Emma - A Victorian Romance: Second Act

Sometime in Dec 2006, I wrote a review of Emma - A Victorian Romance after finishing the first season. If you need a recap, read it here.

So this time around, it's the 2nd season of Emma, also known as Second Act. I literally spent all the free time slots that I could squeezed out from my weekend just to complete this 12-episode anime and I am absolutely glad I did. Any status other that "completed" and my mind would most definitely be filled with the longing to head home asap to pick up wherever I'd left off. Yup, I was THAT hooked!


Act II picks up a month after we saw Emma boarded a train and left London and William behind. Emma is now a maid with the German Molders family in the countryside, and is sort of "under probation" as she was hired without any recommendation letter. Right at the beginning, we are already drawn to this soft-spoken lady, who would even take the blame of stealing in silence rather than pointing finger at the main culprit. Lucky for her, it is sorted out (thanx to Hans, a footman for the household, whom later fell for Emma as well) and she is soon well-liked by the mistress of the house. The mistress took her along a trip to visit a Mrs Trollope (who turns out to be William's mother and who's own sad story we will come to know later in the show), as well as a trip to London, which Emma did not wished to follow at first...to the extend that she was tempted to break a vase so that she could be punished. Well, the vase did broke but it was not Emma who broke it LOL..

Back in London, we see a sad William who could not contained his tears when he looked at a full moon one night, and all memories of the time he and Emma were both accidentally locked-in in the Crystal Palace, just came flooding back. Throughout, Eleanor Campbell, the girl his family wanted him to marry in order to bring the Jones' family to the status they always craved, was still very much in love with him and was expressing herself every chance she could, hoping he could one day return her feelings. Finally, out of loneliness, and also perhaps touched by her sincerity, William agreed to see her, and even agreed to an engagemet after Eleanor's sister sort of made a fuss one night, saying he did not deserved Eleanor for he did not loved Eleanor as much as she loved him..

In a twist of fate, Emma and William met at the night of the engagement itself. What ensued were painful choices yet again - engagement anulled, Jones' finacial crisis as a revenge from Eleanor's father (a Viscount), two marriage proposals!, a fire - but with so much more at stake this time around. Will love triumph? Or will family honor prevail?

After an excellent First Act, the Second Act is a perfect closure to the saga. However, there is a "futher tales" manga, also known as Victorian Romance Emma Bangaihen, that focuses on characters beyond Emma & William, which among other things tells of Eleanor finally finding her own happiness - we do get a glimpse of what's in store for Eleanor at the epilogue of Second Act, and the dashing guy involved ;)

Again the Victorian era is well potrayed, the drawings are simply beautiful, and with a touching storyline to go with ... so much so till we almost forgot they are all just 2D images =P. Definitely a two-thumbs up!

My rating: