The Anime Momma Blog

Read Previous: [Oshi no Ko] (Season 1) – Anime Review

TL;DR: This season of [Oshi no Ko] (S2) is less about physical violence and more about emotional trauma. While there is little blood or gore, the themes are intense: grief, panic attacks, guilt, revenge, identity, abandonment, and mental health struggles.

There are brief moments of sexual implication, adult drinking, and disturbing emotional content—including a scene that strongly implies nonconsensual activity.

Romance becomes more prominent, but remains emotionally complex rather than explicit.

This is not a light season—and sensitive viewers may need emotional support or discussions afterward.

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Section 1: [Oshi no Ko] (Season 2; 13 Episodes) — At a Glance

Anime Summary | Taken Directly from MyAnimeList

With the help of producer Masaya Kaburagi, Aquamarine “Aqua” Hoshino and Kana Arima have landed the roles of Touki and Tsurugi in Lala Lai Theatrical Company’s stage adaptation of the popular manga series Tokyo Blade. Co-starring with them is Aqua’s girlfriend, Akane Kurokawa, who plays Touki’s fiancée, Princess Saya. Due to the fanbase preferring Tsurugi as Touki’s love interest, Saya has made fewer and fewer appearances in the manga, making it difficult for Akane to fully immerse herself in the role. Her struggles are compounded by differences between the play’s script and the original work—differences that also frustrate Tokyo Blade’s author, Abiko Samejima.

Aqua, however, is more concerned with his personal goals than he is with the play. He has only one objective in mind: to grow closer to director Toshirou Kindaichi and find out what he knows about Aqua’s mother, Ai.

Genres & Themes

Drama, Reincarnation, Showbiz, Slice of Life

MyAnimeList Rating

PG-13+ | Teens 13 and over

The Anime Momma Rating

PG-13+ | Teens 13 and over

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Section 2: Star Levels

Each category below is rated on a five-star scale:

 ⭐️ = very little present |  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ = a lot present

• Action/Violence Level: ⭐️⭐️☆☆☆ (2/5)
• Addiction Level: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️☆ (4/5)
• Blood/Gore Level: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️☆ (4/5) – Nontraditional
• Inappropriate, Heavy, or Mature Themes or Conduct: ⭐️⭐️⭐️☆☆ (3/5)
• Alternative Lifestyle Themes:  ⭐️☆☆☆☆ (1/5)
• Level of Magical Elements: ⭐️⭐️☆☆☆ (2/5)
• Level of Romance: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5)

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Section 3: Star Levels—Explained

Action/Violence Level

Most of the physical action this season comes from the stage play Tokyo Blade, where characters perform choreographed sword fights and hand-to-hand combat. These scenes are theatrical and dramatic rather than brutal. Outside of the play, this season leans far more into emotional intensity than physical violence.

Addictiveness Level

This season was much heavier than Season 1, which made it a little harder to binge—but not impossible. Despite the emotional weight, I still finished it in under three days. It’s the kind of season that pulls you in, makes you pause to process, and then quietly demands the next episode anyway.

Blood/Gore Level

There is very little traditional blood or gore in this season. That said, the emotional imagery can be deeply distressing.

Aqua experiences frequent panic attacks in the first half of the season, triggered by traumatic flashbacks of Ai’s murder. These are paired with a haunting, ghost-like figure that follows him—whispering guilt-filled “what ifs” and reminding him of everything he believes he should’ve done differently.

• It isn’t until Episode 20 that Aqua finally confronts this apparition, and it is an incredibly sorrowful, emotional scene. I cried. A lot.

• After witnessing one of his worst panic attacks, Akane learns the truth about Aqua and Ruby—that they are Ai’s children. She does not expose their secret, nor the fact that she knows. Instead, she promises to stay by his side.
• When later asked what she would do if Aqua’s entire reason for becoming an actor was to find and kill someone, Akane even says she would help him.

• Later, when they revisit this topic, Akane appears genuinely disturbed by what it would mean if the person Aqua believes to be responsible isn’t actually responsible at all. Despite this, she still chooses to stay close to him.

In the final episodes, Ruby and Akane follow a crow that has stolen their hotel room key. As they chase it deeper into the forest, they stumble upon Doctor Gorou’s remains. While it is not bloody, the body has fully decayed into bones. The moment is unsettling and emotionally devastating, and some families may find this scene disturbing.

Inappropriate, Heavy, or Mature Themes or Conduct

Adults are shown drinking socially throughout several episodes. Some characters become drunk; others simply drink casually. While it is implied that Aqua and Himekawa may be drinking together at one point, no explicit underage drinking is shown.

Ruby and her friend speculate about Aqua staying out late with Akane, joking that he might be doing “sexy stuff with his hot girlfriend.” A brief image of a naked Akane, covered by a bedsheet, appears on screen.

In Episode 17, Melt admits that one of his upperclassmen “had her way with him.” We briefly see the older girl putting on a bra while Melt sits confused on her bed, shirtless. This scene strongly implies nonconsensual activity, though it is never explicitly stated.

Toward the finale, Akane is briefly shown stepping into a hot spring. She is nude but fully obscured by steam.

Alternative Lifestyle Themes

In the finale, Ruby confesses to Akane that she has a crush on a much older man—Doctor Gorou. She speaks about his kindness, loyalty, and how he inspired her to become an idol. Since he disappeared years ago, she hopes that he might one day see B-Komachi on screen and recognize her.

• Viewers understand that Gorou was murdered and reincarnated as Aqua—but Ruby does not know this yet. This creates a layered emotional tension that may feel confusing or uncomfortable for some families.

Level of Magical Elements

Aside from reincarnation, there are no major supernatural elements until the very end of the season.

After discovering Gorou’s remains, Ruby meets a mysterious white-haired girl who tells her that Gorou died on the same day Ai gave birth. She also reveals that two people were present the night he was murdered—one being Ai’s killer, and the other still unknown.

• This interaction leads Ruby to begin suspecting that Aqua may be searching for the second person involved in Ai’s– and subsequently Gorou’s– murder as well.

Level of Romance

Just like in Season 1, Aqua and Akane’s relationship begins as a professional one. Aqua values Akane deeply—but more as an actress and ally than a romantic partner. Akane, however, wants him to be her real boyfriend.

Kana and Akane continue their rivalry, frequently bickering due to their shared crush on Aqua.

After a date, Akane casually mentions that she’d be willing to kiss and even sleep with Aqua if it meant they could stay together. Aqua is a bit confused by this, saying that while he has a sex drive, it is not all there is to being in a relationship. As they continue talking, both of them realize they don’t actually know if they like each other romantically or not— just that they don’t want to lose one another.

• By the end of the season, Aqua and Akane officially become a real couple.

In Episode 23, we learn more about Doctor Gorou’s past. He became an OB because his mother died giving birth to him. This adds deeper context to Aqua’s overwhelming guilt about not saving Ai—he has already lived his past life shaped by maternal loss.

• In the same episode, Sarina is dying, and her parents never come to see her. Gorou stays with her until the end. Her final words are: “Sensei, I love you. Even if I were reborn, surely…” This scene is emotionally devastating.

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Section 4: Specific Notes for Parents & Guardians

The beginning of this season revolves around a screenplay called Tokyo Blade. Abiko, the manga artist, is a very quiet and shy girl who is extremely nervous around other people. She is a shut-in, who desperately wishes she could meet other people and make friends as well as her cohorts. This may be extremely relatable to the introverted kids (and even parents) who watch the show.

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Final Thoughts

Season 2 of [Oshi no Ko] is beautifully written—but it is heavy. This is a story about grief that doesn’t go away, trauma that lingers, and people trying to survive the weight of their own hearts.

It doesn’t glorify pain, but it doesn’t shy away from it either.

If your child is sensitive, emotionally intuitive, or struggling with anxiety or identity, this season may hit especially hard.

I strongly recommend watching alongside your teen, or at least having open conversations afterward. This is one of those shows that needs processing.

And remember—loving anime doesn’t mean ignoring discernment.

It means guiding with wisdom, not fear. 💛

Thank you for reading this review of [Oshi no Ko] (Season 2). 🤗

[Oshi no Ko] recently released its third season, who else is excited to watch it?

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