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Not only is this show not up to par in comparison to it's predecessor, but simply wouldn't be worth your time or consideration without it's lineage.

The first season clearly demonstrated how every character is shaped into who they became by preceding events, and almost every element introduced has a crucial role in the plot; in contrast, the majority of this season's plot elements are introduced, then simply go nowhere.

Take as an example, the desire to keep Rakugo traditional, versus the need to keep Rakugo alive through innovation. The first season heavily foreshadowed that this would be the main struggle of S2, and the ... first episode of S2 seemingly confirms this by introducing a character whose main goals are to write new Rakugo stories, and get Yotaro to tell these new stories. Of course Yakumo is opposed to this, and it seems that this push & pull between innovation & tradition may determine the fate of Rakugo's future.

But it doesn't. At no point does the plotline of new Rakugo stories actually go anywhere, besides the writer occasionally reminding the cast & audience that he's ostensibly here to push said conflict, but it also seems that writing new stories is completely unimportant to the survival of Rakugo.

This is far from the only violation in this manner. A mob boss is introduced, who has very little impact on the plot. Yotaro has a friend who appears multiple times throughout the show, only to have little to no impact on the plot. A shocking twist is revealed in Episode 7, which ends up having no impact on the plot whatsoever.

Ultimately the only plot lines that get resolved are 1. Does Rakugo survive and 2. How does Yakumo deal with his grief? These could have been good enough, but both elements are suddenly resolved in episodes 11 & 12, with the latter being resolved in one of the cheesiest manners possible. The majority of the season is just Yakumo almost dying, expressing regret at his past, and not really moving anywhere. Rinse, Wash, Repeat.

You can't just linger on what was good about last season for 12 more episodes and expect the product to be good. Not only are many of the Rakugo stories told this season just retellings of stories we heard in the first season, not only are the same conflicts carried over, but a decent chunk of one of the episodes is literally just playing footage of a Rakugo story from season 1.

In the OP, when Sukeroku lifts Yakumo's jacket, revealing nothing but bones inside, it clearly says that Yakumo is empty inside. Unfortunately, after having finished the show, I'd say it was a rather apt metaphor for the whole of season 2 as well.