Our heroes find themselves with a slimy dinner and more questions needing to be answered.

The following contains spoilers for Season 2, Episode 2 of Made in Abyss, "The Compass Pointed to the Darkness" now streaming on HiDive.

It turns out that when some assumed that the new season of Made in Abyss was shaping to be two shows in one, that may have been jumping the gun a bit. The previous episode involved flashbacks to a pilgrimage of people who were attempting to get to the Mystical Golden City, and this was important enough to the show that it delayed the viewer’s reunion of Riko, Reg, and Nanachi until more than halfway into the episode (where they ultimately did nothing of real consequence). It was an unorthodox way to begin the new season, as it seemed to be disrupting the status quo by giving fans more lore about the Abyss itself, one that clearly has a history beyond what our three protagonists have seen.

After episode 2, episode 1's format remains questionable. In this episode, fans see no more of the pilgrims or what happened to them in their search for the Golden City. Riko, Reg, and Nanachi are the only protagonists fans spend time with here which may make some fans of the franchise happy. On the other hand, not only does this episode leave viewers scratching their heads as to what the point of the extended flashback was in the previous episode, our heroes aren’t doing much aside from walking around and eating strange food in this episode.

RELATED: Dark Fantasy Anime to Watch If You Love Made in Abyss

Slimy Food is Apparently VERY Funny

Made in Abyss Season 2 Episode 2

The vast majority of the first half of the episode involves Riko wanting to cook strange eggs she found on the sixth layer. She remembers reading in her mom’s diary that boiling eggs in water resulted in the best meal she ever had, and Riko wants to replicate that tasty success for herself. She discovers that it will take more than hot water to achieve this though, as they meat inside the egg after being cooked is yellow, slimy, and (worst of all) has a tendency to move around. That being said, the meat DOES taste good…but it doesn’t go down smoothly!

Reg decides that maybe the meat just needs some additional touches, and thus fries it in a pan while adding seasoning. The meat still moves around for some reason, but it is much tastier now. Riko is so happy about this, that she decides to write a letter to the world above them to share their success at making a good meal and getting to the sixth layer. The balloon doesn’t get very far though, as it is quickly snatched away by a flying creature, leaving Riko to sulk over her failure. The three decide it’s time to get some sleep, however unknown to them, they are being watched by a strange creature.

Robbed While Sleeping

Made in Abyss Season 2 Episode 2

When the trio wakes up they are surprised to discover that the letter they had written for the world above has been returned to them with strange markings written all over it. What’s more, the whistle used to communicate with Prushka (a character from the first season) has been taken, and without it, Riko cannot use it to communicate with her friend. The three set out to find their stolen property, but instead, find dead creators that have pieces of their hair inside them.

RELATED: Made in Abyss Season 2: Episode 1 Review

The group continues along until they find a new area where there appears to be a bunch of robots. In this area, they find symbols that match what was found on their letter. Before they can contemplate what this means, a big robot comes up to them and starts speaking in a foreign language. Realizing his guests don’t speak his language, the robot switches to Japanese to welcome his guests. He tells them that he is happy they have arrived and that he must show them something important. He brushes off any questions they may have until they can see what he needs to show them. The kids decided it would be best to follow, as Riko narrates that they didn’t realize at the time that no humans entering this land left the land as humans.

Questions Keep Piling Up

Made in Abyss Season 2 Episode 2

I’m not sure if episode 2 of this season of Made in Abyss is an improvement or a step back. On one hand, it does end with some real mystery and intrigue, and one can’t help but wonder what is up with the robots or the threat that our heroes won’t be able to leave as living creatures. On the other hand, this was ten minutes of storytelling and ten minutes of wasting the audience’s time. The scenes of them cooking dinner weren’t very interesting nor did they add anything to the story. The fact that the first half of the episode felt dragged out and the second half rushed is a pacing problem that will need to be addressed going forward.

The biggest problem of all might be the fact that the story of the pilgrims wasn’t even referenced. Considering how much time was spent with them in the previous episode – setting them up to be the second set of protagonists that were going to add greatly to the story – I’m not sure why they were dropped here. No doubt they’ll appear again, but the feeling that they could show up at random times isn’t exactly a comforting one. On the other hand, maybe they have been found? Maybe these robots are those pilgrims, and it will be up to our heroes to discover why they wound up that way?

It's hard to get a grasp of exactly what is going on. The first season thrived on the mysteries of the Abyss and the unknown questions were certainly part of the pull, yet after one season and a movie, there should be more progress than this. Why bring up a huge flashback if the writers weren’t ready to tackle it? Are there more questions being asked than answered? Are there going to be more dinners viewers must sit through because the writers have nothing interesting to say?

MORE: Made in Abyss: What to Expect From Season 2 (According to the Manga)