I watched Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu around 2006, maybe 2007. I was a bit perplexed by the order of the episodes, yet I loved it and now I think that is the best way to watch the series, including the sequel.

Oh, the sequel…

The sequel was not something I was expecting back in 2009. It just popped up, taking fans like me by surprise (I guess I am a fan after all, but not a hardcore one.) Not only I found it much less interesting that the first season, but I also hated what they did with Endless Eight. However, I don’t hate it now. I don’t know if people who call all these weird decisions “art” are serious, but now I do think myself they’re artistic ones, but they’re also trollish. They can be both. After all, it’s a TV show. They had to work with a public in mind, and that public isn’t just the one that likes and accepts everything they’re shown. Of course people were pissed off, especially if you were a teenager.

There are so many things that I’m not into yet I understand why they exist. Like, “this sucks, I hate it… but because it’s not for me.” But who likes this, and what do they like about it? The episodes are too short, the plot is nonsensical, and the main male character is uninteresting in such a way I don’t even think the boys watching this projected themselves onto him. The designs are kinda pretty though, I admit, and the animation is more than decent.

I rarely laugh watching anime, so I can tell this one was great. I’m surprised it’s not that popular: in my opinion, it deserves another 12-episode season. The main character is the best thing this anime has to offer, she’s funny as hell.

I don’t remember disliking this route in the visual novel. There were things that I didn’t like, but I thought it was “decent” (although I was having a bit too much of Shirou’s thoughts.) That was many years ago, but this was my first time watching the anime adaptation.

In my opinion, this story does not work as an animated adaptation. It’s not just that we no longer know the motivations behind every little thing Shirou does, but it’s also that when you’re reading, you fill many diegetic gaps with your own imagination, so it’s easier to made it make sense. On the contrary, the anime is very detailed, yet spatiality and time are so confusing. A character could be shown doing something dangerous to another one for a long time, without any explanation of why the enemy doesn’t just charge against them and kill them. It doesn’t even feel like time freezes for narrative purposes.