Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’ve got a somewhat unorthodox piece for you all, as we touch down at the beginning of Umamusume: Pretty Derby’s second season. I actually reviewed the first two episodes of the original Umamusume back when they premiered, and apparently had a laundry list of critiques: the slice of life material felt by-the-numbers, the sports side failed to create tension, and the concept was so absurd that I could never achieve the buy-in necessary to engage with it emotionally. However, I have consistently heard that Umamusume’s second season is a vast improvement on the original, and am thus prepared to have another go at its fantastical horse girl world.
From what I hear, this second season apparently tunes down both the slice of life interludes and preposterous “also they’re idols” contrivance, honing in on the franchise’s sports drama fundamentals. That seems like a sturdier foundation than the first season’s mix, so while this is still pretty far outside my usual wheelhouse, I’m gonna do my best to keep an open mind about everyone’s favorite horse girl idol drama gambling app tie-in franchise. Let’s get down to the track!