Let's play a game!
Summary:
- High Card Season 1 didn't become a sensation and received relatively average ratings.
- The world and plot are not the only good things about High Card.
- The first episode featured almost all the heroes from the first season.
High Card Season 1 by Studio Hibari, known for Assassination Classroom and Classroom of the Elite, was released in the winter of 2023. Despite a quite appealing plot and good animation, it didn't become a sensation and received relatively average ratings and views.
However, the failure did not stop the studio from producing Season 2, and the first episode is already available. The High Card Season 2 seems to be different from the first season, but will it help the title?
What will your bet be?
The story and universe of High Card are rich and intense. There are special cards in the world that choose their owners and give them abilities — the higher the suit, the greater the power.
Different factions and clans are competing for the cards: everyone wants to get as many as possible to influence the world. Cards can be given voluntarily or taken by killing the previous owner. The main action takes place in London, adding some darkness and mystery.
But the world and plot are not the only good things about High Card. The characters are well-written. There's a funny duo consisting of Finn Oldman and Chris Redgrave, who we spend the most time with, as well as some other interesting characters from the Pinochle Agency who are also entertaining to watch.
High Card is certainly not a groundbreaking anime, but it is a good mix of drama and comedy. However, the first season wasn't successful. Some fans even feared that there wouldn't be a sequel, although the story obviously didn't get a logical ending.
Great beginning
Despite the controversial results, the second season was announced and now the first episode has been released. First impressions are that High Card has become a bit darker — already in the first episode we saw major incidents and even the death of characters.
Perhaps the mystery of Finn's parents' death will be solved this season, as we were shown a mysterious black knight somehow connected to this event.
In the first episode we could see familiar and already beloved characters — almost all the heroes from the first season were shown. Beautiful opening fits perfectly into the atmosphere of the show.
However, more attention was paid to the animation — the movements became smoother and the quality of the image increased. The beginning of the second season was quite good.