Panty & Stocking S2
Short Synopsis: Season 2 of Panty and Stocking. Just go watch the original, it’s hard to explain, you won’t regret it.
Lenlo: I was really nervous about the Panty & Stocking revival because it had been almost a decade and a half since the original aired and I wasn’t sure they would be able to capture the same magic. And in some ways, that fear came to pass. It isn’t the same show it was 15 years ago, or I’m not the same person, at the very least the English dub has a completely different voice cast, and that’s how I prefer to watch the show. But after watching it twice, both once subbed and once dubbed, I can say with certainty that if you enjoyed the original show, you’ll still love the revival. Yes, it has a bunch of sexual innuendos, yes it’s a very horny show, yes it’s irreverent in the extreme. But it‘s also like nothing else being made right now, looks fantastic, has an incredible OST, and is really just… As weird as it is to say, it’s still a love letter to American animation and comedy, and it’s so much fun. Like Mario says below though, it’s not going to be for everyone.
Potential: 90%
Mario: The original Panty & Stocking was a sensory overload, with irreverent jokes and innuendos thrown at you every 3 seconds, and the visuals brimmed with dynamic animation and too much color. It also ended with a WTF twist that didn’t really beg for a sequel. But here’s that sequel after 15 long years, and I would say that the show still has the energy and the essence of the original. Everything is turned up to 11 as before, and it even finds a whimsical way to explain the 15-year-old twist. I would go so far to say that I find this episode’s humor stronger than the first season’s, mainly because it doesn’t entirely revolve around sexual innuendos. This show is still not for everyone – I bet many would feel overwhelmed or exhausted after this episode – but for those who yearn for the old magic this works like a charm.
Potential: 60%
Leviathan
Short Synopsis: In this alternative WW1 universe, the Prince of Austria runs away after his parents get assassinated and he’s about to meet an English common girl.
Mario: Studio Orange is one rare CG anime studio that I keep an eye out for. They are responsible for many of my recent favorites such as Houseki no Kuni and Beastars. Now there’s an entire season of their new show available on Netflix and I feel that it’s one of the reasons why this first episode is kind of uneventful. It isn’t really meant to capture your attention right away to hook you in for the next episode like a weekly airing show; it instead splits its time between two protagonists in different settings who I’m sure will cross paths in the future. As such, I found the girl’s story much more interesting than the Prince’s portion. She has a more vibrant personality, and her encounter with one of Leviathan’s “beasts” opens up the sci-fi world-building, where somehow our version of sea serpents have taken to the skies (and it’s great to look at). For the boy’s part, we have a dryer (and duller) implication of politics, mecha and explosions. I’m sensing things will escalate quickly in the next few episodes and by then, we will know more about the show’s core quality. As far as this first episode goes, it isn’t something that blows me away, but I feel it has the potential to grow from here.
Potential: 45%
Lord of Mysteries
Short Synopsis: After waking up in another world in the body of a suicide victim, a man’s life is consumed by the supernatural.
Wooper: A couple of folks recommended this donghua in our comments section, so even though I’m no great fan of Chinese animation, I thought I’d try it out, sight unseen. Having now waded my way through its 30 minute premiere, I realize that I never stood a chance. Lord of Mysteries shifts between dreams and dimensions without the slightest care for the comprehension of the uninitiated, starting in a gothic city on the verge of the apocalypse before traveling two months back in time, where our protagonist awakens in another man’s body, having transmigrated from Earth. Things don’t get any clearer from there, as his attempt to return to our world transports him to an astral plane awash in gray fog, where he forms an alliance with two Beyonders (people who obtain superpowers by drinking potions) from other realms before his consciousness is yanked back to his new body. Then he’s taken into custody by a pair of cops, one of whom is also a Beyonder, and was apparently controlling the main character’s dream for the majority of the episode… I think? I could forgive all this ambiguity if there were an emotional core to the proceedings, but there isn’t. The protagonist never appears to lament what he left behind on Earth, and the scene where he speaks with his host body’s sister does nothing to make either of them feel human. All the intricate 3DCG art direction in the world couldn’t make me stick around for twelve more episodes of this show.
Potential: Not for me
The post Summer 2025 Impressions: Panty & Stocking S2, Leviathan, Lord of Mysteries appeared first on Star Crossed Anime.
