Disenchantment Part 2 Review: Return to Dreamland, But With Caveats
Princess Bean finds herself on a strange journey of self-discovery over the course of Disenchantment Part 2, its ten episodes never losing track of its sense of fun and character. But it does find some issues through over-promising on its initial return and relying on its animation and immensely talented voice cast to alleviate its less impactful comedy.
The animated series continues from where it left off with Bean and her mother, the newly resurrected Queen Dagmar, on their journey away from the now decimated Dreamland. It’s a compelling starting point, as it finds Bean at a turning point for what she sees for herself going forward. With Elfo gone and Luci somewhat incapacitated, Bean’s fate falls on her own shoulders for what comes next.
The writing this time relies more on cleverness and character than on comedy, something Part 1 struggled with from time to time. There’s less full-on laughs during these ten episodes, but some do come as completely brilliant gags or lines, though rare they may be.
The animation and the detail of each location is such a pristine and lavish feast for the eyes. The added benefit of being less tied to Dreamland gives way to opportunity, as varied regions and settings make for a change to the pace and also the color palette of the show.
With the good comes the disappointing, however. The wider scope and worldbuilding does make for that nice change of pace, but it comes at the cost of hinting at a larger narrative that is never given as much attention as originally teased. There are some interesting threads there that come back from time to time, but it’s mostly episodic storylines that run through the majority of Part 2’s ten episodes.
The elves become more of a forefront during Part 2, bringing some comedy through their general good-nature attitudes being tempted by Dreamworld’s endlessly corrupted heart while providing some important character beats.
Because that’s where Disenchantment does shine, overall: with its characters. The core cast are able to bring so much personality with their voice talents, matching their distinct characters and the character-centered writing with sharp precision. With a voice cast that includes Eric Andre, Billy West, Tress MacNeille, Nat Faxon, Matt Berry, Noel Fielding, and Sharon Horgan, it’s an undeniably deep bench.
Over Part 2, though, it’s with Abbi Jacobson (as Bean) and John DiMaggio (as King Zog) especially where both bring a level of heart and emotion to their roles that help flesh them out as more than comedic caricatures (which King Zog suffered from over the course of Part 1).
Disenchantment returns with energy and excitement, continuing a tale of a rich world full of potential and promise. But the show appears content to remain in a state of wanting to make big changes, but not ready to go all the way. For that, Disenchantment Part 2 struggles with its overall story, while soaring with its character beats and exceptional production.
The show has a wonderful blueprint, and does achieve exactly what it’s striving for. But it can be hard to ignore that Disenchantment wants to achieve a little more, but finds itself not sure how to do that yet. An expanded world does make for a fantastic opportunity for different stories beyond Dreamland, though, and that’s where Part 2 excels best.
What did you think of this season of Disenchantment? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Disenchantment streams Friday, September 20th on Netflix.
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Kevin Lever
Kevin Lever has been following television closely for most of his life, but in starting to cover it, he has grown a further appreciation. He strives to give the blockbusters their due, and give the lesser known shows a spotlight to find more fans.