Class is back in session, as the cast of Doki Doki School Hours returns to amuse and unnerve viewers. A new face, and several new situations await the members of class 2-A, as they deliver one of the darkest comedic experiences of the year. As with the last volume, cuteness and creepy humor merge to create the amusing, yet twisted experience that has become a series trademark.

The second volume brings few surprises in terms of what to expect, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. The series continues to bring laughs to the viewers through possibly the most disturbing type of school-age comedy (Seki, the narcissistic transvestite, alone ensures the disturbing part). The episodes continue their pace, from summer vacation, to the culture festival;, and through Christmas. To round out the cast, Nakayama, a pigtailed frosh that punctuates her sentences with "kya ha!" joins the ranks. Of course, a new character has to have some sort of quirk, and Nakayama is no exception. Nakayama enters the scene as a disciple to Watabe's manga club. If that wasn't strange enough to qualify, Nakayama has literally no artistic talent. To top things off, she manages to outsell poor Watabe at every turn.

What do you get when you cross a ganguro, a tiny teacher, and a crossdresser? ...I dunno either	With a getup like that, it's no wonder why Nakayama's book sold better.

While the shows are completely different in most regards, I cannot help but mention the other slice-of-life school comedy, Azumanga Daioh. The show's atmosphere so far seems as if the creative team watched Azumanga, then took a trip to the local sanitarium. The situations presented often border on disturbing, but always deliver the funny. At this point, a majority the characters are still little more than two-dimensional caricatures of popular archetypes, but they blend together so well, that viewers will be laughing too hard to notice.

Long story short: If you liked the first installment, you'll love the second. Everything that made the first volume so charming is back, along with more delightfully-disturbing moments that present themselves for the viewer's amusement (or is it repulsion?). Nakayama's entry is a welcome one, and adds a second creepy-yet-adorable member to the roster. I'm eagerly looking forward to the next installment, and hope the pace remains as quick, and the humor as edgy.