English Dub Review: Farming Life in Another World “Hot Spring Expedition”

Overview (Spoilers Below):
A hot springs expedition quickly gets out of hand.

Our Take:
Most of the anime’s episodes stem from Hiraku and the others running the villages and encountering low-stakes problems in the process.  But it’s not without some that attempted to make their repetitive structures more interesting while retaining the show’s laidback tone.  That includes the village’s martial arts tournament, which, despite the lack of high stakes, provided the most fun I had during the season.  Fortunately, it looks like season two is repeating the idea of stepping out of the village’s comfort zone with this episode, where Hiraku and his harem group embark on an expedition.  Their destination is a hidden hot spring said to be in the forest, which they plan to turn into a private resort.  Of course, since this is an expedition after all, there are plenty of obstacles and enemies that will test their teamwork, including the earth rats that roam the caves.
However, the other concern is the undead, led by the Lord of Death, who is responsible for controlling the earth rats.  Yes, my friends, we’re also dealing with the undead in a laidback anime about running a village and forming the largest harem group known to man.  Given credit where it’s due, this season does seem to attempt to provide some actual adversaries for the characters to face compared to season one, even if it’s for the sake of its light-hearted comedy.  This is evident in “Hot Spring Expedition”, where Hiraku’s plan to create a resort could hit a snag due to some unexpected guests.  Given the previous confrontations, I wouldn’t be surprised if their journey concluded in a similar fashion.