Season Two Reflection

Ōdanna-sama & Aoi, animated by either Koeda Animation or Studio Paper Cranes (S2E6)

Belated Merry Christmas, everyone! May you had a lovely Christmas and looking forward for the New Year. 

I promised that I would make a summary post for S2, and here it is. I wrote the main post without re-watching all S2 (mainly because I couldn’t stomach New Animate Studio’s astronomical failure of an animation, specifically for Ōdanna-sama and to some extend Ginji and even Raijū), but once I have more time (and patience), I will re-watch it and put some edits whenever needed.

To make the post more structured, I divide it into three things to praise, three general things to improve, three more things to improve in the animation department, and three major restructurings to do. I did add more notes afterwards, but for the sake of brevity, I think sticking to three things at one time is actually good. 

In case any studios and parties involved in S2 production read this, you might find my comments harsh, but please see it as a constructive criticism. Just as you have worked hard for S2, other fans and I have worked hard to keep the fandom alive with no official English translation of the novel. Hence, my (our) frustrations stemmed from our love to the story, not from the desire to bring down any parties in particular.

Now, let’s get started.

Three things to praise:

1) Voice actors. Kudos for all voice actors; they did the main weightlifting for most parts, and at times compensating the very bad animation from New Animate Studio. Particular shout-out to Konishi Katsuyuki-san who managed to nail down Ōdanna-sama’s essence despite New Animate Studio’s bad animation in Eps 1-3. Konishi-san also reminded how majestic Ōdanna-sama is in a total of less than one minute from Ep 4 onwards. Of course Tōyama Nao deserved a praise as well because Aoi is the main character in S2, and she takes us through the 12 episodes without fail. Other voice actors such as Tamaru Atsushi’s Byakuya, Toki Shunichi’s Ginji, Kakuma Ai’s O-Ryō and Ishikawa Kaito’s Ranmaru were amazing as well. Basically, all voice actors managed to rescue S2 for me.

2) The music created by Iga Takurō was simply gorgeous. He knows how to blend Japanese musical elements with Western music really, really well. Iga-san also delivered S1 music scores, including Tōyama Nao’s amazing “Tomoshibi no Mani-mani” and Nano’s electrifying “Dream of the Netherworlds” (the scores from both seasons are now published in Apple Music, iTunes and Spotify, to name a few). It’s a shame that we didn’t get character songs like in S1, and that’s one of the reasons why S1 (despite its flaws, e.g., in full-frame shots) still wins in my heart. It’s also interesting that none of the character songs of S1 are available in the Iga Takurō collection released on the Christmas eve; maybe he simply didn’t create those character songs. However, Iga Takurō’s music is still simply amazing, and the collection is worth listening to. Iga-san also wrote the OSTs for Tsuki ga Kirei and Oshi no Ko, hence you know how amazing he is (despite the terrible ending of Oshi no Ko).

3) Story telling from Ep 5 onwards. Award-winning Konparu Tomoko-san did a great job with Eps 5-12, but she rushed through Eps 1-4. To her credit, I don't think it was her decision to do that (you just need to watch Ikuta Toma’s ‘Can’t Write!’ to understand the difficulties of being a script-writer in the entertainment industry in Japan). The reason for my giving Konparu-san the benefit of the doubt is because she also wrote the scripts for Season One. I love S1 story flow; IMO S1 story flows better than S2 story. Therefore, I think S1 is a good example of how good Konparu-san can be when she is given more freedom in writing, and thus I do not blame her for the rushed Eps 1-4. I think she did her best given the crazy parameters she was given.

Now, let’s move on to three general things to improve: 

1) Change Ōdanna-sama’s visual back to S1 style. Although there are fans who prefer to see the younger-looking Ōdanna-sama (and I respect you guys, truly), IMO by the end of Ep 12, the fandom is pretty much unison in this: we don’t want to see a teenager Ōdanna-sama. He’s a daiyōkai for a reason, e.g., his majestic presence to name a few, and drawing him like a teenager does not do him justice.

Season One Ōdanna-sama is mysterious...

He's gorgeous...

And when he's angry, he's petrifying...

2) Do NOT skip important storylines! It’s a BIG mistake for Gonzo to chop the first half of Vol 6 and squeezed Vol 6 and the first three chapters of Vol 7 into Episodes 1-4. BIG mistake. Please do not do that for Season 3. Please be faithful to major storylines for Season 3.

3) Return Kakuriyo to its Japanese roots. This is a hard suggestion to write because I can be perceived as being racist (I’d like to consider that I am anything but), so bear with me. Quoting an Anonymous reader here, “Kakuriyo shines brightest when it leans fully into its Japanese roots”. After all, many things that we see in Kakuriyo is very close to Shinto, which is very Japanese by definition. The deities, the Kagura dance, the torii gate that Ōdanna-sama and Aoi used to go back and forth between Kakuriyo and our world Utsushiyo… they are all Shinto. Therefore, please, go back to Japanese roots. Meaning, for instance, no derivation from the Japanese ambience, no Manchurian clothing in a Japanese Kakuriyo Imperial Palace (why not using Heian junihitoe instead for the ladies-in-waiting in Ep 7?), get as close as possible to kimono aesthetics, and maximise the use of Japanese traditional music such as koto, shamisen and shakuhachi, while blending them with modern musical elements like in S1. 

These junihitoe would've been much better for the Kakuriyo Palace... (source)

Again, I want to reiterate that I am not being racist here. I do like listening to traditional Chinese instruments like erhu and guzheng (btw, this San Francisco Public Library recording has a lovely blend of Japanese koto, Korean kayageum and Chinese guzheng in it). I just want to unapologetically enjoy a good Japanese-nuanced story, which attracted me to Kakuriyo in the first place, for – despite being in a different dimension – Kakuriyo is a Japanese world (albeit in a different dimension). Its inhabitants speak Japanese, and this spirit world is filled with traditional Japanese elements in most parts (except for the North, which has a lot of Western elements in it). I'm sure there is the Chinese equivalent of Kakuriyo somewhere, but Kakuriyo is Japanese, with all the reasonings I've made (plus more).

Now, let's go back to the animation. Since returning Ōdanna-sama to his Season One style is not a small step, I propose that the animation department needs to be reshuffled. Thus, these are the three things to reshuffle for the animation department:

1) Decommission New Animate Studio, at least from the role of Chief Animation Director. This studio did NOT deliver the job required for a successful S2.  Like, they are NEW to the truest sense of the word. They have only done ONE series (Mission: Yozakura Family, with five episodes as the Animation Director and two episodes as the Key Animator); they should have not been assigned the major role of the Chief Animation Director in S2. I understand people need livelihood, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of the fandom. If Gonzo/Makaria still wants to give New Animate Studio the benefit of the doubt, then assign them minor roles, but do not assign them as the Chief Animation Director. Certainly, do not give them the responsibility of drawing Ōdanna-sama. There’s a limit to giving one a second chance because… by my count, at least they had 11 episodes as Chief Animation Director in S2, five of them with Ōdanna-sama, and the results are fluctuating between B minus (at the most) and F. So, if it were up to me, I would decommission New Animate Studio entirely, but if they are retained, they should not hold such a major responsibility like the Chief Animation Director for even a single episode, let alone for the entire season. Just, please, return to the drawing board and get more experience before tackling a major role. That is a common-sense management decision.

This character (S2E12) is NOT the Ōdanna-sama we know in S1. Maybe his teenage self or his secret little brother, but not the Master we've come to love.

2) Get Makaria to be more active in S3. I originally wasn’t impressed with their involvement because I linked the bad animations from New Animate Studio with Makaria’s involvement, but I might have been wrong. I have seen some Kakuriyo S2 sketches recently from Makaria that put them in a better light IMO. I will get through it into more details later, so bear with me.

3) Get DECENT animation studios for Season 3. I wish Gonzo can collaborate with BN Pictures (Gintama and Shabake, to name a few), but that might be very well outside their budget. Thus, I am drawing my suggestion from the current roster studios. That is, Season Three responsibility for the Chief Animation Director is to be given to both Makaria and Koeda Animation (but I am open to suggestions, as long as it’s not a newbie like New Animate Studio). I originally suggested Studio Paper Cranes (X account here) for Season Three animation studio, but once I saw Studio Paper Cranes’s sketch, I changed my mind. I think Makaria is better as the main animator, paired with Koeda Animation, and I’ll explain my justification later. 

Let’s move on to another thing that might result from the three major restructure, that is, if ever they are enacted, for I don’t hold my breath that Gonzo et al read this post. But if these points are followed, what does it mean for the current director Joe Yoshizaki? Does it mean that he has to go? I’m not sure, but I will choose the best course of action to protect S3 integrity and quality. As a director, Joe was responsible to a large extent to the debatable quality of Season Two. As with New Animate Studio, Joe is also a newbie in directorship. Kakuriyo is his SECOND work after "The Brilliant Healer’s New Life in the Shadows" (and Brilliant Healer has weird storyline and big boobs all over the place in Ep 1 such that I gave up watching it). 

Gonzo’s decision to hire newbies doesn’t stop with the Director (Joe Yoshizaki) and main animator (New Animate Studio). Character designer for S2 (Katsura Hidemi) didn’t deliver a better for Ōdanna-sama (read: worse than the Master's S1 visuals) and… that tracks because Katsura-san only had done two (TWO) so far: Dropkick on My Devil (for the 2D work) and – guess what – Kakuriyo S2 as character design! If Katsura Hidemi still gets the job for S3, he needs to consult Satō Yōko to get S3 Ōdanna-sama as close as possible to S1. My vote though is to bring back Satō Yōko’s S1 character design, particularly for Ōdanna-sama and Ginji.

To sum up, Gonzo (or is that Gonzo and Makaria?) wanted to cut cost and they used newbies for the Director, Main Animator, and Character Designers. I understand anime productions are expensive, particularly when you have top-notch voice actors like Tōyama Nao and Konishi Katsuyuki and a very talented music director like Iga Takurō. However, don’t cut corners. Surely the roles for the Director, Main Animator, and Character Designers are TOO IMPORTANT to cut corners. The reason why old fans gave up on S2 is because of the warp-speed story pacing of Ep 1-4 and the cheap, bad qualities of animation for Ep 1-4 (and I can add Ep 11-12 to that as well because of the weird Ōdanna-sama visuals, particularly in Ep 12).

If we want Season Three to have a much better reception than Season Two and – dare I hope – surpass even Season One performance, we need to do major restructurings. 

Thus, it brings us to three main management decisions required for Season 3:

1) Hire veterans for important roles, and that includes Director, Chief Animation Directors, Animation Directors, and Character Designer. It means that they should not use newbies for these primary positions. I am actually willing to give Joe Yoshizaki another chance, as long as we have veterans replacing New Animate Studio as the Chief Animator Director. With Character Designer Katsura Hidemi, I am on the fence. I really don’t like S2 Ōdanna visuals, and it should be partly his responsibility as Character Designer. His design on other characters like Byakuya's true form and Akaguma Shogun were great, but why such a flop for the main character Ōdanna-sama? And I'm not the only one having beef about it here. In addition to many of you here, A Sprinkle of Anime and members of her FB group also have major beef about it. 

Again, I understand how important livelihood and income is, but it should again not come at the expense of the fandom.  Give them smaller elements if that is compassionate (though that is debatable, because if there are more competent artists out there and they are not hired instead, is that compassion?). Also, veterans hired for Season Three should also appreciate and understand Japanese culture (hint: Season One team did, they just needed help with some shots like full-frame shots). If the core team is unsure about certain things, the team should not hesitate to contact experts (though emon wo nuku and getting the tubular shapes of ladies kimono should be a no-brainer). Thus, if they hire a competent but non-Japanese studio (like the Mexican-based Koeda Animation, which I actually like), they are in the position to give feedback to make the drawings more authentic.

Animators, please pull down the emon correctly like this, or at least give one fist of a space for the emon wo nuku (source)

2) Line up decent Japanese producers who are willing to recreate a Japanese Hidden World for Season Three. Again, not trying to be racist here, but if one reads the Anime News Network’s entry for Kakuriyo Season One, you’d read Japanese names again and again. Thus, I think it’s not a coincidence that I can sense deep Japanese ambience in Season One. Producers are very important in any production, including anime. They bring funding and also contribute/influence the artistic direction. On that note, we have two non-Japanese producers in S2 Kakuriyo. Since the production team of S1 Kakuriyo was almost 100% Japanese and S1 is generally better-received than S2, with all due respect, I wonder how much input would these two non-Japanese producers had in shaping a reduced Japanese ambience for Kakuriyo S2, at least as perceived by myself and many Japanese fans.

I mean, these days you won’t make an Australian First Nations documentary or even TV series or movie without involving the First Nations in the production, right? 

Or shall I put another example here: The Memoirs of A Geisha? Although internationally-praised, this movie is famous for being shunned by Japanese viewers because it didn’t portray the Japanese aesthetics correctly despite having Ken Watanabe at the helm.

So, if the two non-Japanese producers need to be kept afloat for S3, make sure that the decisions are not counter-productive. Kakuriyo is a Japanese world, hence it should lean fully and unapologetically to its Japanese roots. 

3) Do NOT rush into producing Season Three if all the above conditions are not met. I am aware that funding is needed to fix the main issues I elucidated earlier (chief among them Ōdanna-sama’s lacklustre animation). Funding (or the lack thereof), I suspect, is behind the reason for Gonzo (or Gonzo and Makaria) to hire newbie Director, Chief Animation Directors, and Character Designer. If that is the case, then collaborate with more studios. Ask Kadokawa for help, for crying out loud! The Kakuriyo story is no less than (and dare I say, much better than) My Happy Marriage, yet MHM was able to secure Netflix production, while Kakuriyo Season Two suffers a great setback due to cheap production. I would rather wait for a few more years to get solid and experienced  Director, Chief Animation Directors, and Character Designer, rather than having Season Three next year or even in 2027. The fandom will suffer. People will not see how amazing this story is, how amazing Aoi is, how noble Ōdanna-sama is, how amazing Tenjin-ya crew and Orio-ya crew are, and how captivating the Hidden World in general is because the animation is crappy and it doesn’t feel rooted to its source (the light novel and also Japanese culture).

With this much input to give, it’s clear now to me that I am not a major fan of Season Two. I don’t hate it, but Season One is much better for me. It’s not just that S1 has more Ōdanna-sama; most of us would agree that he’s the most important male character for Kakuriyo, hence his absence in most of S2 does make us long for him. However, if S2 was well-animated with the FIRST HALF of Vol 6 intact, I think I would have loved S2 much more, perhaps on par with my love for S1. Therefore, I rank S2 as 7/10, and that’s a generous grade for me, mostly due to the three things I praised at the start (voice actors, script-writing, and OST). Meanwhile, I easily rank S1 as 9/10 despite its bad full-frame animation shots that prevented it from getting 10/10 from me.

On Fixing the Animation

I’ve laid down my suggestions above as systematic as possible. Granted, I have repeated myself several times, but since this is not a Q1 journal article, I leave those repetitions be for effect. However, for now, to close this reflection, I’d like to circle back to the main issue of Season Two, i.e., the poor animation of the main character (Ōdanna-sama) and – thus – the poor animation of episodes related to him when clearly depicted (instead of just being in the dream sequence or astral form). After all, anime relies mainly on three things: the animation itself (hence the name), the voice actors who bring beloved characters to life, and the music. Season Two has successfully resurrected the last two (though I have some reservation with some Chinese elements in the music scores), but failed to do the animation justice, particularly for important Ōdanna-sama moments. 

Thus, let’s dive into how to fix the animation. I specifically want to talk about Eps 1-3 and Eps 11-12. These episodes are led by New Animate Studio (who also led most other episodes, except for Ep 6, of which Chief Animation Directors were from Koeda Animation and Studio Paper Cranes). By scrutinizing the end credit scenes, I have been able to isolate that New Animate Studio is indeed responsible for the bad animations of those episodes. 

To be fair, I am not 100% sure that these train wrecks of a decision for the animation is Gonzo’s alone. In other words, was Makaria also involved in that bad decision? 

However, I don’t think Makaria had too much to say on this artistic direction. In itself, Makaria might've been a competent studio to do the animation. I say this because, although Makaria is new to the series, they are not new in the industry. Makaria produced among others the Rising of Shield Hero S3 (2nd key animation for eps 4 & 8) and Horimiya S2E2 (in-between animation). Makaria also posted some Kakuriyo sketches since the last few days around Christmas, and these sketches are very good. Check these out:

I love the Ōdanna snowman here...

Pleased to see O-Ryō's emon pulled back properly here...

This Raijū is much closer to his S1 version compared to S2E3 ver

Both Ranmaru and Ginji here are closer to their S1 versions...

Byakuya is very similar to his S1 ver here

I love the clean lines for the King (oops!) and Takechiyo here

I still prefer Ginji's S1 true form, but Ranmaru's and Byakuya's are majestic here

And last but not least, Makaria's Ōdanna-sama. I still prefer the S1 style, but at least this style is closer to be nudged back to his S1 style. Make his hair fuller and... dunno, perhaps sharper eyebrows?

And let's compare these Makaria sketches with the ones drawn by New Animate Studio for S2E3. The kiss was a re-enactment of S1E20, but I don't like this re-enactment visual.

Comparing the sketches posted by New Animate Studio with Makaria's, I think Makaria’s sketches are the winner here. Makaria's style happens to be very similar to Koeda Animation’s style (see below).

  

Therefore, I am inclined to separate Makaria from New Animate Studio’s works. Did Makaria endorse New Animate Studio in good faith? Or did Gonzo endorse New Animate Studio for the same reason? Who knows, but they should’ve seen samples of works before endorsing such newbie studio. I just hope Gonzo and Makaria learn the lesson for Season Three not to use New Animate Studio anymore. I made jokes about colouring trees before, but seriously, if they still want to give New Animate Studio work for Kakuriyo (not that I approve, but hey I am just a fan), just ask them to colour the trees and backgrounds, or in-between animations, or anything minor. 

That brings it to who should be asked to animate Season Three. I originally suggested Koeda Animation (X account here) and Studio Paper Cranes (X account here), but I want to retract Studio Paper Cranes from my suggestion. Read further to see why, please.

Both Koeda Animation and Studio Paper Cranes worked on Apothecary Diaries Season Two (Ep 24 and Ep 4 respectively) and both studios co-directed the animation for just one Kakuriyo episode in S2 (Ep 6). Since Ep 6 is the episode which I think has the best animation style across Season Two, I ended up suggesting both Koeda Animation and Studio Paper Cranes for S3. However, I re-watched Ep 6 again yesterday morning, and realised that the re-enactment of S1E20 fight between Ōdanna-sama and the underground Dragon Palace jyaki left much to be desired. My further investigation now leads me to believe that Koeda Animation has a better animation style than Studio Paper Cranes (though correct me if I'm wrong, of course).

So, just to be clear: chronologically, we have three Ōdanna-related scenes in S2 Ep 6: the jyaki-stabbing re-enactment of S1E20, the young Ōdanna and Byakuya (new scene belonging to S2E6) and Aoi’s memory of Ōdanna-sama inserting the camellia hairpin into her chignon (re-enactment of S1E3). I am very happy with the young Ōdanna scene with Byakuya, and I am quite happy with the camellia hairpin scene (reproduction of S1E3). I am – however – not keen on the jyaki-stabbing re-enactment (S1E20). Since both Koeda Animation and Studio Paper Cranes were co-Chief Animation Directors for Ep 6 (and none of them would answer my question about who drew what, I guess), I will make a guess here below.

After Ep 6 aired, Koeda Animation re-posted a tweet (X?) about Ep 6. I congratulated Koeda Animation for the beautiful animation of young Setsu and Byakuya, and Koeda didn’t say that it was not their work. Let’s say that it’s true that these shots below were created by Koeda Animation.

Byakuya, young Setsu, & sakura-fubuki (the blizzard of falling sakura), Ep 6

The young Setsu & sakura-fubuki...

I’d say it’s true because it’s very similar to this Aoi sketch, which is 100% produced by Koeda Animation, particularly by UMI as Koeda's Chief Animation Director. 

It's tiny, but Aoi's emon is not pulled backwards here. Can be easily fixed.

Now let’s compare it with this Ep 6 scene where the flirty Ōdanna-sama putting the camellia hairpin into Aoi’s hairdo (re-enactment of S1E3). 

I’d say Aoi's sketch is very similar to the Ōdanna-Aoi scene. Thus, IMO, Koeda Animation created that Ōdanna-Aoi in Ep 6 above.

Let’s move on to my least favourite Ōdanna-scene in Ep 6, i.e., the Master stabbing the (other) jyaki:

S2E6 (re-enactment of S1E20)

The original S1E20 scene (which I prefer by a long mile)

That re-enactment of S1E20 in S2E6 is not similar to Koeda Animation's style, hence I'm inclined to believe it was not Koeda's work. Let's compare it with Studio Paper Cranes’ sketch then:

I'm not 100% that the re-enactment of S1E20 above is very similar to Studio Paper Cranes’ style, but the S1E20 re-enactment is not consistent with Koeda Animation's style. 

Therefore, I deduce that Koeda Animation delivers better drawings than Studio Paper Cranes, and thus Koeda Animation should work together with Makaria in animating Season Three. But in the end, I suggest that whoever created Ep 6 best shots should be the Chief Animation Director for Season Three. If Makaria's sketches are indeed produced by Makaria, then Makaria should be the co-Chief Animation Director for S3 as well.

Of course, these narratives are just my guesswork, and thus I welcome communications from any of these parties through my email southernriver74 at gmail dot com. I am critical of Season Two, but it’s because I love the work.  

On that note, thank you for reading this long ranting post. I think I’ve ranted all that I can rant for in this post, and I’ve praised all that I can praise for as well. 

In my next post, I will post a translation of the Ōdanna-Aoi theme songs (I love the Namida no Recipe – Hitosaji no Hikari duet!). I should be able to post it around the 5th of Jan 2026 (OMG, time flies!).

Then, after New Year, I will return to the original source, where I will post a translation of a short chapter in Vol 11 or 12. I haven’t decided which one, but I’m inclined to translate the first chapter of Vol 11 with Ōdanna-sama and Aoi when they are already married, for I think we are overdue for some romance.

Until then, Happy New Year. May 2026 brings us much better news for Kakuriyo fans (and also world peace based on love and respect, which of course is always my greater concern).