Ani-Mania: ‘Romeo X Juliet’ Part 2

I hate to give a bad review of anything. I really do. I’ve long been of the opinion that the best way to handle reviews is to emphasize a series’ good points, and whom it might appeal to, rather than to go around bashing things. For example, if I tell you that Higurashi is a fiendishly clever horror story that retells the same terrifying events from several different perspectives (hint on what a future column will be about), then I have done no disservice to anyone. If you like horror stories that take a bit of detective work to decipher, then you know Higurashi might be of interest to you. If you can’t stand horror stories, or can’t enjoy something without a linear plot, well, now you know that Higurashi probably isn’t for you. Either way, everyone is served (and we all know anime is about fanservice, don’t we?)

But in the case of Romeo x Juliet, I feel like it’s only fair to say that the second half of the series just doesn’t quite measure up. It’s not that the second season is bad, but it doesn’t live up to the first season’s promise. Before I say any more, lets take a quick look at where we are.

It’s been a while since we left our two star crossed lovers back at that cliff hanger ending to season one. As the curtain goes up on the second half of Romeo x Juliet, all is not well in fair Neo Verona. Juliet has been captured by the cruel lord Montague, who declares that she will be executed. When Romeo confronts his father on Juliet’s behalf, he too falls prey to the old man’s wrath, and is exiled to a remote mining village. Once again, we are asked, is this truly a love that can never be?

But there are other forces at work. By now, the people of Neo Verona are ready to stand up to Montague’s tyranny, and William Shakespeare foments open revolt by putting on a play which champions the cause of house Capulet. Things have gone far beyond an old feud between two noble families, however. The citizens of Neo Verona want freedom, and they are willing to fight for it. Even as the power of the Montague family wanes, a new threat emerges. Aeschylus, the mysterious tree whose power holds the world together, is dying, and Juliet may be the only one who can save it.

That sounds like a heck of a lot to fit into twelve episodes, but in all honesty, large parts of the second half of this series feel open, and, well, empty. The first four episodes, nearly a third of the second season, are largely spent on Romeo’s exploits in a mining camp, as he gets to know some of the criminals who have been exiled there, and in the process, finds his own place in life. Anime is well known for this kind of character building, “bildungs roman” type of stuff, and when it’s done well, I can’t get enough of it. But here, it comes off as a couple of hours we have to sit through in order to get to the rest of the story, and we all know what happens when Haruhi gets bored, so that is definitely not a good idea.

Things do pick up later on. The episode with Will’s “play within the play” is well done, and a nice touch for Shakespeare fans. The final disc of the two disc set has some pretty intense drama as the story builds towards the climax. The ending is weird, but that’s hardly new territory for anime fans, and the overall production value remains high. But there are still parts of the story, even right at the end, that feel vacant. As I watch Juliet struggle to save Aeschylus (think World Tree. Every show these days seems to have a world tree), I’m left to wonder, how exactly did we get here?

If you’re a fan of the series, you’re probably going to want to see this — it’s still pretty good, even if it’s not great — and if you already bought the first season, you may well end up buying it, since after all, it doesn’t do you much good to have half of the show floating around in your collection. Just be warned, while the first half of the series was really good, the second season is kind of mediocre.

Whether you agree or disagree with me, feel free to post a comment telling us what you think, and why. Next week looks to be very busy here at AniMania. There’s a lot of new releases to talk about, and of course, more misadventures in the world of Otaku. If there’s anything in particular you would like to see, feel free to drop us a line.