Encouragement of Climb was probably my favorite short-episode anime series of 2013 so I was excited to see its second season with longer episodes and double the amount as well (24 fifteen-minute episodes compared to 12 four-minute ones in the first season). Unfortunately, there was a licensing issue that complicated Crunchyroll’s simulcasting of the show following episode 1 but that got cleared up in late October with the previously unreleased episodes being added all at once and new episodes were released on a regular schedule once again.
One main arc that played out in the first half of the season involved the four main girls attempting to climb Mt. Fuji, the tallest mountain in Japan.
Before going on their trip to Mt. Fuji, Aoi & Hinata shopped for some equipment they’d need for the climb including headlamps and down jackets. They then met with Kaede and Kokona to discuss their plan for ascending Fuji.
The night before the group began their journey to the mountain, Aoi had doubts about whether she’d be able to make it all the way up so she called Kaede, the most experienced climber of the four, for some advice on how to mentally approach such a challenge.
Kokona and Aoi with their newly bought wooden staffs.
The group started off their climb in high spirits but Aoi showed some signs of trouble as they approached the Eighth Station. Kaede stayed behind with Aoi there while the other two went on ahead toward the summit. Aoi later becomes frustrated and depressed that she couldn’t make it to the top, though something that arrives when she’s back home gets her out of the doldrums and back into hiking & climbing.
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