Hello and welcome Project Nitsuj. So. . .Cupid’s Chocolate got a sequel. Yeah, I really have nothing much to say. Cupid’s Chocolate was the first anime I reviewed from China, while it was strange to hear anime in Chinese I did find the anime enjoyable. It had a good set up, a good lead, supporting cast, and some funny moments. At the end of the first season there was a promise of a second season along the way and near the end of 2017 the sequel came out. With the success of the first season I’m curious if the second season was able to live up to the hype of the first season promised. Well let’s find out, this is Cupid’s Chocolate S2.
Episodes 1-5
So the season starts off on a basic note. All of the girls go to Haoyi’s house to bring him some soup since he’s still recovery from his accident last season (man, that was a crazy arc). As you would imagine we get a bunch of laughs as it’s the first time we’ve seen all 4 girls come together and interact with each other (in other words, it’s like watching a landmine go off and in the process the other landmines go off as well). There’s also a moment where the girls find Mei in his room and she tries to stop time but instead keeps putting them in revealing outfits. She eventually erases their memories of the event but starts to worry that her magic is becoming unstable (was it ever stable to begin with?) and if it continues she’ll become a mortal (and then she’ll join the harem). As they talk they get transported into an alternate world (man, even China is hopping on the isekai train) where they come face to face with the popular idol Sandy who says that Haoyi is his destined loved one who supported her since they were children and she wants to take him to her fantasy world where they can be together forever (if it’s anything like Fantasy Island sign me up).
Episode 2 has a lot of unnecessary drama. We really don’t learn that much about Sandy’s past or her relationship with Haoyi. All we know for sure is that the real Sandy is in a coma at the hospital and the Sandy with Haoyi is actually her spirit. According to Mei if Sandy’s spirit does decide to go to the fantasy world the real Sandy will die. Haoyi manages to talk to Sandy to find out why she wants to go to her fantasy world so bad to which she says this world is full of ugliness and bad things (no lie there). Haoyi agrees with her on that but he also says that the fantasy world will have ugliness and bad things as well because good and bad are like two sides of the same coin (you can’t have one without the other, it’s like that song from Maze). This upsets Sandy because Hayoi isn’t supporting her (true. He’s loving you) and in her sadness she enters her fantasy world with Hayoi right behind her.
In episode 3 Haoyi manages to pull Sandy out of her fantasy world (which sucked by the way. Beautiful my ass. I’ve seen Blue Sky make better fantasy worlds than her). Once back in reality, Haoyi gets to work exposing all the people who wronged Sandy and caused her to go into a coma. Hayoi manages to track down Sandy’s real childhood friend who encouraged her to sing and become an idol. As a child, Sandy was an imaginative girl but it came across as her just being a weirdo. Her childhood friend was tasked by her producer to keep an eye on her and let her keep that delusional childlike wonderment (she became a caged bird). Because the guy always hung out with Sandy, his other classmates started to alienate him because of her strange behavior, and because the studio kept giving him money he wore a fake mask and continued to lie to Sandy to keep her under control. Eventually, he had enough and quit but the producer kept keeping her in a cage until she eventually fell into a coma. Hayoi gets his testimony on a recorder and spreads the story across the web getting his harem to help him out (be sure to reward them later) which gets the attention of the producer but even than he refuses to give Sandy up. It’s only until Hayoi threatens to expose his mistress to his wife that he finally conceits defeat and lets Sandy be free to do what she wants. With that settled, Sandy wakes up from her coma and the first thing she wants to do is see Hayoi.
Not much to say about episode 4. Hayoi manages to sneak into the hospital to see Sandy (time to make a house call) where he introduces her to Mei and the girls have a girl day where they go on a tour around the world (the AI girls had a girl day in Venice the other day. I apologize to the good people of Venice). After their trip, Sandy gets released from the hospital and makes a public announcement that she’s going to study abroad but not before doing a solo concert debuting an original song that she wrote. The day of the concert arrives where Hayoi and Mei get VIP tickets and he receives a kiss from Sandy in front of everyone (you are so dead).
In episode 5 Hayoi is on the run as everyone wants a piece of him. After the kiss with Sandy everybody wants to get their hands on him so that they can kill him. He can’t go home because Xueli is there waiting for him (I’ll take my chances with the crazed fans than the yandere anyday). He gets help from his old teacher who hides him in a café where he meets a strange man who we find out later is Reuss the director of the cupids (in other words, Mei’s boss). He gives Hayoi a candy box (which fits snuggly in his pocket. Man, those pockets go deep) and takes his leave where he appears before Mei not really caring about the trouble she caused but says she will be punished for appearing in front of a mortal and she begs him for help on her magic problem. He patches her up which restores her control of magic but warns her not appear in front of mortals again or else. Back with Hayoi, Sandy clears up the scandal so he’s off the hook (for now. For all we know the Prime Minister’s daughter could have eaten that chocolate. At this point anything’s possible) and he goes on somewhat of a date with Zitong where they get attacked by bullies and Hayoi easily beats them up because it turns out he’s good at kung-fu.
Episodes 6-10
Episode 6 is actually a pretty sad episode. We get to hear the backstory of Hayoi where we find out his parents are police officers. While Hayoi respected and admired his parents for their jobs, he was always left alone. They would always be working and as a result Hayoi was always alone (even on his birthday). The real tragedy came when he was 11 and some criminals tried to break into his house and kidnap him as a means to get back at his parents. Luckily, he called the police where even despite the serious danger he was in, his parents didn’t show up because they were doing some other task (really? Your child was almost kidnapped and don’t go to see him? Man if it was me I would be damn whatever mission I’m on, I’m going to see my son right now). Because of this incident the parents started to move around which for a kid meant not having the ability to make friends because he was constantly moving. His only salvation throughout all of this was his teacher Ji who was also his next door neighbor. For the first time ever Hayoi got to experience what having a family was like and Ji did everything in her power to help him out by talking to his parents who promised to spend more time with him (and did they? Nope). Despite their talks with Ji, work kept getting in the way of their time with Hayoi, however, they didn’t want to cause Ji any worries so the family decided to be happy and loving on the surface when really they’re as far apart as you can get (this is confusing. In the first season it seemed like the family got along just fine. There never any hint of negligence of their part so where is all of this coming from?). After hearing his backstory, Zitong just hugs and cries for Hayoi. While that’s going on, Mei realizes that she’s in love with Hayoi but wonders if he still needs her.
Episode 7 starts off in Heaven 500 years ago where Mei first became a cupid (and from the looks of it actually took her job seriously). While walking through the halls of the Cupid Palace she runs into Krogh another cupid who instantly fell in love with her and became obsessed with trying to be with her but she kept turning him down (you’re trying too hard man. You’re pushy). After this the episode goes by quick as we focus on Zitong who will be participating in a cosplay event with Tang at an expo. In the event they’ll be performing a play with Tang’s group with Tang as the queen and Zitong the loyal maid (I feel as if these roles should be reverse). However, Tang left the crown at school and goes to get it only to get stuck in rain on the way there. Zitong calls Hayoi for help (when there’s trouble, call MC on the double) and he manages to get the crown where he runs into Mei where all this time she thought she wasn’t needed because Hayoi is dating Zitong and in love with her. Hayoi clears up this misunderstanding by telling her, he’s not dating Zitong (although I’m sure she would like that) nor is he in love with her (your actions say otherwise). This cheers Mei up (she still has a chance) and she helps Hayoi deliver Tang to the expo in time for her performance which goes well.
Nothing much happens in episode 8. The university is doing a camping trip and Hayoi is in the same group as Zitong and Lin with Tang as the leader (three girls and one boy camping out together. Try to kiss at least one of them Hayoi). We see how Tang tries to set aside her feelings for Hayoi in order to support Zitong in her romantic pursuit but Lin is there to be a vagina-blocker and move in on Hayoi. As they set up camp (in the middle of the day), Xueli shows up (she’s back~, and she’s bought death for every girl in the vicinity) and gets into a fight with Tang where she accidently lights the tents on fire (save us Smokey). Zitong tries to get water from the river but the current is too strong and pulls her in along with Tang who tried to save her. Hayoi goes after them but Xueli tries to stop him (typical yandere trying to watch people die) until Hayoi tells her to cut it out and Lin smacks her.
So in episode 9 Hayoi manages to save Zitong and Tang but loses his pants (good thing he didn’t go commando today). Lin and Xueli head to the place where the three will most likely be where Lin tells Xueli to stop acting like a spoiled brat or Hayoi will leave her (in other words, get your shit together, https://youtu.be/-tGL-buZ94Y?t=10s). Lin and Xueli find Hayoi and the others where Xueli hugs him and apologizes for acting like a spoiled brat. They then eat, watch the stars, and share two sleeping bags with each other.
In episode 10 the group gets saved by Xueli’s mom who takes Xueli and Lin to hospital because Lin collapsed from exhaustion. After returning to civilization (never return to the woods) we learn the backstory of Xueli. As we all know Xueli is Hayoi’s childhood friend who he grew up with. When they were younger Xueli got a boyfriend at school named Du Yuze, a senior who she liked very much. On the new year’s eve party, Xueli got dumped in the most horrific way possible. Du revealed that he was already engaged to someone else and made Xueli look like a girl who was just clinging to him for attention. The whole school soon turned on her as people talked behind her back and some even laughed at her directly in the halls (and I would have punched them). Xueli eventually stopped coming to school and just stayed at home until Hayoi visited her one day where she forced herself on him claiming that he can’t go anywhere and that he belongs to her.
Episodes 11-15
In episode 11 Du returns (more devious and handsome than ever). His family’s company got caught in a scandal and suffered great losses (and the bad news) so now he wants Xueli to convince her mom to partner up with his company and help them get back on top. At first, Xueli is so scared by him that she complies and locks herself away in her room to avoid seeing him again but then she remembers what Lin said about facing your grievances and decides to stand up to him. She refuses to help him which results in her getting kidnapped and taken to an abandoned warehouse where he plans to take nude pictures of her and blackmail Xueli’s mom. Mei saw the kidnapping and rushes to tell Haoyi what she saw (this looks like a job for a boy with MC privileges).
If episode 11 pissed you off, take comfort in the fact that episode 12 makes you happy as Xueli owns Du. Haoyi shows up at the abandoned factory where his plan is to get beat up and Mei record the whole thing with his phone that way Du can get in serious trouble for one, abduction, and two, assault. Du’s men assault Haoyi much to the shock of Xueli who finally can’t watch anymore and takes a chair shot for Haoyi where she just smiles (you’ve awaken the yandere inside her) and talks about how she never loved Du. We see how in the past Haoyi always got the top scores and Xueli’s mom told Xueli that if she wanted Haoyi to notice her than she must be better than him (or just flirt with him. How is being better than him going to get him to notice you? He already notices you so just tell him you like him. He’s a guy, therefore he’s an idiot and won’t know what you want unless you tell him). So Xueli hit the books and closed herself off from Haoyi (ironic, she studied to get close to Haoyi but instead only widened the distance from him) and it didn’t help that she bragged to his face and belittled him every time (okay, when did your mom tell you to act like a bitch and treat the boy you have a crush on like shit?). When they finally reached middle school Xueli realized her mistakes and saw the wide gap she caused between herself and Haoyi and tried to repair it by giving him chocolate for Valentine’s Day but got nervous and panicked when everyone saw her head to Haoyi’s class. She played it off that the chocolate was for Du, gave it to him on a whim, and the two became a couple (where we now want to kill Du for what he did and is currently doing to Xueli). In the end, Xueli never liked Du at all. He was just the substitute for Haoyi and nothing else.
In episode 13 Mei uploads the video of Haoyi’s assault to the internet and everyone sees it (broke a million views in 10 seconds). The police come in and arrest Du and his men where Du gets loose and tries to stab Haoyi with a knife (did nobody search him for concealed weapons? That’s like the first thing you learn in police training. Tax dollars at work) but Xueli uses her body to shield him and she gets stabbed in the stomach (Kidnapping: 20 years. Assault: 6 months. Attempted murder: 25 years to life. Du is not doing himself any favors). She gets rushed to the hospital where Haoyi blames himself for what happened to Xueli as does Xueli’s mom. The only one who comes to Haoyi’s defense is Xueli’s dad who says that he’s at fault for not looking after Xueli more. Xueli regains consciousness in the hospital where she fakes memory lost to trick Haoyi so that he stays with her forever (sneaky girl is sneaky). The other girls show up to see this trickery as does a new girl with white hair.
So in episode 14, we find out that the white hair girl is Xiaotu and she’s Haoyi’s cousin (who believes that incest is wincest). She’s been studying abroad all this time but has returned and will be attending Haoyi’s high school. She quickly causes a misunderstanding with the girls which results in Tang confronting him in front of everyone at school (you honestly believe the girl over the boy you like. No offence but Tang would make a lousy girlfriend). She tries to get an explanation about his relationship with Xiaotu but Haoyi says it’s none of their business and leaves with Xiaotu. Later on, Zitong calls out Xiaotu on the school roof to talk where she wants to know more about Haoyi’s relationship with his parents.
In the final episode the girls just sit down and talk with Xiaotu about her relationship with Haoyi. As a child he didn’t have many friends and while dealing with the relationship with his parents and the whole kidnapping incident he had a hard time talking to others. That’s where Xiaotu comes in, she became Haoyi’s one true friend always there for him and always looking out for him but she knows she can’t keep watching over him and now that she sees the new girls in Haoyi’s life (the ones who are quick to jump to conclusions and not hear him out) she realizes now that he’s in good hands and doesn’t need to stick around him so much so she decides to head back to the U.S (honestly speaking I think you be better off staying in China for another a year or so) without telling Haoyi but the girls hurry Haoyi to the airport to see her off but it’s too late so he has to say goodbye to her as the plane is taking off (how she can hear him over the plane’s engine is a mystery but that’s anime logic for ya).
Final Thoughts
Oh~, the magic has worn off here. While the first season was a decent cliché harem series, this season tries to be something more and fails. The second season tries to add way too much unnecessary drama that the series doesn’t need, backstories that go against what we saw in the first season, and introduces plot elements that either go no where or serve no purpose to the story in the long run. The only real arc I liked this season was Xueli’s arc as it’s a good story about abusive relationships and finding the courage to fight back. Other than that, the season doesn’t do anything new or special to make itself interesting. Once again the short length of the episodes really hurts the story as we don’t have enough time to take in everything and we rush through each arc to get to a good stopping point for the season. The animation is still decent and the comedy as well. I wish they would have just kept it as a good harem comedy instead of adding in all of this unnecessary drama that in no way impacts the story at all.
Final Score
The final score for Cupid’s Chocolate S2 is a 4/10. While not necessarily bad it’s not good either. It lacks the impact of the first season and kind of erases my interest in the series. I’m not sure if a third season has come out yet and with the response this season got I don’t think a third season is in the works. I say check out the first season and then just read the webcomic. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next time on Project Nitsuj.
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