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Often when a popular short anime finally gets its coveted second season, the hype surrounding the new content floods anime internet spaces. But for some reason there isn’t much buzz for the second season of Made in the abyss. While the first anime has been loved by almost everyone who watched anime in 2017, it has been radio silence for the highly anticipated second season. Why would that be possible?
Made in the abyss is a fantasy adventure series about Riko, the young daughter of a missing explorer, and Reg, a robot boy. Through stunning visuals and an equally amazing score by Kevin Penkin, Made in the abyss captures the sweeping landscapes of The Abyss, a vast and stratified chasm filled with monsters and deadly oddities. The second season takes place in the deadliest tier to date, the sixth tier, otherwise known as The Capital of the Unreturned. With such an exciting setting for the second season, what could be the continuation of the? Made in the abyss franchise back?
The change in direction
One thing fans picked up on in season two of Made in the abyss is the change in formula. The first season focused on exploration and world building; each episode took you through new terrain, with new dangers at every turn. There were sweeping landscapes and extraordinary flora and fauna that the audience could ogle at with every passing episode. This world-based formula made the audience feel like they were exploring The Abyss with the characters.
While all those elements still exist, the series’ emphasis is on the action and adventure elements, rather than the fantasy world. They find a village inhabited by creatures called the “Hollows” and much of the season revolves around discovering the secrets of this village. If the first season was world-building, season two would be a “lore” season, as by uncovering the history of the village, they uncover many forgotten secrets about missing adventurers who also encountered the Hollows. Focusing more on knowledge than on world building isn’t a bad thing, in fact it adds more depth to the series, but many fans weren’t expecting the tone shift and seem to be less responsive to the change.
A second season was not expected
This is partly due to a few reasons. First off, the first season ended the story nicely. It certainly wasn’t unfinished, but we experienced a full character arc and low resolution for a few plot points. Although it was clear that the story was not finished, it still had an ‘end’. This is more than can be said for most one-season anime, which are expected to continue and never get funding for a second season.
The other reason? It had been so long since the first season. While there were other media for Made in Abyss, such as movies and a game, that did quite well, the original season came out with the most excitement in 2017. Five years later, the second season was too long to wait. Many fans simply lost interest in the series, and even those who wanted a second season were unaware it was happening, with minimal advertising for an international audience.
The anime market is more saturated
Or more specifically, the anime market is more saturated with good content. although kakegurui and the first season of Classroom of the Elite came out in the first season, there were no other notable memorable anime. Even if the anime Fastest finger first was a fun watch, and is a highly recommended series from the same season, the rest of the anime in the 2017 season wasn’t as hyped as Made in the abyss, Kakeguruiand Classroom of the Elite goods.
Now, in the current anime season, competitors for Made in the abyss Involving Lycoris recoilthe second season of Classroom of the Elitethe second season of The devil is a crybabythe second season of Hire a friend, and a lot of isekai anime. With so many highly anticipated continuations of more recent series and series with larger fan bases, it has proved difficult to Made in the abyss to keep up with this season’s roster.
This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t check out Made in the abyss, however. While the focus shifts slightly, it keeps the series from getting old and adds a lot more depth to not only The Abyss itself, but past adventurers that Riko has idolized her entire life. There’s still a fantastic world build with monsters and strange, alien creatures, but letting the story focus on not just knowledge, but also natural character development makes the season a worthy contender for the former. Moreover, many manga fans have been eagerly waiting for this season’s adaptation for a reason that you will have to discover for yourself; no spoilers this time.
You can watch season two of Made in the abyss exclusively on HiDive
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