The Problem w/ Blaming Time Between Seasons for ReZero’s Seasons

Earlier on Sunday, there was an announcement for the teaser image of the upcoming third season for ReZero: Starting Life in Another World. On not one, not two, but three separate anime servers I was a part of, the general response ranged from “I forgot about ReZero” to “I would be more excited if the anime didn’t take five years every season” and, more interestingly “I lost interest in the series after the first season took so long for the second…I didn’t watch season two.” Now, you might be saying “this sounds like a strawman argument” but I will share a story to reinforce this opinion, because it isn’t unique. I was a guest on an anime journalist’s podcast in 2017- two of the people on an interview panel had Rem and Emilia as their “waifu” on their overlay. Come 2020, I asked one of these individuals about season 2. Naturally, I expected an enthusiastic discussion from someone whose opinions I viewed highly. Instead, I received a half-assed “I don’t really care anymore, it took too long to come out.”

So, with that in mind, I was curious. Is it normal for interest in anime to taper off like this? There were a few factors I considered. To call the first season a phenomenon would be an understatement. Therefore, one could argue that a dramatic dip in interest in the sequel season was inevitable. Shockingly, however, I rarely hear a peep about the second season. Those who do speak of it acknowledge the masterful execution of the sophomore appearance from the series. Another factor was that the anime had a four year wait due to the anime catching up to the light novels. That said, long delays between seasons for anime is nothing new: there has been a multitude of sequels that needed more time as source materials of manga, light novels, video games, etc. all came out.

With the latter point in mind, I researched popular anime sequels to gauge “wait times” fans experienced. Just running down MyAnimeList’s “Top Anime” list, I picked out some popular series. The choices below are for waits longer than two years down the top 100 on the MAL list (excluding ReZero). I went ahead and also jotted down the source material for the sake of the exercise:

Fullmetal Alchemist (6 years; Fall 2003-Spring 2009; Not a sequel per se, but a classic example of the source material of manga not being done by the end of the anime, creating a long wait for the conclusion)

Steins;Gate and Steins;Gate 0 (7 years; Spring 2011- Spring 2018; again, not a traditional sequel, but noteworthy because the fanbase waited this out and kept loving the original during that time. I’m looking at you, Kurisu fans)

Bleach (~10 years; Spring 2012-Fall 2022; No one deserves the pain Bleach fans endured.)

Attack on Titan (4 years between seasons 1 and 2; Spring 2013-Spring 2017; manga; the production of seasons for this picked up for later seasons, but it is noteworthy that the wait time between seasons for this mega hit show was identical to that of ReZero)

Fruits Basket (18 years (!); Summer 2001-Spring 2019 Again, while not a sequel in the traditional sense, another classic example of a source material not being done at time of the anime. And yet, fans endured?)

Vinland Saga (4 years; Summer 2019-Winter 2023; manga)

Mob Psycho (3 years between seasons 1 and 2, 2 and 3; Summer 2016-Winter 2019, Winter 2019- Fall 2022; manga)

Kingdom (8 years between seasons 2 and 3; Summer 2013- Spring 2020; manga)

Haikyuu!! (3 years and counting since the last season; Fall 2020- ???; manga)

Jujutsu Kaisen (~3 years between seasons 1 and 2 not including Jujutsu Kaisen 0; Fall 2020- Summer 2023; I put this one here as a reminder that even the hottest shows right now have some wait between them)

KonoSuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! (On pace for roughly 7 years; Winter 2017- ??? 2024; light novel; this is a contentious example- the mainline has not seen a sequel in a considerable amount of time. There was a film and a spin-off series, which, sure, if you want to count those, but people still talk about the first two seasons with passion despite the fact that it has been six years).

So reflecting on this list, Attack on Titan, Haikyuu!!, Vinland Saga, and KonoSuba are four glaring standouts in this lineup. These are household names for anime fans and many of the same individuals who obsessed over the first season of ReZero also sport avatars and share memes related to these anime without fail. My question, therefore, is why is that fans had to wait (or currently are waiting) similar if not longer amounts of time for anime as ReZero and yet they forget/lost interest in ReZero? Perhaps it has to do with the level of attention and careful, methodical pacing the anime has. Maybe it was lightning in a bottle and these individuals belonged to groups that were interested in the first season at the time. Perhaps it was simply easier to wait longer for anime back a decade ago when interest was not as high and we just simply didn’t see shows come out the pace and volume they are now. Maybe they found a new waifu. Or, maybe, this is just something that happens when we get new toys and lose interest in the old ones.

Whatever the case, waiting for a sequel to an anime is not a new concept. This is not, and has never been, to the fault of the wait between seasons for ReZero. People have reasons for losing interest, but they only need to look around to realize waiting for the next installment is a simple reality of this medium. That said, I leave this on a positive note and share my excitement for the upcoming season, as I am convinced that the third will be as masterful as the second and first the preceded it.

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