2021 winter | Episodes: 13 | Score: 8.5 (104880)
Updated every Thursdays at 23:00 | Status: Finished Airing
Type: TV
Producers:Half H.P Studio | MAGES. | DeNA
Streaming: Crunchyroll | Netflix | Ani-One Asia | Bahamut Anime Crazy | Bilibili
Synopsis
Having spent Christmas camping with her new friends, Rin Shima embarks on a solo-camping trip to see the New Year sunrise by the sea. All goes according to plan until unforeseen weather blocks the roads back home, making a return trip impossible. Rin, who is now stranded for a few days, is invited by Nadeshiko Kagamihara to stay at her grandmother's house. What is supposed to be a two-day trip becomes an extended period of sightseeing and new experiences for Rin, and she encounters some new and old faces along the way. Yuru Camp△ Season 2 continues the story of Rin, Nadeshiko, and their friends as they further explore the joys of camping. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Voice Actors
Toyosaki, Aki
Hanamori, Yumiri
Hara, Sayuri
Takahashi, Rie
Touyama, Nao
News
10/22/2022, 09:02 AM
The final stage greeting for the Yuru Camp△ Movie (Laid-Back Camp: The Movie) announced a third anime season on Saturday. Original creator Afro drew an illustration ...
05/21/2021, 05:26 PM
The official website of the Yuru Camp△ (Laid-Back Camp) anime series announced on Friday that the second season's third Blu-ray and DVD volume will bundle a se...
12/30/2020, 01:22 PM
In this thread, you'll find a comprehensive list of anime acquired for simulcast release during the Winter 2021 season. Anime series licensed for home video rel...
12/27/2020, 02:32 PM
Here is a collection of promotional videos (PV), television ads (CM), and trailers for the last week. This thread excludes videos that have already been featured in ...
12/16/2020, 05:47 PM
In this thread you'll find a comprehensive list of Winter 2021 titles with an accompanying promotional video (PV), commercial (CM), or trailer. This post will b...
11/15/2020, 04:22 PM
Here is a collection of promotional videos (PV), television ads (CM), and trailers for the last week. This thread excludes videos that have already been featured in ...
09/27/2020, 02:22 PM
Here is a collection of promotional videos (PV), television ads (CM), and trailers for the last week. This thread excludes videos that have already been featured in ...
03/23/2020, 09:36 AM
The official website of the Yuru Camp△ (Laid-Back Camp) anime series opened a new page for the second season on Monday, revealing two teaser visuals (pictured right)...
10/07/2018, 12:59 AM
The Yuru Camp△ Secret Society Blanket Enrollment Briefing event announced a second season for the anime series on Sunday. Yuru Camp△ adapts Afro's comedy slice ...
Reviews
Cluffyyyy
1. Storyline: Yuru Camp△ Season 2 continues the relaxing adventures of the main characters as they explore a new camping location. The story focuses on Nadeshiko Kagamihara, Rin Shima, and their friends from the outdoor club at school. In this second season, the storyline delves deeper into the characters' backgrounds and motivations while introducing more exotic and charming camping sites. While maintaining a relaxed atmosphere and light comedy, the second season adds an emotional touch that helps the audience connect more with the characters. 2. Character Development: The character development in Season 2 is particularly noteworthy. Each character receives additional screen time and personal story arcs.For example, Rin Shima experiences significant growth as she opens up to others and tries camping with her friends. Nadeshiko also enhances her camping skills and deepens her friendships with the other characters. The dynamics among the outdoor club members become richer and more complex. 3. Visuals and Animation: The visuals and animation in Yuru Camp△ Season 2 remain stunning. Beautiful natural landscapes, detailed campsites, and charming character designs make each episode a delight to watch. C-Station Studio once again demonstrates its ability to present calming and enchanting visuals. The thoughtful use of color and lighting contributes to the series' warm and cozy atmosphere. 4. Music and Sound: The music in Yuru Camp continues to be one of its strongest aspects. A soothing soundtrack that complements the camping theme helps create a relaxing and peaceful ambiance. The opening and ending themes are engaging and capture the spirit of adventure and friendship. The voice acting by experienced seiyuu brings the characters to life with high quality. 5. Atmosphere and Themes: The atmosphere of the second season aligns consistently with that of the first season, emphasizing the simplicity and enjoyment of camping. Themes of friendship, nature, and finding happiness in simplicity are well presented. The second season also highlights the importance of personal time and respect for nature, conveying a deeper message behind this relaxing story.
Wobert
Yuru Camp is basically the most wholesome and agreeable thing I’ve ever watched. But lots of anime are cute and wholesome. But very few have the moments of sheer beauty that fill Yuru Camp. It also offers generous lessons on how to enjoy life to the fullest - delicious food, friendship, the wonders of nature, the satisfaction of accomplishing tasks and relying on yourself, etc. Also, the realism of the actual locations and the practical aspects of camping make you really respect the work and take it seriously. If after we died, we entered the world of Yuru Camp and lived there forever, that wouldbe heaven.
mimimosa
I can't fathom how this series makes a typically plodding genre so spellbinding, but it does and continues to do so to an even more wonderful degree in this second instalment. Yuru Camp has always touched on themes of coming of age, adulthood, bonds and identity with remarkable subtlety and nuance, but it delves into even more heartrending layers of these topics in this second season. I have always loved how Rin and Nadeshiko influenced each other to open up their respective worlds while still holding true to what makes each girl them, and this is even more clear in this season. The segment whereNadeshiko, inspired by Rin, tries solo camping for the first time, is just so, so beautiful—it's a small yet amazing thing to be pushed into trying new things thanks to someone you love, and Yuru Camp illustrated the impacts of that so beautifully and naturally, without fanfare. And oh my God, the way RIn's boundaries are depicted in this anime—ugh, I really wished I watched this when I was younger. The club happily accepting Rin's desire to ride alone to the camp while they're all in the van is so incredible and I wish that, when I was younger, I was taught the same—that it's OK to want to enjoy something by yourself, and that you won't be "killing the mood" by doing so. All in all, this is a heart-warming, feel-good series I, and clearly many others, will be going back to over and over. I'm so glad this anime exists!
Andyhcan
Chill, satisfying, and fulfilling are three words I would use to describe Yuru Camp 2 or Yuru Camp in general. Giving a relaxing vibe, Yuru Camp 2 is an easy-to-watch anime for everyone who is having a bad day or is going through something unpleasant. The production team did a promising job to retain all good elements of the series and even improving them in the process. In this season, Yuru camp focuses on the Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefecture instead of the Yamanashi prefecture previously featured in season one, which introduces beaches and the sea to the series. This season also introduces a new element,geosites (or geospots, as referenced in the series), which can be helpful if you would want to keep track and reference them in real life. As you would expect, Yuru Camp still has astonishing art, especially for the background. The production team did an impressive job making the places come alive, giving the feeling that we are actually adventuring and going there ourselves. Even in some minor scenes, the team still does an amazing job keeping the details in place. Not to mention, the food art is so well represented it makes you want to jump from your chair and make it yourself. Brief explanations of how the food is, and how it is made make them even more appetizing. The plot of Yuru camp is nothing on its own, but that is the charm of it. A simple camping trip is all the show needs to do what is here for. What's important is the relationships between the characters, you can feel the love they have for each other through the screen, making you feel happy alongside them and their journey. This season also introduces more to Rin's family, showing a new wholesome side to the show. As mentioned, this season takes us to a new prefecture showing new styles of sceneries making it a different experience from the first season. The music is well composed and goes well with every scene. The show's music continues to set the right mood at the right time, just as in season one. However, in my opinion, it may still be lacking a wow factor you might find in other shows. The music is barely noticeable and recognizable, but I guess that is what they were going for. The OP, "Seize The Day" by Asaka, gives the same mood as the first OP, which is a good hype-up for the audience. The ED, on the other hand, gives a sad mood like when you send off a friend at the end of the day, which is also well crafted. In addition, the idea of showing the photos that the camp trip they went on in the ED also gives a warming feeling like you were there with them. To conclude, thank you afro-sensei and C-Station for bringing this masterpiece to life, it has really helped me through hard times and I hope you all can appreciate this art the way I did. Story: 8 Art/Animation: 10 Sound: 9
Firagax
Hold it right there! Why not take a break from those intense action, tear-jerking drama, comedic romance anime and take a look at this masterpiece. If I were to use a word to describe Yuru Camp, it is comfortable. Watching Yuru Camp feels like sipping a cup of tea, enjoying your favorite book over a smooth music with your night lamp turned on. The most captivating part about Yuru Camp is definitely the art, the scenery. If you are a huge fan of beautiful scenery and always an enthusiast for scenery hotspot during your travels, you are definitely in for a treat. The sceneries were welldrawn and almost similar to what you can see in real life to the extent that I lost count on how many times I mentioned "Wow, I want to visit there right now!". I did not personally went to those well known places but there are some comparison online! That's not it, you can also learn a thing or two from Yuru Camp about camping. It feels like watching a cute documentary on how to camp and some decent "Did you know?" moment. I'm not much of a camper but its definitely an eye opener for me to feel and understand how camping is like. Heck, they made it felt so fun! Do not get fooled by "its just gonna be some girls doing things they like" from the pictures and description. The characters are not that dull but still don't put too high hopes that the characters have deep backgrounds or shocking personalities. Nonetheless, the characters are still fun to watch and the voice are pretty well done too. The music and songs are great in the sense that it fits the theme of relaxation. There's no overly sad, emotional music. All you hear are relaxing, exciting and happy BGMs. If its not a mood booster, its definitely not a moody one. Overall, I really enjoy Yuru Camp and I understand its not for everyone but hey, if you are exhausted from those thrilling anime, why not give Yuru Camp a go? Get yourself a cup of tea, sit on your comfy sofa, and enjoy the smooth and relaxing ride that Yuru Camp has to offer.
Naneo
Yuru Camp Season 2 is anime that focus on high school girls do camping and other wholesome thing. This is a sequel for Yuru Camp. There are not a lot of difference between the first season and the second. Story 10/10 Like the previous season, this anime story is so simple. There are no big problem here. But because the story is simple that does not mean this anime is boring. Because it is so simple you didn't have to worry how the story goes and you can enjoy the show. Also don't forget about the ending, it is amazing. I'm almost cried during the ending becauseits just so amazing. Art 10/10 The art in here is really really gorgeous. Also the background is memorable too. Like if i see an art about sea view, mountain view, or beach view, the first thing that come to my mind is Yuru Camp. Because this anime draw their background so reailistic. Even maybe when i visit Japan in future, i'll always remember this anime because the art. Oh yeah, and also the character desain really fit their personality. Sound 10/10 When it comes to sound, Yuru Camp is the best. I mean the BGM is just beautiful. It can make you feel safe and comfy. Like nothing wrong will happen just enjoy it. Both the ED and OP is relaxing too. Usually anime OP is cheering and colorful. This anime bring that aside, instead they give us relaxing and chill feeling. And also when they cook something the sound is so perfect, it is like real life. The chopping sound, the boiling sound, everything. Character 10/10 They all are wholesome, even with stranger. And that's why i like the character development. Its like they want to make us be like them, nice with everyone. And without we even noticing, they actually make us always remember all the character here. Also don't forget about the narrator. Even though we can't see him, he still have a personalty. And i think that is a really good job there. Enjoyment 10/10 I am really enjoying Yuru Camp to the fullest. This anime can change your mood no matter what happen. Like if you sad or lazy, just watch this anime and your mood will change drasctically from sad to being happy. And it so usefull to cheer ourself up to do something more productive. I'll definetely rewatch this anime again in near future, so i can cheer myself up more. You should give this anime a try. It can make you relax and comfy. And also this anime make you want to do camping by yourself, which is perfect. Because camping can refresh your mind and maybe you can get some new friend in the campsite. Thats all i can say about this anime. Thank you so much for reading my review.
Unsaidblackout
I'll be covering Yuru Camp Season 2, and basically Season 1 while I'm at it and I'll be very blunt: it'll remain the best anime in my heart until and overcoming the day I keel over and die. Very simple. But here's the preamble before I actually get into the exact reasons why I enjoy this little slice of life as much as I do. I think Yuru Camp is the anime-equivalent of chicken noodle soup for the weary soul, and I think that's why I've rewatched the series over and over again. Season 2 just adds more episodes for me to rewatch now and inthe future. It accomplishes what I seek in a slice of life anime, and I think it covers what people tend to gloss over and miss whenever they look for and think of a slice of life anime. Ask anyone to define a slice of life, and the general answer should be: make a bunch of characters, put them in a setting, and let them interact. I don't think that's wrong, but it's too general. I believe a slice of life is relatable and grounded above all, and a slice of life has those moments where you feel a sense of deja vu, or you can point it out and say: "Hey, I've had this happen to me before." I think for that reason, the general feeling it should give you is... nostalgia. There's a certain familiarity in these 2D waters that you're crossing, and a good slice of life—like Yuru Camp—should achieve that. Anime has always been an art, another platform, another medium for escaping to another world. I think most people, and especially the studious and more anxious people are often overwhelmed and when overwhelmed, feel the need to escape or distance themselves. Yuru Camp, an anime about girls camping... is a bit more than that. Yuru Camp believes in something, or at least I think it believes in something. It believes that we need to slow down and appreciate the smaller things in life, and it delivers that indirectly to those who need to slow themselves down. When you're going so fast and anxiously leaping to the next goal in life, everything else in life passes by in a blur. In Yuru Camp, what you miss in that blur is... relaxation, reconnection with friends and family and nature... and for the older folks or for those graduating high school or those moving onto (and maybe they're already in) college, it's the feeling of your golden days that maybe you haven't stopped to appreciate. With that in mind, I can actually talk about Yuru Camp and why it holds such a dear and special place in my heart. STORY (10/10) "You just gave a 10/10 to a slice of life, you absolute buffoon." Yeah. I did. Here's why. A slice of life does not have a massive plot about saving the world or defeating a definitive bad guy or changing the universe. It's about characters living their day-to-day lives and cherishing the moments among themselves. I think for this reason, Yuru Camp accomplishes its goal as a slice of life. Surprise surprise, it's not totally about camping. My heart is thoroughly warmed as the cast might stress on something as mundane as exams, a flashback to my high school days, making out the different approaches to an exam: either "let's wing it," or "let's not sleep for the next few days just to study." It brings me back to my days of constantly jobhunting, or what I spent a paycheck on, or understanding the freedom I have as I mature and become an adult. The camping sequences, whether it be the solo-camping Rin, or the group outings, made me feel nostalgic as I thought about loneliness and how comforting it is at times or how oppressive it is at times. The group outings made me appreciate my time with friends more, and that our time spent together is proof of our friendship and mutual love and respect. And the dynamic between characters and how they all interact with each other feels like a genuine relationship that you'd find in any friend group or inner circle. There's a bittersweet feeling instilled as the anime goes on and you remember... "at some point, this anime ends." These girls are in high school. At some point, they'll all graduate, each taking their own career paths and in time, their time with each other becomes more and more sporadic and uneven. With how grounded Yuru Camp is, you also remember... "at some point, my own fun ends," and the same applies to you. At some point, you'll be growing up, hunting for jobs, maybe moving out, getting your license and the like. And that's why Yuru Camp teaches us to appreciate the Present so that we may sooner embrace the Future. It teaches us that life in the moment is all that matters, so we should pay mind to the small things that surround us: our friends, our family, and nature. We need to spend our time wisely, so as to appreciate and love the Present and what surrounds us, while also preparing for the harsh, blunt reality of the Future and in that darkness, search for the opportunities it holds. ART (9/10) Art is usually not something one thinks about when they're searching for a slice of life, but considering the ground that Yuru Camp covers, it feels like everything went into conveying a certain aesthetic, a certain warmth and feel, and above all, to appreciate the environment. You'll find plenty of lovely landscapes in Yuru Camp (both seasons 1 and 2) and maybe it'll teach you to look for those early morning sunrises and those late afternoon sunsets. It'll teach you to, whenever you look or step outside, really take in what's around you: rain or shine, snow or hail, hot or cold... it really is a beautiful world we live in. I have very minor, nitpicky grievances with the way that some CG looks, but it hardly ever comes for you to be super annoyed with it. In a slice of life like this, the visuals lend itself very well. There's a certain, somewhat faded and healthy palette that the anime and art style uses to instill an emotion of warmth and wholesomeness. The characters are all unique and distinguishable from each other in their own styles, and there's a lot that goes into the environments. Very good, certainly eye candy at some moments during the anime. SOUND (10/10) A substantial chunk of this rating comes from the music and ambient sounds throughout the anime. Music was done by Akiyuki Tateyama, and I most certainly enjoy the direction with the genre used frequently. Almost all tracks in the Yuru Camp OST could be considered folk music, and folk music portrays a feeling of family, of friends, of good times and a certain welcome vibe. It feels... "local." It really calms you down and some of the slower pieces go well with just embracing the outdoors or even just vibing indoors, ambient music to go with thinking about yourself and how far you've come. The ambient sounds are very heavy on trying to paint the feeling of the outdoors. The fire crackling, the gentle winds blowing, the rustling of leaves, the thwack of wood being chopped and broken apart... it makes you feel like you're camping with the girls yourself. You're right there with them, enjoying your own mug of hot cocoa and talking about your day and destressing. CHARACTER (8/10) Each character in Yuru Camp has their own distinctive personality and appearance. All of them are very relatable in their own ways. Rin's mature and distant yet caring and intellectual character, Nadeshiko's carefree and energetic demeanor, Aoi's caring and hardworking attitude, Chiaki's drive to leadership with her own shortsighted imperfections, and Ena's sleepy and slow-paced feels—all of these assorted personalities provide interesting dynamics. Although you aren't gonna be expecting romance, you certainly feel their relationships deepen with the time that they spend with each other. All in all, with their characters so grounded and feeling so real, it plays into the genre well enough for you to identify yourself with a character or being able to point out and have a sense of familiarity with the relationships that these characters have. All in all, it's 3:44 AM at the time of review, and I love Yuru Camp. 'Til the day I die. Watch Yuru Camp, sit back and enjoy. You're not supposed to watch it all in one sitting, but you totally can if you feel like it. Take life one step at a time, because if you rush yourself trying to get ahead, you're gonna miss a whole lot of stuff that you would've loved in the blur that passes by you. Love life, cherish the time you spend with friends and family, and don't get so caught up and entangled. Stay safe, fellas.
PixelB
Yuru Camp is a grossly overrated anime that barely kept my attention all the way to the end. Truly, I was in a grueling death march near the end of the show. Yuru camp season 2 plays it safe, and overall, is just a step down Non Non Biyori. While nature shots are adequate in Yuru Camp, they're sporadic and are usually still shots that aren't the greatest. Non non biyori features them both in greater frequency and quality. Plus, Yuru Camp is largely a show centered around camping and nature, yet, again, the feeling that you're being immersed in nature while not being overpoweringis done so much better in Non Non Biyori. Hell, let's not talk about other series, season 2 isn't even better than season 1 since it barely builds off or branches off anything from season 1. What makes Yuru Camp a middling show is definitely how it plays it safe and repetitively. Again, season 2 mainly features similar scenarios to season 1 without much change. The formula is always some people in the outdoors club going camping, and going to do some leisure activities unique to that area. This formula actually doesn't sound bad, but Yuru Camp executes it on such a surface level. Hot Springs, cafes, specialty foods, famous landmarks, Yuru Camp dabbles in these areas but never truly dives into depth into any particular activity. Describing the action of camping might have been the only thing that there was a huge focus on. You mainly have the characters doing these random activities in quick succession, as well as eating, but you're not satisfied. The scenic shots are pretty decent, but can't carry the entire show. The landmarks and activities just have the characters quickly visiting them without much meaningful dialogue or events happening, and the cooking process is briefly mentioned despite being food emphasized quite a bit in the entire series. It's always the "activity" being emphasized over the characters, and that's my biggest problem with the series. Which characters do you really get to know. For a story that's largely about the many interactions of the characters when camping, you sure as hell barely get to know them in any particular depth. This mainly has to do with the many "nothing" conversations that happen. I'm totally happy to watch the characters have mundane conversations, but the conversations these characters have always have to do with the particular activity that they're doing and never really have to do with their own personalities, hobbies, problems, etc. There's only so much you can do when camping, especially when it gets darker after dinner, and even when doing other activities like hiking and visiting landmarks, there's always time for random conversations, and that's certainly one beauty of camping. Yet, this show does not capture this aspect very well. I never get to really see any silly conversations or slice of life conversation like I do in Non Non Biyori, for example, but rather it's always about "look at this food I'm eating," "wow this mountain looks great," or "it's cold!!!" Overall, I wished for there to be more fun character interactions that aren't always focused on the environment around them, and just some more in depth focus on the particular activities they're doing. Again, close up shots of the cooking progress, some fun events or dialogue that happen when they're at a particular location, this stuff never happens. Overall, you're stuck with barely developed characters sticking to their pet lines and interactions for the entire series, with nothing else to carry it, whether it be the scenic shots, locations, dialogue, and activities.
Sacerdotisa
The truth is that it left me empty not to continue watching this, anime with the Slice of Life genre are few valued and this is undoubtedly one of the best that exist today. Without a doubt it is better than the first season since here they show more than just a camp, they show what are the things of outdoor life and travel more than anything. It is as if it were an advertisement from Japan for us to spend vacations in that place but it also gives you a beautiful message from time to time leave your house and spend it at ease with friendswithout so much confinement, internet or technological things. This purifies my soul but it breaks my soul that we do not have anime of this style and the closest thing would be Non Non Biyori. Without more to say, this is very much based on our reality, it is a teaching of life and you should take advantage of it.
MatheusMariz
If someone told me that exists an anime that the story is about some girls that like to camp by their own or in groups just to have fun I wouldn't believe it. I couldn't imagine before that an anime with this premise would be so interesting. Yuru Camp is an anime with a simple and practical story. Girls that decide to start camping on peaceful and beautiful places. When they're not camping, we just see what they normally do on a daily basis. The story itself doesn't matter much because it's not the main focus. So you ask me: why I would watch this anime that is just about camping? Andmy answer to you is: because this anime is not only about camping! It's about life that can be lived to the fullest in many ways. It's about feeling joy and having fun, about enjoying the things around you, enjoying the company of your friends and also your own company, about enjoying nature, about loving and respecting animals, about getting to know yourself better, about wanting to live life as completely as possible. About being productive and making the most of everything. Art/animation: Absolutely gorgeous, the nature and all the landscapes were always beautiful. The animation is very well done and the design of the characters is amazing. Not a single flaw or issue about this area. 10/10 . Sound - OST's, VA's and Opening/Ending: The soundtrack fits perfectly well with all the scenes, places and also the overall mood of the anime. All of the OST's are calm and smooth. They give a cool feeling. The opening is full of hapiness, very exciting. The ending is wonderfull and relaxing. So I give a 10 out of 10. Characters: They are all cute, sweet and lovely girls. Nadeshiko is the personification of happiness. Always with a smile on her face and excited to do everything. Rin is the personification of tranquility. She is responsible and organized. The other girls are kind and friendly in their own ways. I loved them all. 10/10 Enjoyment and Overall: All the episodes filled me with joy and excitement. It's a fun anime that has always left me calm and peaceful, Almost a treatment to remove all my sadness, make me forget my problems and also make me feel good and happy. I could never be more satisfied with this anime. Actually is more than just an anime, it is a very exciting, well balanced, magical and inspiring audiovisual work. Extremely fun, relaxing and very exciting, too. It brings valuable lessons and makes us reflect on important things in our life. Truly a masterpiece! 10/10 It deserves more recognition. I will miss it a lot. <3 Have fun and live life to the fullest. o/
LeEggBread
Did this season need to come out? No Was this season amazing? HELL YEAH YOU BET IT WAS Yuru Camp is one of the best Slice of Life's I have ever watched. You can watch this series without having a care for anything in the world, you really don't need to take anything seriously. There's no extravagant plot, no heart pounding suspense, barely any character development, yet Yuru Camp manages to be absolutely amazing. The amount of food porn that's in Yuru Camp is actually insane. Everytime there was a food scene, my stomach started creating an internal earthquake. It really didn't help seeing Nadeshiko drool all over herfood. C-Station needs to make more animes, the visuals in this show are ABSOLUTELY stunning. The scenery throughout the show look so pretty and beautiful. I could literally close my eyes, pick a scene from an episode, screenshot it, and use it as my background. Yuru Camp might have the overall best theme songs and endings for a single series. The endings for Yuru Camp are my sleeping pills, it's such a soothing thing to listen to when you're about to go to sleep. The intros. MMMM. The intros are the exact opposite of the outros, but they are still amazing. The music used throughout this season is ridiculously good, they all fit the scenes they were used in, perfectly. Now, onto voice actors...holy smokes the voice actors are goddesses. I can spot Rie Takahashi’s voice from anywhere, and she happens to voice act Ena-chan. Hanamori was literally made for Nadeshiko’s voice, she has the most fitting voice for a cheerful, energetic and eccentric girl. Rin-Chan’s voice acting is another thing that’s an absolute masterpiece in this show. Nadeshiko is one of my all time favourite characters. Pink hair? Energetic and cheerful? Extremely cute and adorable? Yup, that's Nadeshiko, and she checks all the boxes for an astounding anime female. Loose ponytail Nadeshiko with hair swooping to her right easily tops all the forms of Nadeshiko. As of right now, Shima-Rin sits right outside of my favourites list, it always makes me smile looking at her small grin. I like Ena-chan for the sole reason that she is voiced by Rieri, and also that she has the most adorable dog known to humankind. Yuru Camp at night is the best time to watch it, I found this out personally. After watching the 1st season and this one, I learnt that I really need to go camping 1000x more often than I do. The overwhelming cuteness is exceptionally great, it really is a gift. I adore every part of this show, and my experience with it was very enjoyable. Even if you despise the Slice of Life genre, I believe watching Yuru Camp will totally sway your opinion on the genre. When I first watched Yuru Camp it made me realize that a show doesn’t need any fancy plot to be really outstanding. Out of all the anime to air and finish airing during Winter 2021, Yuru Camp is the best. It is definitely worth a watch.
zhewww
tl;dr a slice of life masterpiece. No reason not to give this a shot unless you really dislike this genre. And I stand by that statement even if you're too lazy to watch the 1st season first; S2 is miles ahead of what was already a very strong first season. I've been wondering for a while what a slice-of-life show would have to do to garner a 10, and Yuru Camp S2 just might be it. This show is the "healing anime" genre polished to a mirror shine. Sure, it doesn't deliver on plot, but if you weren't already scared off by the slice-of-life tag, you'renot gonna care. This really is a landmark show in terms of the Cute Girls Slice-of-Life genre that really shows what happens when you give great source material like this the budget and the love it deserves. There is just so much extra effort and attention to detail here that really shows the production team's passion and love for this show. There are so many things I could talk about, but I'm just gonna pick a few standout things, so you can quit wasting your time and go watch the show. First, we gotta talk backgrounds. I don't even want to KNOW how much time both in and out of the office it took to draw all these backgrounds. By nature of this being a scenery/tourism focused anime, we're talking DOZENS of new backgrounds per episode, and they are all painstakingly location accurate. While we've seen Japan a billion times in other shows, instead of it being a "Japanese high school #237", in Yuru Camp these are all REAL places, and the attention to detail in the backdrops really makes me feel like I'm right there next to the characters. Second, I need to talk about the really stellar character animation. I can speak Japanese so I watched without subs, and I really had a lot of leeway to nitpick every frame. However, as of the time of this writing (episode 7), I've been pleasantly surprised that Yuru Camp is ALWAYS on model, which is impressive as the original author's style has a lot of quirks that takes a learning curve to start copying. And on top of that, instead of skimping on motion at every turn like most seasonal slice-of-life fare, the character's arms are always moving to emphasize what they're talking about and hair and clothing move appropriately to match. Finally, as someone who read the source material, I was mainly looking forward to seeing the cast in color. But the score in S2 surprised me with a lot of variety that was absent in the 1st season. While retaining the calm, peaceful BGM tracks from before, there are a series of tracks scored specifically for certain scenes, which really help sell some of the emotional high points and comedy relief. A lot of SOL shows don't do this, using pretty much the same BGM throughout, so it's clear there's a lot of attention in areas not usually paid attention to in anime production. An honorable mention before I close is the stellar VA work, carried by big name actresses like Toyosaki Aki (Yui from K-on!), Touyama Nao (Yui from Oregairu), and Takahashi Rie (Emilia, Megumin). As a result, even the episode focusing on the characters outside of the main Rin and Nadeshiko are funny and engaging. Yuru Camp S2 perfects the comfy formula that helped its S1 explode in popularity, but this time it brings some unprecedented quality within its genre. I've held off reviewing this show because I wasn't sure that the quality would continue, but at episode 7, it's really proved its worth to me as something that I will come back to when I'm sick of all the mediocre slice-of-life coming out recently.
ShinyHex
"The things you see, the things you eat, and the time you get to spend contemplating things. I think solo camping is a way to appreciate loneliness." Yuru Camp is the gargantuan paragon of iyashikei. Imagine working all day in a hectic semester; it's hella cold outside, you're in your blanket at the end of the day with a cup of hot coffee, and you're watching some cute high school girls going out to camp in the countryside japan with a matching atmosphere. The time you spend alone, watching this cozy little show - not with your friends but with yourself alone can make you feelhappy to be alive. Yuru Camp's plot is nothing grandiose, nor does it swathe itself with arcane philosophical themes - but that's the charm of the show. Set in the Japanese countryside, Yuru Camp is an experience where you immerse yourself in the jejune and tranquil lives of moe high school girls that love camping with calming music and alluring backgrounds to enhance your experience. The cozy, calming, laid-back world of the main characters that heavily contrasts with our heavy continuous lives - it's that brief 25 minutes of the week where you refuse to care about anything about your life. The show's main strength comes from the characters - particularly from their wholesome yet humorous interactions. Character interactions ranging from emotionally touching and human to goofy and comical - never fails to leave me at cloud nine at the end of every episode is highly commendable. We got characters with an ample mix of personalities - from the lovable goofball that is Nadeshiko to the quiet and reserved Rin. Everyone - even the side characters contribute to the experience that is Yuru Camp. Just watching them as a group doing cute and wholesome things alone has the power to ostracize any cynical voice inside my head. Nonetheless, even with a likable cast, the show won't be the same without their interactions as a group. The character likability has been augmented with the ever-strong character acting this season, brilliantly portraying character growth - especially for Rin, who is now opening up to more people. While this is nothing groundbreaking, noticing such character growth is a fulfilling experience. Being a part of the prolific genre of "Cute girls doing cute things" - the show itself feels different from a generic CGDCT anime, especially the spotlight is definitely not the moeness of the characters - but rather the hobby, that is camping and camping accessories. However, concealed behind the mask (camping), Yuru Camp does feel like a traveling encouragement show - like how Haikyuu was potent enough to encourage volleyball as a sport. Every splendor of the countryside Japan is annotated to us - be it popular tourist locations or the local food specialty. I think I'm not the only one who checks out every mentioned location on the map. Like, who does not want to check out real-world counterparts to locations mentioned in an anime you love - especially when the said spots are immaculate scenic campsites! Yuru Camp is blessed with immense love from the staff - that it's evident that there's a clear passion for the project that you feel oozing through every frame. The show has an immense level of attention to detail - be it the enticing food imagery from okonomiyaki and yakisoba to Shimarin Ice cream(lol) or the camping accessories - all thanks to the talented props and mechanical staff. Minor elements like beginning and ending the episode with Nadeshiko moving away from her only friend to Nadeshiko with her new friends, or the competent and self-sufficient feeling when Nadeshiko was finally able to buy herself a lamp, but also a gift to her older sister - which was depicted generously with a brief night timelapse from Ending theme makes Yuru Camp such a great show. The show takes a softened photorealistic approach towards the background art - that perfectly encapsulates the atmosphere as this non-idealized art direction perfectly executes a realistic feeling. Music has a tremendous power of healing - that directly helps your heart and mind feel elated. Fortunately, Yuru Camp has been blessed with Serene and Calming music to enhance the experience. In introspection, Yuru Camp takes inspiration from a Danish Concept Hygge - where being comfortable is emphasized for the well-being. As they say, "What freedom is to Americans..hygge is to the Danes" - might be why the music in Yuru Camp resonates with Nordic and Irish tones, which ultimately enhances the show's warm atmosphere. The already good production values from the first season have been improved by a lot. The pacing is perfect, and the marvelous storyboarding - meshed with remarkable direction and cinematography that helps the viewer immersed in the world. Immersing into Yuru Camp feels like that moment of childhood that now exists as a picturebook - as if you're reliving that memorable moment lost in time. Even though the show is very grounded and comparing with real-life might feel superfluous - watching the show does feel like reminiscing the good memories of your childhood. Devoid of any dramatical elements, everything in the show is wholesome - be it the immaculate character interactions or Nadeshiko's Glutonny or the humor or even noises from the non-living items guiding us. All Thanks to Afro-sensei, Yoshiaki Kyougaku, and the passionate staff at C-Station, we got to experience maximum healing from what 2020 was. Yuru Camp is truly a gem to this medium. Tl;dr Story: 7 Art/Animation: 10 Sound: 9 Characters: 9 Enjoyment: 9 Overall: Light 9
dikuchan
*This review contains minor spoilers* At a cursory glance Yuru Camp may be seen as your typical seasonal “cute girls doing X in a cute way”, where X is camping, show. In addition, with all the places and food presented, this anime may be seen as a hollow travel advertisement. With a more thorough examination… the first impression does not fail. However, it does not matter. Despite its shallowness, Yuru Camp is perfect the way it is. Imagine this. Schoolgirls decide to go on their greatest trip ever after a midterm exam. As always, one girl is no good at studying. Now, what do youexpect? As for me, a failure at the first try, getting better and eventually strengthening the bonds of friendship. Well, Yuru Camp does not care. Finally, the show which considers its place and masterly performs when it matters. Why does camping matter? Long car rides, stuffing a face at roadside eateries, occasional photos at landmarks, outdoor cooking, boozy campfire songs, bedtime horror stories, gazing at the night sky and sunrise. Or, probably, do you prefer lone moped rides and solitary relaxation with a book on a cliff? That is the thing that Yuru Camp does: it discovers the enjoyment of camping. And it invests so much love and soul into unwrapping this idea, that no one could leave untouched. First of all, the art design. Landscapes are extraordinarily beautiful and filled with details, composition is always top-notch, and transitions are just in time. The thrilling feeling of reading a remarkable illustration book smoothly morphs into the overflowing feeling of physical presence. Of course, it could not be achieved without proper ambient music. And the score of Yuru Camp perfectly conveys the right emotions at the right time: solemn music with picturesque hill views and soothing naughty motives while chit-chatting by the campfire. All the compositions fade out in ambience, but instantly emerge when you try to recall them. Hell, I still sometimes hum the waggish “next episode preview” song. With the absence of drama, seiyuus finally don’t have to vocalize cringey little gasps and moans that cover the lack of facial animation. And since the plot in Yuru Camp is irrelevant, artists have full freedom of expression to entertain viewers. Okay, an exemplary scene. Shimarin, one of the girls, turns her head to check the price of the delicious eel she just ate… Boom! Eyes pop out of sockets! Camera takes weird angles in split seconds! The eel was expensive… God, I genuinely laughed at that scene. No wonder I personally think that one of the strongest advantages of Japanese animation is unconstrained and sometimes exaggerated depiction of emotions. And voice acting in Yuru Camp does match this attitude. Actors perfectly fit into the character design and all the girls feel… um, like real schoolgirls. Isn't it the best compliment? Perhaps, all the magic charm of the characters lies in the chemistry of their personalities. And the trick here is that there is not much of character development in the show. What may be considered as the colossal drawback in any other show, turns out to be an advantage in the case of Yuru Camp. As I already said, this anime tries to tell the story of “why camping matters”. In my opinion, it matters because of close friends. Not only people with whom we go camping together, but the ones who inspire us to go camping, the close ones who get up at the crack of dawn to wish us luck, people who would rush over to the woods if the phone is dead… The moments we spend camping with our closest friends are unforgettable. For me, the sweetest scenes in the show were the ones that sparked the thought “Ah, that is so Nadeshiko” and thus gave me the feelings of those precious moments. And everything could fall apart if not for smart pacing. In the first season it was kind of off, probably because of the character's introduction. Although the second season never made me bored, it made me die of its sweetness. I know that a reviewer has to scold an anime at the end. However, I cannot do that. The second season of Yuru Camp is perfect. Period. This show is an outstanding example of how to make an anime: not only each frame of Yuru Camp is filled with love and passion, but also with incredible technical skills, clever design and wise direction.
Miyushiki
Rin-channnnnn! Shimarin and the girls are back for another super cozy season of camping and boy was it perfect. I really do not think C-Station could have done a better job on this show, every second of it is so amazing. Yuru camp never fails to leave me yearning for the outdoors after every episode. Yuru camp is exactly as advertised. Cute girls going on cozy camping trips, while also teaching you about the outdoors and the basics of camping. Watching this show probably makes me smile at least 30 times per episode, its just that cute. Just watching the girls saving up their money forcamping trips, walking around a campsite, or just sharing a meal at a restaurant makes for a stellar episode. The art and sound are so incredibly top notch. C-Station has done such amazing work on the animation of this series. All the scenery and landscapes always look so beautiful. The soundtrack is also so perfect. The Opening and Ending songs are so cute and perfect for the show. The OSTs also are so fitting for this cozy show and sound very nice. How can you not love the characters? They are all so cute in their own way. Each girl has a different role in the group, and they all just take turns making me laugh and smile. All the girls are so cute and goofy I love them so much. I would have never thought that sitting down and watching a few girls go on a camping trip would be one of the most enjoyable things for me. If anyone is looking for a cute show, with cute characters just being super cozy, this is the one. Perfect in all aspects, I truly do not think Yuru Camp has a fault. Actually, there is one. That it must end! It hurts to say goodbye to this show for now, but man I am so glad I got to watch it. I cannot wait for the movie!! Yuru Camp Season 2 gets a very free 10 hot springs out of 10 from me. Thanks for reading <3.
takkun_
They say that good things come to those who wait. And after the sheer excellence that the first season of Yuru Camp delivered, fans were chomping at the bits to have more. And now after 3 years of waiting, the long awaited sequel season has come at what I believe is the perfect time. With the world being in utter chaos, we needed something that slows things down and shows the beauty of the world in which we inhabit. Season 2 kicks off directly after the end of season 1, with the girls just ending their Holiday vacation and enjoying the New Year’s sights. As theseason progresses, Yuru Camp tackles topics such as earning money for new equipment and how vitally important it is to be informed and prepared; but it also gives development to its characters making this more than just “cute girls doing cute things”. While the story itself is still nothing majorly significant, watching this overwhelming charming cast of characters do anything continues to be an utter joy to watch. And that’s what Yuru Camp is, a character driven show. All the girls have terrific chemistry with their own quirks and personalities. Their charm is undeniable making Yuru Camp the soul soothing and relaxing watch that it is. As I stated earlier, the girls do get some development learning new things about how to camp on your own, the importance of being prepared when camping with knowledge of the camp site, weather, local rules, and so on. This helps the show from feeling stagnant or stale, watching the girls learn and grow gives a feeling of progression. Visually, Yuru Camp stays consistent with the first season. Because it takes place in the real world and the locations they visit are real places, the artists actually trace photos taken from these places to ensure that they are as accurate as possible. I also think that’s important too, as being accurate to real world locations can help travel and tourism to these wonderful places. From mountain vistas, lake landscapes, scenic cities and towns, to ocean views, Yuru Camp is a varied visual treat showing off the natural splendor of the Land of the Rising Sun. I would be remiss if I forget to mention the delectable food that’s made as well. Local delicacies from the places the group travels to, camp hot pots, and even cup noodles all look delicious and savory. The characters are as cute as ever with rounded and soft looking designs that helps emphasize the comfiness that this show exudes in spades. But this season feels as though they incorporated just a few more visual cartoony gags, which is OK in my book, it enhances the already stellar comedy. The color palette is bright and colorful making the show look so lively. Animation wise, Yuru Camp has its moments, but ultimately doesn’t have too much to write home about. There are no high movement scenes, but the animation does its job, especially during comedic scenes using chibi or exaggerated art styles to hit home the jokes, which are again terrific. Honestly the best shots are usually the still frame ones that feature the broad landscapes mentioned previously. I don’t think I can overstate the excellence in Yuru Camp’s soundtrack. Jaunty tunes, peaceful melodies, silly songs, and hauntingly tranquil pieces fill the show that only enhances the viewers’ enjoyment. Using instruments such as violins, marimbas, acoustic guitars, wind instruments, and even just straight up whistling gives this score an earthy feel, which is very appropriate for the show. If I had to compare it to something, I would say it's reminiscent of the soundtrack found in Animal Crossing. Peaceful, calm, and uplifting music that can be listened to again and again, bringing a smile to one’s face with every listen. I highly recommend anyone reading to go listen to it if they’re able. You won’t regret it. Yuru Camp’s sequel season came when we needed it most. In a time where lies, deceit, and hatred are the currency of the realm, Yuru Camp shows the importance of kindness, friendship, extending a helping hand to others, and enjoying the natural wonders around us with those that we hold dear. The joy and laughs this series offers is abundant and undeniable, and I’m very eager to go camping once again with these girls in the near future.
Marinate1016
If there were such a thing as a Mt. Rushmore of anime, Yuru camp would be on it. This is really one of the greatest anime of all time and season 2 only reaffirms its ranking. What makes Yuru Camp great is not grandiose writing, world building or plot developments. Instead, its greatness lies in its simplicity. An anime that teaches you the ins and outs of camping, outdoor life and encourages you to go out and be active might not sound like the most exciting thing on paper, but in its near flawless execution it pulls you in and makes you fall in love. If you’rehere, you’ve probably seen the first season of Yuru Camp. Simply put, season two is better in every way. It’s everything we had in season, but there’s an emphasis on Nadeshiko and Rin’s character development that we see pay off in their solo camping trips. It’s a very satisfying and comfy journey with the girls as they learn more about their favourite activity, as well as themselves. Speaking of comfy, Yuru Camp’s biggest selling point is better than ever this time around. Every episode just sucks you in and makes you want to get under a blanket, grab some hot coco and snacks and learn. The amount of places, dishes and outdoor ideas that this show gives you is alone enough of a reason to watch it. When you throw in loveable characters and the humour, it becomes a masterclass in anime. The combination of adorable girls, comedy and legitimate outdoor safety education makes Yuru Camp a genuine treat for any anime fan of any age. The only complaint I have about the season is that it’s too damn short. Thursdays will not be the same without Yuru Camp. Yuru Camp season 2 gets 10 tombolos out of 10.
KANLen09
The beautiful and loveable camper girls are back, with twice (or longer) the distances of the camping journey, twice the moving action, and twice the fun, all in the same Iyashikei package as how Season 1 was like exactly 3 years ago from Winter 2018. To quote ANN's Christopher Farris (full credits to him, some parts paraphrased): "Obviously there are anime with more grand storytelling ambitions and meaningful idea communication than C-Station's calculatedly comfy cute-girl camping compilation. But in a season, as with any other, that included projects walking a razor's edge of their own success or outright collapsing under their own efforts, Yuru Camp sticks outfor the wonderfully consistent entertainment value it spins out of its humble content week after week. Actually...maybe ‘consistent’ isn't quite the right word: "RELIABLE" – that's what Yuru Camp is worth representing. It's the kind of show I'd purposefully let myself get to later in the day: An atmospheric exercise in unwinding, and one that I could count on to be coherent in terms of presentation, production, or just those all-important vibes. Even in cases like the unexpected swerve into more serious storytelling (where I could charitably rechristen the series to ‘Stressed-Out Camp’), they never turn away from the natural course of its always-present edutainment elements to a literally heartwarming conclusion, using the situation to also demonstrate the bonds that followed these friends around even on their individual camping excursions. It's something Yuru Camp has always excelled at: Embracing the communicative culture of our modern world by letting the girls share their special times via sending texts and photos to each other. It's appreciably distinct from the anti-technology bend that you might expect from a series that's otherwise all about the great outdoors. And isn't that the perfect mash-up of exactly the kind of comfort food we need right now? A beautiful anime acting as a virtual travelogue for all the scenic spots we'll be able to make it to ourselves in the not-too-distant future (darn you COVID), and a reassurance that friendships necessarily maintained over digitized distances for the time being are still the valid connections we need them to be. Yuru Camp is a cuddly Iyashikei series that seems totally humble in its ambitions at first pass, but it humbly handles those ambitions perfectly. For example, Rin sending Toba-sensei to look after her friends in the freezing mountains, this show brought us some warming comfort at the exact time we needed it." And I have to say that I totally agree with his final commentary. In such a stacked season where we're all coming out from the depths of managing COVID better, and with every studio and production team trying to cash in on whatever projects (new or sequel) they can operate on to earn back some income (at the expense of health, I'm looking at you CloverWorks with Wonder Egg Priority), it's the consistency of smaller studios like C-Station to just work effectively on just 1 show (or 2 at max) and keep the same production quality as their previous works. And going into Yuru Camp for its 2nd outing, it's entirely the same as about what you'd expect of the series if you've watched Season 1 all those years ago: the same Outdoor Adventure Club cast with central leads Rin and Nadeshiko; the absolute perfection of C-Station's production quality to mimic the real-life shots of Japan's geospots from mangaka Afro's rough but delicate work; and every feeling and emotion that is worth the joyride of experiencing camping with friends for life, whether connected physically or technically. If I have to add what makes Season 2 pop out more of what Season 1 has already been established, it's more character development that adds the charm into what is already an endearing and relaxing slice-of-life show. In regards to both Rin and Nadeshiko, Season 1 is abscondly absent of their families' POV (though there were some instances, but not a lot), and this sequel went in full with their involvement, which helps make the relations more heartfelt and heartwarming, not to mention the added experience of going through more learning lessons. Adding to that is the fact that the Outdoor Adventure Club has always been just Nadeshiko, Aoi and Chiaki for the most of Season 1. So to see that the camping journey team has expanded to the entire cast (Rin, Ena, even teacher-cum-advisor Minami Toba, even Aoi bringing in her younger sister Akari for double Inuko gag jokes) with their camping skills and know-how upgraded with age and maturity, it has been a dream come true for fans of both the manga and anime, and Season 2 exceptionally delivers that experience to a T. As with a new season that brings forth a new OST, while it isn't on the levels of memorability of Season 1, I'd still think that both Asaka and Eri Sasaki did pretty consistently well with the peppy and Iyashikei-like comforting sentiments respectively. All in all, as everyone have shared in the same heartbeat: Yuru Camp is enjoyable and relaxing Slice-of-Life wholesomeness at its peak. If all the recommendations aren't doing you a great service already, then hop right into Yuru Camp, where the Great Outdoors are waiting for you: Ready to shine forth its glory, nourishing the very heart and soul of what it means to be a camper: being friends with strangers (that become life-long ones), whether camping in groups or going solo, and not forgetting to share and communicate the feels-good wonders that beckons the heart of hearts. "Just always smile and Seize The Day! Sunrise is waiting for us~ (So life is wonder, It's precious time for us) Piece by piece~ (Yes I'm so happy, Shiny...) Yeah-heh~~~"
dlxuniuniu
Winter is the perfect time for camping. Would you agree? In the winter season 2018 we all enjoyed the camping tour of our girls for the first time, three years later the long-awaited continuation is finally here and the comfiness continues! We all already know what "Yuru Camp△" (don't forget the little tent) is about: Camping! The story is just as simple and ingenious as we know it from the previous season. But wait, we experience Nadeshiko camping alone for the first time without her friends. Can that go well? Camping items are also quite expensive, so she has to take a part-time job to be ableto afford all the trips. Of course, we get to see many new beautiful locations, the view is simply wonderful. Just having fun together and experiencing new adventures is the most important thing. Our girls are just like we know and love. Nadeshiko, understandably, still loves food more than anything, while Rin is worried and takes care about her. A friendship for life. "Chibi-Aoi" or also called Akari is going on tour with the group as well. We experience the brilliant pranks of the sibling duo Inuyama even more. The co-president of "The Outdoor Activities Club" Chiaki can of course not be missing and Ena even bought a dog tent for her little Chikuwa. A heroine who thinks of the animal first instead of herself. The best teacher Minami is ready to drive our girls and accompany them on their camping. She sticks to the rule "Don't drink and drive", but her love for alcohol remains inseparable. Nade-chan's older sister Sakura showed us that she also likes to go on excursions and onsens are definitely a good choice for her (at least for us viewers). With Ayano Toki we get to know a new character. Aya-chan is Nadeshiko's childhood friend who has known her since middle school. The family members of the Kagamiharas and Shimas should not be missing of course. We know where Rin's love for her scooter and camping comes from. In short, everyone is back! The landscape is also beautiful this time. You would love to go there yourself and see it. Whether sunset or sunrise, we experience all the beautiful moments from their camping. The food in particular looks so delicious. Regardless of whether it's just a simple cup noodle or hotpot with lots of ingredients, you get hungry by looking at it. The music is as happy and relaxing as before. Perfectly suitable for this anime. Had a hard day? Just want switch off and relax? Yuru Camp△ is the perfect anime therefor. The combination of the beautiful view, the simple tranquility and our loving characters makes Yuru Camp△ to THE anime we love. Get something nice to drink and eat and make yourself comfortable. In the end, comfy is everything! Carpe diem - Seize the day and watch Yuru Camp△!
Goober-fish
"I think solo camping is a way to appreciate loneliness." Great cute girl anime have an effervescent quality to them that never fails to casually curl either corner of my mouth no matter how inane or minimalist the antics on screen become. By now, we’re all familiar with quiddities/odds and ends of a cute girl anime as they’re thoroughly ingrained in the genetic code that makes anime...well…“anime”. What shows like “Yuru Camp” lack in narrative heft they make up for through sheer force of charm. And that’s not to say that shows pigeonholed as “CGDCT” are entirely bereft of anything worthwhile, as the narrative oftengoes. I say this without a lick of irony, but cute girl anime almost form a sort of parasocial relationship with their audience, more-so than a lot of other genres. This is due to the grounded simplicity of the storytelling as well as the cast members themselves often serving as proper analogs for friends and family (save for the shrill voices and big eyes). But what more does Yuru Camp have to offer that hasn’t already been retrofitted by any number of other functional cute girl shows? Truth be told, you almost have to actively try to fuck up a cute girl anime because they’re just that easy to write. Most of them nowadays don’t even try to hide the fact that they’re aping one of their predecessors. In regards to content, Yuru Camp is quite breezy, so breezy in fact that some have taken to calling it (myself included) an iyashikei anime. On top of being an exemplary cute girl anime, Yuru Camp effortlessly bridges the gap between irreverent gag comedies like K-On! and meditative deliberately paced iyashikei like Aria and Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou. This is a particularly odd marriage of two genres on its surface, they’re practically diametrically opposed. But when you really think about these two contrasting energies, the shamanic self-reflective loneliness of an iyashikei and the galvanized free-wheeling entropy of being in a friend-group like a cute girl anime, therein lies the duality of a balanced life and the recipe for a damn great anime. For transparency’s sake, I feel it’s necessary to be forthcoming about the fact that I am an avid camper myself. With that, you could potentially glean that I have a dog in this fight. Frankly, I do. Yuru Camp dials me back to those summer nights, splayed out on the pebbly shores of a campsite, drunkenly trying to point out the different constellations and asterisms above to my friends. Or simply lying there with our eyes closed as we share in a communal silence, melting into the night, knowing that when we open them again, we’ll be together once more. In the social distancing era, these moments are precious. Where S1 of Yuru Camp faltered was in its need to establish rudimentary camping know-how. Perhaps this is a non-criticism to those who don’t know much about camping, and in truth, the sight gags and sound editing greatly mitigate what would otherwise be something of a slog. This isn’t to say that the discrepancy in quality between both seasons is vast, not by a long shot, but with all of the minutiae having been already taken care of in its first season, S2 is significantly more focused. The degree of agency that these characters are given is frankly somewhat unprecedented for a show like this. By now you’d imagine that one of the core tenets of a cute girl anime is wholesome togetherness in the face of everything from abject misery to minor inconvenience, to the point that the term “moeblob” takes on an entirely new meaning. It’s a scary thought, imagine Tetsuo Shima’s transformation scene in Akira except with bigger eyes and multi-colored hair. The globular goofballs that populate Yuru Camp’s cast have far more freedom than that. What really sells Yuru Camp’s characters as an organic and believable friend group is the fact that they’re not always together. Their group texts read true to life, like one you may be a part of with a group of friends, making plans but also splintering off in different directions due to availability. While they all like each other in a manner expected of a cute girl show, it’s apparent that they have exclusive dynamics only present between certain friends. I’d also be remiss to not mention just how against the grain it is to force a wedge between these girls. This goes to show just how much trust is put into these characters as individuals going off on their own adventures and yet still being fully capable of carrying episodes on their lonesome. Often, these rare insular episodes are the ones that entrance you the most with their healing properties and measured pace. Individually, most of the characters remain largely unchanged but there isn’t really a need for them to change. Inuko’s little sister (Chibiko?) is introduced in this season, and she is just as saucy and diabolical as her sister, thank god they don’t have the nuclear codes. Nadeshiko, who was mostly relegated to an audience surrogate in S1, really came into her own this time around. Watching her navigate her first solo camping trip was delightful, mainly because Rin and her older sister fumbling to shadow her like concerned helicopter parents underscores just how much they care for her (on top of being hilarious). That aside, watching Nadeshiko put into practice what she’s learned from Rin (as well as passing some of her own wisdom down to other campers) is deeply satisfying. And of course, there’s Sensei. Ah Sensei, I’m right there with yah. I’ve watched quite a number of anime over the years but few that I’ve gone out of my way to watch have been so emphatic about exploring Japan’s natural beauty. You’d think that these girls were charting hinterlands in any given outing they go on. For example, I wasn’t even aware that there were notable basalt columns in Japan before having watched this anime (but I guess that’s on me). A show like this was made for the standard still-frame minimalism that animators in this industry are often forced to abuse due to scheduling and time crunches. The still-frames in Yuru Camp are almost like flipping through the pages of a glossy coffee table photography book. Would I be THIS charitable to just any show skirting by on the bare minimum as far as animation goes? It’s only because Yuru Camp knows how to properly calibrate its minimalism for maximum output. Yuru Camp is a comedy of details, and often the smallest of details do the heaviest of lifting. It’s the little things that make Yuru Camp so special, like when Ena is showing Rin photos of her trip with Chiaki and Inuko and you can see her finger partially obscuring the camera lens on her phone in the corner of the picture. A resoundingly innocuous detail but one that further adds to the organic believability of this world. I also can’t praise the character designs and outfits in this show enough. These girls have that Pacific Northwest DRIP. The character designs and general art design of the show is distinctively cartoony, save for the scenery porn. Yuru Camp does not come up short in the sight gag department. Its dry comedic sensibilities are accentuated by its snappy but simple editing style. Quick cuts and stylized facial expressions make up the bulk of the laughs but it’s not afraid to get creative with the musical cues and effects. One scene that really stood out to me as far as arresting camera techniques was when Nadeshiko was simply walking through a town during her first solo camping trip. As she walks with a mountain in the background and with the neighborhood she’s traversing in the foreground, the natural sense of parallax is almost like an old Disney cartoon on those multiplane cameras or even Akira (leave it to me to mention Akira more than once in a friggin Yuru Camp review). The interesting camera techniques also extend to the visual gags. Like when Rin attempts to cross a rickety bridge and it switches to handheld like she’s on Survivorman. Theoretically, Yuru Camp’s soundtrack is something that shouldn’t have a modicum of cohesion. The diversity of its sound palette was deliberately curated by Akiyuki Tateyama, who pulled from completely disparate corners of the globe. I can only describe the lush instrumentation as rustic which deeply accentuates the outdoorsy antics. You’ll hear anything from pedal steel guitars and fiddles to pan pipes and mandolins in any given episode which can honestly catch you off guard. The delicate acoustic guitar notes and the mellow lounge percussion remind me of Choro Club’s work on the Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou’s soundtrack. There’s even a bossa nova track or two which makes me yearn for Hekiru Shiina on backing vocals at the very least. For better or for worse, Yuru Camp’s tactile qualities will make it something of an insurmountable wall for certain audiences. It’s not a particularly challenging anime but it’s the type of thing that you kind of just have to “feel” for yourself. I’m sure some will find it to simply be nothing more than a twee travel brochure anime padded to its core with innumerable layers of fluff and the occasional yuck. But for others (who are fortunate enough to have the means and capacity to do so) Yuru Camp is a prescient anime whose content is a charming forecast of better days to come in the great outdoors. I’m privileged to live in an area with a rich cultural heritage/a melange of biomes and microcosms to see firsthand. Nonetheless, even if it’s as simple as a leisurely trek/drive down a street you’ve never been down before somewhere in your hometown, I urge everyone to soak in something new with or without the company of others, it makes no difference. There’s not enough time allotted to us to let it all slip away like a fleeting dream. Yuru Camp was crafted from the purview of someone who has a deep affection and understanding for what they write about. What may be a quaint show to some, to others will be a didactic reminder of our transitory human condition, and the onus is on us to make the most of that fact.