One has to wonder just how much of this show's potential audience (or at least potential foreign buyers, given that it never got nearly enough airtime to sustain more than a marginal fandom) was disappointed by the first season and never gave it a chance after that. It's not even that it's unusually bad - in fact it takes a pretty big risk among cartoons by focusing on obviously adult characters, which deserves its fair share of credit. It's just that it follows the stereotypical Canadian cartoon to a T, along with all the problems that implies. Only the main characters, Delilah and Julius themselves, are interesting enough that an alert viewer might be able to barely, just barely, detect hints of something much bigger under the cliched surface. The three-part finale is easily the best of season 1 (and is definitely worth a watch, to get acquainted with the characters at least), but even that suffers from one major issue that's a huge spoiler but should be pretty obvious to anyone who watches it.
Then came season 2. Without a trace of exaggeration, it is like an entirely different show that just happens to use the same characters, along with some very minor plot points. These, by the way, are given sufficient context in the season, so it is not necessary to watch season 1 to keep up - though having watched it makes one appreciate season two that much more. All of a sudden, the show has real continuity with a plot that absolutely forces the viewer to keep watching even through the filler episodes, in case something important is dropped. Suddenly, all of the other major characters at Delilah and Julius' training school get unique, rounded personalities instead of cliche traits, with their own stories to boot. In fact, in the case of one particular character who was seemingly so terrible no writer could fix them, the show wisely decided to go in a completely different direction altogether.
Out of nowhere, there are multiple villains who are not walking cartoon villain stereotypes, but actually highly skilled and dangerous, one of whom actually has a lengthy, drawn-out plan and remains largely undefeated throughout the season, and even serves as a personal nemesis to one of the heroes. Even the cliche villains (including several from season 1) are now part of the main plot, and team up not only with each other but anyone else who could be advantageous to them. And without spoiling too much, the line between good and bad, which was so clear-cut in the first season, is blurred multiple times here, in a few cases throwing the viewer for such a loop that the series becomes fundamentally unpredictable. The series finale is the crown jewel on top, ending with a simple yet stunningly powerful message that ought to resonate even with an adult viewer (all the while brilliantly tying up loose ends).
What's the most unbelievable thing about Delilah & Julius season 2 though? That it was largely done by the same writing team.
Season 2 is a masterpiece
One has to wonder just how much of this show's potential audience (or at least potential foreign buyers, given that it never got nearly enough airtime to sustain more than a marginal fandom) was disappointed by the first season and never gave it a chance after that. It's not even that it's unusually bad - in fact it takes a pretty big risk among cartoons by focusing on obviously adult characters, which deserves its fair share of credit. It's just that it follows the stereotypical Canadian cartoon to a T, along with all the problems that implies. Only the main characters, Delilah and Julius themselves, are interesting enough that an alert viewer might be able to barely, just barely, detect hints of something much bigger under the cliched surface. The three-part finale is easily the best of season 1 (and is definitely worth a watch, to get acquainted with the characters at least), but even that suffers from one major issue that's a huge spoiler but should be pretty obvious to anyone who watches it.
Then came season 2. Without a trace of exaggeration, it is like an entirely different show that just happens to use the same characters, along with some very minor plot points. These, by the way, are given sufficient context in the season, so it is not necessary to watch season 1 to keep up - though having watched it makes one appreciate season two that much more. All of a sudden, the show has real continuity with a plot that absolutely forces the viewer to keep watching even through the filler episodes, in case something important is dropped. Suddenly, all of the other major characters at Delilah and Julius' training school get unique, rounded personalities instead of cliche traits, with their own stories to boot. In fact, in the case of one particular character who was seemingly so terrible no writer could fix them, the show wisely decided to go in a completely different direction altogether.
Out of nowhere, there are multiple villains who are not walking cartoon villain stereotypes, but actually highly skilled and dangerous, one of whom actually has a lengthy, drawn-out plan and remains largely undefeated throughout the season, and even serves as a personal nemesis to one of the heroes. Even the cliche villains (including several from season 1) are now part of the main plot, and team up not only with each other but anyone else who could be advantageous to them. And without spoiling too much, the line between good and bad, which was so clear-cut in the first season, is blurred multiple times here, in a few cases throwing the viewer for such a loop that the series becomes fundamentally unpredictable. The series finale is the crown jewel on top, ending with a simple yet stunningly powerful message that ought to resonate even with an adult viewer (all the while brilliantly tying up loose ends).
What's the most unbelievable thing about Delilah & Julius season 2 though? That it was largely done by the same writing team.