This review contains spoilers for the first season of The Promised Neverland and minor spoilers to the second, mostly regarding the functioning of demon society.

The Promised Neverland was one of those series that I had not heard about long before the season 1 premiere, and was a pleasant surprise. Then the first season ended on a huge cliffhanger and we were left waiting for over a year.

The long wait? Worth it, indeed it is worth it.

Here’s a quick synopsis of the first episode.

We open to the children having just escaped Grace Field house and they are left wondering the forest alone. Demon’s have been sent after them. They can’t allow their precious high grade meat to escape. They are forced to separate. Shortly after, they are captured.

The Promised Neverland Season 2 First Episode Summary

What I Like

I enjoyed that we have been introduced to the Demon’s - that they are not just faceless monsters that eat humans for the sake of it. Yes, they are tasty to the demon’s but its the difference between being sentient or monsters. We also learn that not all demon’s eat humans which is an interesting development.

I also enjoyed the episode or so dedicated to the children learning to survive on their own. It is unlikely that these kids could otherwise, no matter how intelligent they actually are, and being products of Grace Field. these kids are as smart as they come.

The animation remains excellent. I am also enjoying the variety of exotic foods mixed in with things familiar to us, especially those found in the forest and caves surrounding the orphanages.

What I Don’t

It seems to be going well but there is a big time skip after the forth episode which had ended on a cliffhanger. I am not sure what happened during that time nor am I sure if they happened in the manga but I feel like it was too sudden. Given the situation the children are in, I can’t help but wonder if we missed something important during that time.

I am also concerned about reports the anime is skipping a lot of material from the manga. I haven’t read the manga though.

The Promised Neverland is free to watch on AnimeLab.