The Librarians Season 2 Review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLqlU2Irw1U

Episode Guide

And the Drowned Book
And the Broken Staff
And What Lies Beneath the Stones
And the Cost of Education
And the Hollow Men
And the Infernal Contract
And the Image of Image
And the Point of Salvation
And the Happily Ever Afters
And the Final Curtain

With a tone and pace established last year, The Librarians returns for another 10 episodes of magic-fuelled entertainment. With an episodic structure nestled between two 2 parters at the start and end of the season, there’s a consistency this year that allows the fun absurdity of this show to shine. Much like last year, the humour, cheap visual effects and crazy plot lines all combine to deliver a uniquely satisfying series.

The overarching story this year sees the librarians coming together after an extended period of time away from each other to try and solve a case. The Shakespearean wizard Prospero comes to life after a freak weather storm and brings other characters to life from various books to help find parts of his staff. Unless the Librarians can stop his evil plan of course which quickly spirals out of control. The Librarians is a show that has always played on its lighthearted feel and various self contained adventures in its episodes and season 2 is no exception. In an endless barrage of dark, gritty dramas, The Librarians is satisfyingly different, playing on the character tropes to help set it apart from other shows. Of course, with such a lighthearted feel, some of the ensuing tension in the episodes don’t really hold much weight but it doesn’t detract too much from the appeal of the show.

With an unchanged cast from last year, The Librarians plays on the archetypal tropes for each of the characters, with most of the episodes revolving around their various quips. Eve (Rebecca Romijn) still guards the librarians, Jenkins (John Larroquette) is still the same sarcastic, overseer of the library and the three librarians, Jake (Christian Kane), Cassandra (Lindy Booth) and Ezekiel (John Harlan Kim) still have the same traits that made them so endearing the first time around. With largely unchanged characteristics, there’s still room for a lot of the characters to grow and evolve thanks to the various episodes that mischievously play with the characters, putting them into difficult and oftentimes overwhelming situations.

With its core audience established, The Librarians is a show geared toward teens and young adults. The dialogue is suitably cheesy, there’s some educational science tidbits thrown in and oftentimes eye rolling silliness. At times, this is done intentionally and the hilariously bad choreographed fights and humour surprisingly adds to the appeal of the show rather than detracts. As The Librarians never takes itself too seriously, there’s a lot more room to forgive some of the cliched tropes that crop up throughout the 10 episodes.

If you enjoyed the first season, The Librarians delivers another solid season of entertainment. The Librarians is a lighthearted, often silly, fantasy show with magic central to its core. The episodes are imaginatively delivered, playing on the character traits that make the Librarians so endearing to watch. The chemistry is excellent again and although there are times where the show’s lighthearted approach detracts from some of the more tense moments, this is an easy to watch fantasy show that understands exactly what it is and who it’s for. The Librarians stands out for all the right reasons and if you enjoyed the first season, is worth sticking with for its second.