The Winter 2023 Anime Preview Guide

BOFURI: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense. Season 2

Kaede Honjō is invited by her friend Risa Shiramine to play a virtual reality MMO game with her. While Kaede doesn't dislike games, what she really, truly dislikes is being in pain. She creates a character named Maple and decides to put all her points in VIT to minimize pain. As a result, she moves slowly, can't use magic, and even a rabbit can get the best of her. But as it turns out, she acquires a skill known as "Absolute Defense" as a result of her pumping points into VIT, as well as a "Counter Skill" that works against special moves. Now, with her ability to nullify all damage, she goes on adventures.

BOFURI: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense. is based on Yuumikan's light novel series and streams on Crunchyroll on Wednesdays.

Richard Eisenbeis
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Bofuri has a simple formula. Maple stumbles around, does something wholly overpowered without realizing it, and then everyone remarks, “That's our Maple!” and has a laugh while shaking their heads. This episode is nothing different. Between Maple soloing a floor boss while everyone watches and Maple both mecha obliterating and kaiju obliterating everything in an entire forest, that much is obvious.

Despite the strict adherence to the well-worn pattern, this episode has some genuinely good moments. Maple befriending the other strong guild leaders one-on-one sets up potentially enjoyable future interactions. Moreover, Kaiju Maple performing all the cute gestures of normal Maple got at least a few chuckles out of me. I also liked that at least some of her friends are disappointed by, you know, not being able to play the game thanks to her hogging all the fun. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I want intraparty conflict (not in a show like this, anyway), but I would like Maple to at least become a bit more aware of how her actions impact others—both for good and for ill.

Overall, while this wasn't a terrible episode of Bofuri, this felt like a relatively weak episode to start the second season. It doesn't set up any new conflicts for our heroes to overcome (besides adding a new server admin), nor does it remind us of what happened last season. It just reintroduces us to the characters through a series of vignettes—and that's it. While that's not exactly terrible, it's not great, given the series is coming back from a three-year break.

Nicholas Dupree
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After nearly three years' absence, Maple, the moe chaos goddess, has returned, and it's like she never left. No, really, this “season premiere” feels like it could have aired a week after the first season, and nobody would have been surprised. It even uses the first season's opening – saving the new OP for the end credits – and combined with the out-of-season Christmas theming, it makes this feel more like an OVA than the start of a new season.

That's not a bad thing, though. The appeal of Bofuri was its cast of likable characters and the wacky MMO shenanigans they get up to. Both are in full force as the Maple Tree guild explores the newly released area of New World Online and takes part in a gimmicky Christmas event. It's not the most thrilling way to return, but it does a good job reintroducing the ensemble cast while delivering a greatest-hits montage of Maple's ridiculous arsenal of overpowered skills. Our heroine spends roughly half her screen time in her Xenomorph form from last season's finale, and it's always hilarious seeing a terrifying kaiju animated like a blushing anime girl. My only main complaint is there's relatively little time with Maple and Sally together, and these adolescent gamer wives were my favorite dynamic of season one, so I hope that's not a sign of things to come.

A few details look like setup for this coming season, especially a “new hire” in the NWO dev team that seems determined to counteract Maple's game-breaking nature, but they're in the background. The goal of this episode is to remind us of all these characters – including Mii and Payne and their respective guilds – and get us to laugh along the way. Mission accomplished. Add in some of the series' signature stupendously animated MMO battles, and you've got a cozy, perfectly charming continuation.

Christopher Farris
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In terms of follow-ups that are just a straight, more-of-the-same continuation, you're not going to find a more direct example than the second season of BOFURI. I almost can't believe it's already been nearly three years since the original series, but as far as this anime is confirmed, it's like Maple and pals never left. This premiere episode even leads with the old opening theme from the first season, welcoming you back like this was some delayed holiday-special OVA. Everyone we met throughout the first series makes an appearance of some sort here, though occasionally hinting at some new character bit or dynamic that might factor into this new season as we move through it.

That's a good thing, given the general appeal of BOFURI, but it does mean that this premiere will bring any new viewers to the show. If you weren't already a convert to the First Church of Maple, then "BOFURI: The Enchanted Christmas" here isn't the sort of thing that will change your mind. The stakes are still low; everyone's attitudes towards each other still border on the unbelievably amicable, and it's spread out across goofy yet comfy sketches and the occasional montage tour through an MMORPG environment (and the new Level 4 introduced in this episode does look lovely). In terms of light entertainment, it doesn't get more purely fluffy than a whole scene dedicated to Maple and Mii just happily snuggling with therapy cats.

The good news is that if you already knew this worked for you in BOFURI S1, you'll be right at home at the start of S2. One nice thing is that this new season confirms the expanded cast can carry the scattered story sketches just as well as the Maple Tree gang. That cat café bit with Mii, for instance, is a cute aside. Still, it lets the fiery guild leader confide in Maple about her imposter syndrome and roleplaying sensibilities. It works to bring us back up, tonally, on the effect Maple has on player attitudes and bringing out their good nature. Ditto for Maple's teaming up with Payne during the Christmas event, and seeing them resolve to play fair and openly, whether they're cooperating or against each other. Though that bit also gets tempered with the celebrated return of Maple's adorably emotive kaiju form.

As a triumphant return and celebratory Christmas special, it helps to have the anime show off too, and BOFURI includes a bit of that in its big comeback. Sally and Frederica's fight stands out; the barrier-navigation battle is a novel little mechanic. The big highlight for me is Kasumi's new weapon and accompanying form change, with an attack so cool they even reused a bit of its animation a second time. The noted fanservicey-ness of the costume and resultant de-age de-buff is a little iffier, but I've gotten to the point that I can trust BOFURI not to be too weird about stuff like that. That's the vibe of this whole premiere: Yeah, it's more of the same, but it's the same BOFURI I fell in love with back in 2020 and I'm not going to complain about having back.