A forbidden, carnal, and possibly disturbed love. This was the theme that dominated the first season of Beastars, along with a murder mystery and the less-than-desirable parts of the divide between carnivores and herbivores. In this season, the furry romance largely takes a backseat in favor of the latter two aspects.

In many ways, this is a good thing. We get to see Legoshi reach towards his goal and his promise to Haru at the end of the first season, though the antagonists that stand in the way leave both the gray wolf and the viewer wondering if peace between the species is even possible.

How Louis grows as a character is an entertaining subplot throughout the season, which has a conclusion that feels a bit abrupt but all comes together for one epic moment towards the end. We also find more out about the murder mystery that took a backseat for most of the first season.

Everything about this season is well-executed on paper and enjoyable in practice. However, I couldn't help but feel like there was just something missing, something that the first season must have done exceptionally well to make it stand out so much for me. Was I just not in the same mindset? Well, that was a given, but it just felt different.

At the end of the season, I was able to figure out what was missing. Haru.

Sure, she turned up a handful of times throughout the season. She even had a rather humorous encounter with Juno. But this awkward teenage romance - the misunderstandings, the declarations of love, the first times, the halted first times...it was all seemingly put on-hold for season 2 in favor of the murder mystery and what was essentially a shōnen training arc.

Don't get me wrong, a lot of people like shōnen training arcs. Hell, I enjoyed this particular training arc for reasons already stated. However, a particular element I enjoyed of season 1 was how it worked as a romance - how it showed this large beast falling hard for the small rabbit, mastering his strength so that instead of devouring her he devours the enemies that stand in their way. We got to know two sides of Legoshi - the badass wolf and the lovesick puppy. The encounters with Legoshi and Haru in this season were so unremarkable that my feelings for them as a couple were weakened by the end of the anime. I saw more chemistry between Legoshi and Louis, which was probably not the anime's intention (unless? :o).

Overall, while certainly keeping my attention and perhaps serving as a building block for things ahead, Beastars season 2 didn't quite live up to the incredible showcase of storytelling talent that the first season was for me.

"CatSoul, is this an elaborate way of telling us you didn't think there was enough weird furry shit this season?"

Okay, hear me out...