| Episodes: 1 | Score: 8.4 (667)
Updated every at | Status: Finished Airing
Type: Movie
Synopsis
When an attack shatters the fragile peace between the spirit world and humanity, Hei teams up with Luye, the last disciple of his Shifu Wuxian, to expose a conspiracy that threatens both realms—and the bond they’ve sworn to protect. (Source: GKIDS)
Voice Actors
Hanazawa, Kana
Yuuki, Aoi
Miyano, Mamoru
Reviews
jpenobagel
This movie is the definition of an underrated gem. The Legend of Hei 2 came out in the same year as heavy-hitters like Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle and Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc, but imo it flies higher than either of those two movies. This movie and the first Legend of Hei movie are prequels to an animated web series that features the same characters and world setting. But I don't think you need to watch any of those other entries to understand and enjoy this movie (though there are definitely cameos and callbacks). It does a great job at gradually introducing you to the worldand characters. And I feel like that's really what this movie is great at. The first movie was more intimate in scope, focusing on the two main characters Xiaohei and Wuxian. In this second movie, the scope of the world is widened quite a bit and introduces many new characters. The social and political conflict from the first movie are also expanded on to have a larger scale. What you end up with is an interesting and fleshed-out world that feels very easy for the audience to get immersed in. Character personalities and motivations start off charming and simple, but their depth builds up throughout the course of the movie as you see how they interact and handle moral dilemmas. There is an almost Avatar: The Last Airbender type of feeling to it. The action and animation in this movie is top-notch stuff. The time and effort spent during its long six-year production period results in some of the best animation I've seen in recent years. It uses CG and posteffects with a refined touch so that the 2D animation still shines through rather than feeling overly processed. Action scenes are full of creative push-and-pulls and there are all these small details in the animation that gives a sense of realism to the characters and environments. I would also say the musical score is quite good and fitting for the moments in this movie, but the visuals are just such high-caliber that they overtake everything else. Now the reason I don't give this a 10/10 is because the major reveal towards the end of the movie doesn't feel very earned or satisfying. I wish it had been fleshed out a bit more for the audience. But fortunately, it's just a small stumble in a final half that has some truly epic battles and a poignant epilogue that also features a surprisingly realistic and grounded depiction of trauma. This is a movie with a lot of heart in it and it shows through every facet of the production. It's a shame that it seems like this movie didn't get much traction outside of China. But I would say Legend of Hei 2 deserves a spot on people's "must-watch" list and I hope there will be more of this series in the future.
Plantlife
Pure fun! It's not going to challenge your intellect or present a valid critique of society, but what it does well is bring a fairytale-like story that is reminiscent of classic fantasy films of the 70's and 80's. Every second is enjoyable. The art, music, fight scenes, and characters are top notch. This movie will for sure stand the test of time. The story kept up pace with the first, and developed Wuxian and a newcomer very well. If you're looking for a good example of Chinese animation and how far it's come, Legend of Hei is a shining example! This movie doesn't infantalize this audience.It's very sincere and doesn't break tension with gags or fart jokes like Ne Zha. My biggest complaint is that Wuxian and Hei don't get enough screentime. They are so cute together is actually hurts.
Redlinkkid
Ok, I'm ngl, Wuxian has a moment in this movie that I feel like would get reposted constantly by those meathead anime action TikTok accounts but they don't watch anything animated that isn't the most popular thing ever made since sliced bread so its safe. Seriously, I swear some people on social media won't watch something that's pretty good like this just because it isn't popular. At least I'm getting my parents to watch this, they're cool watching stuff like this. I'm glad Gkids decided to license this movie in the United States. I'm always glad to give something like this a try, and Iwas not disappointed at all. The action in a lot of these new Chinese animated movies have really been impressive. I'm glad to see there's so much new talent making these movies. Makes me hopeful for the industry.
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