Working’!!

Title: Working’!!
Genre: Comedy
Rating: 8.2/10

Summary: Second season of Working!!

Review: With such a distaste for Shinryaku!? Ika Musume I decided it might be best to do a review on a comedy I actually found myself enjoying more and more. The second season of Working!! did things right. More than I can say about other two season comedies *cough* Baka to Test *cough*. The thing about the second season of this beloved anime is it takes a closer look at the actual characters. You learn more about the characters you grew to know in the first season. It had new and refreshing jokes while still keeping true to its roots with random banter about cute things or male-fearing girls. The second season also added a little spice by pushing the romance of the co-workers a bit more. Normally I would advise against any form of romance in a comedy considering it only leads to drama and bad days. However, Working!! kept things light hearted and turned much of the romance into a gag. Sweet and simple is what kept this anime afloat and in need of a season three.

The art for the second season of working was basically the same. It didn’t venture off much farther than the restaurant this time though. In the first season you get to see a bit more of the town because of a date between two of the unlikely lovers. However, in season two the farthest you see is basically a nearby alley or the inside of Souta’s house. I was a little disappointed that they didn’t expand their horizons a bit but what do you expect of an anime that is centered around a work place? The character designs stayed the same and probably the only difference were the silly hairdos Jun would give Popura. Something that I still found strangely entertaining. Thankfully their lack of variety was made up by hilarious humor.

It is difficult to say if I liked the second season more or less than the first. The first season was obviously new and refreshing. Getting to know the characters was a new experience and I never knew what to expect next. The second season still had my laughing and falling off my chair, but I don’t know if it had the same magic. A fate that nearly all two season comedy fall to unfortunately. I think what made the second season more enjoyable was a closer look at the characters’ relations. It dived deeper into crushes and romance between the co-workers. The secretive romance that only the audience was able to see was brought out into the open and led to quite hilarious misunderstandings and adventures. It is surprising how much a comedy can pull the oblivious act and I still find it quite amusing. Here is where I feared the anime would lead at the beginning of the season. After the mess created by Baka to Test it was inevitable that I would be a bit speculative about amplifying the romance of a comedy. Lucky for me Working!! knew how to do it right. Most people who came into Working!! I’m sure weren’t looking for a romance anime. They weren’t looking to see people forming couples or getting together. Because let’s be honest, most couples aren’t all that interesting or funny to watch. Instead Working!! takes what the audience already knew and makes gags out of it. I would say that most of the second season was dedicated to using humorous moments to bring the characters together (romantic interest or not). It really showed how close everyone became working together; worrying about each other’s lives and such. You can pretty much sum up your liking of the second season to this: if you like the characters and have some interest in their lives you will enjoy it. The second season also introduced a lot of new characters which helped a lot. Each had their own little quirks and weren’t out of the blue. The most important one being Maya Matsumoto. The mysterious girl who had been lurking in the background of Wagnaria. I don’t want to spoil anything because I’m sure anyone who has watched the first season has been dying to know about her. I’m glad she didn’t disappoint to say the least.

Final statements: I thoroughly enjoyed the second season of Working!! and I really do hope they come out with yet another season. I laughed nearly constantly and I feel that it is improving bit by bit. A comedy with a high priority watch and one I would suggest picking up if you still haven’t watched the first season.