Over six years after the release of its first season, Dorohedoro is back with its incessant violence, gory hijinks, and absurd characters. Season 2, streaming now on Netflix, drops you back into its dark and chaotic world, but this time the attention shifts away from its alligator-faced protagonist, Kaiman, to focus on the varied cast that populates the anime by Mappa Studio, based on the manga by Q Hayashida.
The new season kicks off with our first look at the human form of Risu, who was introduced in season 1 as the head of a person killed in very weird circumstances. After escaping from the En family, Risu heads for the hideout of his old gang, the Cross-Eyes (humans who kill sorcerers), to find his killer. The Cross-Eyes and their mysterious boss will play a big role in this season, making the conflict between humans and sorcerers even more central to the story.
The world of Dorohedoro is made up of three realms: the industrial human world called the Hole, the land of Hell where devils reside, and the World of Sorcerers, a dangerous place filled with magic users, many of whom worship devils and murder humans without restraint. The conflict between these three classes of living beings is central to understanding Dorohedoro‘s chaotic but compelling story.
Despite its chaotic grotesquery, Dorohedoro still captures a level of brilliance in its character development that’s hard to match. Many of the people in this show feel like comedic caricatures (one of them is a life-sized roach named Johnny), yet they still have a deep emotional resonance that hits viewers when the stakes are at their peak.
We see a small glimpse of this when two of the main characters in the show, the magic users Noi and Shin, are caught in a heated confrontation at the end of the first episode. Noi gets captured by a rogue band of Cross-Eyes, while Shin has his throat cut and is fatally stabbed several times. It’s a wild way to start things, but I’m already glued to my seat and can’t wait to see what’s next.
If you had any fears that season 2 would put the brakes on the gore and violence, think again. Mappa is instead upping the ante, bringing Ayashida’s story and celebrated art to life with the studio’s brand of unmistakable visuals. The animation quality looks far improved from the first season, with incredible detail in the backgrounds and nail-biting action scenes that carry a brutal punch. Jujutsu Kaisen season 3 seems to be rubbing off on Dorohedoro, and I’m all for it.
I’m also digging the music this season. The Japanese music group (K)NoW_NAME is back on the chords, delivering some enchanting melodies that blend jazz and funk into the score. The music adds this subtle layer of chaos even in its design, offering this tonal whiplash from comedy to horror with expert precision.
Season 2 is shaping up to be Dorohedoro at its most unruly yet. We’re only four episodes into the new run, and I’m already scratching my head as characters unwittingly fall into the most hilarious situations, which often turn violent on a dime. I’m dying to uncover more about Kaiman’s backstory, the identity of Risu’s killer, and who truly stands at the head of the Cross-Eyes. This is a chaotic, often grotesque world, but that doesn’t take anything away from the surprising humanity of the people who inhabit it.
Dorohedoro season 2 is currently streaming on Netflix and Crunchyroll.