YuruYuri ♪♪ is the second season based on the manga of the same name, again at 12 episodes long. It is set in middle school, focusing on a group of four protagonists, Akari, Kyoko, Yui and Chinatsu. Together, they form the Amusement Club where the aim is just to do whatever they want. The cast is rounded out by members of the student council, Ayano, Chitose (and her sister Chizuru), Sakurako and Himawari.
It felt like the studio/writer was feeling bad for all the things that Akari had to suffer in the previous season and so the first episode made her dreams come true, at least in a way where everyone notices her, loves her and fights over her. Afterwards, she retains her trademark lack of presence which is a bit unfortunate on the poor girl. Kyoko not only retains her carefree attitude but dials it up, leading to even more gags. She is as random as ever and the source of many humorous moments in the anime. Yui is the ever dependable person being able to cook, am self-dependent and acts mature.
Finally, Chinatsu's awful artistic skills are constantly highlighted even though she's unaware of it herself. It's funny seeing the reactions of other characters to her works and the more effort Chinatsu puts into them, somehow the uglier it is. Being set in the slice-of-life genre, it focuses upon the daily activities of the characters with a few twists. There's less focus on the activities of the amusement club (i.e. the setting is not as much focused during school anymore) but rather on the activities of the characters outside of school such as pool visits. This is mainly due to the anime being set during the summer holiday.
YuruYuri ♪♪ covers events such as Valentine's Day, going to the hot spring and the pool. However, it does repeat some scenarios from the first season such as the school trip and Comuket, which is explained as that one year has passed (kinda). There's a higher focus on the other supporting characters, who each has their own charms and their own backstories on their relationships. It feels like that these characters are much more fleshed out. The student council members start showing their feelings more obviously such as Sakurako and Himawari.
Akari still gets the short end of the stick but rather than just from the writers, she is at the receiving end of pranks played on by other characters, or misses the train while everyone else gets on. It's really funny and although it is not necessary cruel, you still feel sorry for Akari. Chinatsu though is still as selfish as ever, harboring inside her the dark thoughts. More often than not, it backfires upon her so she gets her just desserts. Despite this, she and Akari are actually fairly close friends. This season reveals more of each characters' families. We're treated to actually seeing the faces of their siblings, and find out a few that we never knew existed.
Each episode is split into various smaller segments of individual stories so it never gets stale or outstays their welcome. YuruYuri's strongest aspect is the humor, whether it be from exaggerated gags or just the perfect reaction and dialogue, it's even better than the first season which was already great. To top it all off, there is a hilarious ending with a rendition of Snow White but of course with a YuruYuri twist. This finally gives Akari justice as well as pretty much invoking all the running gags in the series into it and is just absolutely fantastic. Overall, YuruYuri ♪♪ is a great following up to the characters. It's funny, clever and a joy to watch and definitely worth your time.
---------------------------------------------------
For other animation reviews, have a look at this page.
