Mikoto Misaka and her friends are back, investigating rumors across Academy City. Soon, Mikoto discovers something terrifying: horrific experiments are taking place throughout the city, involving the murder of thousands of espers. Moreover, these espers are far from just ordinary people: they are clones of Mikoto herself. Feeling responsible for their treatment, she sets off to put an end to the experiments; however, the forces opposing her are much more dangerous than she anticipated, and Mikoto finds herself up against some of the most powerful espers imaginable.
Toaru Kagaku no Railgun S continues the story of the Railgun as she desperately fights to put an end to the inhuman experiments that she believes she helped cause, her life dragged deep into despair in the process. There's never a dull moment in Academy City, but no one ever said all of them would be pleasant.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Loki0830
So you want to see a review of the latest installment of the raildex universe, To Aru no Kagaku no Railgun S? Then you'll have to make it through this paragraph first. Second paragraph now. Look around, enjoy yourself, try to find anything of interest. Alas, nothing to note is in sight. Best to carry on to the third paragraph. Third here, and what's going on? Surely I wouldn't spend 3 entire paragraphs in an attempt to be witty? Fourth paragraph, and I clearly would. After enduring that horrible joke, let me save you some time and cut straight to the point. This review will consist of 4 parts:a brief introduction to the series and the raildex universe, a review of the first arc of the season, The Sister's Arc, a review of the second arc of the season, Silent Party Arc, and finally a conclusion, melding together the scores of the previous 2 reviews to create the season's total score.
Without any further stalling;
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PART 1 - THE INTRODUCTION
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As one should know from watching the prequel to this season, To Aru no Kagaku no Railgun, Railgun is a sidestory of the main franchise, To Aru no Majustsu no Index. And while Railgun is a mere sidestory, what makes it so interesting is it takes place in the same universe as the main series and follows the main timeline as to not create any weird plot holes or inconsistencies. Thus, the term I will use when referring to the universe of the series and the timeline of the universe is "raildex".
There are a lot of things that make the raildex universe very appealing and enjoyable. It's the kind of series that allows supernatural powers to exist but takes pride in its logical and tactful explanations for them. You'll never see someone powerup randomly or pull a super awesome ability out of thin air; there's always a reason why characters are able to do what they can.
However, what really makes the raildex universe so enthralling is its ability to portray its stories and weave them together with no inconsistencies or plot-holes. Many times, in fact, the events of one arc in Index can have huge implications for later events in Railgun, and vice-versa. There is a very detailed timeline in this universe, and knowledge of this timeline makes watching the show very fun and exciting. With this knowledge, you are able to watch an arc in, say, Railgun season 1 and know exactly what is happening at that point in time in the Index plotline. Seeing characters from Index cameo in railgun, even if they hold no real involvement in the current story, makes one feel a kind a joy one didn't even know they could experience. That kind of detail and involvement is a fantastic story telling tool that makes the universe feel so much more alive, and it does the raildex universe well.
As stated above, one of the strong points of the raildex universe is how the associative stories of each series tend to play off or around each other. But, taking the different series as a whole, Railgun and Index have completely different atmospheres. While Railgun (The first season) has a happy SOL (Slice-of-life) feel with a bit of action-adventure thrown in, Index has a much darker mood that delves into story elements that include corruption and chaos, not knowing exactly who the ultimate evil is.
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PART 2 - THE SISTER'S ARC
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The sister's arc is, in the raildex universe, probably one of the most important of the franchise. Not only does it setup later events, it introduces a multitude of important characters and scenarios that play their role later on in the timeline. It's one of the core pillars the build the foundation of the entire universe, and damn does it look fancy. But, one of the more interesting aspects to note about it is this is the arc where the Railgun series and the Index series directly intersect. It's no longer just a bunch of cameos and references towards Index, but rather this is an arc that both series share. While Index provided the core plot in its original telling, a lot of details were left out, such as Misaka's role in this conflict. You could tell she was suffering and that she felt hopeless, but you had no idea what events led up to that peek of desperation. Railgun's POV on this arc, however, let's us in on the juicy details.
STORY - 10
There are many ways to tell a story, but there's a specific method that holds a special place in my heart: multi-perspective storytelling. Being able to see a huge plot-ridden event from multiple different angles and perspectives really adds a sense of depth and involvement that other forms of storytelling can only dream of. Railgun S's adaptation of The Sister's Arc does just this.
Spanning over 16 episodes, the majority of this season is focused on Misaka Mikoto and how she got involved with the conflict surrounding this Arc in the Index adaptation. After being conditioned from this happy everything-will-be-okay mentality the first season of Railgun threw at us, it is quickly shattered and stepped on with the revelations this arc has to offer.
Without delving too far into spoiler territory, our protagonist finds out about an experiment involving the murder of many individuals in the hopes of producing a level 6 esper. Misaka attempts to halt this experiments and stop the murders, but she is constantly thrown obstacle after obstacle as she desperately fights through this endeavor alone. Indeed, this is one of the first times in the entire Railgun franchise where Misaka Mikoto feels utterly powerless and unable to do anything, and the transition to this point is sure to draw emotions out of you.
Additionally, we get the perspective of Kamijou Touma, one of the main protagonists of Index, and his involvement in the arc. For the most part, it's just a better retelling of the index arc with a few details skipped here and there, but with the context of Misaka's actions, the story feels much more fulfilled. There is so much care in both perspectives in this arc that it could replace the Index version entirely. You don't have to watch Index first to understand how Touma got involved or why he cares. It's all clear as day, and was an excellent experience.
ART - 10
Done by J.C. Staff, everything looks absolutely stunning, from the character designs, background, environments, and special effects. The animation is stellar, actions feel powerful, and the climax of this arc was absolutely breath-taking. The threat above Academy City looked menacing and dangerous, and really set the atmosphere, creating a sense of impending doom. This is something the original adaptation in the Index anime failed to do, and J.C.Staff really stepped it up and out-did themselves with this scene.
SOUND - 10
The soundtrack this time around is very noticeable. We have exciting music during the fights, powerful, emotion-inspiring music during the tragedies, and another up-beat, catchy opening song Railgun is known for (titled Sister's Noise by FripSide).
The sound effects were powerful and imaginative, and didn't feel out of place at all. Many times, the sound effects actually completely made the scene. Touma's Imagine Breaker sound effect is the most beautiful sound I have ever heard. You will understand why if you watch it.
Voice acting was professional and convincing. Misaka's transition from happy-going to depressed was clearly shown in her voice. I give major Props to her voice actor, Rina Satou, as that is something not many can do as well as she did.
CHARACTER - 10
Misaka Mikoto - If you didn't already know from watching the first season of Railgun, Misaka Mikoto is the third strongest esper in Academy City and the leading protagonist for the series. She's a strong character who can handle nearly anything that is thrown at her and overcome it with ease. She also has a strong sense of justice and will go out of her way to make things right.
One of the signs of a good story is seeing the characters evolve, be it personality, strength, philosophy, or even simply aging, and Railgun does this well with Misaka. She goes through a ton of character development throughout this arc, with her "I can do anything" attitude slowly but surely being crushed. It's very interesting and emotional to see our star overcoming every obstacle just to be thrown another to conquer, slowly becoming more depressed and psychotic. It's a strange kind of storytelling, one that we don't see very often, and it was done very well here.
Needless to say, yes, she gets better.
Kamijou Touma - Touma is one of the leading protagonists of Index and has a heavy role to fill in The sister's Arc. Maybe it's just me, but I find Touma to be a much more interesting character in Railgun than in Index. In Railgun, his powers are never really explained, and so he has this sense of mystery to him. From the first season, all we really know about him is he has the ability to nullify esper powers, and has occasionally saved the day in Railgun. He made cameos here and there, but his role changes dramatically in this arc.
Touma eventually finds out about the experiments going on in Academy City and confronts Misaka about it, thus evidently leading him into the conflict surround this arc. Like Misaka, he is also a strong lead character, and is the person Misaka eventually turns to in her hour of desperation.
Accelerator - The main antagonist of The Sister's Arc, the strongest level 5 esper in Academy City and best candidate for the first level 6 esper. Much of the conflict of this arc is caused by his actions. He's sadistic, twisted, and an overall badass. What's more to say?
The Sisters - The group of people this arc is named after, the source of the conflict surrounds the sisters. They are to be killed by accelerator in the effort to make him a level 6 esper. Not only do they have a major role here, the are also a very integral aspect to the Raildex universe after the events of this arc.
ITEM - A set of 4 characters who play a major role in obstructing Misaka's progress during her struggle. They're an underground organization that performs a number of dirty jobs, and have the power to do them flawlessly.
And, of course, you have the main cast from the first season, Saten, Uriharu, and Kuroko, who don't hold much of a role in this arc due to circumstances.
Overall, Misaka goes through a lot of character development, driving the plot, with many other important characters being introduced who all hold very strong and driving personalities. Not a one seems bland or generic.
ENJOYMENT - 10
You know a story is thoughtful and well-written when it can draw real emotions from the audience. Railgun's perspective of The Sister's Arc does this amazingly well. I remember feeling very down with Misaka's desperation, Angry at Accelerator's actions, and moments of pure happiness and excitement during Touma's fight. There were moments of clear danger and impending doom, moments of legitimate laughter from the comedic interactions between Misaka and The Sisters, and moments of pure awesomeness from the action of the characters.
OVERALL - 10/10
I almost feel biased by giving this arc a 10/10, but there was nothing I could find flaws in. It's not very often I give something a 10/10, but The Sister's Arc deserves it, giving the audience thrilling action, emotional and powerful revelations, and portrays the story in an exciting, multi-perspective fashion. Clear character development can be seen in the main character and it is done so beautifully. I'm not a huge fan of the Railgun series, but this was the single best piece of animation from J.C.Staff I have ever seen. This was, unquestionably, the single best experience I have with the raildex franchise, and it deserves every bit a praise it can get.
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PART 3 - SILENT PARTY ARC
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If The Sister's Arc was the star of the season that everyone likes (and rightfully should), then the following original filler arc, Silent Party, is the retarded half-sibling who drags down the entire season with every word muttered.
STORY - 4
Oh boy, where to begin? The best way to describe this arc is "painfully average". We have one of the weakest plots I've ever seen, one of the worst antagonist organizations ever (with an even worse, half-assed motivation), characters who act completely out of character, action scenes that make no sense in a series that takes pride in its logical universe, and cameos up the wazoo (possibly the only salvation of this arc). I don't even know how to approach this without being spoilerish, to be honest. I'll do my best.
The biggest fault of this arc is that not only is it completely unnecessary, it's just plain horribly written. Skipping the character flaws for now, what we are left with is a empty plot filled with inconsistencies. Setting aside the details, we have an "evil" organization that wants attention, so they make an army of mechas (Fueled by loli hair) to do diabolical activities with. Misaka and friends meet one of said lolis, find out she'll die in a few days, and try to find a way to save her. In doing so, they meet said "evil" organization, attempt to foil their dastardly plans, everyone and their grandma joins in on the fun, and the day is saved! Also, Cameos everywhere they can fit. There you go, saved you the trouble of enduring this yourself. You missed nothing.
ART - 9
The art is still visually stellar, though being a filler, there's a little less attention to detail the previous arc had. The animation is not quite as crisp, but that's just a nitpick. Nothing to complain about here.
SOUND - 9
Still the same sound track, new opening sequence that's still catchy and upbeat, though the timing and selection of the background music wasn't quite as noticeable as the previous arc. It was, however, by no means bad.
Voice acting was still superb, no complaints.
Sound effects are still fantastic and nothing seems out of place.
Overall, very good quality.
CHARACTER - 5
Misaka Mikoto - The strong, independent, powerhouse of the series who just went through a huge ordeal in the previous arc is now some wussy friendship enthusiast who can barely stand her own against a tin can with an attitude. What happened?
The whole reason why she was fighting the conflict in The Sister's Arc alone was because she was fighting an enemy who was unknown and dangerous. If she asked for help from her friends and got them involved, chances are their lives would have been endangered with a high chance of one of them dieing. Fast-forward to this arc, where nearly the same thing happens, and what does she do? She forgets all reason, tells them, and then the yall decide to play hero and save the day!
Now, I understand that this arc was attempting to portray a certain message that Misaka learned from her previous ordeal, but they went about this in all the wrong ways. She was completely out of character for nearly the entire arc, being shown to be significantly weaker than she actually is and doing things she would never do. For example, there was a point in the arc where she was thrown into a fight with her friends nearby, and during the chaos a metal pole was about to fall on one of them. She then starts controlling the bar so it won't fall on her friends, and it shown struggling to keep it up. What? During the previous arc, we saw her completely rip a section of a train track from the ground, bend the bars, and thrown them all as an attack. Ugh, just, nevermind.
Her personality and actions are just a series of deus ex machina writing with no real consideration of her actual character. That's a pretty good summary for every character in this arc, actually.
Kuroko - Misaka's friend, roommate, and a powerful level 4 teleportation esper who works for Judgement, a police force manned almost entirely by espers. She has the hots for Mikoto (mostly used for comedy), but is surprisingly reliable and a great fighter. She doesn't change much at all in this arc, thankfully.
Uriharu - A level 1 esper who is friends with Misaka and is partnered with Kuroko in Judgement, she's fantastic with intel and data-mining. However, for the purpose of this arc, she is the single best super-hacker ever to walk the earth.
Saten - Friends with Uriharu and Misaka, she's a level 0 esper with a fun personality. She's an ideal character for a SOL anime, but holds almost no presence in an action-adventure aside from being a damsel in distress. However, for the purposes of this arc, she is the single best mecha pilot in history, putting all Gundam pilots to shame, despite it being her first time. Lol.
Febri - The super-cute artificial loli who Misaka and friends stumble upon. She drives most of the plot for this arc, as much of the motivation of the protagonists stems from her.
STUDY - The antagonists of this arc who aren't even trying to be subtle with how evil they are. They have the ability to create 20,000 loli fueled mechas that can be beaten by a random citizen with a broom. Neat. They are also apparently funded quite well, as they can, in addition to mass-producing 20,000 mechas, build a super complex missile that can be found orbiting the earth. Every time the mutter a sentence they have to adjust their glasses, and their motivation for these terrorist acts is... because a random scientist they overheard made a snarky comment towards them. Clearly, they are the darkness incarnate.
Overall, the characters in this arc are a complete joke. There's no consistency with their actual design with their actions being solely for the purpose of driving the plot (sometimes in weird and pointless ways).
ENJOYMENT - 5
I'll reiterate what I initially said about the story: the best way to describe this arc is painfully average. There's was little to no depth in any of the scenes, the pacing was significantly slower than what should be allowed, actions that make no sense (such as Misaka having trouble fighting one robot and then being able to effortlessly cleave through an entire army, Misaka and Kuroko being able to breath and talk in the ozone layer, etc.) plagued the arc, and the plot was barely worth watching.
OVERALL - 6.4/10
The only reason I was able to endure this without quitting was because of the occasional cameos from ITEM and Index characters. It was really hard to watch this directly after the masterpiece that was The Sister's Arc. It's really a shame, because what could have been one of the best anime seasons of the year got dragged down pointlessly. Save yourself the trouble and don't watch this arc unless you want to be bombarded with mediocrity and deus ex machinas.
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PART 4 - CONCLUSION
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While I can't say I enjoyed the Silent Party Arc, and it no doubt takes away from the season's potential, it was by no means a a bad experience. The quality and enjoyment of The sister's Arc completely overshadows the following arc and is, to this day, one of the best experiences I've ever had watching an anime. I highly suggest, if you have watched Index season 1 and/or Railgun Season 1, to watch the first 16 episodes of Railgun S.
I do not recommend watching the last 8 episodes, but as much as I ranted on it, it's not horrible. Just painfully mediocre. If it were a standalone arc outside of Railgun S, then I may have seen it in a different light. However, as it stands now, it has to be judged in the shadow of the towering colossus that is The sister's Arc, and simply can not meet the large expectations that story set for the rest of the season.
SCORING:
As much as I'd like to just ignore the existence of Silent Party, it's there and it won't go away. No matter how much I loved The Sister's Arc, both arcs have to be taken into consideration when rating the season as a whole.
The Sister's Arc lasted from episodes 1-16 and the Silent party Arc lasted from episodes 17-24. Because the first arc lasted for 2/3 of the series, this will be a weighted score.
The Sister's Arc:
Story - 10
Art - 10
Sound - 10
Character - 10
Enjoyment - 10
Overall - 50/50 = 10/10
Silent Party Arc:
Story - 4
Art - 9
Sound - 9
Character - 5
Enjoyment - 5
Overall - 32/50 = 6.4/10
To Aru no Kagaku no Railgun S:
Story - 20 + 4 = 24/30
Sound - 20 + 9 = 29/30
Sound - 20 + 9 = 29/30
Character - 20 + 5 = 25/30
Enjoyment - 20 + 5 = 25/30
Overall - 132/150 = 88% = 9/10
Stark700
In this world, there are some people who excels in certain things more than others. These might be anything in the field of academics, sports, games, etc. For a particular middle school girl though, she is already know for being a prominent level 5 esper who excels in academics, her electromaster abilities, and is even given the nickname the 'Railgun' for her signature attack. Thus, begins the story of a certain girl, the one and only Misaka Mikoto of the Railgun. Finally, the series debuted in Spring of 2013. I was waiting for this ever since watching the spinoff of the first season, A Certain ScientificRailgun. Although Misaka had a major supporting role in the Index series, she is now the star of her own show in this sequel of Railgun known as Toaru Kagaku no Railgun S. For the sake of the franchaise, this series is a considered as a spinoff of Toaru Majutsu no Index, and sequel of season 1 of Railgun. The major difference in this sequel is that it focuses on two major story arcs. One of those arcs greatly expands the 'Sister's Arc” that details the dark side of Academy City's secrets from behind the scenes. The other arc details of an original anime arc known as "Silent Party" with Misaka Mikoto and her friends as they encounter a new threat that puts a young girl's life in danger. And like it's predecessors, JC Staff once again takes up the role and adapts this into a medium of entertainment for fans to enjoy. As far as the adaptation goes though, the series delivered itself very well, at first anyways. However, my feelings are a bit mixed after the second half with a new style of its presentation. Yes, I'm looking at you, Silent Party.
The series focuses mainly on Misaka Mikoto from her perspective. From what Index originally adapted the Sister's Arc is now greatly expanded in this sequel. It is from here that we get a detailed and insightful view of what is truly going on behind Misaka's mind and both the physical as well as mental paths she walks down as she faces the dark side of Academy City. Among first things though, the series focuses on Misaka Mikoto the third strongest level 5 Esper in Academy City. The city itself is the main setting from where the story takes place. It is divided into 23 districts, called School Districts. Misaka is a student at Tokiwadai Middle School, a pretentious school among the districts. More importantly though, she managed to achieve level 5 among over 1.8 million students in the city through hard work. There are only seven level 5 espers known and she is one of them with the ability that earned her the title “Railgun”. She is also seen as a proper lady from the outside but her inside character is a girl who seems to have a short temper, is prideful, and considered to be a tomboy for someone her age. Regardless though, she is a kind girl who is willing to help others in need and often shows concerns for her close friends. This is especially true in both arcs as Misaka strive to save a certain someone in the second half of the series.
Speaking of close friends, the cast from the previous season of Railgun returns! Yup, we got Shirai Kuroko, the leve 4 esper with the ability to teleport. Voiced by Satomi Arai, she often lusts after her “oneesama” but at the same time geniully cares for her. Then, there's Saten Ruiko and Uiharu Kazari, two dear friends of Misaka whom are level 0. These four main characters all make their returns in the first episode as we get that sense of refreshment for Railgun fans. They can be seen as best friends, sisters, and inseparable. More importantly though, this sequel explores the Sisters' Arc in depth that the originally Index series touched upon. Make no mistake. The Sister's Arc is here and present you a spectacular journey that you won't forget. But on the other hand, the delivery of the Silent Party arc might be a bit forgettable especially given the change of its delivery in terms of themes. The difference just feels worlds apart.
Misaka isn't the only level 5 esper in Academy City. We also get to meet other level 5 Espers. In fact, no less than 3 other Level 5 espers makes their debuts in Railgun S including a rival for Misaka. I won't be spoiling here but she represents the opposite of Misaka while at the same time possessing a very dangerous ability of her own. Then, of course there's the strongest level 5 esper in Academy City, the one and only Accelerator. For those who have watched Index, you may be familiar with him. For those who haven't, let's just say that badass is only one of many words that describes the young boy. With that noticable albino hair and sadistic smile, Accelerator demonstrates the true darkness of Academy City and what's going on behind the scenes. The excitement doesn't stop there though. There's also a group of espers that shows up and one of them with a very dangerous ability that sparks perhaps the first ever one-on-one legitimate battle between two espers of level 5 strength. The fight represents the action packed delivery that Railgun presents and for me, it's quite delightful to witness it first hand.
On more psychological side though is the “sisters” of Misaka Mikoto. Rather, I should probably refer to them as clones. Because throughout the early beginning episodes, a bizarre question is asked:
"What would you do if you find out you have a clone of yourself?"
For Misaka, this comes as a rather disturbing experience that she won't ever forget. Well, it didn't start out that way. In fact, the first parts of the clones meeting Misaka can be described as strange, humorous, entertaining, and touching all at once. It's definitely bizarre when you realize there's someone who looks exactly like you. More importantly though, she realizes the clones also have a purpose rather than its existence. In fact, that purpose becomes her worst nightmare once she finds out the truth behind the scenes. As a synopsis says, the project of becoming a level 6 is essential for Academy City and she became involved in it after we get a glimpse of her past in one of the episodes. This seems to put Misaka into a state of both physical and mental despair afte realizing what was happening behind the scenes. It explores a different side of Misaka like we've only glimpsed at Index but now fully comprehensible by her viewpoint of the story. At the same time, she is so young (not even in High School yet) and already experiencing first hand what's like to witness someone being killed for the sake of just an experiment. To her though, it is not an experiment but an inhuman project that she's desperately trying to stop. The problem? Well, the strongest level 5 esper in Academy City isn't exactly someone who's good with negotiations; neither are the scientists.
I am also quite pleased though with the faithful adaptation of the Sister's Arc. Having read the manga, there's a lot of action and drama presented. There is of course the lighthearted and occasionally slice of life feeling to it. There are some of those fillerish moments. However, the slice of life part from this sequel is lesser than its prequel for the first arc. Instead, it gets rather into the Sister's Arc for fans. As such, Misaka has her hands full quite a bit in this season. Luckily, this gives fans many opportunities to see some of her abilities as the third strongest level 5 esper. This typically involves her spider like movements, electronic hacking, power movements with her electromaster ability, and of course her infamous 'Railgun'. It doesn't stop there though with the action because her adversaries gets tougher and tougher. In fact, we get glimpse of some of the other level 5 espers in this series. There's room for other espers to shine too including a genius girl who seems to earn quite the respect later on in the series after being confronted about the clones project.
As the series focuses mainly on the Sisters' Arc in the first half, expect violence and blood being shed. Surprisingly enough, the series presents that clearly especially in the terms of the clones. Although they are just 'clones' of experimentation, Misaka sees them as human with a life and purpose beyond just being part of some project for Academy City's sake. JC Staff also takes that level of violence both physically and mentally though its visuals. There's gruesome scenes to expected and moments where viewers can even feel what Misaka is going through from her viewpoint. At the same time, there are also scenes of fun and lighthearted moments that captures the cheerful girl that Misaka is. Her kindness are shown to viewers as someone who cares for those who she has met in life that she sees as important people to protect whether they are strangers, classmates, or friends. Other times, we see her as the typical tsundere denying some obvious facts in front of her. Among other things, a certain main character from the Index franchise also makes his debut later on that brings out some humor despite the dark aspects of the Sister's Arc.
The series does lose some touch though. As the star of the series, Misaka Mikoto obviously gets the most screen time but at the other times, some characters seems to outshine her in a few particular episodes. Among other factors, Misaka's friends gets lesser spotlight as compared to its prequel. When they do get some spotlights, it usually involves that feeling of fillerish-like fever. Although this can be also seen as nostalgic from the original Railgun, I find it a bit sometimes slow paced and dragged out. Additionally, there are censorship in some of the more brutal scenes. Maybe the BD's will eliminate them but the AT-X's airing has it. But perhaps one of the most prominent reasons Railgun S seems to fall a bit apart is the anime original arc after the conclusion of the Sister's Arc. The change of pace, delivery, and style contrasts quite differently. It still retains the dark side of Academy City in some ways but presents it in a contrasting perspective. The reintroduction of a supporting character as well as a certain esper group could be appealing along with the comedy. However, I find the Silent Party arc to swing much more on the slice-of-life style with less appeal to plot but more so on character relationship. Unfortunately, the dynamics of the relationship is explored as rather dense without any special appeal. The antagonists in this particular anime-only arc also cliched and lacks any decent personalities with steretypical design. Their creations aren't far from that scale either in the lines of science. As such, the enjoyment of Railgun S might not be as appealing when comparing the two arcs to each other.
As J.C. Staff is also involved in this project, expect some of the similar designs with its previous predecessors. Luckily though, the animation seems to have been enhanced with greater visual depth. I am quite happy by its production values. The action scenes are fluid and gets its strongest moments during some of the struggles between Misaka against a certain group during her attack against some science facilities. Then, there are the sunny atmosphere of Academy City and touch of technology that shows us how powerful its settings are. There is some fan service here and there though but don't let that become a barrier to enjoy this sequel.
The soundtrack of this sequel is also strong with the OST and OP song. In fact, fripSide performs both of the opening songs, “Sister's Noise” and “eternal reality”. Through its montages, we can see many of the characters and some foreshadowing. Rina Satou portrays Misaka Mikto once again with a brilliance through her struggles in moments of weakness, moments of cheerfulness, and moments of her typical tsundere. Satomi Arai who protrays Kuroko also does a fine job while my favorite character from the series Accelerator is accompanied by that voice of malevolence.
Being a fan of the manga, I am proud to say that the series has achieved satisfaction from me in terms of the Sisters' Arc adaptation. There are times when I do get frustrated at some of its fillerish moments. However, that is thankfully made up with the expanded Sisters' Arc that Railgun S has bought for us. The action and violence comes into fruition as we see Misaka's struggle to protect the clones. It's moments like this where Railgun shines at its best. It's more than just about saving people but her ways of ending the cruelty of an almost incomprehensible goal. To become the strongest in Academy City by reaching level 6 through killing is inhuman and someone has to stop that. Even though she made a mistake, it's now time to fix that mistake and end it once and for all. It might be super hard but then again, it's a super fun experience for viewers to see first hand the Sisters' Arc directly from Misaka's point of view. On the other hand though, the anime only original arc of the second half falls apart and lacks the depth and the enjoyment I got out from first half.
As a mixture genres of action, fantasy, science fiction, and super power, expect some of the unexpected that comes from this series at its finest. However, also be prepared for some lose and snooze. Honestly, if JC Staff decided to go with its adaptation, they should of went with a different route for its second arc. Oh well, at least most the enjoyment excelled with Misaka Mikoto from the Sister's Arc. Now, that was worth living for.
DreamingLily
While the second installment of the Railgun series picks up almost directly after the conclusion of the first series, A Certain Scientific Railgun S goes for a different kind of approach thematically and in terms of emotional appeal. Overall, there is a larger focus on the troubles of Misaka Mikoto herself. S1 gave a pretty even amount of screen time to all four of our main characters, so she was not put entirely into the spotlight before, but now she leads this show head on following the events that take place during the sisters arc. The first episode is what one would expect from watching thepilot episode of a returning show. We're given a broad overview of the events that took place before, and a warm up to the characters that were previously introduced. An interesting event that took place was the introduction of the psychic level 5 Misaki, called the Queen of Tokiwadai. She seems like quite the interesting character with enough power to control an entire library full of students. She leaves Misaka with an open-ended threat, hinting at a possibility of a later confrontation. Just from this one episode, we are able to immediately note the positive change in production values. The sky fall scene in the later part of the episode was a pleasure to see given how good the visuals were.
Compared to S1, the art and animation has gotten even more captivating. The shots, angles, and overall direction were things worth marveling at. At times, especially during the sisters arc, the quality of the episodes resembled that of a well directed movie. The background art is always intricate and detailed. The great ost choices also amps up the general intensity and mood of the show.
"What would you do if you suddenly met your clone?" The question is thrown at Misaka, but it is something that is hard to answer truthfully until you actually come face to face with the situation.
The Atmosphere in the sister's arc feels completely different from any of the previous arcs. There is less of the day to day scenario type of feel you get from the first series. There is a lot more buildup and momentum, and the episodes follow in more logical, developed arcs. The transition from episode to episode flows more smoothly and the series is divided primary into two arcs.
Misaka's power is shown to be even more powerful than it appeared to be in the first series. She is able to hack into and control anything electronic which is a pretty op power given the different possibilities you can achieve with that level of utility. In the sister's arc, Misaka distances herself from the other girls and tries to become self-reliant. Now that the background is all set, we are introduced to some of the deeper, more pressing issues of Academy city. The fifth episode of the show deserves my utmost praise because of how well it was adapted. It was one of the most gripping episodes I've seen in the series, and the end sent a chill straight up my spine. I was not entirely expecting the drastic change in tone but it was a pretty pleasant surprise. Accelerator is as intriguing of a character as ever and his voice acting is superb. The entire episode felt like a standalone movie complete with its own unique ending theme. It honestly made me feel an urge to tip my hat to the producers for their excellent work.
Naturally, while a very mentally stressed Misaka is out running around and trying to save the sisters, her friends become very concerned. The ost does bring out some tingling emotions at times. Kuroko's feelings do eventually reach Misaka, but she is still unwilling to drag anyone else into "her mess".
The action scenes throughout the show are seriously well played with smooth, eye opening animation. I rather liked the appearance of tomboy/ponytail Misaka during her raids on the different labs. This is the first time we get to see more of a full out battle between two level 5's of similar skill level, and overall, the battle ended up feeling really solid in production. While the meltdowner does not have some of the utilities that Misaka's power has, her beams are powerful enough to disintegrate most objects on contact. From the battle we can see that esper powers do in fact, have a limit. After using her powers and getting beat around so much, Misaka feels weak in the knees as an aftereffect and is extremely exhausted. I've always wondered why Kuroko didn't teleport around all the time for everything(she complained about running around all day for judgment work), but it makes sense if an overuse of her powers would result in a physical toll. While most espers seem to be lacking in terms of hand-to-hand combat, they do seem to have good reflexes and manage to dodge most things that come their way. ITEM seems like an interesting group of characters to keep around, and I hope to see more of them in the future.
The meeting between Misaka and a memory-less Touma works as a nice change of pace. Misaka's clone has such a cute personality and creates some comedic scenes. As more time passes though, Misaka gets more and more emotional as she accumulates pent up anger. Her breaking down in front of Touma is done with even stronger feelings than in Index given all the buildup. The final battle's action sequences were great as usual and accelerator's personality is as refreshing as ever(those epic screams are pretty nostalgic). Touma's ability feels more mysterious here given the lack of explanation. Just imagine them adapting Index with the same great quality.
While most of the show focuses on the sisters arc, the last 8 episodes focuses on the "silent party" arc. Immediately, there is a return to a more "cute" feel, but it was nice to see the four of them all together again. I don't particularly dislike Haruue, but I was glad to hear that she was moving out because she always felt a little extra in my opinion. There is a 4's a group, 5's a crowd feeling. Kuroko's personality is as strange as ever, and Ruiko's personality is also as interesting as ever. It was pretty amusing when she tried to inquire about the recipient of Misaka's cookies. Academy city seems like such a great place to live. There seems to be just the right amount of danger, security, and excitement.
With the new arc, Misaka finally decides to consult with her friends about the new issues. It is a bit sudden, but it's tied in with the plot I guess, especially since it was impossible for her to do so during the sisters arc. In a nutshell, this arc is about the group trying to save Febri, a tiny artifical loli girl who sustains her life off lollipops. Apparently esper compatibility is mostly determined from birth(the case with little Misaka proves this), and they are able to tell very early on whether or not you can be a powerful esper. There seem to be a lot of bonker scientists in academy city who are affiliated with the "underground of academy city". As usual, they are portrayed as skill-outs who crave power. The issue here is pretty coincidental but understandable given that it is an anime original arc. I had mixed thoughts watching this arc but it wasn't too bad of a watch.
While it was interesting to see so much of academy city united(people and resources) for the final arc, the fight is dragged out for a pretty long time. The mass fight wasn't bad but it had substantially less intensity compared to previous fights. Similar to S1, it seems that the producers have a habit of continuously playing the opening themes throughout the final battles. My final thought on this arc would be that it was not nearly as "dark" as they had tried to make it sound with phrases like "I ask you once again, are you sure you want to face the darkness of this city?"
The show ends with some pretty nice closing scenes complete with all of the characters introduced throughout. Overall, the show is fairly action-packed complete with stunning visuals. There's never a dull moment in this city after all.
My score: very good 8/10
Spagglespook
To aru Kagaku no Railgun S. A sidestory series which retells the popular “Sisters” arc from To aru Majutsu no Index, though in this iteration it is mostly retold from the perspective of Misaka Mikoto. The result of this adaptation is mixed to put it favourably. There are times when this anime ascends to brilliance, but there are also sadly many instances where it falls to outright trite. One of the first problems evident is the appallingly slow pacing – the sisters arc takes 16 episodes to tell its story, whereas the original Index adaptation covered it more concisely in 4 episodes. The Index adaptation wasa frenetic battle arc with well placed comedy, by comparison the Railgun adaptation drags its feet and peppers the storytelling with dull filler scenes.
Unfortunately there is a painfully high amount of filler present in Railgun S – which seems unforgivable given the amount of material they could adapt for this anime, all the more so since the moeblob (which the director likes inserting) feels so out of place in a battle shounen. Switching scenes from outright terrorism to moe-moe tripe about swimming costumes is pretty jarring.
On the plus side, the series introduces ITEM and the four episodes where they appear are some of the best seen in the animated Railgun/Index franchise. The battles with ITEM are fantastically choreographed and provide the much needed energy which so lacking throughout the rest of the series, they also provide a much needed change of characters (the Railgun anime all too often focuses on the same central group). This is followed with a fantastic newly animated battle between Accelerator and Touma, the production values are at the highest for this section of the story and it’s well worth watching that section of the story.
Unfortunately the series really nosedives in quality once the sisters arc ends. Once again, the show resorts to filler to plug the last 8 episodes, and delivers some of the most abysmally scripted rubbish you’ll ever see. It’s no exaggeration to say that these episodes rank amongst the absolute worst of all anime: the plot is contrived and predictable with mad scientists running around to conduct experiments to test powerlevels; it also introduces an awful mascot character whose presence on screen for some reason reduces other characters to cooing morons.
Worst of all, the filler arc greatly contradicts major storylines and plot devices present in the main series – quite why this happened when there is an enormous amount of excellent canonical content available for adaptation is extremely sad. Such is the immense dislike of this butchery that the fanbase have come to label it “Nagaispace” (there is even a wiki entry for this).
It’s worth mentioning that the animation has improved exponentially since the previous three series: it’s now actually presented in 720p HD; liberal use of keyframes makes everything look incredibly smooth too. Backgrounds (as usual) are well painted, and in some cases interestingly make use of hand-painted 3D models. If future Index series look this good I’ll be pretty happy.
All in all, I can’t help but feel like the manga did a much better job of telling the story; it’s a shame that overall it turned out to be such a poor production. I would hope that a subsequent series would address many of these issues – but after two weak series I’m not going to hold out much hope.
Selsica
As a long time fan of the To Aru franchise, I had hoped to give this anime a 10/10. Unfortunately, while the show was raging in a fiery passion of excellent during the Sisters arc, it suffered during the latter half; although it was only for 8 episodes. Regardless, the first half demonstrated how a studio can excel where previously they we mediocre. J.C. Staff has displayed fine talents that any To Aru fan can appreciate... for most of the show anyways. Plot The narrative follows Misaka Mikoto, a middle school girl whose unique life instantly sparks your attention. Although she has a lightning quick temper,Misaka is so attractive that you could actually mistake it for magnetism! It doesn't take long before the plot takes a shocking turn, throwing her life into a storm of drama. The Sisters arc covers the events that happen in Index, but from Misaka's perspective. She takes charge of her pain, anger, and burdens, displaying a strength that could inspire any person. Yet even though the first arc is electrifying, the plot becomes a bit static later on. All in all, I think that the main reason the second half of the show strayed from the path of excellence is because of filler content. An author's world is intricate and purposeful only because it's the author's world. For some authors this is not the case, and that's because their quality of writing isn't the best; however, a good writer will know the purpose of what they write. If unnecessary ingredients are thrown in to the mix, an unsavory cake is going to pop out. Regardless, I believe that, for filler, it was well done. Props to the conductor.
Characters
If you thought the TouMAN was awesome before, you'll be halfway into his zipper after starting Railgun S, and laying in bed with a cigarette by the end. Touma is the paragon of heroism, and you can whine about how perfect he is, but don't you lie to me and say you didn't sport a spiffy during the climax. Go on. Watch it now. And then tell me it didn't moisten you up. I DARE YOU. *Cough* W-well then... In addition to Touma (Yes there's more) , we have Misaka. She's spicy, she's sweet, she's quite the treat. These two protagonists are joined by their plethora of friends causing all sorts of adventures. The characters are all great except Febri; she seems too much of a one-dimensional blob of cute, I just can't see her relevancy except as walking plot device.
Art
All sequels to popular shows are animated well. This is a a sequel to a popular show. THEREFORE! This show is animated well. That was technically a logical fallacy because not all sequels to popular shows are animated well, but this show was animated well so fuck you. There was definitely a sizable budget attached to this show, and it shows through the fluid animation and cinematography. The vibrancy of academy city is distinct as it has always been; a colorful feast for the eyes. However, I have one bone to pick with the animators. I'm not going to spoil anything, but Touma somehow defied the laws of physics during one fight.
Sound
If anything helped to build tension and paint emotions passionately it was the OST. Those dramatic pieces got my heart racing so fast I thought I was having a panic attack. Maybe it was the cheeseburgers. Who knows? Anyways, we're thrown in to the show quick-paced as ever with Fripside performing the opening. The electronic music fits Railgun like a glove, as it always has. I'd comment deeply and thoroughly on the voice actors, but I only know enough Japanese to give them a slap on the back and a "sayonara" of congratulations. Seriously though, the voice acting is pretty good.
Enjoyment
Personally, I enjoyed the shit out of this for the most part. It was the kind of show where you wake up with three hot people waiting to pleasure you, but all you can do is hop out of bed and watch the next episode. Until like episode 18, then you can crawl back in to bed and watch it after a few hours of a little sumt'n sumt'n.
Overall
A solid addition to the To Aru franchise. Between the continuous world building, character badassery, fluid animation, and striking score, I believe the show deserves all the popularity it gets. What the hell are you waiting for? Another paragraph? GO WATCH THE DAMN THING.
71
Academy City. The city which presents itself as a place which will lead countless esper youths into a better tomorrow, as well as give them a proper environment to develop their abilities, both academic & PSI. However, as night falls upon the city, its true nature slowly begins to unravel itself. This "true nature" is one filled with a large quantity of crime, crime rings, rebellious drop-outs turned criminal after being rejected by the world of science, and above all... ...experimentation. What kind of experimentation you may ask? Cloning. Specifically, mass-produced clones, all made for the single purpose of being killed off by one man, so that a teamof sleazy scientists could play God as they saw fit.
And at the source of this mass-production is just an ordinary, plain, 14 year old girl. Not acting as one who controls the project, but as one who is used as a reference model, from which uncountable numbers of clones are produced, only to be tragically murdered just mere hours later.
So tell me... What happens when the source of these mass-produced clones finds out she is being used for such an act without any of her consent or knowledge?
Well... The answer to that question is something you will have to figure yourself, by doing yourself a favor and watching this magnificent show.
Now, on to the technical side of things!
To start this off, the pacing in this show (compared to any Raildex installment that came before it), is marvelous... just simply marvelous.
It is never too fast... nor does it ever feel like the show's just being dragged on to fill in time...
The pacing just feels... right, like really right. Feels just like it should. 10/10
The animation has seen an ever so slight downgrade when compared to previous installments in this franchise, however... Every other aspect makes up for it drastically. New beautiful character designs, vastly improved background art, color work that has been improved ten fold, color-correction which does everything in its power to set the intense atmosphere just right, and oh man... the list just goes on and on!
Basically, an almost full-on upgrade from the last season! 9/10
The sound-design and soundtracks are unchanging, staying as great as they were before.
Many new tracks have been composed (which I find myself listening to even to this day!), and old sound-effects have been remastered.
I think the team behind these two aspects has managed to deliver a splendid performance one again, so in regards to that... 10/10
And finally the enjoyment....
What do I even need to say here? 11/10* (with a slight exception)
Everything about the sister's arc came to life in the way it should have, it really feels like this was one of J.C. Staff's best works, if not the very best they have ever made. The very proof of that are my many, many, MANY re-watches of Railgun S... that all exclude the last 8 episodes.* (the exception)
Yeah, unfortunately, as great as everything else is in this series, I feel like the final 8 episodes only really get interesting at the very end, which is unsurprising considering they are pure filler.
But I do think that, if you can look past those episodes, you are in for a fantastic time, especially if you are a hardcore fan of the Raildex universe.
That's all from me, thank you for reading.
Matrix1337
Toaru Kagaku no Railgun S is probably one of my favorite animes, this is the second season of Toaru Kagaku no Railgun. This anime is basically another point of view of Toaru Majutsu no Index, except you don't really see much of Touma or his story. Story 10/10: I really, really liked the story to this anime. Leveling up in real life? Having powers such as being able to control electricity or manipulate direction? Awesome. The main story is about a girl named Misaka Mikoto and she's living her life as a middle schooler and one of the 7 level 5's in academy city. As achild she gave a man her "DNA Map" which he claimed he would use for medical purposes. In the end it was for mass producing level 5's and of course she was chosen for it. [spoiler] Later on into the anime after Misaka figured out that the cloning project had failed, they were using her clones as fodder for a guy named Accelerator. If he had killed 20000 of them he would achieve Level. 6[/spoiler]
Art 8/10:
The scenery of the anime was very nice and pleasant to watch, didn't have too many issues with it. At times it gave me a feel that something was off about it, not sure why. So I am giving it an 8/10.
Sound 8/10:
I really liked the opening song to this anime and their choice of songs during fights, and etc. If you haven't heard the OST you should, its really catchy.
Character 10/10:
Character design was very nice, their faces fit their personalities and their powers did as well I thought. Sure, a girl with the power to control electricity and uses it to shoot a coin out of her hand like a railgun doesn't seem like something a girl would do, but it felt like it fit. Haha.
Enjoyment 10/10:
I honestly loved watching this anime, the story, character design and sound was great in my opinion and the anime was very enjoyable to watch.
Overall 10/10:
Watch this anime!!! You wont regret it if you like action / science fiction animes. It's one of the best of those in my opinion.
With this being my first review, bare with me on some things :P
Chacattack
Just before I start this review I will say that I have not read the manga, and hence this perspective is coming only from what I have seen in the anime. Toaru Kagaku no Railgun S (A Certain Scientific Railgun S) is the 2nd season for the franchise. I found this anime to be very enjoyable, even with the annoying little fanservice bits that were thrown in, however let's get into it. Story: 10 I believe this story to be simply fantastic. There were 2 main parts to this anime. The first part is the Sisters Arc which divulges into issues such as cloning, the consequences of attainingpower, the struggle for power and control and just the overall determination shown from the main character in order to overcome despair. The second arc focuses on genetically created twins and again you are faced with issues of cloning and manipulation in order take control of power. Power is the one underlying aspect in this anime through the use of the esper powers that are present within Academy City, and honestly, it has just been fantastic to see something so great.
Art + Sound: 9
The soundtrack for this anime was very good and very appropriately chosen. I particularly enjoyed the first opening and the second ending of the anime with the first opening providing an unmistakable feel of adrenaline whilst the second ending just feels full of emotion. The artwork is also very well done on the characters as are the action scenes that follow, very well animated.
Characters: 8
The story follows once again the main protagonist Misaka Mikoto. She is a level 5 esper and one of the strongest in the City with her manipulation of electricity. I really like her character because of her strong personality and her sense of justice and obligation that follows, feeling that she has to atone for her mistakes. What brings the character section down however are the characters of Shirai Kuroko and Saten Ruiko, both used as comic relief characters. Although they aren't bad themselves, and mind you they have great moments within the anime, the fact that they overdo the fan service in the anime does detract from it slightly, but not nearly enough to really impact on the anime on the whole. Kuroko isn't really fan service per se, however the fact she is so clingy to Misaka and her antics border on yuri, it's easy to see why I dislike this aspect when it clearly doesn't need it.
Overall Enjoyment: 9
This anime was a truly fantastic sequel to the first season, following on closely from the first season. The character interactions are all fantastic which created great bonding moments with them and the audience, and at the end of it all, the underlying message is to rely on others, which I think is an apt message to everyone. There is no need to try and do everything yourself, give others the chance to help and see how much of a difference it makes.
jc9622
Another season of "Railgun", another season of fanservice and not-so-serious anime show. At least, that's what I thought at first before watching the 2nd season. By the time I write this review, I have not watched "A Certain Magical Index" but I'm planning to watch that show soon. Anyways, The show is separated into 2 arcs so I'm going to give independent review and ratings for each arc. Sisters 1st arc (10/10) Story(10/10): This arc is mainly focused on Misaka, as she discovers the existence of Radio Noise sisters that are being used in the Level 6 Shift experiment. The experiment's goal is for LV. 5 Acceleratorto kill 20,000 clones to achieve LV. 6 Let me tell you this right now. The story of this arc is way more serious and darker than any story "Railgun" has presented us yet. In my opinion, this arc has the best story compared to 1st season. It was emotional and really showed us the Academy city's dark side.
Art/Animation(10/10): The Animation was 2 times better than the 1st season. I mean the 1st season's animation was already perfect and they managed to make the animation more beautiful
Soundtrack(9.4/10): The soundtrack for this show is way more improved. some battle themes and emotional themes were re-used and some of them were new or improved version. The OP was a lot better than the first season and the ED was meh when compared to 1st season ED 1 and 2.
Character(9/10): All of the characters that were introduced in the first season made their way back here in the 2nd season except they didn't get a lot of screentime. The 1st episode basically reintroduced them but later on, the show focuses on Misaka for the whole 1st arc. Touma from "Index" was also here as a supporting character. Accelerator, the antagonist for this arc was introduced. He's a part of the Level 6 Shift experiment and he's hoping to become the 1st LV.6 in Academy City. I don't get how or why some people like Accelerator. I honesty don't like him. There's also a set of antagonist-ish *wink* *wink* which is Mugino and her group. Shinobu was introduced in this arc. She is one of the main characters for this arc, and a high school student who is greatly involved on the "Sisters Project".
Enjoyment(10/10): I was not expecting this arc to be that dark and violent. I mean, for an anime that started with a "not-so-serious" story. This arc surprisingly is a lot better than the 1st season story. Overall, I enjoyed this arc
Silent Party 2nd arc(9/10)
Story(9/10): A new group called "STUDY" are conducting experiments on several espers and gathers those data to use the power against them. Misaka and her friends befriend a mysterious girl named Febrie who happens to be a clone made by STUDY. In my opinion, the story is great but not better than the 1st arc's story. It had a similar story structure to the 1st season which made it great but when I'm going to compare the story of this arc to the Sisters arc then this is definitely inferior. The arc is also somewhat serious but not dark.
Art/Animation(10/10): The animation is the same as the 1st arc.
Sound (9/10): The soundtracks used in this arc is the same as the 1st arc. The OP was meh, I didn't like it that much. The 1st arc OP was a lot better. The ED 1 was ok but the ED 2 is better. It's too bad they only used ED 2 for 2 episodes.
Character(9/10): In the 1st arc, the characters were not given a lot of screentime because Misaka is the main focus. In this arc, they were there for every episode and I was like "I finally get to see these characters again". A new character is introduced for this arc. Febrie, an experimental clone made by STUDY. She is the reason why the main characters are involved in this incident. The antagonists for this arc a bunch of scientists which I'm not going to refer their name. Mugino and her group which were antagonists in the 1st arc are now a supporting character for this arc.
Enjoyment(9/10): I enjoyed this arc but not as much as the 1st arc. One of my complaints for this arc was it's too short. It only lasted for about 7 episodes and the ending was a bit rushed. Nonetheless, it was still a great arc.
Overall(9.5/10)
This season is a lot better than the 1st season. They managed to not screw up the 1st arc while still retaining the "not-so-serious" story in the 2nd arc. This season definitely had more action scenes and badass soundtracks. The amount of fanservice for this season has been significantly decreased which I love. The amount of funny moments has been decreased but it's still there. They should have made up for lack of funny moments in the 2nd OVA but sadly the 2nd OVA is too short. If you're a fan of anime with action scenes, great story and great soundtrack then this is a show for you. Obviously, if you're going to watch this series, you first have to watch the first season. Sorry for such a long review but it's needed because I can't review the whole season. If this season only had 1 arc then this would have been a lot shorter.
Pros:
-Great story
-Perfect 1st arc
-Still retains the "not-so-serious" story from the 1st season
-Fanservice significantly decreased
-Perfect animation
-Great and lovable characters
-Improved soundtrack
Cons:
-Funny moments decreased
-Silent Party arc was too short
-Season Finale was a bit rushed
KurtisAA
Holy bajeez. I can count on one hand the amount of times any show, game, or book I've seen/read has shot up THIS much in quality between releases. The animation is fine, but it was always, the music is great, but it was always. What Railgun S does is give you an intensely gripping plotline to follow that changes characters, alters the narrative of the world in a big way, and remains consistent in quality throughout the season. The cast of characters were...fine, I guess, in the first season, but I would have never believed you if you told me I'd be so attached to Misaka (themain character) and to be visibly panicking whenever something potentially dangerous was going to happen. I would have laughed if you told me that these writers could introduce a character at the beginning of an episode and have me fall in love with them before the episode was halfway finished. And I would have slapped you if you told me I'd be staying up all night line, binging episode after episode, because I suddenly couldn't put it down.
The show focuses a lot more on pure character and emotional moments, which works wonders, and the plot twists, reveals, and new introductions are all fantastic. The fight scenes are easily the best they've ever been; there was exactly one fight scene in the first season that I liked, but all of them here are great. There's a simple two-episode fighting sequence gauntlet where Misaka faces tough opponents one after another, and it reigns among my favorites battles in anime history due to the animation and soundtrack working perfectly with the pacing, dialogue, writing, and creativity employed.
There are also a few slice-of-life episodes sprinkled in, and each are just as good as the best of Season 1 and make for an excellent break from what begins to be a serious show. The new characters are fun and interesting. And the Chekhov's Gun that is Misaka's rival from Season 1 comes to a head and plays out masterfully, far better than I could have predicted.
There's a second arc after the first, main one, which isn't quite as good, but is better than any in the first season, and by some distance. It has lots of slice-of-life elements while filling things in with a suitably engaging plotline, wrapping things up from the last arc and acting as a sort of celebration of the series. I quite enjoyed it myself.
The season isn't perfect. There are serious pacing issues in some episodes, characters that were main characters from the last season are either seen rarely or never touched upon, and while it's lost a lot of its bad writing, childish humor, and ecchi-ness, those aspects do crop up again, albeit rarely.
Still, put simply, it rocked my world and made me invested faster than almost any other show I've seen. I only hope Season 3 is up to the task of following this one.
Also, Saten's little "kun" noises when she tries to sniff something is literally the most adorable thing I have ever seen.
Lionzero
I did not review Season 1 of Railgun. So here goes. It was fantastic and a great set up for this world. OK Boom! Season 2. SO! My favorite story of Index was the Sisters Arc where it focused on Mikoto Misaka and her clones. Cool. It was a very interest plot that lasted for like 2 or 3 episodes. Sad! I wanted more of that. It was something they really could expand on and I could sink my teeth into! *Introducing Scientific Railgun S* What! An anime where about 16 episodes of the 24 episode run time is dedicated to the Sisters Arc from Misaka's perspective?You mean it greatly expands on it and even redoes some scenes to make it flow better than Index!? SOLD!
The other arc involved is the Silent Part arc. It isn't as bad as many make it sound. Just comparatively to the first part of this season... It didn't stand a chance. The sisters arc is peak writing for this series. I honestly can't go into detail as it would be all spoilers. Trust me. Finally, Some good fucking anime.
Story: 9 - The Silent party arc, while necessary, almost felt like it could have just been more of the sisters arc aftermath. It wasn't bad but it doesn't hold up well. Almost as if this should have come first but it wouldn't make sense. GAH! It was fine.
Art: 10 - Fluid and Solid. The fights were some of the best.
Sound: 10 - Amazing OPs and Great OSTs!
Character: 9 - Misaka 10032 is one of my favorite of all the different Mikoto's out there.
Enjoyment: YES!
Overall: One of the best stories fully fleshed out and done in a way that is exactly what you would want. What more could you ask for!?
Playbahnosh
After the pleasant surprise that was Scientific Railgun (read my other review on that one if you are curious), naturally, I had to find out what happens next, so I watched the second season inexplicably titled Railgun S for some reason. (I guess the "S" means "second" or something) This time, however, the story of Railgun S runs parallel to Magical Index, and this timeline collides with the parent story on many occasions. It seems that the light show from the very beginning of Magical Index had way more far-reaching consequences and changed the lives of a lot more people than initially expected. If you watchedMagical Index, you will see some familiar faces and happenings, which is pretty great. If you don't know the parent story, don't worry, you are not missing out on anything, Railgun is self-contained story in itself. With that said, there are some overlapping story bits, especially Toma, the story of the Sisters and of course Accelerator. I have to mention, that many of the scenes are quite different from the Magical Index versions, both in concept and drawing, but I rather mean that as a compliment, since they are a definite improvement over the original. Well done!
While we are at it, I have to say the art and design is spectacular! It another level up from the first season and it feels like the creators brought out the big guns for this second installment, since both the animation quality and the design looks absolutely amazing! Looks like the artists and the animators learned a lot since the first Magic Index story, it really shows how good they've gotten.
The story continues on from the first season but even if it runs parallel to the timeline of Magical Index, it doesn't intersect that much. Rather, it shows Misaka's side of the story, the trials and tribulation of her and her friends as they struggle with the problems at hand. It feels and plays nothing like the parent anime, though. Railgun S is a very immersive and hugely entertaining story with many great characters and incredible production value. It's certainly the epitome of the series and far surpasses it's parent series in every way. A huge improvement from the first season is in the narrative itself. There are less dry exposition and more organic storytelling this time around. As I mentioned in my Railgun review, the characters love to eat and drink and most of the exposition and techno-babble was dumped on us via characters sitting down and having a drink or a meal. This is still true to the second season, but this time we get to hear the thoughts of the characters themselves, too, as they contemplate things during action scenes or breaks. It's a big improvement indeed and adds a lot of immersion and enjoyment. There is also way more character progression and many changes, that is wonderful to see.
Again, props to the music, since the second season's songs are also great and the pumping trance/electronic ambiance and music is very much suited to the theme of the series. Well done!
If you wanna watch a truly great anime with an engaging story and well-rounded characters, don't miss out on the second seasons of A Certain Scientific Railgun!
Scheveningen
Railgun S full capitalizes on the setup provided by its prequel to deliver a strong punch. Railgun's overall slower pacing than Index is leveraged to expand on the emotional impact of having something as extreme as the Sister's Arc occur. While the Silent Party Arc does stumble, it is still a thematically strong addition that provides a refreshing contrast to the season's previous arc. While Index merely skirts around the consequences of a society like Academy City, Railgun S dives into exploring science gone berserk. As written in my review of Railgun, the series exceedingly thematically robust for something relatively pulpy. Like its predecessor, Railgun Sis inherently limited in where it can go since it runs parallel to Index. That being said, this hardly feels like a limitation for the Sisters Arc which takes the themes set up by Railgun to their logical extreme. Railgun S deserves praise since it managed to make me feel a certain amount of anger at Accelerator. Despite being hinted that he is under the reasonable impression the Sisters are nothing but biological drones, it was still infuriating and heartbreaking to watch him kill them. This is a testament to how effective Railgun S is at humanizing the Sisters through both Misaka's reaction to them and the subtle human elements in their behaviour. The slower pacing helps build the sense of dread and frustration that Misaka feels, using everything at her disposal to try and resolve the conflict. It demonstrates that the Sisters' concept's real strength is not in its reveal, as Index's dramatic presentation hinges on, but rather in fully comprehending what it means have sentient clones of yourself be killed. It develops Misaka's character extensively since it shows how she deals with the discovery with the mentality of both a young girl and an extremely powerful Level 5 esper. It also better demonstrates why Misaka cannot hope to win against Accelerator instead of just having it told to us in Index which necessitates Toma's intervention.
Although I have already written about how intelligent I think the series is in my earlier Index review, Railgun S again demonstrates the amount of thought put into their powers. Having already discussed the necessary logic of Accelerator being the strongest esper in that review, the fight between Misaka and ITEM is the next excellent example. Railgun S considers the nature of the Meltdowner beams and why Mugino is ranked only 4th among the Level 5 Espers, behind Misaka. A lesser show would probably have just kept the Meltdowner ability vague since it looks flashy enough to stand on its own. How Railgun first surpasses this is to show the limitations of Meltdowner, that it can only fire so many beams. A lesser show would have just left it as that and have Misaka win based on exploiting this. However, this obvious weakness is immediately covered with her use of silicon reflectors to propagate her beam like a scattershot. The show hints at the nature of the Meltdowner beams by having them interact with Misaka's electricity. This immediately clarifies their nature as a charged particle attack since Misaka's electromagnetic forces can bend them. The directional nature of generating charge particles also hints that Mugino cannot quickly react to attacks from different angles that Misaka exploits. All this is done without the characters having to monologue mid-fight and explain their powers. It cannot be emphasized enough how much thought Railgun placed into its abilities, only stopping to explain what is impossible to intuit from demonstration alone.
The later Silent Party Arc stumbles, partly because of the heavy contrast in tone. Silent Party is very much more of upbeat adventure instead of the scientific dystopia in Sisters. While not as well constructed, it still retains the thematic cohesion with the rest of Railgun, emphasizing the corrosive effects of Academy City. It again highlights the destructiveness of an unrestricted "meritocracy" based so much on people's inherent abilities. It lacks some creativity since it raises this point using very similar plots to the arcs in the original Railgun. However, the driving force and specific issues raised are distinct enough such that Railgun S is not guilty of a blatant retread. The narrative objective and necessity of Silent Party is apparent since, at its core, it is about how Misaka grows from the Sisters arc. That while she is a Level 5 Esper, she cannot do everything by herself. While we also get elements of Misaka's heroic side from parts of Railgun, the Silent Party Arc helps to solidify her disposition to problems based on her experience in Sisters. That she is now intent on taking a proactive role in problems instead of merely letting them escalate and draw her in. This also highlights and reinforces Toma's narrative role since his intervention at her breaking point prompts this change in her.
The limitation of the arc is in the relatively shallow characterization of the villains, STUDY. Much of it involved intuiting the extent of their motivations instead of being given compelling reasons for their development. It is very much held together by the consistent theme of science run amuck instead of on its own narrative merits. Perhaps I am also more generous because I have seen the beginnings of this mentality at university myself; the manic drive people can have to realize their ambitions and how a respected professor's words can affect them. Aside from the antagonist, the arc also cannot help but feel rushed. It attempts to make up for Sisters' narrative restrictions by bringing in as many supporting cast members as possible. However, there is a lack of time for them to breath compared to the original Railgun making it feel closer to a character parade than being involved in the plot. At the same time, this leap is understandable since Sisters did feel lacking in the involvement of important characters like Kuroko. That was one of the few missed opportunities of Sisters since it failed to develop Kuroko further explore her genuine relationship with Misaka. Sisters' isolating feeling is created because Railgun established itself as more of an ensemble; only to abruptly cut it back to just Misaka for a significant run of its second season. While this is narratively for the best since it gives the Sisters Arc impact, it still feels a little dissonant because of the contrast. While the whole arc could have been handled better, it demonstrates that Railgun S is considering the means to bind its story together. That it is going beyond just exploring engaging scenarios and is focusing on how these incidents affect their characters. The senseless "filler" from Railgun has mostly been done away with while maintaining a good rise and fall in action.
Overall, Railgun S is exceedingly good in as its own series and as a spinoff supporting Index. It is not without its flaws, but it more than makes up for it. It fulfils the promise of the Index series with the continued thorough consideration of how powers interact. Also, it surpasses Index in terms of character with Misaka getting most of the attention this season. Perhaps it is best to understand going in that Sisters takes on a dark tone more similar to Index while reverting to Railgun's upbeat adventure style in Silent Party to maximize satisfaction.
OVERPOWERED99
STORY - 9 ART - 9 SOUND - 9 CHARACTER - 9 ENJOYMENT - 9 Illuminating against a dark secret, the electricity flowing through a coiled wire induces a powerful electromagnet. This is the attractive force that gives rise to a significant and amazing sequel titled Railgun S. A sequel that has darkened the story for the better. The revamped expansion of the Sisters Arc from Index now reveals a greater impact while implementing its own semi-theoretical science. This is a poignant story about the pain, suffering, care, and kindness triggered by one of the most controversial subject science has made possible. That is, the cloning of humans. Through a branchedexploration of human values, this season gets you to feel personalized and deeply embedded by its ideas. With the Sisters, it questions whether they're mere guinea pigs to be disposed of or something more than just that, something containing human qualities. Burdened by the guilt to let all this happen is Misaka, a girl who suffers and throbs with so much pain, yet she develops the most and develops with a touching message. Then we have Touma, an idealistic drive who rises with heroic kindness. He's a solid character in Index but here, he's even better as a crucial supporting pillar. They're among the characters who possess the desire to stop the experiment's inhumane desire for absolute power. And who amplified all this agony even further? That goes to Accelerator, an appearance of a ruthless predator who plays around with his defenseless preys, instilling a strong fear factor. A perfect role for an antagonist who aims tormenting anguish right into the direction of a weakened heart. Undoubtedly, this season has shifted its tone towards a darker stance for the better but the more positive tones are still present to contrast with it. Misaka's friends lighten up against the gloom with their lighthearted attitudes. While happiness may seem like a faraway thing in upsetting times, the presence of friends is a joy that brings in laughter and smiles. Sisters Arc is such an exceptional arc that the last two thirds feels quite dull. Nonetheless, the conclusion is still a solid story about four girls who live in a city full of electrifying moments.
Corridors and alleys as far as the eyes can see, the maze-like structure of Academy City is a setting where fights between powerful espers occur at. Saturating themselves with engrossing choreography, smooth animation activates heightened energy as they unleash vibrant abilities with one another. Accompanied by camera shakes and build ups of slow-mo attacks, they're the kind of battles that pack a lot of emotive excitement. And when gore makes its appearance, it adds a layer of cruelty which underlines a savage presence found throughout this season. Like an endless torture sucking you deeper towards the dark despair. To add even more moods and emotions, the differing brightness in colors syncs with the adjusting tone, transforming from sunny optimism to cloudy pessimism. Pained expressions that visually show the impacts of getting betrayed over and over again hits one's heart right in the feels. It's this kind of heartbreaking moments that reminds us why storytelling can become a touching art, an art to sway our feelings. Furthermore, voice acting also expresses the emotions lingering inside them, sending a cute note until seriousness gains control. But if there's one character who is so influential, it definitely goes to the man named Accelerator. His voice actor nailed his role flawlessly. A gripping delivery of a barbaric antagonist, with his harsh and frenzied vocal projecting spine-tingling chills. In contrast, soft soundtracks of piano and other calming notes play with feelings of positivity against a season full of pain. Again, this contrasts to when all hell breaks loose as tense background tracks intensify the drama with powerful importance. Maintaining the mastery of amazing openings for this spin-off, fripSide delivered two awesome opening songs yet again. With upbeat thrills, like a generator producing accumulating powers, hearing the songs sends a flow of electric current inside me and kick-started my excitement for what's to come.
And what comes out is a sequel that goes all the way through the roof, leaving a trail of energetic eminence behind. Railgun S is the flowing of non-stop greatness and has managed to power all of its sciency exploration into one functioning season. Truly a certain electrifying force.
Miisaka10032
I've rated this anime a 10-10 in all criteria because that's how much I like watching it. Although Railgun S ended faster than Railgun because almost the whole arc is about the Misaka saving the Misaka Network which consists of only a couple episodes in Index. I don't mind though, but it just left me in a cliffhanger to end it with a short arc about Febri. I liked that arc so much though! Misaka's love for Gekota is really obvious and everyone just got used to it. I also approve of Kongo Mitsuko's appearance there, even if she's just a supporting one, her character development isgood. I mean, despite being from a rich family she's not as rude and terrible as I thought she'd be. She taught Misaka something about friendship, something Kongo doesn't intend to share. I liked that part too. The part that Misaka no longer shoulders everything alone. (since this is not a discussion area, I'll stop there).
Oh and once again, I am giving two thumbs up for both the openings and endings there. It's catchy, gets me calm and at the same time feel active. I couldn't explain it but I hope you get the point.
I also love the MISAKAs! I guess you now know what inspired me to use this username. I just can't wait for season 3!
Cockatoo
First off when I began watching the "A Certain... series" I was kind of iffy to be perfectly honest, not a big fan of index. However, with that being said I LOVED railgun by far one of my favorites not gonna lie. The growth of the characters and the story they tell... True friendship... Never giving up... Always staying true to yourself... And or of course asking for help! Though I may have made it sounded all soppy, it's definitely not lol, action but not too much action, comedy but not over done, and love but not that omg wtf did I just watch *-*Though if you're watching index and feel you have to watch it because you have to in order to watch railgun(s) you don't I mean there are fillers throughout the show but I watched all of railgun before watching index and you really don't miss anything, though, I do fill like railgun S fits more with index than the first railgun does but I see what they were trying to do.... But you'll just have to watch to find out for yourself lol
However I'd watch it again and again the characters are all positively amazing XD
Micsupreeme
~ ABSOLUTE POWER! ~ To put it bluntly, Toaru Kagaku no Railgun S, is the sequel to completely obliterate the comparative mediocrity and identity issues which plagued the first season. It is an improvement on the original on all fronts. Bursting with genuine passion, and screaming dramatic revelations that actually hold an impact, "S" as i will refer to it in this follow-up review to save time, was really something to behold, and here's why... S brings us back to Academy City, and builds upon the original context of a rigid administrative infrastructure, that invests too must into the esper power system. S is a sequel thatallows itself to invest in other areas, and not appear as context-heavy as the original season. It brings a few key scientific revelations that really open up the show's sheer scale of intensity, and are crucial to the story, to light. As this happens "during", the whole show feels more current, more relevant, and less like a huge explanation about how things work. By putting the audience on more leveled grounds to the cast, it becomes a much more appreciable production, as it allows for the viewer to concentrate more on the nature of the characters themselves, as opposed to a formulaic story line. Thus bringing about new depths of development, and attachment values in turn.
In almost every respect, S just feels so much more passionate than the original season. Comparatively, it's like the viewer watches the first season through blurry glass, whereas S is the "real deal". I will admit that is was necessary to explain the context clearly in the original season, and i can understand how this was quite consumptive of episode space, and so it's only natural that i would find S more wholesome.
It comes as a great change that S is ACTUALLY CENTERED AROUND RAILGUN. Initially, the character point-of-view was fairly evenly distributed between both Shirai and Misaka, and this didn't help to make the original series seem very personal. In S however, having Misaka as the clear main heroine, not only appeases the frustrated viewers glaring at the title, it also brings about a sense of intensity the goes hand in hand with the more personalized, less documentative viewpoint. From this viewpoint spawns 2 main arcs, "Sisters" and "Silent party".
It almost goes uncontested, the fact that the "Sisters" arc (aka the first 16 episodes), was where S really came into its own. The first story that you're introduced to in S is a really powerful, genuinely hard-hitting one, something that i initially thought the series might be incapable of achieving. Again, all of the story of S can be summed up by the quote "Science taking prescience over morals", except particularly in the "Sisters" arc, this is done a lot better than in the first season, as by building upon an action/dramatic-revelation formula plot, and then heavily integrating a great deal of of sheer passion into the story, by eliminating most comedy/innuendo sources, and making the characters seem much more "real", expressive and therefore "human"... we are left with a much more emotive piece that makes more intricate emotional connection that bring about a certain "weight" that can reflect "quality".
Even though the "Silent party" arc, was not comparable to the sheer power of the first arc, i personally was still able to appreciate its severity, and "starved of time", overriding theme. It fortunately still served as a very wholesome, conclusive and "epic" scaled concluding episode...
This more considered approach, emphasizing the words "drama" and "dire situation" when it comes to the stories themselves , as opposed to the more one dimensional consideration, focusing on "intensity", serves as the first phase for giving S a "kick" that is evidently not just knee-deep. The second phase being a very called for one: character development. Character development and attachment values were two somewhat unheard of terms in the first season, but S introduces quite a few new faces, who fortunately go beyond the stage of being just strangers and/or acquaintances, and furthers the ability of all of the characters to express themselves, which makes them all seem less distant, more human, and more likable.
In addition to this plethora of positive developments, the visuals have remained at a high standard, while the audio has also become more seamlessly integrated. The only criticisms I have of this show, are simply the ceilings of appropriate depth and intensity brought about by the conflicting and light-hearted inclusion of teen girls as the main pieces in the contrasting seriousness of the main story. It goes without saying though that if this were to change, Railgun's signature "fun, epic, far-fetched, AND dramatic" styling would be severely compromised.
S has been a great addition to the Toaru anime series, a direct upgrade from the first season...
~ All of it... It doesn't matter... ~
MajorSuzuha
"There will be at least some form of peace if I die. There's no other choice than for me to die. If one life can save the lives of ten thousand, then isn't that a wonderful thing? Wouldn't that be fine?" Misaka Mikoto To Aru Kagaku no Railgun S (TAKnR S for short) is, from what I experienced, probably out of all the To Aru animated series', the one with the most emotions to it. Even after watching it three times, I am still amazed at the execution and definitely would not mind continuing to watch it as time goes on. Story: 8/10 The first half of theseries deals with a recap of what happened in an earlier series, To Aru Majutsu no Index, while the second half is an original story. The other series' do not have to be watched in order to understand what goes on in this series, though it definitely helps with the character understanding and development.
For the first half of the series, compared to the earlier series, which was told from the perspective of Kamijou Touma, TAKnR S is told from the perspective of Misaka Mikoto as she tries to solve the mystery of why clones of her exist. Everyone knows what is generally going to happen, but the execution and emotions felt as the story progressed just made it that much more dramatic. Great amount of time and care were given to emphasize the descent into madness and despair, full of guilt and regret in trying to obtain that final hope. The action scenes, while not many and occasionally not very lengthy, definitely were pretty intense
With the second half of the series, the focus is back to Misaka and her close friends as they solve a mystery with a young girl named Febri and as mentioned earlier, this is an original story. The tone and atmosphere pretty much does an almost complete 180 and in general become a lot brighter and less depressing. That could partially due to the fact that the theme, whilst not necessarily more positive, was still relatively not as dramatic as compared to the first half of the series; also, having a cute child present could partially be a huge moving factor as to why things seemed brighter. In a way, it feels somewhat out of place compared to what happened in the first half of the series and it might be why the second half did not feel as epic relatively.
Art: 9/10
Once again, out of all the To Aru series', this is by far the prettiest one of them all, which could be in turn be due to it being the newest one.
All the details of the characters are crisp and clear, even the generic enemies, and each character was definitely distinguishable from another. I would go as far as to say that compared to the original light novels, the artwork here is even better; everyone looks so mature when needed and silly when called for.
Another part of the art that absolutely surprised me was the backgrounds. Every single one of them were absolutely breathtaking and once again, the amount of detail put into them was amazing. Just the colors used in scenic shots were gorgeous and vibrant while the shots used to represent depressing and despair-ridden scenes were dark and depressing to look at.
Sound: 9/10
With voice actors reprising their roles from the previous series', TAKnR S delievers even more impressively with the sound category.
As I mentioned before, the amount of feeling and emotions delivered from the voice actors, especially Satou Rina, Atsushi Abe, and Nobuhiko Akamoto, who voiced Misaka, Kamjou, and Accelerator respectively, really nailed it with this series. Considering the fact that this was the second time they performed the same scene in the first half of the series, the performance was even better and more heart wrenching with the amount of effort and emotion put in.Couple the amazing voice acting with music that was much more dramatic and dark, you have an amazing atmosphere truly fitting for such a dark story, at least for the first half of the series.
With the second half of the series, the quality of voice acting does not deteriorate and is just as fitting compared to the first half of the series. The voice acting definitely gave off vibes of middle school girls simply being middle school girls (i.e. fun, happy, childish, etc.), but when serious times came, the voice acting did not stand out of place and was really appropriate. The music was just as appropriate as compared to the first half, but the music to me was less memorable, but that is because I personally prefer darker and more intense music.
I enjoyed the music so much that this was one of the few series' where I actually obtained the OST and do continuously listen to it; to me, it was that entertaining and epic. That goes for the openings and endings too, and what better than to use the music of fripSide? While I enjoyed the music they made for To Aru Kagaku no Railgun a lot more, the music they composed for TAKnR S was pretty good too. It was also nice to hear Yuka Iguchi sing some of the endings too because as a fun fact, she is the one who voiced Index from the To Aru Majutsu series.
Characters: 9/10
Probably the character development involved was what definitely set TAKnR S apart from the other To Aru series'. Just the amount of development in highlighting an innocent Misaka Mikoto to one who realizes that the world is not as nice as it may seem. While the other characters were not as focused heavily (most of that being done in the other series), they still were not exactly bland and lifeless; in fact, I'm willing to say that the characters present in TAKnR S and in general, the entire To Aru series', are some of the most interesting characters out there (lots of waifus too) and are in no way forgettable.
As I mentioned earlier, these characters were definitely brought to life because of their voice actors and actresses and they were definitely who gave these characters the specific personality and life that I look up to so dearly.
Enjoyment: 10/10
If you read through this whole thing, you might notice I have an obvious bias towards this series, so you might have figured that of course I would give the Enjoyment section a perfect 10/10.
Even though the second half of the series was definitely weaker than the first half, I just found the first half of the series that enjoyable that it made up for the weaker second half. I however can excuse it because the second half was not exactly terrible, it just lacked the strength the firs half had, especially because it came second; had the order been reversed, the feeling might be different.
I think as a standard action sci-fi series, it holds up relatively well, definitely because of the top-notch voice acting, excellent music, and a great art style. Every time I think about this series, I think about how motivating and emotional the series was and this is definitely one series I will watch again in the future, for sure. I think for standard entertainment and you just want a pretty good time with some moving moments, this series would be pretty okay for you.
ZeroReq011
There's many a time where careless things that we say or do to confidants that we don't really mean, or haven't gotten around to thinking through, or is colored by a veil of naivety that come to haunt us later in life. We give in or we seek to rectify... Misaka's certainly in the latter. But in this case, is it even possible for her? When a desire for normalcy clashes with reality, a contradiction results, and a story is born. A Certain Scientific Railgun S is the sequel to the first installment of an anime adaptation of a Japanese comic of manga artist, Motoi Fuyukama's,and light novelist Kazuma Kamachi. Original character designer is Kiyotaka Haimura, and the anime equivalent is Yuichi Tanaka. Returning major staff is Director Tatsuyuki Nagai, script writers Hiroyuki Yoshino, Michihiro Tsuchiya, Yasunori Yamada, Kurasumi Sunayama, Daisuke Takashima, Jukki Handa, and Seishi Minakami. A side story to another of Kamachi's works, A Certain Magical Index, we follow the adventures of Mikoto Misaka, otherwise known as Railgun, one of only few Level 5 espers and one of the most powerful individuals in Academy, and her band of friends, though rather than featuring said friends, this season focuses on Misaka. Index cast members make recurring and new appearances, Kamijo Touma, Index's main protagonist, considering the first arc, Sisters, was originally conceived as Index content, and Accelerator. The Railgun manga, in addition to the many episodes dedicated to her initial discovery of the Sisters and the shit that happens thereafter, frames the events of Sisters from a mainly Misaka perspective. Small, but significant cinematic and psychological retcons occur out of the original Indexverse that, together, change the context of this for the better, dramatically. Railgun S, an effort by the staff, no doubt, to be holistic for the sake of Railgun-only viewers, reuses scenes of Kamijo's perspective from the parent tale (minus the tedious fan service bits) to explain his important, but otherwise random role in the plot's and Misaka's development. The art and animation, already alright in the first season, received a remarkable update come this season, courtesy of this predecessor's financial success. The backdrops are that much more enchanting, tension-biting, or depressing as the progression of the show sees fit, the designs look that much more refined, the action is that much more stunning. But the winner goes to the facial expressions, which makes those comical and curious moments as endearing to enjoy as it makes those damaged and desperate instances sickening to watch. And then there's happiness and hope despite, even if those expressions are emotionless.
Now, Academy City can be thought of as a board game. The previous season of Railgun was meant to set the pieces, and as any normal participant in a board game demands for their time, a system must be put in place to keep the game fair and balanced. Otherwise, for the normal participant, which comprise the vast majority of denizens in this technological metropolis, it wouldn't be much fun. Rules for the general public must be followed. Images for the general public must be believed. So long as the many people accept that, then everything might as well be well, never mind the seedy fissures strung against those few individuals that aren't as adept at playing, because every city has its issues. Come this season of Railgun, it's apparent it's all one big lie, where those on high make and break what they will. For fame. For fortune. For science! Anything resembling human dignity and decency to anything resembling humanity, be damned... as per the calculations of an impersonal machine. The machine makes the policy, and the impersonal humans obey. All of this starts with the Sisters Arc. All of this leads to one particular participant by the name of Misaka and her whole world forcibly turned over. Not even her prowess as an electromaster is enough to defy it, defy them... ultimately, defy Academy City itself, the darkness and the light, and everyone, impersonal or no, that comprise it. And here, where the spotlight is towards no one but her, I reiterate of her identity from my previous review and add a few more things: “independent, proud, sometimes to the point of headstrong and hot-tempered, child-like in her tastes, yet fussily contrarian when she's called on it, and fiercely loyal. She has a heart of gold and lightening, but foremost, she's a girl who wants nothing more than a relatively normal life (as normal as it can get for someone with esper powers) with the people she treasures.” It is here in this arc, in this time that tries any person's sanity, that plays chicken with love and leal, that her character isn't just flesh-deep. It is soul-driven... in a non-spiritual, scientifically acceptable sense.
And then the show ends with the comparative mess that is the Silent Party Arc, plot-based anime original content after Sisters, in keeping with the staff's habit to wrap up loose ends from the source. A comparative mess to the rest of Railgun, and just a mess in general. Railgun's anime original content, especially its plot-based material, from installation one was always inferior to a degree, but this arc's writing, never mind the possible time constraints or the lack of ideas, is just plain bad, especially in the wake of Sisters. Our heroine makes some uncharacteristically stupid decisions, characters are introduced lazily and clumsily, and friendship is forcibly and repeatedly beaten into the main audience like dead ponies. The conflict that initiates this arc to begin with isn't even that uninteresting a premise, building on Academy City's inherent encouragement of discrimination: espers vs. unappreciated non-esper geniuses. But we're not given any emotional cue to care about it from the antagonists of this arc because they are so tediously uninspired, so predictably generic, so underwhelmingly, and, thus, irritatingly cocky. These faults aren't fixed by the fact that slow-paced content that I'd usually count on for characterization instead comprises mostly of flashbacks and fan service. And yes, the excessive mini moe moments courtesy of Febri counts as fan service too.
Continuing the Index and Railgun (henceforth known as Raildex) tradition of OP theme and consistency, OP1, “sisters noise” and OP3, “eternal reality,” were done by fripSide, both, more or less, the techno rumping, adrenaline-pumping, and bass thumping thrillers their season one predecessors were, OP1, in particular, having a nice voice over chant to accentuate the music's climax. Fast, smooth, and dynamic transitions for each character, just like previous OPs, are also of observed custom. ED1 is “Grow Slowly” by Iguchi Yuka, electric guitar, strings, vocals and keyboard making for a conventional send-off the first 3/4s of the song, the last 1/4, when nothing but the vocals and keyboard remain, adding an extra bittersweet note when paired with the visuals and the context after a certain point in the show. She also does a special ED2 insert in Episodes 11 and 14, the slower, but no less great to listen to “standstill.” It's especially evocative when synergized with the events of the show (those regarding Kamijo's contributions, the focus of the visuals which shows Misaka and Kamijo back to back, flipped depending on, once again, the context). ED3 is “Links” by Sachika Misawa which, with the clover and gekota, once again emphasize this show's inescapable obsession with friendship. She also does Episode 23 ED4 special insert “Infinia.”
The Silent Party Arc certainly left a lot to be desired, like the desire to end the show early. But my passion for Railgun has only be bent, not broken. The Sisters Arc, though, is one of the best things I've seen out of the Raildex franchise, Misaka firmly entrenched as a favorite character as a result.
I give A Certain Scientific Railgun S an 8 out of 10.
