The Rising of the Shield Hero Season 2: Success or Disaster?

gamerant.com:

So far, at least eleven new isekai anime series have debuted this year, with even more returning series from previous seasons. Many have come and gone without receiving much attention, while some have only been remembered as poor examples. The best ones have either exemplified what works best about the genre or introduced new facets to explore. The first season of The Rising of the Shield Hero did both and fans loved it for those reasons, but what about the second season? Did the second season hold up to the first or flop like the infamous disappointments of previous years?

Spoiler alert: It flopped like a fish on a sunny summer sidewalk, but there will be spoilers below, so any fans who haven’t completed the second season should take that plunge first and then come back. The second season of this series was not a complete disaster, but it didn’t hit like the first season and failed to stand out. The biggest issue with the second season was the pacing, which really squandered the world-building, character development, and plot development efforts.

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First, let’s cover some key points of this season. Picking up where the previous season left off, this season begins with the campaign to defeat the spirit tortoise. A new character is introduced in the form of the Tortoise’s spirit familiar, Ost Horai, who takes on a human appearance and helps the heroes with killing the spirit tortoise, even using Naofumi’s shield to land the final blow after revealing that she is actually an embodiment of the spirit tortoise’s soul.

Kyo Ethnina, the book vassal weapon holder, is introduced as a new villain and the one who has been controlling the spirit tortoise during its rampage. He