“My Dress Up Darling” brought fans a unique slice of life ever since its anime adaptation was released in Jan. 2022. The series returned this summer, picking up right where its beloved first season left off.
If you are unfamiliar with the story, it follows two high school students, the shy doll-maker Wakana Gojo and the popular, outgoing Marin Kitagawa, who form an unlikely friendship through their shared love of creating and wearing cosplay outfits.
Season 2 follows the same plot threads and resumes the characters’ arcs from the first season. Marin Kitagawa remains head over heels for cosplay, while Wakana Gojo adores learning about and creating the costumes. Both of them continue to hide their growing feelings for one another.
You can see how much work and quality went into the overall animation in the first episode. Because it was in a different visual style, I thought I was watching the wrong series because of the stunning animation and style change at the start of the episode, since they started with the Tsukiyono skit.
It was really bonny and kawaii in the opening and outro. Additionally, the outro was animated by none other than VIVINOS, the creator of Alien Stage, and QMENG, who co-directed it. Seeing my favorite artists use their style in the anime made me very delighted.
Usually, in anime series, you would see the main protagonist freaking out when they get invited over by the female main protagonist. However, it’s nice to see the flip side of that trope with Marin freaking out after Gojo invited her over. This got me giggling and kicking my feet. Like always, she is so in love with him when teasing and much more!
The cosplay aspects of the series were a great avenue for Gojo and Marin to get to know each other and progress their relationship. Although there are numerous fan service scenes, it caters to what cosplay is about. Since these fan services are practically revealing Kitagawa’s identity, I don’t mind.
Perhaps it’s me, but there’s something bittersweet about creativity in the media when watching. Every frame in the animation pops. Every gag of it hits. Every scene gives a wow. It uplifted the source material from the manga. It outshone the other slice of anime series besides the recent popular ones. I didn’t care if there was “less romance,” as the two main characters were still bonding and still bonding and hanging out. Additionally, watching them made it realistic in terms of what enjoying each other’s presence feels like in real life.
It’s bittersweet because the finale of the last episode had the shot of Marin ignoring the sunset to stare at Gojo watching the sunset, whereas it was the opposite in the season one finale.
With once again likeable and compelling characters, a main couple you can’t help but root for, on-point cosplays and amazing animation come together to deliver a fantastic season.
After the end, I’m hoping that the manga’s last arc will be completed with the announcement of a third season or follow-up movie! There’s no guarantee, but only time will tell!
