The Fall 2024 Anime Preview Guide

Tonbo! Season 2

After finally deciding to leave the Hino Islands, Tonbo is ready to take her first steps into the world of professional golf. However, that might be easier said than done, as her play style clashes with what's traditionally expected of golfers, and an encounter with another golfer named Hinoki might put Tonbo's skills to the test. Will she be able to carve out her own path as a golfer or fail right as she's reaching the starting line?

Tonbo! Season 2 is based on the Oi! Tonbo manga series by Ken Kawasaki and Yū Furusawa. The anime series is streaming on Tubi and Amazon Prime on Saturdays.

Tonbo! has returned for another season, and after spending all of the first on an overly extended prologue, things are finally moving. At least…that's what I'd like to say, as even with the location change, much of what made the first season such a slog hasn't gone away yet. When Tonbo and Igaiga arrive at the golf range where Tonbo will be staying, she has to put her skills to the test, but since she's asked to use a driver, and she's never really handled one before, it ends up going pretty poorly All the other kids there end up under the impression that she doesn't know what she's doing. I'm usually never a fan of this particular setup since the idea of a character with a particular skill set that isn't immediately obvious outside of context can only really end one way, and it's almost always frustrating for the viewer. Even beyond that, though, the whole thing is plagued with a lot of the overly technical explanations for Tonbo's actions that aren't going to click for anyone not already familiar with the ins and outs of golf.

Things do, thankfully, pick up a little in the second half. Not because Tonbo! impresses everyone once she can play her usual way, but because she finally has some other characters to bounce off of besides Igaiga. This mainly comes in the form of a girl named Hinoki, who seems to come from a family with high expectations for her golfing career. She seems like she'd probably be an excellent foil to Tonbo, who, even up to this point, has had no real sense of competition. At the moment, it's hard to tell if the show is setting them up to be rivals or friends, and while the former would be a lot more exciting, either is still an improvement over Tonbo playing solo for most of the first season. It's nice to get a little more of an actual ensemble.

That said, while it could end up going somewhere, I can't say I am interested in finding out since the first season was so slow that nothing short of the series turning into Birdie Wing could keep my interest at this point. Its particular brand of slow-burn sports drama is not for me. But if you are someone who's kept up with the series and enjoyed everything about the first season, then this certainly seems like it'll be more of that, and you'll probably have a decent time.