequel does bring out a dangerous outlook but also confusion as one of the characters has a familiar outlook. Unfortunately, her character is never really explained at all so you’ll be guessing who she is towards the end. Our main male protagonist Ichika doesn’t even change an inch in either his outer or inner appearance. There’s little to in depth with any of the designs besides the Infinite Stratos models. Luckily, the backgrounds of the series is rich enough to give the feeling of a high level technology environment. The way both the inner and outer exterior of Infinite Stratos Academy is designed stays true to its terms by standards of high level technology. Unfortunately, that doesn’t really mean much with its generic traits that is thrown almost everywhere artistically. The standards of its soundtrack has a so-so presentation judging by the OST. Most of the action scenes contains an explosive tone thanks to its intensity. Like mentioned before, the primary concept of IS means serious business so the series portrays it seriously with its standards. The OP song True Blue Traveler foreshadows some ideas of what to expect from season 2 while at the same time throws generic concepts all over the place. Kouki Uchiyama also returns as the voice actor of Ichika whom surprisingly has a decent acting ability that portrays the typical harem lead well. New characters voiced by Chiwa Sato and Suzuko Mimori also represents their characters well despite their opposite personalities. To say the least, the soundtrack department isn’t half bad but honestly, that isn’t saying much. Finishing this series should only be a priority if you want to see how the franchise concludes rather than expecting greatness from it. There’s nothing really great about this sequel considering its lack of characterization, poorly constructed plot clustered with fan service , generic subplots, and weak progression. This adaptation also omits some parts from the light novel that could have enhanced the comedic side of the sequel. Unfortunately, it backfires in the end. There’s no doubt some fans will be disappointed at how this show turned out to be. Infinite Stratos 2 is a perfect example of an adaptation gone wrong with no redemption. There might not of been infinite possibilities to expand this continuation. However, the excuse of its story is beyond miserable. So if you plan to watch this series, I’d recommend you to hit the fast forward to save some time. Time for you isn’t infinite after all…

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