D.C.II: Da Capo II

If I were to choose just one word to describe this anime, it would be "pleasant." The episodes literally fly by, they're very easy to watch and easily enjoyable. As someone who's new to the Da Capo franchise, I still enjoyed it very much, so if you've never seen any of the previous installments, do not let this discourage you. The series can be enjoyed as a stand-alone experience, at least I did. This review will be spoiler-free. The Story: 6 To be fair, the story is not the strongest point of the series, but it's certainly nothing to frown at. The plot progresses at a comfortable pace, and it is a heartwarming tale for the most part. Some events are a bit predictable, but it's never boring, and it doesn't drag on. If you're looking for an epic tale, look elsewhere, but for a harem, it's quite good. Art: 8 The art and visual are very beautiful. The whole team of sakuras and the lively colors used throughout the series really do enhance the mood. The character designs are fantastic, which is what first drew me to the series. Aesthetically, it is a very pleasant experience. It is a harem, after all, and seeing beautiful women is always a plus. Sound: 7 The opening theme is very good, I think they chose a very fitting song for the series. The background music mostly good as well, some of it memorable, and some it just blending into the background. I personally thought the ending could have been better, though. Characters: 8 The characters often make or break a show, and Da Capo was no exception. I already mentioned the wonderful character designs, and this extends to their personality as well as their appearance. The male lead isn't perfect, but he is quite likable for a harem lead. Almost all of the female "contestants" are just lovable and cute, but each of them have their own special charm. Amakase was especially entertaining to watch, a great character. Enjoyment: 7 It was a pleasant and enjoyable experience. It kept me entertained, and I grew attached to the characters. It is a high school harem, and it's pretty hard to stand out in this genre, but I think Da Capo did a good job of making a show that's both enjoyable and memorable. It wasn't out of this world, but it was good, and I'd recommend it to anyone who doesn't have a strong bias against harems. Overall I gave the series 7: Good and enjoyable. I'm looking forward to enjoying the second season, and I hope you will too. Thanks for taking the time to read my review and happy watching.

A sequel to a successful franchise, Da Capo II takes us to the journey of one Yoshiyuki Sakurai and his harem. Veterans of the original Da Capo will see some distinct similarities concerning the overall plot and the characters that make up the world of DCII. As previously stated, the anime of DCII is severely lacking compared to its predecessors. It's not that the story itself is lacking, but due to a 26 episode series being abruptly split in half to two 13 episode seasons. I find it hard to review an incomplete story such as DCII but I don't want current and future viewers to get the wrong idea. To those who have watched this series, you must definitely watch season two or you will have wasted your time. To future viewers, take into consideration that there is a continuation to the tale of D.C.II set to air in a couple of days. This review might seem out of place, but that's because I know the "actual" story of DCII . "Season 1" is not a good representative of the actual story, but think of it as the calm before a raging storm. Alert viewers would notice subtle hints that were dropped in some of the episodes, which means that there is more than meets the eye... With that said, think not of this as a review but more of a word of advice. If you felt cheated of your time by watching such a mediocre story, then "Season 2" might just change your mind. Since spoilers aren't allowed, then those who read this will just have to take my word for it. I for one am eager to see whether the "Da Capo" part of the story will get some screen time. Veterans of D.C.II should know what I'm talking about ;-)

This is a new Da Capo with an entirely different storyline. I was expecting the least of it since it has a low rating and watching it at first got me confused and disappointed because it was something completely different from the previous ones, but, it turns out great. People must have taken this series the wrong way because it is actually quite good. I've watched it while expecting and searching for disappointments, but the only flaw to it is that it has two main stories which is basically wrong. The stories are great and they indeed, are able to switch between the two like it was dante's weapons in devil may cry 3, but as what everyone learned since elementary, there should ALWAYS be ONLY ONE main topic because it's very hard to talk about two things at the same time. "EF - A Tale of Memories" were able to pull it off somehow but this one didn't, still, this is definitely a MUST WATCH, not as a continuation of the previous Da Capo but as a new anime. The undying Sakura trees do return but they're more like just a background this time. There's a whole new story but sadly its very wrong because they tried to fit two stories into one show. However, when separated, the stories are pretty good. Da Capo II has a story of love between childhood friends and also a story of robots and society. There's also a side story of playing in a band and a hint of the Da Capo harem. There's also this thing about the main guy having dreams just like Junichi in the very first Da Capo. It's really such a waste that they tried a mix of stories here. They took the other things lightly and ended up focusing most on the robot story while trying to keep up with the love story, so it was quite a mess. Anyway, the fact that the stories in separate are good and because it had a very nice ending, the story department still deserves a good score. The art is very good. Everyone and everything looked nice, but the problem is that it lacked beauty and cuteness. The drawings are good and the animation is good but comparing it to the previous works, the art, most specially the characters, could have looked so much better (the characters look bad in side view). The sounds are great. It has a nice OP and ED that is well fitted for the genre and it also has nice backgrounds, and nice voices. Everything is well blended with the scenes. The sounds are really good but not to a point that people would like it so much. To the viewers of the previous Da Capo, the new characters will feel really weird and disappointing since they don't seem to be directly related to the old ones. No history was presented. Disregarding that, the characters were all great and everyone had good roles, except for Sakura Yoshino. Thinking about it, it's quite disappointing that she doesn't have much to do this time. Another bad thing is that the main guy can be too much thickheaded but he was able to make up for that somehow. Da Capo II could have been great. It's quite enjoyable despite the negative facts. It has the comedy back, it has good drama, and the music band thing was a big plus. Suginami's 100% evasion is something to miss though but it's still fine without it.

Story: The weakest area of DC II. The story really has no backbone. There is some character development. But from what I have watched so far, nothing has changed at all! In nine episodes there has only been roughly 2 solid events: Koko's confession and the trip. Art: Based off a visual novel just like the previous two seasons, there is not much you can really say about the art work, except its well-drawn. Not that there are any significant differences in style. Sound: I was pleased with the songs in this season. I enjoyed the OP and ED song alot, as well as a few insert songs. The OST is exceptional so far, and I hope I'll be able to get my hands on it soon. Character: Not much of a difference between the casts of the First Da Capo and this one. Yes, they very much resemble their ancestors with slight differences. But I thought there are some unnecessary characters this time barely affecting the story at all. Nanaka and Koko are my favorite characters so far, the rest of the cast pretty much OK. Enjoyment: So far the series ranks an OK, I ll lets keep going, although sometimes I am reluctant. I usually can finish an episode in one sitting, but it actually took the course of almost half a day to a whole day to actually get back on track and resume. Overall: If it were not for the sound, this anime wouldve ranked much lower than I had reviewed the first season of Da Capo. Not much you can really say, that stands out. I guess this would be the standard for "The Average High School Anime."

Story-7 Unlike its predecessors, Da Capo II mostly ties the main plot and sub plot. The big idea in this series, xenophobia to robots, was introduced echoing the last two series about bananas. Surprisingly the relationship between the protagonist and Koko was established quickly. Their obstacles in their relationship was fairly predictable, being too nice and general insensitivity from the classic protagonist. The story progressed much faster as a 13 episode series which was great because the three characters (Yoshiyuki, Koko, and Minatasu) were fairly fleshed out. Art-7 There was nothing outstanding from the art (except the nice animation of ripping the world domination notebook) but it was still nice. Sound-7 Instead of Kotori singing we have Nanaka. I actually enjoyed the singing parts this time because more people were actually involved. (the band) The rest of the sounds were nice and the OP actually stuck with me. Character-7 Our protagonist Yoshiyuki is a much more active character than Junichi. He goes for the girl and succeeds. The Asakura siblings do not have a major impact in the story save for the one episode but help flesh out the relationships between the three main characters. Koko is the shy one that lacks initiation until she gathers the courage which is great. Minatsu is the interesting character about living in society where robots are seen as tools. She has the most development as a character. The two girls, Akane and Anzu, serve their role to aid Koko and were neither outstanding or boring. Nanaka has her moment comparable to Kotori with the protagonist and it established her character well. Enjoyment-7 There was not a single episode where I wished I would want to skip. The episodes usually kept me busy but nothing outstanding. I liked the part where the "cliffhanger" at the second last episode was supposed to mean something but the last episode just glossed over it in the first half. I chuckled at that because for once there was no emphasis in romance in the a romance genre series. Overall-7 The series again improved from its prequels and kept the enjoyment factor satisfying. The show is more about the three person relationship rather than a harem which I can enjoy for once.

Da Capo II is a new story set fifty years after the original Da Capo with a portion of the characters being decedents of the original cast. However, the entire plot line diverges from the dramatic tension and magic that defined the original series so well. This series is actually more similar to Chobits and True Heart ~Memories in terms of themes than the original Da Capo. After a few episodes dealing with a weak relationship, the main plot focuses on the Robot/human/feelings issue. So if you're looking for intense love triangles, either look elsewhere or wade through this quickly to get to the sequel. Animation: The animation is actually very nice. The characters are well proportioned and colors are nicely set. The descendants actually look quite similar to their respective equivalent in the first series, except for Sakura, of course, who looks identical to her former self. Sound: The OP and ED didn't catch my attention much and the overall feel of the BGM was lackluster compared to the original series, but that might just be because of the lack of actual tension in this series in general. The voice acting cast on the other hand is very good and Yui Horie as Yume Asakura is just too cute. Story: The story is about a male who lives in Sakura's house named Yoshiyuki Sakurai who is apparently called "brother" by the Asakura sisters even though they have different last names (check Wiki if interested as to why) and this is never explained in the series. At first, the story is about his relationship with a girl named Koko, who he had been a good friend with for years. However, instead of continuing to develop and expand the relationship, the focus of the story shifts unnaturally when the main character stumbles upon a robot similar to Miharu Amakase in the original series. Yoshiyuki feels responsible for awakening the robot and the rest of the story deals with how others perceive of "robots" that have "feelings". However, the execution of this development was done in an inferior fashion and left the human girl, Koko, in the shadows. The overall conclusion of the story never answers what happens to the relationships but that's probably because they want to leave something for the second series. Overall, the story is a let down to the dramatic and amazing story in the original Da Capo. Character: The main characters in this series include familiar names such as Asakura, Amakase, and Shirakawa. It is interesting to note that Sakura (who still looks like a child) is now the principal at the school. Yoshiyuki is a "nice" guy as is most other lead males in harem animes. He is also stereotypically slow when it comes to understanding the feelings of the one he is supposed to be in a relationship with. Overall, I find his character weak in comparison to Hiroyuki in To Heart. He is apparently related to Jun'ichi as he also sees others' dreams and can magically make candy. In terms of the other characters, Koko is a shy girl who is very reserved despite being in a relationship with Yoshiyuki. Personally, I feel Koko's character is a far cry from Nemu in terms of potential. The only two characters that I really wanted to see developed were the two Asakura sisters who sadly got minimal air time. Jump to the sequel if you want to see more of them. Value: My expectations for this show were pretty high since it is the direct successor of Da Capo. I didn't expect the focus of the anime to shift away from relationships to focus on the metaphysical topic of robots with feelings and how society deals with them. Even with the shift in topic, it was handled in an inferior fashion in comparison with other animes of that topic. Overall, I think the value of this series is average.