The second volume of Assassination Classroom picks up right after the end of the first, which I suggest you read before picking up this one. The opening contains many important things and is a good read, so don’t skip it!
Volume 2 sees the introduction of Irina Jelavitch, a new languages teacher for the class. Except, of course, she’s not just a teacher, but a renowned international assassin in disguise, there to assist in the assassination of Koro-sensei. Her unique approach is to try and use her body to seduce men before killing them once they’re vulnerable. Personally, I’m not that fond of the character, but I did enjoy the chance to see how Koro-sensei responded to her approach and interacted with her as a colleague. There’s some good, funny moments. The head teacher, Mr. Asano, also makes his first proper appearance and proves to be quite an enigmatic character.
The story also deals with two more regular aspects of school-life. The Class 3-E students have to take some exams and they have a school trip. Both of these parts of the story are very enjoyable and quite suspenseful. The end of this volume is also quite a large cliffhanger too, a much bigger cliffhanger than the one at the end of Volume 1 – it does a great job of making you want more.
As a nice little bonus, there’s also a small crossover with The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. with the main character (Kusuo Saiki) meeting and interacting with Koro-sensei. I must admit that this is a manga series I’d never heard of before, but this makes me want to give it a try.
Speaking of Koro-sensei, he continues to be an absolute delight. The more you see of him, the more endearing he becomes and the more you begin to question his strange and mysterious motives. This second volume proved even more interesting and enjoyable than the first, so if you enjoyed that, you’ll enjoy this.
Rating: 8.8/10
(Don’t miss today’s Finger Puppet Show!)
