The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me? Season 2 will have Well (Wendelin) and his many girlfriends returning for more isekai adventures.
But when will Hachi-nan tte Sore wa Nai deshou! Season 2 come out?
The anime is being produced by a collaboration between SynergySP and animation studio Shin-Ei Animation, which produced the popular Teasing Master Takagi-san anime in recent years. The 8th Son anime is the first time the studio has dipped into the crowded isekai anime market, and the company is best known for Doraemon and Crayon Shin-chan.
Director Tatsuo Miura’s background is mostly in animation and storyboarding, so The 8th Son anime is his first time as lead director. Writer Takeshi Miyamoto adapted the light novel series. Artist Keiji Tanabe is the character designer.
Composer Minako Sato created the music.
The 8th Son opening (OP) theme song music was “Spacetime of the Hesitant Person,” as performed by Demon Kakka and Arika Takarano while the ending (ED) “Moonlight Monologue” was performed by Akino Arai x AKINO.
The 8th Son Season 2 OP and ED have not yet been announced.
The 8th Son English dub began streaming on Crunchyroll on May 14, 2020. The first season’s finale, The 8th Son Episode 12, aired on June 18, 2020. The 8th Son English dub suffered delays from the SARS-COV-2 coronavirus pandemic, with the dubbed version only being at Episode 5 when the finale aired.
This article provides everything that is known about The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me? Season 2 (Hachi-nan tte, Sore wa Nai deshou! Season 2) and all related news. As such, this article will be updated over time with news, rumors, and analysis. Meanwhile, let’s delve down into what is known for certain.
The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me? manga/light novels compared to the anime
The story for the anime is based on the Hachi-nan tte, Sore wa Nai deshou! light novel series by author Y.A. and illustrator Fuji Choko. The series is already up to Volume 19 as of March 25, 2020.
Historically, new books tend to be released three times a year.
Like many light novel series, the story was first self-published as a web novel from 2013 through 2017 on the Shosetsuka ni Naro website before being picked up by Japanese publisher Media Factory in April 2014.
In 2015, Y.A. teamed up with artist Fuzichoco to create The 8th Son manga adaptation. Published by Kadokawa Shoten, the manga is up to Volume 7 as of December 2019.
Unfortunately, no North American publisher has announced an official English translation of either The 8th Son light novels or manga series. However, there are unofficial fan-made translations available online.
When Episode 12 aired in June 2020, the monthly manga had passed Chapter 50 but fan translations were only up to Chapter 44.
When the story of a light novel series is condensed into a single cour with only 12 episodes, it’s expected that the anime will skip many details to jump between the major plot elements.
In this case, the beginning of the books had additional Baumeister family drama, but the anime rewrote the story, so the introduction delivered on the premise of the books’ title by showcasing the impoverished family’s predicament.
Still, it’s hard to take Well’s early complaints seriously. Instead, he comes off as acting entitled in comparison to the Ascendance of a Bookworm anime’s Myne, who is transported into a frail body of a girl in a peasant family.
Myne also considered the issues surrounding the body’s original owner, while Shingo Ichinomiya doesn’t even think about what happened to the original Wendelin von Benno Baumeister (Spoiler: at least not yet!).
In fact, the anime is actually the better version due to the retelling! Shin-Ei Animation’s writers provided via a first-person viewpoint the situation this white-collar worker had found himself dumped into via dream (Truck-kun, where are you?).
By slowly revealing the difficulties Well would need to overcome, they provided a sense of tension the other versions are lacking.
The opening sequence may have shown Well with his harem established, but it also foreshadowed the ending of the first season. The story comes full circle back to the conflict that Well initially faced as a child.
Well is immediately provided with a challenge to overcome based on noble politics and how his innate magic could disrupt his eldest brother’s right to succession. Well breaks the societal mold, and characters develop emotionally rather than being static.
The ending story arc in the last several episodes also dedicated enough screen time to the political intrigue so that the story felt connected throughout.
Of course, since the source is a generic isekai, it’s inevitable that any challenges are quickly overcome by Well receiving overpowered magical abilities.
To be fair, the anime has Well struggling impotently to learn magic on his own until Alfred Rainford swoops in for the rescue, but the anime even had Well defeat the ancient undead dragon without showing that holy magic alone was not enough to overcome the terrible beast.
Better isekai anime stories like Re:ZERO or The Rising of the Shield Hero subvert this trope of the reincarnated Japanese everyman being endowed with great power.
The 8th Son anime doesn’t go that far, but it does develop the main character by requiring this young disciple to put his undead magician master to rest.
These types of character interactions are where The 8th Son anime shines in comparison to the source. While Alfred wasn’t around long enough for audiences to truly get attached, at least the anime tried to provide some emotional depth for all of the main cast.
Instead of Well just being handed a set of friends, the motives of Erwin von Alnim, Louise Oufelbeik, and Iina Suzane Hirenbrant cause a conflict based on misunderstandings related to noble society and Well’s personal foibles. Episode 7 circled back to developing this theme by rewriting the martial arts tournament to be a character-driven exploration of the party member’s personal insecurities (the light novel and manga merely used the arc for comedy and the manga literally did not depict the fights, so the anime version was better in all regards).
The way Well’s relationship with “Saint” Elize Katharina von Hohenheim was developed was well-done in the anime. It showed him defying the societal norms of an arranged marriage to try and get to know his future wife as a person.
In comparison, the source material was more creepy than touching since a good chunk of those chapters was focused on describing the busty physique of the teen girl.
Manga Chapter 17 went out of its way to highlight such thoughts… multiple times. And in the face of the resulting jealousy by Louise and Iina, the girls were advised to try harder to “compete with that large-chested girl.”
Manga Well’s first date with the Saint dwelt only on surface impressions and shallow thoughts. The choosing of the engagement ring was based on practicality, and the cost versus benefit ratio provided by the magical stone.
“Normally, I’d consider this item expensive. However, I’ve just obtained a huge amount of income,” Well said when Elize objected to the exorbitantly expensive ring. “We’re married, aren’t we? And there might be times when I need to use the magic stored inside this ring.”
Well didn’t state it openly, but his primary reason was that her grandfather was the cardinal. Well knew that by giving her such a valuable gift, the cardinal would use the influence of the church to protect him, and in return, the older man recognized Well’s shrewd political cunning.
The idea that Elize might cherish the ring was a mere afterthought.
Not very romantic at all, eh, manga Well? By contrast, anime Well genuinely desired falling in love and focused on picking a ring she’d love since he wanted to make certain she was giving her consent to real marriage, not just a political arrangement.
In addition, Elize was originally introduced after the battle to reclaim the grasslands from the second dragon (depicted in the manga as more of an annoying nuisance rather than a true threat).
Inserting her earlier into the plot allowed her compassionate character to shine in the field hospital, but that impactful scene was limited to one mere flashback panel in the manga.
When Elize feared that Baron Baumeister was hurt, her reaction showed how she felt toward Well. Their relationship in the anime developed on mutual respect since each felt burdened by the weight society put on their shoulders as “hero” and “saint.”
(To be fair, the manga did briefly touch on that aspect in Chapter 18 of Volume 4. That’s why Elize decided they’d be a “well-suited couple” despite manga Well coldly calculating his moves based about practicality, not her inner heart or convictions.)
By Episode 6, fans of harem isekai anime were probably getting whiplash since The 8th Son anime did one thing that’s never been done before in such a short number of episodes: fully establish the obligatory harem and have them all declare themselves as future wives of the main character.
This aspect of the harem isekai genre is usually dragged out over the entirety of a book series, so it never happens in the first season of an anime. In this case, the entire society is just chill with the prospect of polygamy.
Still, it was very odd for the anime not to show Well having any romantic interest in Louise and Iina at all and then suddenly offer to make them his mistresses in an offhand manner. Needless to say, it’s an odd contrast to how Elize’s character development was handled.
Well’s reaction to their sudden request to become concubines directly contradicted his earlier stated belief that marriage should be based on love, not on societal duty or obligations to the family’s need. So, for him to quickly agree without any qualm, seemed out of character.
However, Well’s behavior in that anime scene was more in line with the manga’s version of Well. Manga Well isn’t as likable as a person as anime Well since the former collects trophy wives while giving little thought to their feelings.
From Episode 7 and on, Well has his first set of wives lined up with no major muss or fuss (unless you count that cringe-inducing concubine seduction dance attempt by Louise).
Shin-Ei Animation can’t be faulted too much since the writer of the light novel series really did write himself into a corner in this manner.
By light novel Volume 2 and manga Chapter 12 of Volume 3, the only relationship drama left was for the girls to struggle for position.
Since both concubines were upgraded to full fiancees by manga Volume 4: Chapter 21, this meant the major character relationships were peaked out with nowhere to go except wait for the big wedding day when they are older.
Well will add more wives to the harem over time (see the spoilers below). However, these perfunctory additions are still accompanied by relatively little drama in comparison to most isekai harem stories.
If the anime is an improvement on The 8th Son light novel series, then it’s a vast improvement on The 8th Son manga.
Comparing the beginning of the anime against The 8th Son manga series is a night-and-day difference since almost all of the opening dialogue and sequences are different, except for major plot points.
Instead of allowing the narrative to unfold naturally, the manga breaks the “show not tell” rule of storytelling by starting with 15-year-old Well giving readers an info dump about his childhood while in the middle of a hunt with Erwin, whom he met recently at the Adventurer school.
They only partnered since their seats were next to each other.
Louise and Iina are introduced in the middle of the fight with wolves, with Er exclaiming, “Ahhh… girls!”
Just like in the anime, Well saves them using earth wall magic.
Unlike in the anime, Louise was all over Well within hours of their first meeting, making her romantic intentions abundantly clear. She even kisses Well on the cheek in Chapter 8 of Volume 2, although Well bluntly tells Er, “I’m not a lolicon.”
Nothing was said about feeling fated to a depressing future due to the circumstances of their birth order.
Instead, the girls teamed up with the guys by Chapter 3 simply because “members teaming up is an important strategy,” and they recognize how others are rushing to party or seek marriage with Well due to his powers.
The girls do manage to surprise the guys since they submit their party application without even asking them for permission first! This action causes jealousy and conflict among classmates, shown in a manga mini-story arc skipped by the anime.
The classmates compete to scare off garden vermin. Well creates a scarecrow and hangs reflective glass from a string, which is an idea from his past life.
Other than references to soy sauce and miso, the anime rarely seems to make references to Well actually being a 25-year-old Japanese man in a child’s body.
In the manga, this fact comes up more often (especially every time the girls make advances on him).
That means the reoccurring theme of a grown man struggling with being stuck in a teen’s body while being surrounded by cute girls is largely skipped by the anime.
Manga Well also tends to translate any monetary figures into Japanese yen mentally. Once a salaryman, always a salaryman, I suppose.
The competition with classmates in this The 8th Son manga story arc also allowed the girls to show off their martial prowess more than the anime version, showing why they deserved to be part of Well’s party.
Chapter 8 of Volume 2 also adds more color by showing Louise winning money with her combat magic during an arm-wrestling winning streak. Of course, in the anime, Well’s motive for partying up was friendship, not power.
On the other hand, the manga arguably does a better job of showing the girls falling in love with Well in a slightly more natural fashion rather than being focused on social ladder climbing like in the anime (that’s not to say the girls didn’t prioritize upward mobility in the manga).
Well may have been oblivious to their romantic intentions in the anime, but at least in the manga, he unconsciously complimented them in charming ways and noticed their romantic advances.
However, their initial marriage plans are still 100 percent politically arranged once Well became a baron associate.
At first, the girls wanted to remain unmarried as Well’s retainers. However, the head of brother Erich’s new family, Lutger Wilhelm von Brant, reminded the girls of their duties as aristocratic vassals.
They quickly changed their minds, agreeing to be treated as concubines or mistresses (in the manga, this plot point took place before the second ancient dragon fight).
In regards to Well’s advanced magical powers, he explained his history with his master, the Whispering Dead, in a flashback that started with Chapter 2.
In this version, Well already had developed wind-based detection magic and other abilities on his own, but Albert still managed to surprise him.
There was almost zero drama since Albert introduced himself as a Whispering Dead from the get-go.
Instead, Albert expressed his wish to pass on peacefully to the otherworld by having his life’s desire fulfilled before he became a Lich. Sure, little Well was crying when he banished Albert with holy magic, but there was no drama or mystery in this telling of the story.
Some of the training scenes were similar, but the manga spent more time explaining RPG-style mechanics rather than on character development. The manga also showed Albert bequeathing his magical bag, weapons, and equipment to Well, whereas anime audiences needed to infer that happened.
Characters’ emotions may be given few panels, but item acquirement and showing off cool stuff is a priority for the manga. Well’s first meeting with Albert’s former master Brantack Lyngstad lacked any pressure in the manga largely because they were focused on securing the high-value content of the magical bag.
The manga event spent the entirety of Volume 2: Chapter 6 introducing Well’s inherited mansion and how his friends gushed over its magical amenities, which included an earth golem security system and magical stoves and toilets.
The manga goes out of its way to have a culinary accident where the girls’ clothes are dirtied, so they need to dip into the mansion’s magical bathhouse only to accidentally activate the golems and then flee down the hallways to get Well’s help while completely undressed.
Cue the much-repeated “I’m not a lolicon!!” gag, which becomes less and less believable over time.
All in all, reading The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me? manga is like a different experience. The focus tends to be on problems of the aristocratic life, political strategizing, and isekai-style wish fulfillment.
The tonal difference is such that the characters come off as alternate reality versions with differing motives. Many scenes lack the emotion, suspense, and foreshadowing of the anime, although sometimes the manga, which improves after several volumes, is better.
The same can be said for the light novels, although in a different way.
Another good thing the anime accomplished is that the pacing did not seem fast despite adapting multiple books. Some scenes and mini-story arcs that added color to the characters were skipped, but that lapse can be forgiven considering the anime’s retelling gave back much-needed depth.
The Undead Dragon’s attack on the airship from Episode 4 was only manga Chapter 9 (which did a better job of building up the immensity of the lifechanging moment).
By light novel Volume 2, the magical airship had arrived safely in the royal capital.
Anime Episode 6 adapted manga Chapters 14 through 16 of Volume 3, which corresponded to the first half of light novel Volume 2.
Well’s fiancee, Saint Elize, was introduced in earlier episodes, but she was the focus of manga Chapter 16 through 18 of Volume 4 and the second half of light novel Volume 2.
Episode 7 skipped several manga chapters to jump to the martial arts tournament in Volume 5: Chapter 24, which corresponds to the ending of light novel Volume 2.
The anime completely skipped over comedic short stories like the love magic pink hippo and sexy birthday gifts.
Episode 8 provided some anime original foreshadowing by starting off with Wendelin’s family receiving a message that he had died. Otherwise, the episode was rapid-fire pacing, covering the entire Dragon Busters’ guild adventure in the underground ruins from light novel Volume 3 (manga chapters 26 through 38).
The episode skipped many details, including the fact that they faced the metal dragon once before stumbling into the teleportation circle. Still, the anime did develop the political machinations back in the capital city better in comparison to the manga, which spent many chapters almost overdeveloping the idea that the golem army was an endurance magical test that required the ability to adapt strategically in order to prove a person was worthy of inheriting the legacy of the underground vault.
The anime also captured the tension of the moment where they would have died if it weren’t for Elize’s magical kiss restoring Well’s magical energy. Arguably, the anime did a great job of summarizing the salient plot points and atmosphere of almost an entire book into a single episode. The only negative was that the 3D animated character designs for the golem arm, metal dragon, and ancient airships were seriously tacky in comparison to the manga’s art.
Thankfully, Episodes 9 through 12 slowed the pacing down in order to properly develop the political intrigue necessary to make the confrontation with Kurt impactful. Maintaining this more serious focus changed the tone of the anime a bit since some of the sillier elements were either skipped or greatly condensed.
Episode 9 jumped straight to light novel Volume 4 (manga chapters 39 through 50+) but focused on major plot elements rather than the tale of the underwear-snatching magic circle, which was seriously dragged out over two whole chapters in the manga. The anime probably could have skipped the scene entirely except that a particular pair of underwear connected to a future plot point in The 8th Son Season 2.
The anime spent most of its time on Chapter 41 and beyond, which is when Wilma was introduced in the manga. The tuna sushi eating scene, which originally took place inside the magic guild, was also changed in the anime in order to better introduce Wilma to the other character. The anime made Wilma’s intro more mysterious as the hooded figure rather than just flat-out telling audiences who she was like in the manga.
Unfortunately, the anime caught up with the manga in this episode. Even in the most recent raw chapters, the manga has only adapted about half of light novel Volume 4, so the manga is significantly behind the story of the anime.
By episode 11 the anime was already into the first chapter of Volume 5, which was named after the supposed magical weapon the Dragon’s Flute. The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me? Episode 12 found a stopping point near the middle of light novel Volume 5.
Volume 5 is the best stopping point since the climax adapts and resolves a long story arc that the anime had been slowly building up to since the first episode. The finale was open-ended since it had Well headed south to develop the savage lands, which was previewed in Episode 1. The final scene worked like a bookend to the beginning since Well was finally able to enjoy that Japanese meal, but this time with friends.
The good news is that there is plenty of source material for creating The 8th Son Season 2 anime. The bad news is that manga fans may need to wait a year before being able to read ahead of the anime.
The 8th Son Season 2 release date
As of the last update, producer Flying DOG, SynergySP, Shin-Ei Animation, or any company related to the production of the anime has not officially confirmed The 8th Son Season 2 release date.
Nor has the production of a The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me? sequel been announced.
Once the news is officially confirmed this article will be updated with the relevant information. In the meantime, it’s possible to speculate about when, or if, The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me? Season 2 premiere date will occur in the future.
It’s questionable whether The 8th Son anime will be renewed. While the anime is better than the source material it’s still fairly generic when it comes to isekai anime.
Its main isekai competitors during Spring 2020, the My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! anime and Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2, are far better reviewed, although it helps that the source material for both series was highly reviewed, as well.
The only reason The 8th Son anime stands out as fun escapism is that it’s one of the few new anime that was not delayed by the coronavirus pandemic besides the aforementioned isekai anime and big names like the Tower of God anime and Trigger’s BNA (Brand New Animal).
Big-name competitors like the Re:ZERO Season 2 anime and the final season of the Sword Art Online: Alicization anime were pushed back, giving The 8th Son some benefit since bored audiences stuck inside from lockdown were probably running out of TV series to watch.
Still, it didn’t seem to linger on the first page of Crunchyroll’s popular anime section since old anime from years ago was more watched.
Still, isekai anime sequels are in vogue nowadays. Even anime with average reviews like How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord Season 2 has been greenlit for production, so perhaps the same could happen for The 8th Son Season 2.
Hachi-nan tte, Sore wa Nai deshou! Season 2 spoilers (plot summary/synopsis)
The last time we watched Wendelin Baumeister, he had survived an assassination attempt and has begun to develop his own lands in the south. Time to settle down and build a home, right?
But Well’s life quickly becomes complicated again when he runs into a certain Storm. In this case, the Storm has a name: Katharina Linda von Waigel, one of the best magician adventurers in the Kingdom of Helmut.
When the violet-haired woman was just a child, her entire family was killed in a fight between nobles. Left all alone, she used her wind magic to feed her people. As a fallen aristocrat she sought to reinstate her noble house by building her reputation as a magician.
Despite becoming the strongest mage in the western part of the country by the age of 16, Katharina was not allowed to regain her noble status simply because she’s a woman.
Hearing of Well and the Dragon Busters, she decides to seek out and defeat Baron Baumeister in hopes that the other nobles would be forced to change their minds if she proves she’s even more powerful.
Storm challenges Well by competing to see who can collect more prey from the Demon Forest in a day. You can guess who wins, but Katharina is a sore loser and changes the rules, so it’s best out of 7 days.
Regardless, Well feels sympathy for Katharina since they share a similar history of coming from a poor noble family where she needed to climb her way up by becoming an elite adventurer. So, he decides to help Katharina restore the house of Waigel.
And that’s just the beginning of the troubles brewing in the south. A dispute breaks out the borders of several aristocrat’s territories, and the conflict drags in hundreds of competing noble families.
It’s not long before armies are confronting each over the disputed land.
While the resulting conflict is not quite a war, the struggle lasts longer than expected and causes a great deal of damage to the Baumeister lands, greatly angering Well.
Well also faces romance problems since some scheming noble sends his daughter Well’s way, and he can’t help but be enticed. But then there’s the tedious arbitration process grabbing at his attention.
In the midst of all this chaos, Well manages to find time for real love… and a big, fat isekai wedding! Yes, Well finally gets married to his five fiancees, but even this happy day is made difficult by the complicated ceremony.
But the honeymoon will need to wait when the kingdom receives word of a coup d’etat in the neighboring sacred empire. What troubles await Well, next?
Unfortunately, anime fans will need to wait until The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me? Season 2 release date to watch what happens next. Stay tuned!