*sniff* We’re finally at the end of the season, and I am going to miss this show more than anything else I’ve watched these last few months. Well there’s no point in delaying it, so here goes.
Daylight streams through the tall glass windows as Prince Izana and Zen discuss the impending arrival of a messenger from Tanbarun. Prince Izana’s cryptic comments hint that he knows more about the messenger than he’s letting on, but Zen just lets it slide.
Over in the castle greenhouse, Obi thwarts someone attempting to sneak in. It’s Mihaya, who tagged along with the messenger from Tanbarun so he could come visit Shirayuki. Not long after, Shirayuki gets all dressed up to attend an official meeting with both Prince Izana and Zen. There she meets the mysterious Tanbarun messenger – Sakaki! He presents her with a beautiful golden necklace and a scroll pronouncing her new title “Friend of the Crown.”
Prince Izana decides to be an asshole about it all though, laughing at how “strange” Shirayuki’s title was, and actually said right in front of her that he’d considered her a nobody in the past. That being said, he also correctly points out that Shirayuki has never clarified in words what she wanted from Zen. After Prince Izana leaves, Zen tries to cheer her up and says she doesn’t have to rush to say anything yet.
Later that day, Sakaki finds Shirayuki to give her a personal letter from Prince Raj. Sakaki admits that he still thinks of a potential romantic match for Prince Raj, even though Raj has not quite reached that point by himself. After she goes to bed, Shirayuki reads Prince Raj’s letter. He lets her know that he gave her the title so she can use it as a shield in case she never needs it.
However reading the letter stirs some emotions and thoughts in Shirayuki’s mind, leaving her unable to sleep. She wanders outside on the grounds, where Obi finds her, and they leave for the herb garden together. They make small talk until Obi finally just asks her what happened. Hearing Prince Izana’s words and then reading Prince Raj’s letter have left her somewhat confused about what to think, or what she should do next. Obi says that she should talk to Zen first, and he leaves to go get his master.
True to his word, Obi flags down Zen who goes running to Shirayuki’s side. She apologizes for not saying anything to him since their confrontation with Prince Izana the day before, but reassures him that everything she told him previously was still true. She asks him if she’s allowed to think that she loves him and wants to be by his side someday. Zen is overwhelmed by her words and embraces her, then pulls her hair aside and kisses her neck, and then they share a kiss.
Zen scoops up Shirayuki and takes her to the castle rooftop, where there is a little pond and some beautiful flowers. On the way he’s spotted by Kiki, Mitsuhide 
and Obi, but they leave the two lovebirds alone, reassured that they’ll show up for breakfast.
Alone on the rooftop, Zen tells Shirayuki that yes, she can think about the two of them getting married and being together. It’s always been ok with him. And he promises to one day be able to tell her that he feels the same, in his own words.
Afterwards, Zen reports to his older brother and tells him that he will see Sakaki off. He has a staring contest with Prince Izana, who remarks after Zen leaves that that was the first time Zen had never broken eye contact with him.
As Sakaki and Mihaya are leaving, Shirayuki gives Sakaki a letter to take back to Prince Raj. Sakaki teases her that he will still try to talk Shirayuki into being with Raj, and Mihaya jokes that he’ll adopt her into his family if she decides she ever wants the rank of a noble.
After the credits role, there’s a brief scene with Zen, Shirayuki, Obi, Kiki and Mitsuhide. They part ways to do their own work, and Shirayuki runs into Chief Garak, her assistant and Ryu. Shirayuki and Ryu leave together for the dispensary. As they walk in silence, Shirayuki thinks to herself that she wants to be able to draw her own path, and she wants her story to be painted with the color of fate.
My thoughts: This was a fulfilling ending to what has been a fantastic season. I’m thrilled that season two was so much more than what the first season was. More of what, you ask? More shoujo, more romance, more fluffyness, more sparkles, more laughs. Just more. And I loved every minute of it.
Story: There were only 12 episodes, the new short standard for an anime series it seems, so there was really only time to have a couple of main story arcs. Some of it was a little cliched, like Shirayuki needing to be rescued by Zen, but as was mentioned in the comments the Claw of the Sea arc was from earlier in the manga when the author was still trying to find her groove, so I’m willing to cut the show some slack. Plus Prince Raj got a lot of character development and the Zen x Shirayuki ship got a really touching scene at the end of that storyline, so it balances out. I also was glad that we got to see more of Shirayuki’s backstory covered, since Prince Zen’s was included in the first season.
Characters: I love everyone! No really, I do. I don’t think there are any characters I actively dislike. (Which is more than I can say for some of the other shows I covered this season.) And there was a lot of character development which is always a plus. I feel like season one of Akagami no Shirayukihime was the setup to get viewers acquainted with the settings and characters, and then this season was when things actually started to happen. The Zen x Shirayuki ship started to sail, we learned more about Kiki and Mitsuhide’s relationship, and we also got a peek at some of the hidden feelings that Prince Raj & Obi have for Shirayuki, even if they’ll go unrequited. Plus, you know, all of the plot. *waves hand nonchalantly* 
And this show is funny! Prince Raj and Obi are usually the comedic relief (hello, anyone else like the quip from Obi about Mitsuhide trying to have a secret tryst
with Zen??), but even minor characters like Prince Raj’s kid siblings proved they could be funny too. Nevermind the hilarious facial expressions during certain scenes. *big thumbs up*
Music and Animation: This was where Akagami no Shirayukihime 2 really shone in my eyes. The animation is GORGEOUS, and this is coming from a self-proclaimed graphics whore. It’s easy to see that a lot of time and effort went into making this show look good. The second half of the series had a lot of sparkles during the Zen x Shirayuki scenes, but meh it’s a super fluffy shoujo so I guess it can be somewhat expected. *shrugs*
I will probably pick up the soundtrack for this series at some point if I can. I adore both the opening and ending themes, sung by Saori Hayami and Eyelis respectively, and the music scored throughout the series was nothing but complimentary to each respective scene.
Tl;dr – I suck at writing summaries, but this is an incredible show, and if you like fluffy sweet shoujos I recommend you give it a watch! I’m really sad to see it end, but I’m super excited to finally be able to go devour the manga.
Final Score: 9.5/10