Second season of How Not to Summon a Demon Lord
Genre(s): Ecchi, Isekai, Fantasy, Comedy
Age-Appropriateness: 17+ (Strong sexual themes/content, violence, profanity)
Platforms: Crunchyroll
Episodes: 12
TheAwersome Rating: 6.9 / 10 (Perhaps I treated you too harshly)
Premise: After testing flight magic goes wrong, Diablo stumbles across the High Priest of The Church, who has recently prayed to God to spare her from the assassination attempt of a corrupt Paladin who was sent to kill her for exposing hypocrisy within the Church. Believing Diablo (who claims he is the Demon Lord from another world) to be God incarnate, she implores them to assist her in her quest to purge The Church of the corruption that has taken root among the higher-ranking clergy.
TheAwersome’s Thoughts: You might look at the discrepancy in the score I gave the first season and think that this one is leaps and bounds better. While I did really like the intricate exploration of religious corruption, exploitation, and how faithful believers handle that, I think what changed was mostly my approach. When I watched the first season, I went into it expecting a quality, emotional fantasy piece with some good comedy here and there. I should have approached it expecting what this show truly is: a male-gaze ecchi power fantasy with a very thin veneer of situational causality (the logic flow of situations that end up sexual is as unrealistic as it gets).
In other words, I went into a Taco Bell and was disappointed when I couldn’t find an authentic Mexican entrée with house-made Mole. If you go in with the right expectations, it’s a lot easier to enjoy. And the ecchi content this season was much improved I felt, both because I knew what to expect and because it was genuinely better executed.
TLDR: If you liked the first season, you’ll like this one. (Also, it’s pretty clear the character designers are Hololive fans, there are a few not-so-subtle look-alike cameos).
As with the previous season, don’t expect people to act rationally, or for plots to not have holes. That isn’t what this show is about, and once you accept that it’s much easier to enjoy.
You’ll Likely Enjoy This if You Enjoyed:
- The first season of How Not to Summon a Demon Lord
- The Ecchi/harem aspect of DanMachi
- The interesting theological exploration of SAO: Alicization
At a Glance Anime 