Shana Volume 2

Following her defeat to a fellow flame haze, Shana is in no mood for other people, Especially Yuji. Meanwhile Margery Daw has recruited two of Yuji’s classmates in order to hunt down the Corpse Collector, a Denizen who only claims dying Torches. During the course of Volume 2 both Flame Hazes run into Denizen Hunter Friagne and his creepy side kick Marianne. A major battle ensues in order to prevent Friagne’s plot to consume the entire city. Another fight with Margery Daw is on the cards and a new love interest makes an appearance and Yuji finally finds out about his existence as a torch. All this and more is revealed in Shana Volume 2!

The first volume set the standards at a pretty decent level. It was something I watched in one go and still kept my interest. Volume 2 is pretty much the same. The story picks up exactly where it left off in volume one, bar a 30 second refresher for those that need it. Shana is visually and mentally crushed after her fight with Margery Daw, leading her to blame Yuji and causing a rift between the two.  Again, like the first volume, there is a switch between light heartedness and borderline seriousness. A new introduction of a love interest and Shana finally lets her hair down.  A little bit more background is given on Margery and why she has such a hatred for Denizens.

The story is very good, at least for this genre. There was enough substance to keep me entertained. Shana does have this weird thing of being predictable yet it gives itself some room to be individual. I could tell after the first episode how this volume would pan out, it’s an easy plot to follow, but there were little bits and pieces which separate this show from the norm. I enjoyed it greatly; it lets me as a viewer tune out and just relax while springing something at you every now and then to keep you guessing.

In terms of animation there is nothing really different from the first volume, however after viewing again you can notice little mistakes that have slipped through post production. But again these are minor and it’s only nit picking. There is a lot of emphasis on the Big Eye type of drawing, with only a handful of characters looking remotely adult like. The battle scenes were a little sketchy, nothing like in Full Metal Alchemist, but I’m beginning to feel that Shana is more about its characters than its kick ass battles.

The dub got off to a shaky start in this volume. Two characters in particular sounded off the ball, Yuji and Marco. In the first episode Yuji suffered from poor timing and a lack of passion that were used to. Marco turned Camp and sounded like he belonged in a Carry On film rather than Anime. Thankfully this was only for the first episode and the cast came through and gave another solid performance for this volume. The script doesn’t change, bar one or two minor exceptions, from its Japanese counterpart.

Musically, it’s exactly the same as the first volume and I’m guessing this will be the same for the rest of the series. There is no signature show piece, but it doesn’t take anything away from the show either.

Extras wise you get a few trailers and a clean ending rather than opening this time. The actual retail copy may include more extras; I’ve seen some reports elsewhere. But this reviewers copy just has the bare essentials.

In Summary
Overall I am again impressed by Shana. This is not something I typically watch and it’s a refreshing change of pace.  The show does have its downfalls, the battle scenes being the main gripe I have. However, there is a good enough story with a good chunk of character development thrown in that you wouldn’t usually see with this type of show. When I look at the show in its entirety, I can easily forgive its shortcomings. Shana shows no signs of letting up in the third volume and I can’t wait to see what lies in store for Yuji and the Flame Haze.