The combination of going back in time in order to correct past mistakes, as seen initially in “When they Cry” and the delinquent gangs warfare, continues full on in the second season of the anime, with the shonen aspects, however, becoming more intense this time.
Follow our coverage of anime by clicking on the image below
After leaving us in an intense cliffhanger, which does highlight, though, that Kisaki is the ultimate villain, Takemichi realizes that the changes he made in the past arc were not enough, and that Toman has still grown into a large-scale crime organization, after absorbing the Black Dragons, and that his friends have still died. As such, he is forced to return to the past once more, where, with the help of Chifuyu who now knows his secret, tries to prevent the Black Dragons from joining the Tokyo Manji gang, which seems to be what led Mikey to become a villain and the organization to follow suit. To do so, he has to delve into a story of domestic violence, involving the Black Dragon's leader, Taiju, his younger brother, Hakkai, who is a vice-leader in Toman, and their sister, Yuzuha. He is also forced to cooperate with Kisaki and Hanma, with the whole thing resulting in a fight in a church during Christmas.
Koichi Hatsumi focuses intently on Takemichi's drama, and particularly his double effort to change the past in order to prevent some of the most loved people in his life from dying, and to rise in the ranks of Toman despite the fact that he seems unable to win a fight against any opponent. This aspect is actually quite appealing to watch, with Takemichis's Sisyphean efforts having an impact in the latter, but repeatedly failing in the former, which is what essentially keeps the series going. At the same time, the inclusion of domestic violence among siblings adds another notch to the drama, and a rather interesting side story, while introducing a series of particularly interesting characters, in the face of the three siblings. Lastly, Takemichi's desperate effort to protect Hinata, while retaining his relationship with her, concludes the layered and quite appealing drama of the season.
Apart from this aspect, though, the series follows shonen paths much more intensely this time, with the appearance of stronger and stronger opponents, with the same applying to the presentation of the main battle, which is prolonged (with flashbacks, monologues etc) out of proportion, in order, probably, to appear more epic. The result is definitely tiring, just as the continuous use of the Deus-ex-Machina trope, but Hatsumi dulls the impact somehow, by having his protagonist just getting beaten and getting back up again, instead of becoming all-powerful and winning himself, as is usually the rule in the category. Of course, this aspect also adds to the drama. Furthermore, I feel that the story is already stretched too far, although a twist (kind of expected actually, after a point) which is partially revealed close to the ending of the season, does tie together most loose ends. Lastly, the “silly faces”, the loud voices, and the pedantic humor are also here, although, thankfully, quite toned down this time.
The animation by Liden Films is on a high level, with the fighting and the bicycle rides being its apogee. Keiko Ota and Kenichi Onuki's character design is probably the best technical aspect of the series, with them continuing to present impressive new characters, while the change of appearance of the same ones in the present and past arc is excellent. Lastly, the way the characters are bruised and bloodied is equally artful and realistic, showcasing the attention to detail of the whole crew.
Although more action-oriented and less intricate contextually, “Tokyo Revengers Christmas Showdown” is equally entertaining, while the fact that the whole thing will end in the next season is probably a great choice, considering how stretched the story already is.
