But let's get the bad news out of the gate. This is arguably the weakest season in the show. Now don't get me wrong, it's not bad, but literally every other season blows this one out of the water. This show is still enjoyable, but it's not setting the bar any higher.
So what's the story for season 2? Basically, after Korra defeats the (second) coolest villain in the whole franchise (Amon!) Korra leaves Republic City behind to revisit the Water Tribes, and her uncle claims that the Southern Water Tribe is in spiritual turmoil (as evidenced by the big scary, quasi-Lovecraftian monster pictured above running amok!), which then leads into Korra's spiritual training to open the portal to the Spirit World, which (according to her uncle) will bring peace to the spirits.
Oh, and Bolin's a Hollywood-tier actor now.
Season 2 also introduces who is BY FAR my favorite character in the whole franchise...
Varrick. Varrick? Varrick! This guy is the MVP of season 2 and basically steals the show. He's like Tony Stark mixed with J. Jonah Jameson mixed with The Great Papyrus! It helps he's a walking meme-generator.
But in all seriousness, Varrick is definitely one of the best characters in modern fiction hands down. Bonus points for basically inventing movies in the Legend of Korra universe.
Also, this season begins the start of episodes having epic/engrossing moments and then ending just like that, which leads to reactions like this...
But alas, there were some problems I have with season 2 and these are the reasons I consider it weaker than the rest of the show...
The villain of season 2, Unalaq, STARTED off as a promising villain. He was basically a religious extremist who wanted to bring spirituality to the world. However, around the time where his grand scheme is revealed, he kind of goes from promising villain to being a generic doomsday harbinger of destruction. A certain plot twist considering how he became Chief of the Northern Water Tribe was, admittedly quite cool, but that was during his promising villain days.
Something I LOVE about season 2 was a whole sub-plot that was about 2-3 episodes long and told the tale of this guy...
Wan, the original Avatar. I guess you could say that he was number Wan. Anyway, I LOVE the sub-plot with him, since it not only explains how the Avatar came to be, but also gives EVERYTHING a whole new shed of light. Oh, and I can use his name for a million and a half puns.
season 2 introduces Tenzin's siblings, one of which
is named after Aang's old friend Bumi!
On the subject of things I like about season 2, I really like these two characters.
Desna and Eska, a pair of twins that are surprisingly funny. Why are they funny? It's obvious that they are not happy to be here. Heck, despite being the right-hand of Unalaq, they only seem to help him because THEY LITERALLY HAVE NOTHING ELSE TO DO. Also, Eska (left) is a *Yandere Water-Bender who talks like a super-computer. Your Argument is Invalid.
But the thing I hate most about season 2 was the finale. Without giving away too many spoilers, the final showdown between Unalaq and Korra seemed good, but when they took the fight from one world to the next, it ultimately came down to "Let's see who can shoot a bigger laser beam!" which annoys me a lot.
As for visuals and music, both are still top notch. I actually learned that the animation studio for this season also did Naruto, which is my all time favorite anime ever, so of course the visuals get a 10/10 from me. The music being good is basically a given.
Overall, I give season 2 of The Legend of Korra a 7/10. If the final showdown had been better I would have rated it higher, but like I said, "Laser Beam" battles aren't that fun to watch, especially given the more unique concept of Bending that the franchise is known for.
*- Yandere. combination of two Japanese words (yanderu, meaning to be sick, and deredere, meaning to be strongly infatuated or lovestruck) that is typically used to describe a clingy jealous girl (sometimes guy) who is prone to violent outbursts if they feel their relationship with another character is threatened.
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