Wagnaria!!2

!!This review includes the first season!! I′m not really that strict when it comes to anime with no 'goal' and story line. If it has a great art, music and set of characters - I′ll watch it. And of course, I need to rely on my enjoyment, if it′s not pleasing enough to make me smile, drop it. Working!! Is a really great and funny anime, with a simple sense of humor and jokes. At first, I wasn′t really paying any heed to Working!! because I thought this anime is just a mediocre and will be boring as hell - well I was totally wrong atall the points. Talk about story, this anime doesn′t really have what you would call a 'plot', neither does this story have a goal that they need to aim and complete at all costs. If you don′t like shows with no story and just full of gags, this isn′t for you. But hey, this one′s different - by different I mean really different. Truly, Slice of Life and Comedy mix is one the best combination of genres in a show. What about the characters? The characters in Working!! are all great, they have their own personalities that most probably suit their images and outer appearance really well; Working!! has a great mix and set of characters - Popura who is as cute as a hamster, Takanashi or Katanashi as referred to by Popura who is a lolicon — in which he is denying strongly by stating that he just likes cute things/kids. Yachiyo, a closed-eye character who is very naive and is in-love with the Manager, Kyoko, who is not really doing her job and is just eating all day. Satou, who is a blonde-haired handsome dude. Souma-san who has a radiant smiling face and Inami who has an androphobia - let′s say she′s a bit of a Tsundere and cute (but not as cute as Popura) but her androphobia sickness is pissing me off really really bad. The characters are very like-able, though at some point, you may find of them as annoying and irritating, it can′t be helped since not all creations are perfect, and every person has something they will not like, based on their preferences. What I like about Working!! is its simpleness - the genres are balanced and distributed really well. The art is very simple and clean, along with the cute melodic intros and outros which are very catchy. I also like the comedic flashbacks with a mix of light drama in them; and the introductions of the new characters—who are only supporting—is also very much like-able. Because their intros have a mix of light seriousness and a touch of comedy. I really like comedies, especially when there are parodies involved, like in Gintama. Though the genre of Working!! doesn′t involve parody, it′s still very much funny, like so. Though if you′re a type of person who barely laughs, I doubt you′ll go along with the gags and jokes, if I do say so. Nevertheless, the slice of life share of genre, is also quite much on par with the comedy here — if there′s a slice-of-life type of scene in the anime, rest assured that there will be an incoming gag and comedic insert. The comedy and gags will never ever be missing. The thing that I didn′t like about Working!! is its lack of story line, given that there isn′t one. It′s not that I really dislike it, the things is, I hoped for a more great development with the characters, along with their 'story'; And at some point, I also hoped for romance to bloom, given once again that there isn′t one. If there were a romance to bloom, I think that lots of people would really like this show more, as much as they like as it is now. As far as you′re concerned, I really enjoyed watching Working!! despite the fact that it has no plot and goal involved, the substitute is your laugh and your smile. I′m really glad I didn′t follow others′ opinion to check out a new refreshing environment - which was Working!! If you′re hesitating to watch Working!! because of other people′s review, do not hesitate. Follow your own eyes and your own preference, who knows, you might get hooked on something you thought that wasn′t worth the time and effort. For me, it was totally worth it.

[This is a review from the perspective of someone that didn't watch the first season. Might contain some generalized spoilers] Ironically, everything that I was looking forward to this fall season turned out to be absolutely mediocre, and everything I didn't care for turned out to be pretty decent. Knowing this, I picked up Working'!! without watching the previous season, and surprisingly, it wasn't difficult to quickly get accustomed to the characters. From what I've noticed, several factors make Working'!! a “good” anime; however, a few others hinder it from becoming a “great” anime. Working'!! has a cast of great characters, although they're not themost original and developed; they all remain easily likable. Now, as opposed to many other slice-of-life's; relationships between the characters tend to stay almost completely static, with a few smaller developments towards the end. This normally wouldn't be a “bad” thing in a slice-of-life, but it's disappointing to see the possible “romances” at a halt, especially when there's so much chemistry going on between the characters. But what else makes Working'!! a “good” anime? The centerpiece in the anime besides the slice-of-life aspect is the comedy. Now how is the comedy dealt with? It's actually dealt with in a rather unusual way. In comparison to other anime such as Seitokai Yakuindomo and Haganai where the basis of the majority of the jokes are vulgar, the jokes in Working'!! actually incorporate a different feel. The jokes aren't really offensive, which opens the show to a much broader audience. Now, the greatest factor that sets Working'!! apart from many other comedy anime, is the lack of ecchi. Nowadays, obnoxious fan service and ecchi basically go hand in hand in comedy anime, it's somewhat disappointing. But Working'!! is basically void of all the irritating aspects of it. It's a rarity, and it should be appreciated. Objective Rating: 6/10. It's a good comedy anime. It's episodic, you could easily pick up the anime on episode eight, as easily as you could on episode one. It's constantly enjoyable, but there aren't any episodes that leave you breathless, it's constantly good, but it's never extraordinary, or great. It leaves you in a good mood after watching it most of the time. Subjective Rating: 7/10: It's a really enjoyable watch. The characters create a familial atmosphere, and it's hard to not keep a smile while watching it.

~ Never Change, Senpai! ~ The everyday antics and documentation of life at Wagnaria continue into this sequel installment to the first season of Working... ---------- Introduction / Context... ---------- As a direct continuation, "Working'!!" or "Season 2" as i will refer to it to avoid confusion, picks up where "Working!!" left off. The prior season of 13 relaxing episodes, was a "minimalist-styled" depiction of everyday life within our favourite family restaurant. It embraced its identity as a heavily slice of life oriented production, and so favored character development, over complicated plot development; hence the "no story, no good" argument used by those who generally dislike the SoL genre. Priorto Season 2, the "Working" franchise has indeed proven itself to be: "escapism into an optimistic life perspective" in my books; as you can read up in my corresponding review. And while being such a carefree and often comedic show, I've always felt that its emitted a unique, cosy, warm and "family-like" character chemistry, that's not only entertaining to observe, but sets the overriding tone beautifully. "Working!!" set the series up rather well by injecting a lot of personality into what has become a particularly memorable cast. It under-toned some dramatic situations, and conversely broke up any heaviness with plentiful laughs to stay true to its strengths. Most importantly, it allowed us to get a decent sense of each character's quirky personalities, and get to know them personally from the intimacy of their thought processes. Except one... ---------- Actual Review ---------- Aoi Yamada, has always seemed a little distanced from the rest of the cast as viewers of the prior season should be familiar; given her rather mysterious and late appearance. There's only so much you can do with 13 episodes, and while I maintain that the "Working" series is a well crafted one, the development of this purple-haired, "Otoo-crazed" employee is perhaps the single hole in the prior season's development; given the required comprehensiveness of the character development, contrasting with the seemingly non-existent story line. Interestingly enough, I initially failed to pick up on the fact that this was indeed a hole, and i'm sure i'm not alone in this, but the awesome people at Aniplex blessed us with a second season anyway... Far from "improving", Season 2 fills the hole of Yamada's development with ease, and then quickly goes above and beyond the call of duty to further almost every aspect of the show. Season 2 is essentially the refinement: an advancement of the prior, that goes to the lengths of polishing up and adding to already near-faultless piece of work - in regards to the way the franchise "intends" to be received. First and foremost, allow me to put fans at ease by mentioning that this sequel season retains the entirety of the signature "Working!!" charm of the prior. Unlike some other anime franchises, it hasn't tried to change itself in order to appeal to a new audience, and instead has stayed loyal to its methods, therefore its branding. It's still casually presented, and down-to-earth with none other than an "everyday" plot to keep up the relatability aspect. It still brings forth a lot of depth when it comes to expanding on the personalities of the characters; and so it continues to give the viewer an intimate insight into the working lives of the people who make up Wagnaria. It still documents the subtle growth of the characters, as they surpass (or not) an array of appropriately plausible plights, which is sure to withhold the realism of the show, and in turn keep the audience connected; losing themselves in the vivid picture of the family restaurant "painted" in front. As I mentioned, Yamada's presence becomes more prominent in Season 2, and we learn more not only about her, but the rest of the cast through the mysteries her background proposes as well; a sort of ongoing development "arc" if you will. Nevertheless, she is no longer a stranger come Season 2, and so it's great that the character development of the original cast reaches a point of complete coverage during these 13 additional episodes. Aniplex could have stopped there, and had the show come to summit of its success, a flat line from which it can only fall. Fortunately they persisted though in adding new content... Season 2 brings about some new faces: from the bizarre antics of the Mashiba siblings, to a long lost relative of Yamada. There's evidently never a dull moment in Wagnaria, which in my opinion is the reason for its success. It refuses to be "the lake that dries up", and instead retains the refreshing vibe it started out with; never running out of new revelations, and instead having our admiration of the cast mature, as opposed to stagnate... There's more "maturing" than you would think going on in the "Staff-only" area, as Season 2 brings about: new challenges to test the resolve of Inami. New things for Yamada to help fix. New heights for our "Senpai" to reach, and even fears for Takanashi to overcome. Everywhere... The awkward relationships are maturing (with no help from Souma), and Kyouko is hungrier than ever. So yes, life at Wagnaria continues to blossom seamlessly following the previous season, and progress steadily as if the " " to " ' " transition never occurred. Season 2 also seems to work on controlling the visuals better... capping the expressive cliche/abstract/chibi presentation, if not just a bit: to make the emotive and comedy scenes more punchy, which in turn had me laughing considerably more. No longer does Aniplex accompany every emotion with "frustration lines", like in the first season it fortunately seems. Some drama, a healthy helping of comedy, and a tonne of character-based charm... Which is confirmed to be leading towards a third installment, and so I won't criticize the extremely late formal introduction of Mayu as of yet... Audiovisuals? These are for the most part: the same, high, colourful and uplifting standards, as can be seen in the original season. We get a new OP (which i love), and a new ED (which is also very appropriate), the show is throughout still accompanied by a carefree piano-based score... Downsides? Asides from the limiting factors of the "everyday" premise and branding, from a technical perspective (at least in my mind): I don't see anything fundamentally wrong about this follow up season. It is therefore, ultimately, a straight-up elaboration/advancement to the "Working!!" of which you're familiar, and so i have no doubt that fans of the franchise will enjoy... ~ Yama-Dash! ~

Working!! 2 is Working!! but better in every way, even if only a little better. The animation and art improved, giving it a cleaner look. The music, especially the opening and ending, was catchier. The jokes were funnier and wittier. The character development was really solid and I appreciate how there were jokes and decisions that carried over from the previous season, like Magic Hand (although it only showed up a few times). Janet (Maya) has a lot more screentime in this season and I really appreciate that, her existence is one of the funniest bits in my opinion. The new characters are really solidtoo, not life-changing or anything, but neat additions that change up the dynamic a little. Overall, Working!!2 is a very solid comedy anime that improves on the previous season in every way.