Our brawling high schoolers return in Wind Breaker Season 2 Episode 1, and it wastes little time in thrusting us fully into the action. Picking up right where left off in the Season 1 finale, we watch as the Fuurin team, led by Haruka Sakura (Yuma Uchida), make their way to the KEEL group after one of Fuurin’s members, Anzai, was attacked for trying to rescue a friend, KEEL member Nagato. By reintroducing us to these characters through yet another fight between teams, the CloverWorks series highlights the best and worst parts of the anime.

Based on the manga written and illustrated by Satoru Nii, a certain level of suspension of disbelief is necessary to enjoy this high-octane series. There’s inherent hilarity to the idea of the neighboring schools having their groups of fighters as the residents of their towns base their safety on feral teenagers. An outsider, Sakura, first arrives at Furrin to climb the school’s ranking and become the strongest. But it’s through his narrative that we learn what this series is truly about — learning how to become a team member. And, more notably, learning to be a friend.

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But the power of friendship isn’t enough to power the show, so Wind Break Season 2 Episode 1 ups the ante. Instead of just fighting with their fists and flying kicks, KEEL fights dirty, using planks, pipes, and bats to beat their opponents into submission. It certainly raises the stakes, and there seems to be, so far, little intent to give the KEEL members their tragic backstory. Instead, “Rage” focuses on the standoff and how these members fight.

Wind Breaker Season 2 Episode 1 shows how much Sakura needs to learn. 

Despite his steps forward, Sakura can’t help but rely on old habits. He wants to be the one to take out the leader and, despite being overwhelmed, is hellbent on that notion until his upperclassman arrives to help. Second year Ren Kakji (Nobuhiko Okamoto) admonishes him, telling Sakura that by putting all his focus on one target he’s letting the rest of his team down, unable to see past his tunnel vision.

It would seem that, beyond our core fighters, including Sakura, Suo (Nobunaga Shimazaki), Sugishita (Kôki Uchiyama), Kiryu (Toshiyuki Toyonaga), and Taiga Tsugeura (Kengo Kawanishi), the first years of Fuurin are in need of some assistance. We see this most notably with Nirei (Shōya Chiba), who requires Suo’s protection for most of the fight, limiting Suo’s fighting abilities. While Suo quickly tells Nirei that it’s okay and that by protecting him, he’s giving him strength to fight, it only lasts so long before Nirei tries to stand up for himself and his team.

It doesn’t work, as he’s knocked down almost immediately. But his determination plus Suo’s protective nature of him shows two characters making forward progress. Nirei tries to be brave while Suo shakes some of that unflappable, aloof attitude, demonstrating that he cares. These character moments can be hard-won in Wind Breaker due to the nature and pacing of the series, but they’re some of the show’s greatest strengths.

The fight scenes remain a highlight of the CloverWorks series. 

The action, at least up close, continues to be a high point in Wind Breaker Season 2 Episode 1. Anything in a wide shot is a little awkward with stiff movement. Still, the close-quarter fights highlight the dexterity of the characters, and the nimble animation highlights their specific strengths — Sakura’s agility versus Sugishita’s pure strength. It’s a lean, relatively bare-bones premiere, but it’s fun to watch, at the very least.

However, the most grating issue of Season 1 persists. The music continues to be ridiculous, transforming a standard, intense fight scene into something straight from the mid-2000s Hot Topic. The overtly emotional songs don’t heighten the fights. Instead, they have the opposite effect of diffusing any real tension. So much of the series’ success is based on our having to reconcile how silly the premise is with its effective execution. The music and emo-kid starter pack wailing make it much harder to accept the over-the-top premise.

Regardless, Wind Breaker Season 2 Episode 1 is a seamless return to form. We know exactly what we’re getting when we hit play on this series, and “Rage” delivers. It’s pure action-packed fun with the right amount of character-driven moments to make us care.

Wind Breaker Season 2 Episode 1 is out now on Crunchyroll.

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• 7/10 Wind Breaker Season 2 Episode 1 - 7/10

7/10

TL;DR

Wind Breaker Season 2 Episode 1 is a seamless return to form. We know exactly what we’re getting when we hit play on this series, and “Rage” delivers. It’s pure action-packed fun with the right amount of character-driven moments to make us care.

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