REVIEW: ‘Yashahime: Princess half-Demon’ Season 2 Is A Mixed Bag

Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon (Yashahime) is a fantasy/adventure anime from Sunrise. After restoring Setsuna’s life after their initial battle with Kirinmaru, it is clear that Setsuna, Towa, and Moroha have a long way to go before they can defeat their foe. But many challenges await them on their journey and the road they are set to travel on will take them to many places they couldn’t have foreseen in Yashahime Season 2.

At its best, this series delivers fantastical tales of adventure, friendship, and personal growth. Its trio of protagonists battle through countless adversaries, never wavering from their goals or their belief in each other. In its most enjoyable moments, it is everything a person could ask for from a high-spirited fantasy adventure. However, Yashahime Season 2 seems intent at times on trying to test the viewer’s resolve to reach these moments as much as the show challenges the characters.

The show’s biggest issue is that it is just too long. With a full 24 episode length, the series is bloated with filler episodes and side adventures that get dragged out for an inordinate amount of time. With a bit of restructuring of the narrative, you could easily cut this season down to 14 episodes that would serve its characters and story far better. The good news is that the show does manage to become a bit more focused as the season progresses. So if you can power through the first half of the season, you should be golden.

Despite the show’s pacing problems and overly long side stories, I truly enjoy the characters that Yashahime Season 2 focuses on. The big three of Towa, Moroha, and Setsuna continue to grow and are always fairly endearing. But even beyond them, this season goes to some lengths to expand its focus, giving more time to side characters than previously. This expands the story’s world beyond its main protagonists and helps the viewer appreciate the things in their world that help push our heroes to fight so hard.

This season furthers the personality of the series by also spending a fair amount of time with its villains. While Kirinmaru remains the central antagonist for our trio of half-demons, Lady Zero’s arc in this season is perhaps the hardest hitting. Her confrontation with Towa at the mid-point of the season is one of the season’s best moments.

The animation in Yashahime Season 2 delivers a lot of good things. Monster designs are always varied throughout the season’s many fights, and the action is always filled with plenty of the flashy super attacks fans of shonen expect from their battles. Beyond these elements, the visual presentation does a stand-out job of bringing the story to life.

When all is said and done, Yashahime Season 2 delivers what is ultimately a good story of friendship, growth, and demon-slaying. While it has many pitfalls in its often meandering pace and overly-long side plots, fans of season one should find enough gems to keep them going through this leg of the trio’s adventures.

Yashahime Season 2 is streaming on Crunchyroll.