The Eden of Grisaia (2015)

[グリザイアの楽園]

Director: Tensho
Studio: Eight Bit
Starring: Takahiro Sakurai, Ryoko Tanaka, Hiroko Taguchi
Episodes: 10

Synopsis:
Mihama Academy is on the verge of closure, Kazami is being held on suspicion of involvement with an international terrorist, and his classmates are contacted by a mysterious benefactor offering them the chance to resolve the situation.

Impressions:
This picks up immediately where The Labyrinth of Grisaia left off, to the point where I feel it probably should've just been rolled in with this for a 12-episode season. Kazami's past comes back to haunt him, but the girls aren't just going to leave him on his own. I don't mind the more continuous narrative style here compared to the episodic approach of the first season, but while it's not bad seeing the girls act as an ensemble, none of them end up getting much focus. I particularly find it odd having Yumiko apparently positioned as the main girl (something you could see in the OP of the first season) even though her character development really doesn't seem to justify it. (Maybe it makes more sense when considering the source material.) Despite being the primary antagonist, there isn't much development for Oslo, and Dupont feels like a lost opportunity. The military stuff from Kazami's time in the Marines is hilariously inaccurate, which may actually serve as its own sort of entertainment. It may sound like I've got nothing but complaints, but I did actually find this a decent enough watch, even though it was fairly lacking in a lot of the first season's charm. If you want to see further adventures of the cast, then you'll probably find it worth a watch, too.

Rating:
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