Review of Mob Psycho 100 II
YOUR LIFE IS YOUR OWN Doubt, friendship, media outrage, adolescences, growth, world domination and RAGE are all pouring out of this second season and man does Mob Psycho 100 outdid itself for this second season to the point of it surpassing ONE's One Punch Man. Mob Psycho 100 once again brings it's subtle messages about adolescences, usage of power while simultaneously developing it's characters through it's build up and culmination of certain character actions, the two most developed and evolved being Mob and Reigen this season. The first half of the anime focuses on Mob and Reigen, especially Mob, some incidents that also might tear Reigen and Mob'srelationship as master and student are tested as well, both through personal and third party gives them some trouble with their friendship as a result. As such, Mob and Reigen's work got them mildly famous and as a result they get more work around the city and when Mob he encounters a family of ghosts that do no harm, it gives Mob a moral dilemma, "kill" some friendly family of ghosts or not?, Reigen gets some development as he gets a bit too much for his bridges as he gains media fame, only for him to be outed as a fake psychic and that's where the media outrage sets in and this mini arc for Reigen not only grows Reigen as a character, but solidifies Mob's master and student by the end.
Now with a second season, there are MUCH more powerful espers Mob has to deal with and he does it in spectacular fashion that also reflects what WOULD have had happened if Mob used his powers recklessly and both times he encounters them, we gets some existentialism towards Mob and his powers, a bit of world building and lore building with the esper world in a ways. Now LA does have some flaws towards the "villains" of this second season but their strengths (not in power but for the plot) helps mitigate that. So the first major villain of this second season was actually VERY well done, as for the second half villain, see he wants "world domination" because he just "can", again putting in what would had happen if Mob turned to the dark side and used his powers decisively, but his entire reasoning is that he just "can" and he prolongs his arc by flinging minions at Mob and co. but what the arc gave for Mob and his powers was beneficial as well as developing the new and old villains and their flaws as an esper in the process, so it wasn't "that" bad. So in a ways the first major villain arc focuses on Mob's personal dilemma about his usage of his powers, while the second arc's villain focusing on what Mob could have done with the outside world with his powers if he could.
Mob Psycho 100's second season theme seemed to have grown from the experiences of adolescences to growing out of it and utilizing your own strengths to your advantage in life in this second season, if Mob, Reigen as well the villains are anything to go by, with Mob being the manifesting of infinite growth in a person to the point of Mob trying to go beyond without his use of powers..for the simplest things like a marathon, where his villains abuse their powers and thinks that that the only way it makes them powerful. On Reigen's side of things is more personal as it shows that having friends and the bonds Mob have made only strengthens everyone, heck some of the previous season's villains comes back as allies and brings in this statement well and heck Reigen even handled the fallout of him being outed better than anyone else. Reigen is truly a master.
Bones once again takes the helm for this second season and ohh boy is the animation in excellent quality and consistency, yes the aesthetics towards it being "Mob" is still there but in return, the "fights" are some of the best speculate set pieces LA has seen since One Punch Man, maybe even better with how batshit insane the animation is. Character designs are the same as the first season as well as the background work was nicely done for the aesthetics of it all. Seriously, Bones outdid themselves here, ESPECIALLY with EVERY fight scene and rage filled emotion done to crazy proportions.
Voice acting is as great as ever with some huge props to Takahiro Sakurai as Reigen and Setsuo Itou as Mob. Other standouts are Akio Ootsuka as Ekubo and Miyu Irino as Ritsu. Same old cast, expected goofy and wacky cadence all round but even some of the new additions were interesting to say the least. Ohh and the Opening was a frickin' banger.
Mob Psycho 100's second season just HAS to be LA's favorite sequel anime of Winter 2019, without a doubt, this second season was delicately woven, as it not only developed but evolved Mob and Reigen as characters, drastically moved the plot into new territory and as a bonus gave us theme to work with that doesn't beat you in the head with it, but subtlety adds touches to it, multiple times in this second season and gives us a new outlook on Mob, Reigen and "uber powerful espers" in a new light, one which only Mob can stop. LA was FLOORED with this second season with how it well it executed everything LA stated above, that it was the obvious choice for LA to pick Mob Psycho 100's second season as the best sequel anime of Winter 2019 and one of the best animes of Winter 2019.
"Could you feel your satisfaction?"...heck yea 100% and beyond to be honest.