You know the ending to that phrase.
Rosario Vampire Season II took the maturing characters from the prequel series and presented them with a new task: instead of learning to overcome their own struggles with friendship, they had to learn to overcome disagreements, test their friendships, and have each others backs.
Tall order!
The growth of the characters may seem stagnant when they stand shoulder to shoulder, but take a character on his/her own and you can see how far they have come, even with their quirks relatively unchanged. In this way Ikeda was masterful at characterization, using the hidden cues and slight changes mannerisms and thought processes to reflect on how far the characters have come..... and how far they still have yet to go.
The plot: Not as effective as the first season, but still impeccable. Each chapter is relevant, just like the previous series. After waiting a month for every chapter, me and my compatriots were never disappointed with filler or a lack of traction: development was everywhere, in characters, in romance, in story.
The last arc does get choppy and frantic, with fight after fight after fight after fight. But it serves as an effective coda to a story that had been building up the end of the first story arc of season two, where everyone gives more than 235% to play their part. Romance is pumped up on steroids, development is turned up to 11, plot burns faster than propane thrown on lava. After all of the drama, the ending is obviously going to be more of a whimper than a bang. After such a grand finale, the silence and stillness can appear disappointing, but you couldn't expect anything different. Although the lack of a definite romantic confirmation left things a tad bit open, it wasn't as bad as most people expected.
Throughout the story, the discussions and theories and predictions were numerous like the buffalo: There was so much to expect, to anticipate, that we were hanging on every issue, every piece to the puzzle. We were often off mark, a sign of a unique manga and a unique approach. Or maybe we were just dumb. Details and memories are fuzzy.
One thing that bears mentioning is the brilliantly created world that Ikeda sculpted creating both the first and second season, realistic despite the fact that magic exists. Many other series, even with magic and a different set of physics, often have inconsistencies or logical holes, while Rosario Vampire feels like a world teetering on a delicate balance, much like reality. This "Cold War" of separation and the belief of coexistence and reconciliation is a brave and relevant mirror to the geopolitical setting of our own lives. This realism is reinforced pretty well, although plot armor protects our protagonists quite well, there is no doubt that the threats that they faced were real and that they will remember these events, scars will remain (Tsukune is a notable example).
The characters are even better. Themes of rejection, desperation, hopelessness, play their part for every character in different ways, and they resolve these issues in various ways, either through self-introspection, communication, or intervention. Their relationships strengthen, and new relationships are made. The romance is kept very true, and it is a delight to see the romantic subplot continue from where it left off in the previous series to culminate in a rather stunning end, before being absconded for the epilogue. An end to the story that painfully drags you to want more, to want to see more. Alas...
It is over. The joy of waiting a month and thinking about what would or could happen has passed. The time for speculation and dreams have passed. Now you, reader, have the chance to enjoy the series in its entirety. I recommend you enjoy the panels like fine wine, sip by sip, picking out the thoughts and mannerisms of the characters, understanding how they justify and struggle with obstacles. You will be impressed by what you find, as long as you look closely (and with some patience). As someone who has spent much time arguing talking-points around this story, I have come to realize how well-portrayed and believable these characters are.
This is the manga standard for so many genres, from romance to supernatural to drama to school life, and is clearly one of the best series you will read. I hope this series will impact you as positively as it has affected me.
All that I have left to say is a word for Ikeda.
Thank you.
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