Since premiering in 2020 as one of the first Crunchyroll Original series, Tower of God (adapting the manhwa by S.I.U.) has garnered acclaim from critics and fans alike. And with the cliffhanger at the end of Season 1, people were clamouring for a Season 2 to answer all those burning questions. It’s taken four years, but we finally have the next chapter of Tower of God, and it’s already off to a great start. Thanks to Crunchyroll, we’ve been able to check out the first two episodes. Let me tell you how they’ve set the stage for an exciting second season.
The first episode of Season 2 doesn’t begin with us following the main character from the first Season, Baam, but instead, there’s a six-year time skip. Taking place on the 20th floor of the titular tower, we’re introduced to Ja Wangnan (Yuma Uchida), a down-on-his-luck regular trying to pass the test to climb to the next floor of the tower. But taking this test is expensive, and Wangnan has failed one too many times, resulting in him having to go to a loan shark for help. Now, on his last chance, Wangnan takes the test once again, but a mysterious stranger who wields immense power also takes the test at the same time, so Wangan’s chances start looking grim. Will he finally pass the test and advance to the next floor, or will he be owing more than money to the loan sharks?
This first episode did a good job of re-establishing the world of Tower of God. While there weren’t any familiar faces (except for one), the new characters are enjoyable enough that I don’t mind the perspective shift. It provides a look at this situation through the eyes of someone who was chosen to be at the tower, unlike Baam in Season 1, who was never meant to be there. It sets this Season apart from the get-go, which is nice. I do question, though, how so many young children were able to make it this far up the tower (there are two, and that’s two too many), but I’m sure they have some super mega ultra power that will be revealed in Episode 10 or something. Despite my confusion over the children, I rather enjoyed this episode and couldn’t wait to jump into the second.
Picking up right where the first episode left off, episode 2 focuses on the second part of the test to advance to the 21st floor of the tower. Ja Wangnan has made it through to this next stage alongside new faces Kang Horyang (Kenichirou Matsuda), Hon Akraptor (Kento Shiraishi), Yeo Goseng (Yu Shimamura), Yeo Miseng (Saki Miyashita), and the powerful stranger from the first part of the test. After the other successful participants arrive, the second part of the test is set to begin, and it’s a test of strength. Each test goer will have a turn to demonstrate their power by hitting a special orb and are given a score based on their Shinsu levels (the innate magic of the tower). This score will determine which eight people move on to the next stage. Unfortunately for Wangnan, he’s quick on his feet but isn’t the strongest person in the world. But he isn’t going to give up; he’ll find a way to make it to the next floor!
Episode 2 kept the momentum from episode 1, and I enjoyed how they had already started to tie everything back to Season 1. The identity of the powerful stranger is revealed, and to be honest, it isn’t all that surprising. I knew from the second I saw their eyes who it was. It also helps that when they randomly got PTSD flashbacks, characters from Season 1 were in them, so it was already pretty obvious. Still, to see them look and act so different was interesting, and I hope their journey to become this new version of themselves is explored in the rest of the season. I also enjoyed how out of left field the second test is, as it means you’ll never know what this series will throw at you next. And while this episode does end on a pretty big cliffhanger, I’m less annoyed and more excited about seeing what’s gonna happen next.
Instead of Telecom Animation Film, which animated Season 1, The Answer Studio has taken over animating Season 2. From the opening two episodes, I’d say they’ve done a good job of keeping the overall vibe and look of the series consistent while adding some of their own style into the mix. The biggest things I noticed were that the colours looked brighter, and the line work on the characters specifically looked a lot cleaner. While it does take away some of the charm of the first season, it still looks great. I’m most likely heavily biased because I had just finished my re-watch of Season 1 before watching these episodes, so that’s why it probably stood out more to me.
Aside from the visuals, the acting all around was great. Wangnan and the powerful stranger were particular highlights for me for being polar opposites personality-wise but still having good chemistry the few times they’ve interacted so far. The new opening and ending themes were also bops. They’re both performed by the group NiziU, and while I’ll most likely always prefer the Season 1 themes (big Stray Kids fan here), I still enjoyed these new tracks, and I’m sure they’ll grow on me as the season progresses.
The first two episodes of Tower of God Season 2 have set the stage for what could be an excellent season of anime. The time-skip has opened up exciting story potential, and the new characters add new dynamics that I’m keen to see play out. I hope characters from the first season return (I’m 99% certain they will), but the new cast is enjoyable for now, so I’m fine with it (give me back my giant spear-wielding gator). In any case, I’m intrigued to see how this story plays out, and I’ll definitely be along for all the inevitable twists and turns. You can watch Season 1 in Sub and Dub on Crunchyroll right now, and you can watch new episodes every Sunday on Crunchyroll as well. Keep it locked to Couch Soup for more anime content to feed your hungry nerd soul.
Have you seen the start of Tower of God Season 2? What did you think? Did you guess the identity of the powerful stranger? Let us know in the comments where we can talk all things Tower of God.
