Disappointing season?

A shame it isn’t hitting for you as much, I’m personally loving it and feel like a favorite is back and is as great as ever.
I also disagree about your point regarding the production, I think it’s at least as good if not quite a bit better than season 1, which was very inconsistent honestly, it’s not as great as the movie sure but I feel like that’s to be expected.

While I understand why many fans felt lukewarm about Season 2 compared to the intense, war-centric tone of Season 1 and the movie, I actually think this shift was a necessary and brave choice.

Most anime—whether shonen or seinen—tend to rely on constant escalation: bigger explosions, higher stakes, and faster pacing. Season 2 takes a step back and avoids that trap. It slows down to address what most war stories ignore: war isn't just about tactical victories and battlefield action; it’s about diplomacy, logistics, human cost, and finding a way to stop the bleeding.
Instead of treating war as mere backdrop for cool action, the show actually takes its premise seriously. We get to see how the conflict affects Berun and the rest of the world, pushing nations into a corner where a white peace is no longer politically viable. It paints a grim, realistic picture of total war where destruction becomes the only remaining outcome—setting up what will likely be a catastrophic explosion if a third season is announce.

That said, I completely share the disappointment when it comes to the secondary cast. The season missed a huge opportunity by keeping its focus almost entirely on Tanya and the top brass. I would have loved to see these political, human, and philosophical themes explored through other perspectives:

- The side characters and unit members: Giving them actual screen time and depth beyond being functional cogs.
- Other nations (the Federation, the Allied Kingdom): Expanding on the spy subplots and geopolitical motives instead of glossing over them.
- Mary Sioux: Exploring how she envisions peace versus her obsession with vengeance against Tanya.

The way they handled characters like Hilda showed how well this approach could work, and I wish they had expanded that scope.
Overall, while it might not hold up as a pure action spectacle like Season 1, Season 2 remains a remarkably intelligent season. It moves beyond "trench warfare in an alternate universe" to deliver a genuine critique of war, political paralysis, and human nature.

@betaweeb Yeah I mean movie quality will always be hard to reach as a series, and I do think they delivered the animation quality of season 1 in some important moments, specifically the Zettour/Tanya debacle, which might even be better, and it can be that since there is less action seems less impressive in terms of animation quality (like Tensura has pretty good animation overall, but the meeting season felt way less produced than what the show delivers), but I feel I was way more impressed by a 10 year old S1 than this last season, when animation (for big shows) keeps getting better and better and just feels Tanya didn't get the same love. I feel similar to Overlord which I think deserved but didn't get more love from production committee along the seasons.

Reading replies in this thread baffles me how braindead people have become and can't enjoy something without action, flashes and explosion every 5 seconds.

I personally enjoy 2nd season even more than Season 1. While Season 1 was fun, Season 2 feels REAL even in modern days, especially if you live in a country that has "action" similar to what's happening in this show. Season 2 is dark, gritty and real. For half of the season I can relate to almost every discussion characters had and understand that feeling of being helpless, being "chewed" by the system, and losing your mind, just because someone decided to play a Being X.

If you don't feel this season - consider yourself lucky and enjoy peaceful life.

@twodtl Fair point and I already recognized in one of my answers above that some people really enjoy and wanted Tanya to be a more complex and better written show than just action and flashy explosions. I just think that never was the strong suit of the show and so I guess I got caught off guard by the change of nature of the season. And that's fine and the reason I made this thread to understand if is a me thing which, from what I can see (except a minority), is the case.

But like I said previously, if Solo-Leveling started investing into character development and a proper story, it would seem, and make to a certain extent, the show better, but the thing is I watch, and what made the show stand out from all others is because they know what they are good at (flashy fights and spectacle and aura farming) and put all their chips into trying to be best at it (and you can argue that even then they didn't succeed), and if that complexity/development started to impact the action and fights then the show just wouldn't stand out as much because for that I go watch something else that's way better at doing both like Vinland or 86.
And the same can be said in reverse, if 86 started focusing on comedy and flashy battles instead of its characters which are what makes it great than I feel like I would have a problem with that too.

As far as the not feeling it because I enjoy a peaceful life is not really entertainable not only because I feel strongly towards other shows of similar themes, but my point exactly is that if you like and want to know what real war and the politics of it are, about WW1 even specifically, then there are a myriad of other shows that do it waaay better (anime or not) than Tanya because their entire reason to exist are those theme and don't have to waste budget or make it about action and flashy explosions.

And who knows maybe if Tanya keeps focusing on the more complex topics it'll eventually be a reference show that I'll be recommending for someone who wants to learn what war and the struggles of wartime politics are.

@ICenturyI 86 does a worse job than Tanya as to portray the grits of war. I haven't read the Tanya LN but I have read past what 86 adapted in the anime.

The point is that if Tanya had her actual way, the entire show would be even slower than what here is shown, because her objective has always been "get out of the frontline and live comfortably as a paper pusher on the back".
The only reason Tanya launches nukes is because she want to avoid actual fights. The point of Tanya using artillery is because she doesn't want to be there personally.
The only reason Tanya became the Devil of the Rin is because she wanted to use it to be given a comfy place back at the capital.

As Tanya goes up in the ranks and the higher-ups get a better and better opinion of her, the less action the show will have, **as it should**. Yes, X will throw some conflict here and there if she deviates too much of her "penance", but you can't make him throw a battle every 2 chapters or it'll become a deus ex-machina that people will get tired of. Instead, minimal pushes and leaving the world to do the rest makes for organic conflicts more enjoyable to follow.


If SL tried to do this it'd fail because is a power fantasy based on Chad MC can't do no wrong and watchers reeee at the concept of flaws or someone not automatically fawning over the self-insert. Is fast food and nothing wrong with it, but you need to understand the underlying idea of each story.
Also, flashy fights... eh I won't open that can of worms, but already the Beerus fight was more lines than anything, and from this point onward fights get less and less impressive, a lot of times being one panel spread and nothing more. Either A-1 goes original filling them, or if the Beerus is one of follow you'll get nothing better.

@twodtl Fair point and I already recognized in one of my answers above that some people really enjoy and wanted Tanya to be a more complex and better written show than just action and flashy explosions. I just think that never was the strong suit of the show and so I guess I got caught off guard by the change of nature of the season. And that's fine and the reason I made this thread to understand if is a me thing which, from what I can see (except a minority), is the case.

But like I said previously, if Solo-Leveling started investing into character development and a proper story, it would seem, and make to a certain extent, the show better, but the thing is I watch, and what made the show stand out from all others is because they know what they are good at (flashy fights and spectacle and aura farming) and put all their chips into trying to be best at it (and you can argue that even then they didn't succeed), and if that complexity/development started to impact the action and fights then the show just wouldn't stand out as much because for that I go watch something else that's way better at doing both like Vinland or 86.
And the same can be said in reverse, if 86 started focusing on comedy and flashy battles instead of its characters which are what makes it great than I feel like I would have a problem with that too.

As far as the not feeling it because I enjoy a peaceful life is not really entertainable not only because I feel strongly towards other shows of similar themes, but my point exactly is that if you like and want to know what real war and the politics of it are, about WW1 even specifically, then there are a myriad of other shows that do it waaay better (anime or not) than Tanya because their entire reason to exist are those theme and don't have to waste budget or make it about action and flashy explosions.

And who knows maybe if Tanya keeps focusing on the more complex topics it'll eventually be a reference show that I'll be recommending for someone who wants to learn what war and the struggles of wartime politics are.

Solo Leveling was never about the story or characters - it was praised only for it's art, although at the same time Her Summon was releasing and I must say, despite SL being praised for "aura farming" art, Her Summon can legit give you chills with it's art which SL can't do. In fact, SL's story is so bad, the author was forced to remake the ending, and even the remake is still a piece of shit.


Of course there're better shows, I'm not arguing with that. What I'm saying is - the atmosphere, the dialogues and problems hit very close to home, it's like I'm reading daily news.