English Dub Review: ZOMBIE LAND SAGA REVENGE “Good Morning Returns SAGA”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

After an epic fail at their last concert, Franchouchou has gone on a bit of a hiatus. The girls of Franchouchou have been working real jobs now for a whole month and nobody’s found out that they’re zombies yet. They’re still in debt from renting out the big arena, and are determined to keep their dreams as musicians alive.

But for that to happen, they need Kotaro to come back from the brink of alcoholism and return to his rightful place as their manager. When they have an opportunity to perform back where it all started, the girls take the chance… but will Kotaro regain his mojo?

Our Take:

Despite being seemingly on the road to success at the end of ZOMBIE LAND SAGA’s first season, the members of Franchouchou didn’t last long in the spotlight. After a disastrous show, Franchouchou’s rising stardom faltered and they went into crippling debt. This in turn caused their energetic manager Kotaro to lose his confidence. That’s where we find ourselves in the season two premiere of ZOMBIE LAND SAGA REVENGE

Opening episodes are sometimes a chore to complete, with a bunch of exposition to spout and characters to introduce. Since most viewers will already remember a lot from season one, however, Good Morning Returns SAGA doesn’t dwell too much on the past. There’s really not much to catch the viewer up on either, since for better or worse, the series pretty much resets by the end of the episode.

Having Franchouchou return to their original debut venue is an obvious choice, but it feels like it could’ve been a lot more impactful than it was. It would’ve been nice to see the girls struggle with holding down real jobs for an episode or two before coming ‘home’ to the metal band stage. And the song they perform in this episode can’t really hold a candle to the impromptu freestyle rap that occurred in the first episode of the first season. As a whole, this plot didn’t really feel as dynamic as I would’ve hoped.

The other part of the episode revolves around Kotaro, who has been drowning himself in alcohol since the demise of Franchouchou’s popularity. It’s fine as far as side plots go, but it doesn’t really add anything to the episode, especially in terms of suspense or surprise. We all know he’s going to be back with the band by the end of the episode, and there wasn’t any insight or twists along the way.

Luckily the English dub is still a bright spot. Brina Palencia still shines as Sakura, with her performance being the perfect blend of pep and uncertainty.  The supporting cast members are all on board again too, and the script holds up well to the translation. Unfortunately, that doesn’t carry over to the songs. Sometimes these weekly dubs are just too fast-tracked to wait for the music to be dubbed, but in a show like this that revolves around the group’s musical performances, it’s a real shame.

The premiere of season two takes us back to Saga. Though it starts off with some unfamiliar territory for Franchouchou, it quickly resets things back to the way they’ve always been by the end of the episode. It’s a bit of a disappointment for those who, like me, would’ve liked to see the show cover some new ground. But hey, there’s still plenty of time left in the season to be pleasantly surprised, and if any show is going to pull something from its sleeve, it might just be this one.