Finished K-On!! and after a chance to reflect, I realise perhaps I was a little too harsh on my previous view, it's not a terribly bad series and I'll miss it in a way, just nothing like I would some of the series I've got really attached to.
Andi, I think you hit the nail on the head with 'I do think that the second season slipped more into slice of life + music compared with the first seasons music + slice of life'
Ultimately, in many ways K-On!! is a better series than K-On!, not only is it longer, the animation is just as good if not better (the attention to detail on stuff like actually moving fingers for chords in time to the music), and there's more of an overarching plot than the first series; although ultimately as a slice of life series, it's still limited, and the side characters are given a little more airtime/characterisation (with perhaps Sawako being an exception).
Personally though, I
really missed the focus on music; it was what drew me to K-On! in the first place. The first series, whilst still being silly and all, and really being a bundle of music and tropes, felt like it contained a much higher concentration on music, or musical references (it felt like 1:1 between music and sillyness/other stuff in the first series, whilst season 2 felt more like 1:2 or even 1:3). Even the extra DVD bonus episode for season one was a live performance.
Watching the two series back to back would probably make the change in focus even more jarring.
Ultimately I found that dissapointing, the second season felt quite far away from the first in that regards; ultimately becoming a light slice of life comedy with some music, and generally the musical episodes were the ones I enjoyed the most; the rock festival for example was great, and the characters getting excited about it filled me with nostalgia for how I got excited before going to my first festivals as well.
Honestly, after a little time to sit, some of the new music has grown on me a little too, U&I and Tenshi no Fureta Yo aren't bad songs [I think Utauyo!!Miracle will take me longer]; but I need to give them more time, the overall soundtrack for the first series still felt stronger (actually strangely I felt quite nostalgic when I heard the background Cawagake Girls during the movie intro), and No Thank You is definately my favourite track from the new lot, it reminds me of the slightly more rock/music focus and attitude the first series possessed.
Humour in the second series was slightly different; personally I didn't find the second season as funny, at least from memory, as I did the first series, but then I felt a greater attachment so this may be rose-tinted glasses. Sawako though for example was quite obviously toned down/normalised for the second season.
So, revising my original score, I think I'd give the second series an 8/10, decent but not exceptional, but I do feel that the shift in focus may alienate, or dissapoint, at least some of the fans of the original series who also enjoyed the series partly for the musical aspect, as this has been heavily toned down; especially if those viewers are not that fond of slice of life.
I'll probably still watch the movie, but I do hope they focus more on the music for that, rather than the sillyness/slice of life. A mockumentary about the band a year or two later could actually be quite good, especially as the budget for a movie should allow more room for music and complicated concert sequences.
PS: No Thank You! sounds pretty good even on different instruments:
Now what to watch next...plenty of choices
]...feels reminiscent of Kanon '06 so far, but I wouldnt say that's a bad thing, as Kanon was an excellent series overall, and given the same teams involved there's almost bound to be a few similarities. Only a few episodes in and already I'm enjoying the relationship between the protagonist and his hard-headed male friend...
