After a promising start with its initial release, the follow-up opens with five rather pointless episodes. But with any lengthy series there is bound to be some filler, and the opening episodes seemed to foreshadow an “innocence of the week” pattern for D.Gray-Man, with Allen paired first with Kanda and Lena Lee, and subsequently with Kanda and Lavi facing down Akuma in order to gather pieces of innocence. While fans of the four exorcists might find something to like, the episodes contribute almost nothing to the larger story other than to reinforce initial impressions of the characters.

If you weren’t impressed by the first four episodes, the fifth might be enough to have you genuinely worried about the path the show is heading in. Those who remember the earlier episode centered on Kamui and his pet projects should be prepared for another round of absurdity.

Thankfully, the series begins to redeem itself and picks up in the sixth episode of the installment, with a rather long story arc introducing a new character. It seems Allen’s mentor, General Cross, has been out of contact with the Black Order for some time. And while it is clear the job of locating him is not high on the list of priorities for Allen, he is given the task nonetheless.

While General Cross is nowhere to be found, Allen finds his hands full as he is confronted with a situation where distinguishing good and evil is hardly clear. Even once the villain is revealed, the story does a decent job of evoking sympathy for a killer that has no choice but to follow its master’s bidding.

The likability of the characters is crucial to the success of any longer run, and the show finally gets back to the promise shown early on. Allen and Lavi prove to be an amusing pairing whose interaction lends a bit of levity that had been lacking in the earlier plots of the release.

The final two episodes in the installment do their job and leave the audience ready for more. As Allen meets the mentor he wishes he had been raised by, the Millennium Earl and the Tribe of Noah at long last make another significant appearance. Announcing the real game is about to begin, the Earl and his henchmen waste little time extracting a meaningful sacrifice from the Black Order, and Allen must once again have someone he has come to love destroyed by the Earl’s evil.

Using flashbacks to maximum effect, D.Gray-man is at its best establishing characters the audience will empathize with. The pasts of Allen and his fellow exorcists reveal not only what has led them to the Black Order, but also the depth of the Earl’s wickedness.

While the pace of the show stumbles early on in the release, it still hints at the potential to become something more when it sets its hook in the concluding moments. So, if you are willing to tolerate some filler it may be a worthwhile addition, otherwise you may want to wait and pair it with the next installment.