Yet, Madhouse and new director Tomoya Kitagawa have somehow achieved the impossible: season 2 is easily the equal of its predecessor in every single aspect. Frieren is now the new gateway drug to recommend to potential new anime fans, with the only downside that almost no other anime can hope to measure up.
While I understand that ANN's seasonal rankings are composite rankings, it is a bit jarring to see the essay for the 8th ranked show of the season opine "that almost no other anime can hope to measure up" before moving on up to 7th place. Addressed in more detail in my post.