A little history lesson first:
KyoAni is a very popular Japanese animation studio. KyoAni produced some of the most well-known "moe"shows in the industry, and animes like Haruhi, K! On and Clannad were household names in Japan. In retrospect, the popularity of these shows were mainly because of the popularity of the source material, but boy (!), KyoAni made them 10x more popular. On the other hand, KyoAni were not the only one producing those aforementioned shows, rather, they are part of a production committee (together with Kadokawa Shoten etc.), so got only a fraction of financial successes that those anime made (my assumption).
In 2010,
...
KyoAni made the Kyoto Animation Award which seeks (in my opinion) source material for adaptation. No winners were announced but one work received an honorable mention: Chūnibyō demo Koi ga Shitai!. Chunibyu got an animated adaptation in 2012, and even though it is not as popular as the previous franchises, its DVD sales were very good (15,466 average) and the total combined sales from all other media, made this a financially rewarding production to KyoAni (they got practically all the money). Chunibyu was followed by Tamako Market (an anime original from the creators of K!On), Free! and Kyoukai no Kanata in 2013. Tamako Market and KnK were not financially successful in DVD sales (3,684 and 4,329 respectively), but they showed that KyoAni could create a franchise. But speaking of Free.. KyoAni hit a jackpot and Free! became a blockbuster with 28k+ DVD sales and lots of merchandise sold. It is the most financially rewarding KyoAni production in years buoyed by (probably) its large fujoshi fanbase. In my other review, I called "KyoAni swimming in money" because of Free!. Now, buoyed by success by the first season, KyoAni made the obvious sequel, and its Free! Eternal Summer.
My review:
Eternal Summer is a MUCH superior production than its predecessor.
Here are some of its better points than the season 1:
1. It actually featured more swimming than the first season. More sports = More Win. The first season was criticized for being a fanservice show first and a sport anime second. The second season balanced the two, and in my opinion, featured some of the most highly slicked swimming material.
2. The drama is more stable, not contrived than the first season. I like the first season, but one character 'bitchiness ( Rin) does not make a compelling dramatic material. In Eternal Summer, the drama came from the character's choices and conflicts. It present a more realistic world where expectations become the source of stress from a main character. It showed that expectation from other people can break you.
3. KyoAni is a master at scenery porn. They were famed for creating fluid and solid animation that will make your eyes melt. Season 1 is a very solid entry animation-wise, but in Season 2, the animation stakes are much improved. It seems that KyoAni had an endless budget. Take for example, the swimming scenes in Episode 6 of S2. The fluid is alive and it is breathtaking. Props for KyoAni for bringing their A-game in this one.
4. Much better soundtrack. There is a rap-theme in S2 and I like it. Some of the sounds were recycled from Season 1 but the other soundtrack is much better.
5. Characters that grow and have a development. One of the main criticisms that Free! had received is that most characters were pretty one-dimensional. I have to agree with that. But in Season 2, some of them have their fair share of character development. Haru is not just some water-freak dude. Rin is not just a bitchy-whiny friend. And I like it. It showed that the production team cared for their characters. One new character were introduced, Sousuke, and though I am initially turned off by his introduction, he grew in me by the reveal of his back story and motives.
So, I made my case that Eternal Summer is a much superior than Season 1. But I still have some sore points from Eternal Summer.
1. I did not like how the main conflict was addressed. The sticking point is that the built-up stress and breakdown of one of the characters were just magically disappeared upon his visit in a foreign country. It made the "darker and edgier" points of the show pretty pointless. I wish the director fleshly constructed the conflict more and not some shortcut in its development.
2. In relation to point no. 1 , I wish they did not add the some of the fillers in earlier episodes rather focused more so, in developing the conflict from its characters. I think a more capable screenwriter would create a much more satisfying pay-off by focusing on the main characters. I admit, even though my inner fudanshi is happy with the ending, it leave me cold.
I will rate this show a 9 because I am biased and I want to raise its score in MAL. But objectively, this will score 7.5 for me, but because I love Free!, it is a solid 8.
Free Eternal Summer is a solid effort from KyoAni and I am happy that they are now venturing out of their comfort zone.
Recommended.
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Nov 14, 2014
Free! Eternal Summer
(Anime)
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A little history lesson first:
KyoAni is a very popular Japanese animation studio. KyoAni produced some of the most well-known "moe"shows in the industry, and animes like Haruhi, K! On and Clannad were household names in Japan. In retrospect, the popularity of these shows were mainly because of the popularity of the source material, but boy (!), KyoAni made them 10x more popular. On the other hand, KyoAni were not the only one producing those aforementioned shows, rather, they are part of a production committee (together with Kadokawa Shoten etc.), so got only a fraction of financial successes that those anime made (my assumption). In 2010, ... 
Mar 4, 2014
The loud hubbub regarding the announcement of Free! is quite understandable. Here is the animation studio, KyoAni best known for creating and specializing moe for anime fanboys, producing an anime that is aimed at girls and fujoshi! The particular outcry by the male otaku population is funny, in my part. The male fanboys attacking KyoAni for betraying them and jumping the shark by producing an anime that is "outside" of their territory.The attacks including labels as the "gay swimming anime", 'Kuroko's swimming" and threats of boycott. Thousands of manly tears were cried, loud shouts of angry fanboys could be heard at forums and across
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