Mushoku Tensei Season 2 Review: Happy Father’s Day

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The second season of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation was quite the season of anime. As an overview, I loved this season. It had a good mix of slice of life content, while also having an intense, emotional, and action-packed ending. Considering that this show was shown in two cours, the first half of the season was probably a low point for some people. However, the second half more than makes up for it, and the stage is set for season 3.

So getting into some more specifics, I personally enjoyed the slice of life aspect of the first half of season 2. After reading and finishing the light novel, I knew right from the start that this season was going to be crazy. Now, for the anime only viewers out there, the sudden jump to a slice of life after all the action season 1 provided was definitely abrupt.

Reading the comments on those episodes, I knew exactly how they felt. However, I also knew that this was jus the calm before the storm. After this season of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation, everything is about to change.

But, this still doesn’t excuse the fact that the first half of the season was just spent on Rudeus’ day to day life. Although this was a great look into his life, and it gives us a chance to get closer to some of the characters that we don’t normally see too often, it did bring the pace down.

From this point on, I will be getting into spoilers. I’ll go over major event in this season, and I’ll cover some future events as well. If you haven’t watched this season of Mushoku Tensei yet, then give that a watch. But if you’ve already watched the season, or if you’ve read the novel like I did, then strap in, and let’s discuss this amazing show.

So first things first, I do like how the beginning of this season was a bit slower. Now, this might be a bit biased, since I know all the future events of this story, but, it was worth the wait. Now, the biggest event of the first half of the season revolves around Norn, Rudeus’ sister. Having the slower pace of the show allowed the viewer to get accustomed to the new characters.

This all culminated into the event where Rudeus saved Norn from her depression. Now, although the anime did this scene quite well, I do prefer the light novel version a bit more. Since the light novel can give more details and inner thoughts, I think the added context made this part of the story more impactful.

Now, the anime still nailed this scene, but I think the light novel did better on this front. Watching Norn’s descent into depression was a lot harder to watch in the anime. The fact we can see her slowly slip and to recluse did make the build up better than the light novel. Overall though, it was a solid scene, and it was worth the build up.

Now, the bigger part of this season is related to Turning Point 3. This, I believe, is when the story goes from great, to absolutely mind blowing. Unfortunately, anime only viewers will have to wait a while longer for season 3. But all the set up is there.

So, after the mid season break, the big event is Rudeus’ decision to head to the Demon Continent to rescue his mother, or to be with his wife during the birth of their first child. Eventually, Rudeus does decide to go to the Demon Continent to rescue his mother.

Now, this part of the anime does cut a lot of content from the light novel. First off, this journey that Rudeus and Elinalise take spans multiple chapters. It even includes a small side story where the pair help save a caravan from monsters. Now, in the anime, this whole journey, which was a long time in the light novel, got cut to half an episode. Granted, the more important part of the season was the labyrinth, which I’m glad they got to explore more.

However, I still feel bad that the anime only viewers never got to experience the adventure to the Demon Continent in the fullest. It was an amazing part of the novel, and it demonstrated Rudeus’ power a lot more. I wish we could’ve seen more, but I also understand why they didn’t delve deeper into this subplot.

If they instead shrunk the slice of life part of season 2, then maybe it would have been better. But if they cut content there, the connection to the side characters wouldn’t be the same. I’m disappointed we don’t get to the adventures in the desert, but I understand the constraints of the show.

The big part of this season is the rescue mission of Zenith, Rudeus’ mother. Along with this, Rudeus meets up with his father Paul again, after a few years apart. In this party, Roxy, Rudeus’ old master, was also present, however, due to an accident in the labyrinth, she was now trapped in there. The next biggest point of the show was Roxy’s rescue.

Now, in the novel, they go into more details on the trails and tribulations she faced while isolated from the group. The anime does a good job exposing the viewer to her horrors, but the light novel does provide a lot more detail. I think the one area I liked more in the anime was the moment where Rudeus saves Roxy.

Seeing the hordes of monsters turn to ice, and the sparkly backgrounds was stunning and breathtaking. Leave it to animation to allow the more visually stunning parts of the story to absolutely shine. It was a great scene, and they definitely gave that scene justice.

For those who know the story, you’ll know what’s coming up next. The battle with the hydra, and the death of a very important character.

Before I ever read the novel, I was spoiled by this one fact while browsing the Internet. Although I was spoiled, it was at this moment, I was really interested in reading the light novel. And it wasn’t a decision I regret.

So, getting into the specifics, the battle with the hydra was visually stunning. In the light novel, it was an intense fight, but seeing it animated gave it a whole other perspective. The animation team really outdid itself. Now, the battle was divided into two parts. In the first part, the party is completely overwhelmed, and forced to retreat, even with Zenith in sight. In the second part of the fight, a plan was made and the battle went a lot smoother.

Now, as is the case with most light novel to anime adaptations, there was plenty of cut content again. I won’t go over the specifics, since I know there are videos out there who would do a better job than me, but even with the cut content, this fight was breathtaking and intense. In the Mushoku Tensei world, this isn’t even the most intense fight we’ll see, so I’m definitely hyped for the future.

The big spoiler for this fight is the death of Paul, which is mainly due to Rudeus’ inexperience. During the second half of the fight, the party had a game plan. Paul was the only swordsman who could cut the hydra, so it was his role to decapitate the monster. Before the hydra can regenerate, Rudeus was to burn the stump to staunch the healing.

The rest of the party was there to provide support through healing and tanking. And for the most part, this was working, all until the last head. It was there where Rudeus lost focus, and in that split second, it costed him his left hand and Paul’s life. In the end, the party was able to save Zenith, but it turns out that Zenith was in a trancelike state, almost as if she lost all her memories. To add to the irony, the timing of this episode was impeccable, being aired on Father’s Day, of all days.

Compared to the light novel to the anime for this scene, I think the anime does better. The absolute silence in this scene, combined with the incredulous looks of the party, really sell the impact of this scene. I think what helps this scene out more in the anime is that Paul smiles one last time before he passes, whereas in the light novel, he’s gone.

The last part of the season deals with the aftermath of the rescue. This was another part that I was looking forward to after reading it in the novel. Seeing the effects on the characters following Paul’s death was more impactful. During this whole scene, there was no sound, and all you could see was the grief and sadness hanging over the characters like a cloud. Again, I think the anime does this part better, as you can physically see the effects of Paul’s death, and it made it all the more impactful.

The last scene in the show is Roxy’s acceptance into the family as the second wife of Rudeus. Now, to anime only viewers, I do believe this part of the show was rushed. The novel handled Rudeus’ depression after the death a lot better, and it explains Rudeus and Roxy’s actions a lot better. Now, I do like the scene with the family discussing Roxy’s fate a lot better. Seeing Sylphy stand up to Norn was a great touch, and it was just as impactful in the show as the light novel.

Overall, season 2 of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation was quite faithful to the source material. Although some things were changed, and some content was cut, the major plot points were all hit and done spectacularly. If you enjoyed the first season, or if you read the whole thing like I did, this is definitely worth the watch. And it gets me hyped for season 3 for sure.