3.5 rounded up

Another solid entry with a good ending and way more interesting climax than the first. The allegory of the magic school and the point about working together in a capitali-I mean system where the rich and powerful survive and the poor kids, without networking literally die from monsters—is much better articulated in this follow up, imo.

There’s a couple bit picky things about the teens relationship, such as the oh-no-we-can’t-communicate-properly-in-a-perfunctory-way trope. But it is pretty different, in many ways, from other things in the genre, so it’s not as annoying as it often can be. Other than that, it’s a bit overwritten, but a fun romp, return.