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With the summer season just around the corner, I thought I’d poke my head in and give an overview of the 26 new shows lined up. At first glance, there are some noteworthy continuations such as Rinne no Lagrange Season 2 and Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon II, but a closer look reveals some gems such as Yuruyuri ♪♪ and Moyashimon Returns. In terms of all-new series, we have the highly anticipated Sword Art Online, an adaptation of Accel World creator Kawahara Reki’s other virtual reality fantasy novel — TARI TARI, another original slice-of-life series by P.A. Works — Natsuyuki Rendezvous, a romance/drama airing in the noitaminA time slot — plus a good selection of romantic comedies to round everything out. So without further ado, let’s have a look shall we?
Note: I don’t plan to write any more season previews while I’m on my indefinite hiatus. This was a special case since I was personally asked to write this season’s.
As a quick reminder, each entry is divided into two paragraphs:
- A brief introduction to the series and its premise, often with the starring cast of characters.
- My impressions, expanding on the plot and highlighting specific aspects that interest me.
The overall impressions at the very end categorize the shows in a way that should help you decide what to watch.
Disclaimer: Regular readers of the site probably already know that my tastes are fairly diverse, but a quick look at MyAnimeList should give everyone else an idea of my seventeen year history of watching anime. With that in mind, please be aware that I’ll often watch mediocre and even controversial series for the sake of variety, or simply so that I can make an informed judgment at the end. However, I would only recommend such shows if you’ve seen something similar, enjoyed it to a certain degree, and know what you’re getting yourself into. I still have my usual genres, so it’s usually not too difficult for me to decide what to watch based on premise, art style, production, and cast (a big one for me) after going through some source and/or promotional material. For the purpose of this preview, I’ll try to identify what appeals to me about each series, in hopes that it will help you determine if it coincides with your own tastes.
By no means does this list reflect every single anime series that is going to be aired, though it’s meant to be as comprehensive as possible. Shows that stray far from the anime norm or are deemed oriented towards younger children are omitted, so check out MOON PHASE for an entire listing, syoboi’s calendar for specific air times, and Fansub Wiki’s page for who’s tentatively subbing what.
Technical Note: The list is ordered by the date and time that the shows premiere. The links in the schedule will take you to a series’ corresponding entry and the “Top” links on the right will bring you back. You can also use the back/forward buttons in your browser to jump between links you’ve clicked. All times are given in a 24-hour, relative-day format where times are extended to show which day they belong to. For instance, Friday morning at 1:30AM would become Thursday at 25:30 to show that the episode aired late Thursday night.
* Jump to OVA/Movies.
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Kicking off the summer season a month ahead of the actual July start is a 38-episode historical action series set in 245 BC China in the State of Qin, during the Spring and Autumn Warring States Period. The story is adapted from an ongoing 25-volume manga and revolves around a war orphan named Shin (Morita Masakazu, Kurosaki Ichigo in Bleach), whom together with his friend Hyou, train in combat every day and dream of becoming generals on the battlefield. However, their fates forever change when Hyou is summoned to the royal palace because of his skill, gets caught up in a power struggle, and barely escapes with his life back to his hometown. Hyou ends up entrusting a map to Shin, who sets out on a journey and encounters a young boy who resembles his late friend — Sei (Fukuyama Jun), the current King of Qin. Studio Pierrot, the production company behind Naruto, Bleach, and other long-running shounen series, is using copious amounts of CGI in the animation for this adaptation. It’s almost a venture project of sorts, and while the end result doesn’t look bad, it definitely shows that most of the scenes are computer rendered. The series itself I’m rather indifferent about, as the feudal Chinese setting is something I’m interested in, but not something I’m overly compelled to watch an anime about. At first glance, the biggest draw of this NHK prime time offering is Morita Masakazu and Fukuyama Jun’s casting in the lead roles. There’s likely a lot more substance to the manga, given its five-years-and-counting serialization in the seinen magazine Weekly Young Jump, so it’s worth a peek if the premise piques your interest.
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Jersey club girls, legendary robots, and galactic battles, oh my! Production I.G and car manufacturer Nissan’s original series makes its much-awaited return after a scheduled season break. Things last left off with emotional highs and lows that saw our three heroines — Kyouno Madoka (Ishihara Kaori), Lan (Seto Asami), and Muginami (Kayano Ai) — going separate ways, and the mystery behind the “Blossoming of Rinne” still not unraveled. A lot was revealed about the alien invaders who constantly attacked Madoka’s beloved ocean-side city of Kamogawa in the first season. This continuation is expected to build on those revelations and work towards a satisfying conclusion that not only sees the three girls reunited, but answers all the questions surrounding the three legendary “Vox” robots: Aura (wind), Lympha (water), and Ignis (fire). It’s no secret that the original season of Lagrange and Ano Natsu de Matteru were my favorite series in winter and candidates for my favorites of 2012, so saying that I’m eagerly anticipating the continuation (not sequel) of the former would be a huge understatement. This original series was budgeted for two cours from the very beginning, and the halfway point that it left off on was (for lack of a better phrase), “Damn good.” While we learned the true identities of the intergalactic races from Le Garite and De Metrio who were vying over control of the lengendary Vox robots left on Earth, we were utterly teased about what’s to come following that revelation. This series features amiable characters and the perfect blend of action, comedy, and drama, so if you haven’t watched the original, you should check it out before season 2 airs. Highly recommended.
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P.A. Works, the studio behind true tears, Angel Beats, and Another, is churning out a new slice-of-life series in the same vein as Hanasaku Iroha from spring 2011. The producer, character designer, and composer from Hanairo return for TARI TARI, which portrays the daily lives of three high school girls who are too young to be considered adults, but don’t perceive themselves as children anymore. In this everyday depiction of laughs, fights, worries, and love, we have Sakai Wakana (Takagaki Ayahi), who suddenly gives up on music one day, Miyamoto Konatsu (Seto Asami), who won’t give up on singing, and Okita Sawa (Hayami Saori), who will help any friend in need. They’re soon joined by two male students: Badminton club member Tanaka Taichi (Shimazaki Nobunaga) and transfer student Wein (Hanae Natsuki), who’s spent the past twelve years in Austria. As much as I love P.A. Works, I’ll be the first to admit that the setup for TARI TARI sounds incredibly generic. It’s almost as if the Hanasaku Iroha staff members sat down over coffee and haphazardly decided on some character personalities so that they can make another slice-of-life series. Be that as it may, the promo material suggests that the production quality is what we’d expect from the studio, and there’s a very good possibility that the unassuming premise centering around music will turn out much better than I or anyone else thinks. While still a good series, Hanairo was a bit of a letdown for me, particularly in the middle stretch where the focus drifted away from the main cast, so I’m cautiously optimistic about what’s in store for TARI TARI. The good thing is that with P.A. Works, it’s a fairly safe bet this will be a “good” series if not a “great” one.
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J.C. Staff is adapting one of HuneX’s otome games this season, which features a vigilante organization known as “Arcana Famiglia” whose members possess special arcana abilities after forming a contract with “Tarocco”. The setting is the prosperous island of Regalo located in the Mediterranean Sea, and the heroine is Felicità (Noto Mamiko), the daughter of the organization’s leader, Mondo (Tachiki Fumihiko). After Felicità turns sixteen and becomes a full-fledged member, Mondo suddenly announces his retirement on his next birthday and decides to have all the members compete in the “Arcana Deulo”, a tournament to decide his successor and Felicità’s future husband. Among those fighting for the right of succession are: Libertà (Fukuyama Jun), Nova (Yonaga Tsubasa), Debito (Yoshino Hiroyuki), Pace (Sugita Tomokazu), Luca (Nakamura Yuuichi), Dante (Kosugi Jurota), and Jolly (Yusa Kouji). However, Felicità decides to take part as well to decide her own future. I can’t vouch for the game since I haven’t played it, but the setup with a vigilante organization, special powers, and a heroine who fights back and doesn’t simply go along with what she’s been told does pique my interest a fair degree. What’s more, Kon Chiaki (Higurashi, Nodame Cantabile) is directing this adaptation, while Akahoshi Masanao (To Aru Majutsu no Index, Tegami Bachi, FREEZING) handles the screenplay — a tandem that instills some confidence. My only minor concern is J.C. Staff’s involvement, since their adaptations tend to be spot on from an animation standpoint, yet hit-or-miss when it comes to execution. Hopefully this won’t be a miss though, as I like what I see from the cast list, character designs, and promotional material.
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Artist and scenario writer Tanaka Romeo, whose previous works include various adult games, is getting his first fantasy light novel adapted into an anime. “Mankind Has Declined” as the title suggests, depicts a distant future several centuries later where humanity is nearing extinction and a new Koro-pok-guru-like fairy species has emerged. Acting as a government mediator to these fairies is a nameless girl only referred to as “I” (Nakahara Mai) – a graduate of humanity’s last remaining school “Gakusha” who figured she’d have an easy life with this job, but gets caught up in all the fairies’ mysterious behaviour and inventions. Her grandfather serves as the chief of the mediator office in their hometown of Kusunoki, and a young boy he took in works as his assistant. The promo artwork will have you believing otherwise, but this surreal and refreshing story actually contains a fair bit of the author’s peculiar black humor — something that the promo video with a headless talking chicken gives a sense of. In addition, there are parodies and homages everywhere, as the setup generally showcases our nameless heroine’s interactions with fairies and their mysterious inventions. Not exactly what I would’ve expected given the character designs and color palette of this series, so I’m admittedly not sure what to make of it. In some ways, it does remind me of the Kozue Amano’s “healing manga” ARIA though. On the production side, director Kishi Seiji (Angel Beats, Kami-sama Dolls) is in charge of this adaptation, warranting a closer look.
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In an all-too-familiar setup, we have another comedy about an elemtary school girl who’s infatuated with an older guy. Adapted from a four-panel gag manga, Chitose Get You!! centers around the everyday life of 11-year-old Sakuraba Chitose (Nakaya Sayaka), who takes her crush on Kashiwabara Hiroshi (Hatano Wataru) — a government worker working at the town hall next to her school — to an over-the-top obsessive level. Hilarity ensues as a result, and Chitose’s friends, Misaki (Tokui Sora) and Hiiragi Hinako (MAKO), get caught up in her antics before long. Things even heat up a bit in the love rival department, when Chitose’s homeroom teacher Fuji Asako (Mitsuishi Kotono), who is constantly teased about being single and unmarried, is introduced to Hiroshi and takes a liking to him. I can’t be the only one reminded of Kodomo no Jikan in this “underage girl loves older guy” setup, but unlike that risqué drama-filled manga, Chitose Get You focuses heavily on the comedy. Hiroshi’s portrayed by Hatano Wataru, who’s voiced some of the most straightlaced male characters I can think of (see Nogizaka Haruka), and just goes along with Chitose’s childhood romance so that he doesn’t hurt her feelings. Judging from the chapters of the manga that I flipped through, the humor itself is expectedly a bit random, but struck a chord with me when Asako — voiced by veteran Mitsuishi Kotono (Sailor Moon) — gets pulled into the mix and attracts dangerously jealous stares from Chitose. I also like the simply yet subtlely different character designs, so I’m tempted to check out a few episodes for some cheap laughs. Production-wise, I’m always curious to see how producers turn a four-panel manga into a more seamlessly flowing anime.
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Adult PC game developer âge — makers of the drama-filled Kimi ga Nozomu Eien — is getting another one of their titles adapted into an anime. This time, it’s a spin-off light novel based on the alternate world sequels to their 2003 Muv-Luv game, namely Muv-Luv Unlimited and Muv-Luv Alternative, which take place in a futuristic setting where humanity is struggling to fend off alien invaders known as BETA (a horrendous acronym that stands for “Beings of the Extra Terristrial orion which is Adversary of human race”). Since their arrival in 1973, the entire Eurasian continent’s been lost and the Earth’s population decimated by billions. Mankind’s only hope in a losing battle for the past 30 years are mobile mechanical weapons known as Tactical Surface Fighters (TSF). Total Eclipse takes place in 2001, when Takamura Yui (Nakahara Mai), a TSF pilot for the Imperial Royal Guards of Japan, is sent to Alaska to take part in a joint project with Russian and the US to develop next-generation TSFs. There, she meets Russian test pilot Cryska Barchenowa (Nabatame Hitomi) and US Army pilot Yuuya Bridges (Ono Daisuke), the latter of whom isn’t fond of his half-Japanese roots. I’m not overly familiar with the Muv-Luv franchise, but the alternate world bit is strikingly similar to IDOLM@STER’s own mecha spin-off, Xenoglossia. Generally, it’s a way of bolstering the popularity of a “new series” with already established characters, but Total Eclipse steps away from Unlimited and Alternative by featuring an all-new cast. As a fan of sci-fi robot anime, I’m naturally interested in the premise — even if there weren’t busty pilots in skintight suits — but the first few chapters of the manga variation were a bit slow and nothing really drew me in. However, I have heard good things about it and would never simply disregard an anime by Satelight that involves mechs, which gives me more than enough reason to give this series a go. I like what I see in terms of production quality, which is on par with Satelight’s stellar work on Aquarion EVOL these past two seasons.
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The Hyakunin Isshu — a collection of a hundred traditional poems by a hundred famous poets — is the focus in an anime again, except it’s not over the card game karuta. In “Super Liberal Hyakkunin Isshu: Love Song”, we’re provided with author Sugita Kei’s loose interpretation of the poems, set in the Heian Period (794-1185). The emphasis is how love still blossomed during this feudal period of Japan, before there were mail or telephones to convey one’s feelings. As of July of last year, the first two volumes of the manga have sold an impressive 210,000 copies, prompting the green-light on this adaptation. Prior to becoming a professional mangaka, the author produced popular MAD videos on Niconico under the alias “cdm” — some of which generated over 5.5 million views — and was praised for having a unique artistic style and comedic sense. Some of that can be seen in Uta Koi, which is said to have a modernized comedic touch. With Bakuman and Honey & Clover director Kasai Kenichi on board, as well as various popular seiyuu that include Kaji Yuuki, Suwabe Junichi, Hayami Saori, Endou Aya, Shimono Hiro, and Oohara Sayaka, the only real intangiable is TYO Animations’ involvement — a studio that’s collaborated on many productions but haven’t led too many of their own. The liberal stories themselves seem to be popular and even educational to a certain degree, as the manga can be found in study reference sections of many bookstores. Sugita Kei’s art style is a real treat too, distinguishing itself from the stuff we typically see these days, so I’m rather curious to see how this adaptation turns out. I don’t care too much for the Hyakunin Isshu, much like I didn’t in Chihayafuru, but I’m always up for a good romance story in any setting.
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The laugh-until-your-eyes-bleed yuri goodness is back for a second season, as the members of the unofficial “Fun Club”, Akaza Akari (Mikami Shiori), Toshinou Kyouko (Ootsubo Yuka), Funami Yui (Tsuda Minami), and Yoshikawa Chinatsu (Ookubo Rumi) continue to spend their easygoing middle school days with the members of the student council, Matsumoto Rise (Gotou Saori), Sugiura Ayano (Fujita Saki), Ikeda Chitose (Toyosaki Aki), Oomura Sakurako (Katou Emiri), and Furutani Himawari (Mimori Suzuko). In what appears to be just another slice-of-life comedy starring four girls, Yuruyuri sets itself apart by featuring nine girls with distinct nuances and fully taking their antics to ridiculously idiotic levels. The director and screen writer from season one are back, both of whom also worked on Miname-ke s1 and Mitsudomoe s1/s2, retaining the formula that worked so well in season one. I really didn’t foresee Yuruyuri getting a sequel, let alone a sequel so soon, making this continuation one of the most pleasant surprises of the summer season. Its light lesbian spin, accompanied by a lot of idiocy from the presenceless Akari, extremely whimsical Kyouko, and Yui-obsessed Chinatsu, really redefine the usual slice-of-life formula. The original season was one of my favorite comedies of 2011, having made me laugh uncontrollably on many occasions, so I anticipate I’ll be in store for the same hilarious enjoyment again. Yuriness notwithstanding, the slapstick humor is similar to Ichigo Mashimaro’s — a slice-of-life favorite of mine — so if you’ve seen that and enjoyed it, do yourself a favor and check out Yuruyuri. It’s good laughs all around.
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Sunrise is bringing us a new adaptation this season, which not only reunites the seiyuu trio from Kannagi — Hanazawa Kana, Tomatsu Haruka, and Shimono Hiro — but also features music by former Square Enix leading composer, Hamauzu Masashi (Final Fantasy XIII, XIII-2), marking his first foray into the anime industry. The series itself depicts a comedic battle between fortune and misfortune, where 16-year-old Sakura Ichiko (Kana), who’s been blessed with good looks, smarts, wealth, and athleticism, is pitted against the Japanese “God of Poverty” Binboda Momiji (Uchiyama Yumi), who’s been sent to correct the fortuitous anomaly that Ichiko is. The voluptuous “lucky girl” has been unknowingly sapping all the good luck energy from everyone around her and she’s unwilling to relinquish that ability even after Momiji confronts her about it, setting the stage for a lot of comedic back-and-forth bickering. Even for a surreal gag comedy, I’m amused by how unadultered and petty the humor in Binbougami ga’s manga can be, like how Momiji keeps remarking about Ichiko’s breast size and wanting to take them for herself. Also, rather than allowing a deity to fix the imbalance in the world, Ichiko pretty much tells Momiji to screw off, compounding problems and adding to the hilarity. The most surprising aspect is how multifaceted this series is, switching over to a more sentimental note when Ichiko inadvertently brings misfortune to those she holds dear. It’s a welcomed change-up that was seamlessly slipped in and should work well with the comedy that Gintama director Fujita Youichi is in charge of. I’m not sure where things are headed, but with Momiji’s masochistic summoned dog Inugami Momo (Hiro) and hot-blooded karate-crazed transfer student Rindou Ran (Haruka) among the regular cast, I do want to find out.
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Five years later, Sawaki Tadayasu (Sakaguchi Daisuke) and his “Tales of Agriculture” at university make a return to the noitaminA time slot. Based on Ishikawa Masayuki’s seinen manga, Moyashimon involves the not-so-ordinary life of Tadayasu, who can see microbes with the naked eye and communicate with them — an ability that his professor Keizou Itsuki (Nishimura Tomomichi) and research assistant Hasegawa Haruka (Oohara Sayaka) deem priceless. He attends “Noudai” with his gothic-lolita cross-dressing childhood friend Yuuki Kei (Saiga Mitsuki), first-year germaphobe Oikawa Haruka (Kanda Akemi), the school’s “Miss Agriculture” Mutou Aoi (Noto Mamiko), and his two opportunistic seniors, Misato Kaoru (Konishi Katsuyuki) and Kawahama Takuma (Sugiyama Noriaki), where he gets caught up in crazy exploits involving fermentation and illegally brewed alcohol. The original season left off with Tadayasu regaining his ability to see microbes after suddenly losing it, which further deepened his bond with them. While this series is filled with microbiology jargon about cultivation and fermentation, it has an inexplicable charm to it that not only kept me watching the original season, but got me watching (and enjoying) the drama version too. I really like the university setting, as it’s a welcome change of scenery from the high school alternative that we see in just about every other anime. The characters are older and more educated, but their stupidity remains in spite of being well-learned in their field — a combination that’s pretty hilarious from a viewer standpoint. I don’t care much for the educational microbiology aspect, but it’s still easy to relate to what the characters are going through and getting a lot of enjoyment from that. There are also some overarching drama-filled plotlines, making this a truly unique seinen comedy that deserves some attention. It even has veteran seiyuu Touma Yumi voicing the microbe mascot Oryzae in a goofy voice.
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Taking over the second noitaminA time slot is an adaptation of a supernatural romance manga that completed its two-and-a-half-year, four-volume run earlier this year. Titled “Summer Snow Rendezvous”, the series revolves around Hazuki Ryuusuke (Nakamura Yuuichi), who hopped on the opportunity to work part-time at a flower shop after secretly falling in love with its eight-year-older owner, Shimao Rokka (Oohara Sayaka). One day, he happens to go up to the second floor of the building and runs into the ghost of her late husband, Shimao Atsushi (Fukuyama Jun), whom only he can see. Atsushi’s spirit lingered after Rokka begged him on his deathbed not to leave her, and now he’s intent on getting in Ryuusuke’s way to prevent him from taking Rokka from him. However, Ryuusuke is neither swayed nor afraid of Atsushi’s presence and makes strides toward telling Rokka how he feels and helping her move on. A quick flip-through of the manga has the romantic in me really looking forward to this adaptation, as the gimmicky setup of “young guy going after an older woman while her dead husband gets in the way” proved to be a lot better than it sounds. The depiction of the characters’ emotions feels very real, so much so that I wouldn’t be surprised if a live-action variation is produced at some point like so many other noitaminA shows (e.g. Honey & Clover, Nodame Cantabile, Usagi Drop). It was easy to get a sense of where the characters were coming from, making the drama that much more prominent when Ryuusuke decides to become Rokka’s replacement for Atsushi if need be. Then there’s the supernatural part where Atsushi wants Rokka to himself but can only communicate to her through Ryuusuke, which really throws this love triangle in for a whirl. Will they work together to make Rokka happy? I don’t know but I intend to find out.
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In the all too familiar scenario of an eroge turned anime, AIC Build is bringing us game maker Sprite’s first and only release thus far, “Love, Election & Chocolate” (or “Koichoco” for short). The setting is Takafuji Academy, a private institution with over 6,000 students where second-year Oojima Yuuki (Nakamura Yuuichi) spends his days leisurely in the Food Research Club, a.k.a. “Shokken”, that his childhood friend Sumiyoshi Chisato (Nakamura Eriko) is president of. In reality, the club doesn’t do anything but eat snacks. They’re accompanied by many other students, many of whom are members of Shokken, including Yuuki’s classmate Kiba Mifuyu (Mizuhashi Kaori), first-year Morishita Michiru (Imai Asami), and Michiru’s friend Aomi Isara (Kadowaki Mai). Their easygoing days are in jeopardy however, when the forerunner in the next student council president election, Shinonome Satsuki (Asakawa Yuu), proposes that all clubs with no merit be abolished. After consulting with the current president, Yuuki decides to run in the election against Satsuki to try and save their club. Naturally, the situation sounds a lot more grave than it really is, as I quickly found out in the manga version. Yuuki gets along really well with Satsuki and is stricken by her amazing looks, so the conflict surrounding the election is mostly there to drive out his romantic interactions with her and the rest of the heroines. The club’s easygoing activities of sampling food and goofy outbursts, coupled with the large support cast of eccentric characters, remind me a lot of Haganai, which is befitting since director Kitahata Tooru served as an episode director in its adaptation. Likewise, the story touches upon some more serious subplots, such as the bullying Isara has to endure at school since her family’s poor. While Koichoco doesn’t step too far away from the eroge adaptation norm, my opinion of it has definitely improved for the better. For those familiar with the game, the female cast is all here, except under their real names.
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Studio Gokumi, the one-year-old company comprised of former GONZO Studio 5 staff, is spearheading two productions this summer. Premiering first is their adaptation of a romantic comedy, “Among These Girls is My Younger Sister!”, where Mikadono Shougo (Sakurai Takahiro) inherits the wealthy Mikadono Group and begins training to become its next president. As per his father’s will, he transfers to a prestiguous high school where he’s asked to find a future wife before graduation. He soon finds himself surrounded by beautiful girls — Tsuruma Konoe (Ishihara Kaori), Kannagi Miyabi (Sakura Ayane), Kunitachi Rinka (Taketatsu Ayana), Tendou Mana (Oogame Asuka), and Sagara Mei (Hidaka Rina) — and is intent on getting close to them. However, he receives an anonymous phone call from someone claiming to be his younger sister and among the girls he’s gotten close to. She won’t reveal her true identity until he falls in love with her, leaving Shougo deathly afraid of ending up with a sister he didn’t know existed. Sakurai Takahiro starring in a harem anime is the first thing that stood out to me with this series, followed by a female cast that includes Ano Natsu/Rinne no Lagrange’s Ishihara Kaori and Denpa Onna’s Oogame Asuka. After that, it’s how rather convenient the setup is, forcing Shougo in a catch-22 scenario where he has to risk falling for his half-sister (and likely will). I don’t care for the whole incest bit, but I did enjoy the early chapters that I read where Konoe’s kindhearted nature and Miyabi’s forwardness noticeably change up the harem formula. Then there’s the twist with the stalkerish phone call that puts Shougo on edge and makes me suspicious of all the girls, which worked well in keeping me reading. I don’t anticipate this will be a standout series, but the premise does have a “little something” that makes the series compelling to read (…and watch).
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From Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei author Kumeta Kouji comes another gag manga, except this title is about the everyday lives of five girls who talk about a lot of meaningless drivel and get really into their conversations. Even their names are puns themselves, as we have “Bloody Mary” Buratei Marii (Sakura Ayane), “Hello Kitty Stuffed Animal” Haroukitei Kigurumi (Koiwai Kotori), “Breakwater Tetrapod” Bouhatei Tetora (Yamamoto Nozomi), “Cool Beauty Glasses” Kuurubiyuutei Gankyou (Yoshino Nanjo), and “Dark and Gloomy” Anrakutei Kukuru (Gotou Saori). Everything takes place in the backstage of a theatre, and the comedy almost always starts with one of the girls saying asking a random question or making a head-scratching statement. All the other girls then join in, adding their equally random input and taking the discussion off on wild tangents. Judging from the manga, this form of delivery provides a completely unscripted type of humor, similar to the kind I have with my friends when we talk about random stuff. In many ways, it reminds me of Yuruyuri’s depiction of a group of girls talking about extremely unimportant things, except without the slapstick lesbian undertones. What I found most amusing is how the girls are quick to turn on one another to make a point. In comparison, the endless stream of witty yet non-sensical remarks was only mildy amusing, but should benefit in an animated and vocalized form. The best summation of this series is probably “cute girls saying stupid things”, so if you enjoy a lot of satire, it’s worth a peek. Ika Musume s1 and Yondemasu yo, Azazel-san’s Mizushima Tsutomu is directing and Genshiken’s Yokote Michiko is handling the screenplay — two big pluses in my book.
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Hobby Japan and ARMS, the publisher and studio that brought us Queen’s Blade and Samurai Girls, are back with another “sexy battle anime” this season. In what’s intended to resemble a New Game+, “The Stray Hero’s Brute Aesthetics” follows the everyday school life of Ousawa Akatsuki (Okamoto Nobuhiko), after he returns to modern day Japan from the alternate universe of Alazard where he defeated the demon king. With him is the demon king’s daughter Miu (Hikasa Youko), whom the demon king actually entrusted to Akatsuki upon his defeat because of his brute nature. Shocked to learn that he defeated the first demon king ever, the international training facility “BABEL” takes both him and Miu into custody. There, they attend school with other beautiful girls — Izumi Chikage (Ueda Kana) and Doumoto Kuzuha (Hanazawa Kana) — and get wrapped up in battles with the student council — president Hikama Kyouya (Sakurai Takahiro) and vice president Nanase Haruka (Inoue Marina). The all-star cast and OP/ED theme songs by Faylan and Misato Aki are commonplace in fan-service-filled anime these days, making the New Game+ part of the premise the most intriguing part. I see it as light novel author Uesu Tetsuto’s way of explaining the characters’ fighting ability while dropping them in a modern day school setting where it’s exclusive to the students. From a writing standpoint, he has the freedom to take the story in almost any direction by drawing from an established yet unwritten backstory. I don’t know where this series is headed, but I do see the potential fo the story to be as surprisingly layered as Hobby Japan’s other demon king-related series, Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou. Still, while I did watch both Queen’s Blade and Samurai Girls and gave them a chance to surprise me (which they did), I’m not planning to stick with this latest Hobby Japan series unless the first episode really grabs my interest.
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When it comes to risqué series like kiss x sis and Yosuga no Sora, feel is the studio to deliver. This season however, they’re going a safer route with the adaptation of “That’s Why I Can’t Have Sex”, where ultra-perverted yet unbelievably kind Kaga Ryousuke (Shimono Hiro) ends up losing his highly-prized sex drive to an elite death god, Lisara Restall (Endou Aya). She’s in the human world to look for someone with an enormous amount of spiritual energy, but requires some to remain here and continue her search, so she ends up forming a pact with Ryousuke to use his energy — effectively draining him of his main “drive” in life. He ends up helping her with her search to get his sex drive back, during which his childhood friend Ookura Mina (Ishihara Kaori), Lisara’s cousin Quele Sellier (Nishiguchi Arisa), and Lisara’s rival Fukumine Iria (Fukuen Misato) join the mix. The premise sounds a bit run-of-the-mill, but the execution in manga version is pretty hilarious since Ryousuke is quite outspoken about how he can’t even look at an attractive girl with lustrous eyes anymore, and not arrogant or self-loathing about his pervertedness. The humor that comes from his personality is very refreshing as a result and quite unlike the typical jokes in romantic comedies. Lisara on the other hand is a tsundere who isn’t overly violent and flips to her dere side quite frequently, leading to a lot of cute scenarios where she turns flush red. She’s also the least “endowed” out of all the female characters — something she has a bit of a complex about. The two of them are a fun tandem to watch — especially with Mina around, who clearly likes Ryousuke — so I’m looking forward to hearing Shimono Hiro opposite of Endou Aya in the lead roles. While there may be fan-service, their dynamic and the adult humor are the main draws for me.
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A high school “battle fantasy” light novel about god slayers is getting an adaptation, produced by Diomedea (Ika Musume), directed by Kusakawa Keizou (Lyrical Nanoha), and screenwritten by Hanada Jukki (Steins;Gate, sola). The protagonist is 16-year-old Kusanagi Godou (Matsuoka Yoshitsugu), a baseball catcher and clean-up hitter who was selected to be Japan’s team representative but forced to retire from a shoulder injury and only wishes to spend his days peacefully. However, three months ago during his summer vacation in Sardinia, Italy, he gets caught up in a battle between two gods. Together with Erica Blandelli (Hikasa Youko), a member of the “Copper Black Cross” magicians’ society, Godou winds up defeating the “War God” Verenthragna, earning him the title as the seventh Campione — a select group of people who have defeated malevolent gods and obtained both their powers and status in the world — and pulling him into a world where he has to battle against other Campione and malevolent gods. Naturally, other mages are brought into the picture, including a Japanese shrine maiden, Mariya Yuri (Hanazawa Kana), a rival from the “Bronze Black Cross” society, Liliana Kranjcar (Kitamura Eri), and the daughter from a prestigous family, Seishuuin Ena (Saitou Yuka). Yuri has feelings for Godou, but Erica does as well, being his self-proclaimed lover and one of the few people who actually know what happened when he defeated Verethragna. Where things go from there I’m not entirely sure, but I do like what I see in the staff and cast, promo videos, and production in general. Also, the premise with god slayers and mages, albeit different, reminds me a bit of To Aru Majutsu no Index, whose direction I was never sure of either but still enjoyed a fair bit (when I’m not blogging it). This definitely has the potential to be one of the more plot-heavy shows of the season.
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GREE’s popular 2008 mobile social networking game where players adventure together and battle monsters in the world of Driland is getting an anime. Produced by Toei Animation, it follows the adventures of Elua’s princess, Mikoto (Miyamoto Kanako), who visited a small town when she was younger and met someone who inspired her to become a hunter — someone who travels across the land in search of treasure. Now grown up, she sets out an expedition with her caretaker Wallence (Nojima Kenji) and encounters and teams up with other adventurers: Pollon (Kumai Motoko), a hunter who dreams of becoming a hero, and Parn (Uchiyama Kouki), a wandering knight. As they continue their adventures together, meeting various other hunters along the way, a sudden crisis befalls on Driland in the form of a gigantic monster, prompting Mikoto and her party to rally against it. I always approach adaptations of role playing games with a fair bit of caution, as I like the fantasy setting, but am generally disappointed in the story itself (which is ironic since RPGs should have good stories). I don’t mind the more super-deformed character designs as they’re reminiscent to the 8-bit RPGs I grew up playing, so I’m going to wait and see what’s in store for the anime of the mobile game that was a No. 1 bestseller on the iTunes Store in Japan. I’m hoping that this will turn out better than it seems, but I’m still not expecting much at this point.
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DOG DAYS, an original series by Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha creator Tsuzuki Masaki, is surprisingly getting a sequel, which takes the cheerful and acrobatic 13-year-old Izumi Cinque (Miyano Mamoru) back into the parallel world of Fronaldo where dog and cat-like races from the Republic of Biscotti led by Princess Millhiore (Horie Yui) and Lion Domain of Galette led by Princess Leonmichelis (Koshimizu Ami) engage in non-lethal war games for the pride of their countries. Accompanying Cinque for his return are his childhood friend Rebecca Anderson (Takahashi Mikako) and older cousin Takatsuki Nanami (Mizuki Nana), the latter of whom ends up opposing him as Gallete’s summoned hero. Joining the fray is the Principality of Pastillage, whose first dutchess Kübel Eschenbach Pastillage (Yuuki Aoi) is learning to be its next leader from from Mille and Leo. While I don’t anticipate much will change, it’s worth noting that Nanoha director Kusakawa Keizou is not returning for this sequel, having been replaced by true tear’s Nishimura Junji. I watched the original season and found the ending open-ended enough for a sequel, but am still surprised that it actually got one. Reason being, it was an all-ages-friendly series with nice animation and a vibrant color palette, and featured a semi-suspenseful storyline that worked well for lighthearted fantasy, but was still pretty forgettable as a whole. For this continuation, the all-star cast from the stars to the support characters remains one of the biggest draws, so with Yuuki Aoi joining them, I’m inclined to at least check out a few episodes. I would only recommend doing the same if you watched the first season and enjoyed the more innocent spin on the fantasy genre.
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It’s not too often that an author has two of their works adapted in parallel, but Kawahara Reki’s other virtual reality MMORPG series, Sword Art Online, will be airing alongside Accel World this summer. In SAO, a new technology called “NERDLES”, NERve Direct Linkage Environment System, revolutionizes the gaming world by interfacing directly with a player’s brain. However, upon the release of the first game, aptly titled “Sword Art Online”, Kirigaya Kazuto, a.k.a. Kirito (Matsuoka Yoshitsugu) and the rest of the players find themselves unable to log out from it. The game and NERDLES creator Kayaba Akihiko then informs everyone that they need to clear a 100-floor dungeon if they want to leave. The catch is, dying in the game or tampering with the “Nerve Gear” device externally results in death in real life. It’s been two years since then and only 6,000 of the original 10,000 players remain. Kirito, alongside his friend Yuuki Asuna (Tomatsu Haruka), continue fighting to clear the remaining 26 floors and free themselves from the game. The setup is fairly outlandish, as the real world is notified of what’s happening and told to keep the players on life support so that they can play for as long as needed. Beyond that, I find it rather twisted how people are forced to play a game and put their lives on the line. To me, it’s analogous to holding someone at gunpoint and forcing them to play World of Warcraft with Diablo’s hardcore mode. That, and entering The Matrix with no telephones to dial out. While the thought of that is enough to appeal to the “gamer geek” in me, a fantasy series produced by A-1 Pictures and featuring music by Kajiura Yuki makes this a must-watch. As a two-cour adaptation, it remains to be seen whether this will only cover the “SAO arc” or extend to the others that feature different virtual reality games, but given the first arc’s resemblence to Druaga no Tou, and Asuna and Kirito’s relationship with Tomatsu Haruka and Kamimemo’s Matsuoka Yoshitsugu voicing them, this adaptation should be a real treat either way.
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In what could (and probably should) be perceived as the basis for a hentai series, the premise of Anda Sananatsu’s “Connect Hearts” light novel and manga entails students at Yamaboshi High School mysteriously swapping bodies with one another — including the opposite sex. The members of the Literature Research Club — Yaegashi Taichi (Mizushima Takahiro), Nagase Iori (Toyosaki Aki), Inaba Himeko (Sawashiro Miyuki), Kiriyama Yui (Kanemoto Hisako), and Yushifumi Aoki (Terashima Takuma) — first experience this bizarre phenomenon when Yui and Aoki swap bodies for half an hour and find themselves in each other’s home. The next day, Taichi and Iori switch bodies at school, proving that it wasn’t all just a bad dream. After that, they find themselves swapping bodies with one another more frequently while trying to find a pattern and explanation for it. Not only that, they soon find out that they’re not the only ones at the school who are experiencing this phenomenon. The premise sounds eerie but the actual depiction is more comedic than anything else, which I quickly found out in the manga chapters that I skimmed though. There’s some awkwardness when two members of the opposite sex swap bodies and use their hands to “confirm” it for themselves (hence the hentai remark above), but there isn’t actually much in the way of spookiness. Based on what I read, I’m still not entirely sure what to make of this series as it’s primarily slice-of-life with a supernatural twist. I found it somewhat enjoyable because of the characters and their sexual teasing ways, but fairly slow to start. Still, with the female cast in the anime and original character designs by K-ON’s Shiromizakana, I’m curious enough to see where the bodyswapping leads.
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The “impossible to adapt”, highly convoluted, and extremely difficult to appreciate anime based on Kawakami Minori’s unbelievably long “short novels” returns with its scheduled second season. The various factions continue to fight over Kyokutou, the last remaining inhabitable space on Earth, and attempt to relive mankind’s history as transcribed in the “Testament” in hopes of returning to the “Heavens” one day. The story last left off with Aoi Toori (Fukuyama Jun), student council president and leader of the independent sky nation of Musashi, enlisting the help of Ariadust Academy’s Class-3 Plum to save his beloved Horizon (Chihara Minori) — an automaton whose emotions are spread out across the world’s Nine Deadly Sin Armaments, weapons of mass destruction — from being executed. To prevent the supposed apocolpyse that will occur on the last recorded day in the Testament, Aoi and his classmates declare to the world that they’ll retrieve all the Deadly Sin Armaments and return them to Horizon, restoring her emotions in the process. I’m not going to lie; this show is ridiculously hard to understand. Most people will probably give up on it because they can’t figure out what’s going on and I don’t blame them. In my case, I had to throw out my understanding of what I thought was going on and replace it with a lot of reference material on what was actually going on before I had a good grasp of the story. Once I did that, I was baffled by how someone could come up with such a complex story, set in a sci-fi world unlike anything I’ve seen or read before. While the series is still too convoluted for my liking, I really enjoy wrapping my head around the story that Kawakami’s trying to tell and making sense of the lengthy dialogue he’s written. This series definitely isn’t for the faint of heart, but those who have gotten into it like me can vouch for how good it is. Just be prepared to think …a lot.
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In yet another genderbender spin of the Sengoku period, where scruffy samurai warlords are replaced by beautiful female counterparts, we find high school student Sagara Yoshihara (Eguchi Takuya) timeslipping 400 years into the past. Not too long after, Kinoshita Toukichirou — better known as Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the feudal lord who would later unify Japan — gets killed saving him, making Yoshihara feel obligated to serve as his replacement retainer to Oda Nobuna (Itou Kanae) — the female counterpart of Oda Nobunaga. Still looking for a way home, Yoshihara now finds himself helping Nobuna try and unite Japan with “her” other famous samurai retainers — Akechi Mitsuhide (Yahagi Sayuri), Niwa Nagahide (Matsuzaki Rei), Shibata Katsuie (Nabatame Hitomi), and Maeda Inochiyo (Fukuen Misato) — who are all female in this world. Having watched Sengoku Otome ~Momoiro Paradox~ last spring, I’m all too familiar with this genderbender setup and actually don’t mind it, as it combines samurai action with a cute cast. At the same time, it combines samurai action with a cute cast, which could arguably be better served in an over-the-top male depiction of the Sengoku period like Sengoku Basara. For that reason, I find it hard to get excited about these kind of shows, even though I don’t mind watching them. In the case of “The Ambition of Oda Nobuna”, it is worth noting that the entire cast isn’t female — such as Hattori Hanzou who’s voiced by Sakurai Takahiro — so the female gender change seems to be more of an anomaly than a commonality that’s prompted by Yoshihara’s timeslip. The thought of that does raise some questions on what will happen once he finds a way back to his time, so I might take a peek at the first couple of episodes.
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Even with a conclusive second season and a six-episode OVA to fill in all the holes with character-centric side stories, Otomate’s Shinsengumi-based romance adventure game is back for a third — this time in the form of a prequel. It’s intended to show the beginnings of Hijikata Toshizou (Miki Shinichirou) and Kondou Isami’s (Ookawa Tooru) special samurai corps, and will likely provide the same blend of blood-thirsty demon fiction and actual Japanese history. Not a whole lot of specifics outside of that has been made available, but the popularity of this series — especially among female audiences — is undeniable as two movies with an all-new story are already slated for next year. I tried to give as much limelight to this series as I could when the second season aired in fall 2010, making it pretty obvious about my intentions with this prequel. I particularly like how it builds up a fictional story on top of non-fiction, sticking to a lot of the historic facts of what happened to the Shinsengumi in their couragous yet losing battles against pro-Imperial forces. The depiction of their struggle is powerful and moving, and appeals a lot to the sense of chivalry that I have. While the games may be targeted toward female audiences, the anime appeals to a much wider one with its serious outlook on the war, demonic powers, and plentiful bloodshed. If you’re looking for something that’s noticeably different from most shows these days, I recommend giving Hakuouki a try. Since this is a prequel, it’s the perfect opportunity to get into it too.
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Ever wonder what happens when a high school boy looking to join the school’s astronomy club mistakenly ends up joining a club full of otaku girls? No? Well you’re going to find out anyway in “Ebisugawa Public High School Astronomical (?) Club”, where Noya Itsuki (Ise Mariya) winds up doing just that because of a misleading spelling in the club’s name, which is also pronounced “Tenmonbu”. Its members include the trouble maker Todayama Kyouko (Asumi Kana), the fujoshi Kanamori Hakata (Nishi Asuka), the sole rational member Hiromatsu Rikei (Murai Risako), the vice president Ooba Hasumi (Satou Satomi), and the president/student council president Iseda Yuka (Tsukimiya Midori). Even Itsuki’s maid (Nomizu Iori) — who’s actually Kyouko’s younger sister Todayama Izumiko — ends up joining after she comes looking for her master, guaranteeing there will never be a dull day in the “astronomy” club. The character designs immediately reminded me of Seitokai no Ichizon, which turns out is no coincidence since Inugami Kira does the illustrations for the manga. Coincidentally enough, the premise isn’t all that different either, except Itsuki is the heir of the wealthy Noya conglomerate and doesn’t know that the club he joined isn’t the astronomy club. Adding to the confusion is Kyouko, who’s a self-proclaimed “telescope maniac” and has a Dobsonia telescope in the clubroom. Unfortunately, I can’t comment on the humor itself as I wasn’t able to get a hold of the manga to find out first-hand, but the promo video does suggest that it will be similar to the funnier than expected Seitokai no Ichizon. It already sounds like it’ll be chalk full of verbal jokes, so I intend to check out the premiere to get a better sense of the type of humor this series entails. With rambunctious romantic comedies like this, it’s usually hard to tell how enjoyable they are at first glance.
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Technical Note: OVAs are sorted by the date they are released. For series that have multiple episodes coming out over the course of the season, please refer to the Notes column for additional dates. More information on each OVA can be found on their respective websites, including promotional videos in some cases. Movie premiere dates are not included since they don’t mean a whole lot to viewers outside of Japan. DVD/BD movie releases are however. This list is likely incomplete and will be updated as more titles surface. If you notice anything missing, please feel free to point it out in the comments or e-mail me directly.
| Release Date | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 06/08 | Sankarea OAD | さんかれあ OAD http://www.tbs.co.jp/anime/sankarea/ |
Bundled with manga vol. 6. |
| 06/15 | Kimi no Iru Machi | 君のいる町 OAD http://kc.kodansha.co.jp/kimino/ |
Bundled with manga vol. 18. |
| 06/18 | Shijou Saikyou no Deshi Kenichi OVA | 史上最強の弟子ケンイチ OVA http://websunday.net/kenichi/ova/ |
Bundled with manga vol. 47. |
| 06/23 | Asa Made Jugyou Chu! OAD | 朝まで授業Chu！ OAD http://www.mediafactory.co.jp/comic-alive/asachu/ |
Bundled with manga vol. 3. |
| 06/27 | Asa Made Jugyou Chu! OVA | 朝まで授業Chu！ OVA http://www.mediafactory.co.jp/comic-alive/asachu/ |
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| 06/27 | Tight Rope Ep.2 | タイトロープ 第二話 http://www.primetime.gs/ |
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| 06/27 | Hakuouki Sekkaroku OVA Series: Kazama Chikage Chapter 薄桜鬼 碧血録 OVAシリーズ 風間千景編 http://www.geneonuniversal.jp/rondorobe/anime/hakuoki/ |
Episode 6 of 6. |
| 07/06 | kiss x sis OAD 7 http://kc.kodansha.co.jp/kiss_sis/ |
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| 07/11 | Papa ni Iu Koto wo Kikinasai! OVA | パパのいうことを聞きなさい！ OVA http://www.starchild.co.jp/special/papakiki/ |
Unaired 13th episode bundled with BD vol. 5. |
| 07/17 | Seitokai Yakuindomo | 生徒会役員共OAD http://kc.kodansha.co.jp/seitokai/ |
Bundled with manga vol. 7. |
| 07/18 | K-ON! Movie | けいおん！ http://www.tbs.co.jp/anime/k-on/index-j.html |
BD movie release. |
| 07/25 | To Heart 2: Dungeon Travelers Vol.2 | ToHeart2ダンジョントラベラーズ Vol.2 http://aquaplus.jp/th2dtv/ |
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| 07/25 | Tales of Symphonia THE ANIMATION: Sekai Toudou-hen Vol.3 テイルズ オブ シンフォニア THE ANIMATION 世界統合編 Vol.3 http://ova-tos.com/ |
Final volume. |
| 07/27 | CODE GEASS Hangyaku no Lelouch: Nunnally in Wonderland コードギアス 反逆のルルーシュ ナナリーinワンダーランド http://www.geass.jp/nunnally/ |
|
| 07/27 | Stranger Mukouhadan | ストレンヂア 無皇刃譚 http://www.stranja.jp/ |
BD movie release. |
| 08/02 | Nazo Toki Hime wa Meitantei♥ | ナゾトキ姫は名探偵♥ http://www.ciao.shogakukan.co.jp/ |
|
| 08/08 | Shinryaku! Ika Musume OAD | 侵略！イカ娘 OAD http://www.ika-musume.com/ |
Bundled with manga vol. 12. |
| 08/17 | To LOVE-Ru: Darkness OAD | ToLOVEる-とらぶる-ダークネス OAD http://www.j-toloveru.com/ |
|
| 08/22 | Persona 4 OVA | ペルソナ4 OVA http://www.p4a.jp/ |
Bundled with BD vol. 10. |
| 08/23 | Rinne no Lagrange: Kamogawa Days | 輪廻のラグランジェ 鴨川デイズ http://b.bngi-channel.jp/lag-rin/ |
|
| 08/29 | Otome wa Boku-sama ni Koi Shiteru: Futari no Elder THE ANIMATION Vol.1 乙女はお姉さまに恋してる 2人のエルダー THE ANIMATION VOL.1 http://www.fwinc.co.jp/ova_otoboku2/ |
09/26: Vol. 2. |
| 08/29 | Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu Finale ♪ Vol.1 | 乃木坂春香の秘密ふぃな～れ♪ 第1巻 http://www.nogizaka-haruka.com/ |
09/26: Vol. 2. |
| 09/26 | High School DxD OVA | ハイスクールD×D OVA http://www.kadokawa.co.jp/shop/sp/shop_sp_193.html |
|
| 09/26 | Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai Add-on Disk | 僕は友達が少ない あどおんでぃすく http://www.tbs.co.jp/anime/haganai/ |
TV series compilation. |
| Summer 2012 | Katayoku no Chronos Gear | 片翼のクロノスギア http://mingame.jp/katayoku/ |
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(I’ll keep this brief by simply listing my watch list since I’m not returning to regular blogging anytime soon and the other writers’ impressions are the ones you’ll be reading.)
I still have a huge backlog from the winter/spring seasons to get through, but there a handful of new shows that I’ll probably get into right away after taking a first-hand look into what they’re all about. This includes (in no particular order): Sword Art Online, La storia della Arcana Famiglia, Natsuyuki Rendezvous, Campione, Kokoro Connect, and Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai. That’s on top of my must-watch sequels/continuations: Rinne no Lagrange Season 2, Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon II, and Yuruyuri ♪♪. Everything else I’m not anticipating quite as much, but there are some other series I plan to make time for (e.g. P.A. Works’ TARI TARI).
For the usual “as-objective-as-possible” breakdown of the 26 new offerings this season, see below. Note: The lists are sorted in alphabetical order.
High expectation shows give me reason to believe they have the makings of a very good series that should appeal to the widest audience in their given genres. If you consider yourself a “casual” fan who only gets your toes wet every season by watching the “best” shows (i.e. popular ones that generate the most buzz), then these are the ones I feel you should keep an eye out for. I’m also expecting good things from these shows, so if they fall short, disappointment is understandable.
- High Expectations: Kokoro Connect, Rinne no Lagrange Season 2, Sword Art Online
Moderate expectation shows don’t provide any immediate indication that they’ll be amazing in retrospect. This is often the case with shows that fall into one of anime’s overused plot devices, which most people, particularly self-proclaimed critics, will perceive as mediocre at best. However, from my experience, these shows still provide a great deal of entertainment and may turn out a lot better than they appear. They’re good for “regular” fans who are aware of all these tropes and don’t mind seeing them used in different settings. I like sifting through these since romantic comedies are among them. Personal tastes come heavily into play, so your mileage will vary.
- Moderate Expectations: Binbougami ga!, Campione!, Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai., DOG DAYS’, Ebiten: Kouritsu Ebisugawa Koukou Tenmonbu, Hagure Yuusha no Estetica, Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate, Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouto ga Iru!, La storia della Arcana Famiglia, Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse, Oda Nobuna no Yabou, Tanken Driland, Yuruyuri ♪♪
Low expectation shows don’t seem to be striving for much and choose to focus on more frivolous aspects such as senseless humor and fan-service. That doesn’t mean they’re the bottom of the barrel and shouldn’t get any consideration, but simply that you need to keep in mind what kind of show it is. Generally only “avid” fans will be interested in seeing what these have to offer, because they’re already watching all the better shows.
- Low Expectations: Chitose Get You!!, Joshiraku
Niche shows break away from the norm by being slower-paced, extremely dark/grotesque, or even controversial. In most cases, these shows are oriented towards older audiences or those who feel that anime has become far too repetitive and want something different. Shows of this category tend to be highly underappreciated but can turn out to be hidden gems for that very reason. Includes works oriented toward female audiences.
- Niche: Chouyaku Hyakunin Isshu: Uta Koi, Hakuouki Reimeiroku, Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon II, Moyashimon Returns, Natsuyuki Rendezvous
Established shows are generally long-running manga/anime series, geared towards younger viewers who are already fans of them. A commonality is that they all air early morning on weekends or well before midnight on weekdays so that “normal” people can actually watch them. They aren’t very dependent on expectations but a love for never-ending shows and a willingness to get into all the material that’s out if they’re completely new to you. Shounen series fall into this category, hence why I treat them differently.
- Established: Kingdom
Last but definitely not least are the series that I’m not sure what to make heads or tails of yet. Expectation-wise, they fall somewhere between moderate to high due to that unknown factor and are potential surprise hits of the season. If their premises sound interesting to you, I’d say they’re worth checking out.
- Potential Surprise Hit: TARI TARI
Thanks for this! I always await the previews from RC!
I’m only looking forward to Moyashimon on that list.
more sexy Kei trap ^^
Divine, it’s good to see that you again. Now I’m expecting that Horizon Overview.
I’m working on it! I just may have…overachieved a little bit =X
No one could review better than you those erotic dances from kimi. It’s your sacred duty bro.
<3! I’ll do my best!
I will also do my best in getting out those bad ideas in Horizon so that the topic will be more fun than we can imagine. Of course I won’t ruin Horizon in Stilt’s post. I love Horizon( *wink at Stilts). Just going to put some blind points and where the anime should improve. A.k.a I will play the Devil’s advocate this season.
Stilts-oniitan don’t forget Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai blog that!!!
Someone, Anyone, please blog Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai!!! That’s going to be the sleeper this season 😉
Stilts also picked lagrange 2
… I see what you did there :3
Nishishi ^^ All awesome part 2’s go to onii-chan!
I love the smell of yuri in the morning.
I am very excited for the summer season! Looking forward to watch Lagrange, Yuruyuri♪♪, Horizon, Binbougami ga!, and many more!
1. Rinne no Langrange II (I can here the first season’s OP in my head already: “Lag-rin…lag-rin…~”)
2. Oda Nobuna no Yabou (I never get tired of genderbended Sengoku Jidai characters XD)
3. Sword Art Online
4. Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse
5. CODE GEASS Hangyaku no Lelouch: Nunnally in Wonderland
Guess that’s my tentative watch list for the upcoming season.
Not much shows Im looking forward this season. I like Kingdom, Sword Art, Hagure Yuusha no Estetica, and Oda Nobuna so far. I guess Sword Art can be considered the big high expectation anime of this season like Fate Zero was?
Thanks for writing the preview Div! =) I’m sure a lot of people will appreciate it!
Thanks for this so much. I’ll be relying on you guys for your first impressions since I have no expectations of most of the shows in that list. Will be watching for sure the highly anticipated sequels: YuruYuri( yay! Yuruyuri Mondays ftw!), Rinne no Lagrange, Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon. I’ve been hearing many good things from Sword Art Online so I think I’m going to check it out too.
Hope you’ll be back soon Divine. Thanks again to you and to all the writers.
About Chitose Get You, it really depends on how raunchy it is. It could be like Kodomo no Jikan, but it might end up more like Hanamaru Kindergarten, which wasn’t raunchy at all.
As a fan of visual novels, I’m looking forward to Total Eclipse, Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita, and Ebiten which is written by SCA自. The latter two are “must watches” for me, basically (well, it’s possible I may drop Ebiten if I somehow don’t like the characters).
There are a lot of fun-looking anime this season that I may try out, though.
Hopefully Dog Days’ will be covered, since the first season was not.
Not much in terms of story, but the series as a whole is just adorable. Not to mention the songs by Nana Mizuki and Yui Horie are insanely catchy.
0_0 Not only do they share artist, but Ebiten’s PV is using the Setokai no Ichizon OP as well. Is this some kind of elaborate in-joke?
Looks like a decent season, but nowhere near as good as this Springs or, well, any season in 2011. I have moderately high expectations for Natsuyuki, while I’ll be looking out Sword Art Online, Langrange, TARI TARI, Jinrui, Koi to Senkyo, and Oda Nobuna. Everything seems to be up in the air at the moment though, so I don’t think I’ll be too disappointed if everything stays in the below-to-above average range.
Just finished marathoning the first season of KSnH and the second season is my most anticipated show this summer. It’s a shame that so many people drop it because you’re required to do a little research (there’s an episode-by-episode glossary/FAQ available, and I believe Stilts was making a post that’s the same thing), because what you get is something that I probably would have ranked higher than Fate/Zero if I had been watching it while it (the first season) aired.
I like the jib of this man’s cut!
Wow, I think I’m going to actually be able to do it this season. For the first time in years I think I’ll actually be able to limit myself to ten series. Man, I’m going to have so much more time on my hands…I think I’ll read a book
Yayy!! I’ve been looking forward to this season preview forever~ Thanks Divine! I’m usually very picky with my anime but the following have piqued my interest: La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia, Chouyaku Hyakunin Isshu: Uta Koi, Natsuyuki Rendezvous, Kokoro Connect, Hakuouki Reimeiroku. I usually watch only 2-3 different anime series each season but I’m really interested in these 5. It’s also nice to see you (Divine) back writing on this site even though it’s only for the season preview and I couldn’t help but notice that Verdant isn’t a potential blogger for any of this season’s series… I was looking forward to seeing what he was going to blog but…
Will surely watch
1. Sword Art Online
2. Kyoukai Senjou
3. Rinne no lagrange
4. Campione
5. Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita
I’ll try
1. Arcana Famiglia
2. Muv Luv
3. Dog Days
4. Kokoro Connect
5. Koi?
etc etc XD
Derp How could I forget Yuru Yuri
I think it’s only Binbougami that I’ll be seeing.
Ah good the preview I look forward to it every season. Unfortunately I can’t say the same for the shows. I don’t see a single one I know I will like, just a few I will check out but meh. Guess it will be a slow summer for me 🙁
Muv-Luv is where it all is for me. I am looking forward to other shows but damn, I want this show to be both good and successful so that maybe…just maybe it can usher in the the original greatest visual novel trilogy.
Campione’s Light Novel is AWESOME, so I really, REALLY hope the anime is good.
I have high expectation on the kissing scene. Saliva dropping… 🙂
ohohoho
I don’t know about anyone else but my plan is to watch all the anime in RC’s Season Preview and drop them according to preference. Atleast 3 episodes per anime.
I support watching 3 eps but 26 is not a small number, Good luck.
I used to try out about 15 shows too when I used to have more free time, it ends up being following 4-6 shows and marathoning some others after.
I always follow the 3 episode rule. If a show does not interest me much after that after watching I’ll drop it. e.g. Medeka Box.
However if a show turned out to be actually good but not enough time and will watch it again later I’ll probably marathon it when the season ends. e.g. Rinne No Langrange and Aquarion Evol
Then there’s the show I am so watching because it s so interesting in a :ifyouknowhatimean: kinda way e.g. Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai
And carryovers from last season Accel World; Hyouka
I’m looking forward to Sword Art Online based on the books; the author wrote his first book like he was directing an anime (it was very cyberpunk with a bonus of anime fantasy tropes).
From the pv it seems like its going to be adapted in chronological order rather than novel order
Show Spoiler ▼
Y’know… I’m okay with that. The books jump around a lot and it’s distracting if you read fast (and thus skim over/miss important clues like timeline chapter headings)
NOT even 1 seinen show, eh?
Save for 1-2 shows (that are somewhat watchable to me), the rest of them the same old shonen or ecchi or slice-of-life feathering eyes-big-as-fist-with-no-nose teenage school girls, for cryin’ out loud. Is it so HARD to have 1 measly seinen show? I’ll even take good Josei (but screw “Chouyaku Hyakunin Isshu…”, I’ll stay from it as far as possible) at this point.
Really mediocre stuff throughout. Good thing that at least 1 seinen show (Uchuu Kyoudai) will carry over from spring.
Um… Moyashimon Returns is seinen.
oops, I forgot about the bateria show. Yes, it’s one of 1-2 shows that I might watch, but forgot that it’s indeed seinen… Well even though I couldn’t finish watching the 1st season of it all the way through as it was getting a bit repetitive, I guess a beggar can’t be a chooser!!
Your best bet is to stick to Moyashimon Returns and Natsuyuki Rendezvous(josei).
Unfortunately, it’s a poor season for Type A Otaku.
Not just this season, it’s been a pretty dry few years.
Looking at my MAL (Yes, I know it’s RAS syndrome), I’ve got these:
1) Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita
2) Kokoro Connect
3) Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai
4) Arve Rezzle (mfw I found out this is an OVA)
5) Campione!
6) Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouto ga Iru!
7) Muv-Luv Alternative
8) Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate
9) La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia
10) Sword Art Online
11) Tari Tari
12) Hagure Yuusha no Estetica
Lagrange and Muv-luv are a must for me. SAO seems like an interesting concept so that’s in my watch list. The rest are on the maybe list.
P.S. The Rinne no Lagrange OAV is dated 8/23
Updated, thanks.
K-ON’s movie BD release is on July 18th
Added, thanks.
I’m mainly interested in Rinne S2. The first season was a nice surprise.
For some reason I’m mildly interested in Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate. They’re probably going with the childhood friend route though; meh.
There are only 8 shows that I will definitely watch
“ONLY” 8 shows? Out of this bunch??? Ahahaha! You give me a good bellylaugh~!
You’re either quite generous man who just can’t say no to things or have lots of free time on your hand, don’t you? Even dedicated anim blogger will watch more than 6 shows out of this bunch! I mock ya!! ohhaha
Correction: Even dedicated anim”e” blogger will “NOT” watch…
Look what you’ve done, ShuA. You made me so eager to mock you that I temporarily forgot how to write, LOL!
You’re overreacting
I’m just saying summer season 2012 is a bit weak for me and some shows really stand out from others (although summer season is usually always weak compared to other seasons)
Note: I usually manage to find more than 14 new animes in a season
Will watch: Sword Art Online, La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia, Tari Tari, Jinrui wa suitai shimashita, Natsuyuki Rendezvous, Dog days, Campione, Kokoro Connect
Rest of them: May watch
Let’s try to keep things civil! 🙂
It’s a bit of a dry season, but there’s still a fair bit that would keep people interested. Then there’s some carry-overs from spring that should keep things alive in the summer until fall. When school starts. -________-
What is this I don’t even.
Interested in MuvLuv, Sword Arts Online, and Joshiraku. I have the sneaking suspicion that I’ll enjoy the last the most; I have some concerns about TE’s adaption and SAO feels dangerously close to a cliche. Oh well, at least it has Kajiura. As for Joshiraku, if it’s anywhere near as good as SZS, I’ll probably love it.
You do MuvLuv a huge disservice in your writeup, though. The mecha universe is the main one; it’s not like they made the romcom VN and then spun it off into a mecha. Half of Extra and all of Alternative was devoted to the parallel world, and the other half of Extra was just preparation for it. I think you probably got that impression because you heard that Unlimited and Extra are separate VNs, but they’re halves of the same one.
Yesssss Kyoukai Senjou and Sword Art Online!
and obv lagrange.
time to pick up new stuff~
Is it autumn already? Because i seriously cant wait till all these are done cuz none look that much of a boom. Seriously, my Summer’s gonna be a real bore with all these.
I would say you should consider finding another hobby or going out with friends then, but that would be stating the obvious…
Sword Art Online and Natsuyuki Rendezvous at first glance.
By the way, Divine, you missed Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha The MOVIE 2nd A’s in the list.
It is supposed to be released on July 14, 2012.
Ah, nevermind. I realized you are not including theatrical releases.
Nice heads up though, thanks.
I never heard of 90% of these animation studios before. I fear for the mortality of them.
Like many, I pretty much give anything a shot. Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita was off my radar just because I didn’t see it amonst the Rinne and SOA fanfare. But a fave group and TL is probably going to do it, so that got my interest right there….funny how that can get your attention.
SAO, Lagrange. And probably Muv-Luv, would be my definite ones to see. Thanks Divine for the write-up.
omg is the tales of symphonia OVA finally ending? xD
Wow, Divine! Happy to see you return for seasonal preview!(even it’s only for a while) This is much faster than I expect initially :p
About summer…Well, a pretty slow season as usual, huh? Well, I guess I will try :
– Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita : I’m in for Romeo Tanaka and the setting.
– Muv Luv TE : Divine, Zephyr and Moomba already make an initial research for Muv-Luv, take a look here : https://randomc.net/2012/06/13/muv-luv-extra-unlimited-alternative-overview/
Well, I don’t expect TE to be as good as Alternative at all, even if it’s nearly as good I guess I will have a winner for the season.
– Koi to Senkyo : My friend give me a recommendation for this, so I’ll take a glimpse.
– Sword Art Online : Heard many good things about this, plus it also has Kajiura inside. I’ll give it a watch.
Maybe also :
– Tari-tari : Got a meh feeling about this, but I may give it a chance.
– Kokoro Connect : I’ll see the review first before deciding.
The rest? I’ll just wait for the review until one popped up as surprisingly good.
Where’s Blood Lad?
It isn’t airing this season.
“Likewise, the story touches upon some more serious subplots, such as the bullying Michiru has to endure at school since her family’s poor.”
Isara, not Michiru.
Nice catch. Fixed.
Wow…an entire season of garbage and sequels to shows I haven’t watched. I hate to be this negative but it’s seasons like this that remind me of why I took that anime break. And coming off a season where I picked up almost half a dozen shows makes this all the more disappointing. I’ll try and find something to give a chance but I guess the bandwidth I’ll save can be spent on watching more SC2 in the coming months…
The information everywhere is WRONG. It’s “Vienna” from AUSTRIA not…whatever you wrote here from Australia. orz
I have yet to finish reading this preview, but I just really have to point this out since I keep seeing “Wiin” from “Australia” and it just really really bugs mejsksjdnkvc;l
Really though go check out Vienna’s profile. The “Australia” is missing a ラ.
Y’know…music…Vienna…y’know.
Oh yeah this is about Tari Tari by the way. orz Sorry.
One honest mistake doesn’t mean “all wrong”. Imagine if you failed a test because you got even a single question incorrect. You might want to choose your words more wisely next time…
I’m always a target of scrutiny since I run this site, but let’s not fall into a situation where we have ridiculous double standards.
My apologies. I wasn’t referring to all of your information as wrong, rather that pretty much every single description of Tari Tari (ANN, MAL, charts and whatnot) in English I have seen so far happens to get the info about Vienna/Austria wrong.
You would think more people would catch this. It bugs me to no end.
No worries. If anything, this just goes to show how most of anime information out there in English — particularly with season previews — is purely second-hand information that’s potentially full of mistakes. What’s more, it all comes from one or two sources and if they’re wrong, everyone’s wrong. I’ve seen this happen with other series in the past, where anime bloggers get synopses completely wrong because one person posted an incorrect synopsis on ANN. What’s worse, they blindly wrote impressions based on it too.
What I try to do with my season preview is pull info from a lot more reliable sources, like the official Japanese website and Japanese Wikipedia to offset the incorrect or lack of information in English, and correct mistakes such as these.
In this case, I’ll admit I failed in that regard with the “Austria -> Australia” oversight because I read the incorrect English translation and only skimmed over the word when I saw the Japanese (…because they start and end the same way).
As always, thank you for your incredibly hard work, Divine!
Somewhat of a lacking season, it seems.
That being said, I’ll be watching Moyashimon Returns, Natsuyuki Rendezvous, Sword Art Online, and the second season of Rinne no Lagrange.
Thanks for the preview!
I’ll add Tari Tari to my already long watch list, didn’t know it’s Kishida Mel and PA Works.
Anyway, there’s no potential blogger for YuruYuri? Madness! This is madness!
Looks like we’ll be having a fun filled season. Code Geass ftw. I know it won’t have much to do with the originals and are spinoffs most likely.
I always anticipated a Dog Days sequal but I’m not sure I’ll watch it even though I did watch the first season. Maybe once Acchi Kocchi’s over I may need something silly to fill the void but oh what a void it will be.
Since I enjoyed Accel World I’m pumped for Sword Art online since it takes place in the same universe twenty years before hand. Also the body swapping of Kokoro connect sounds so wierd it has to be interesting. Many of the other shows are fairly typical though Muv-Luv brings some much needed mecha action along with Rinne.
I’m going to be buys this season.
Glad your back for this season preview, Divine, even if its just a one-off thing in your indefinite hiatus. RandomC season previews has always played a huge part in determining what shows I’d watch, and thus I’m delighted to get an insight from you concerning the shows that are airing this Summer season.
My top must watch as-soon-as-it-airs list consists of Sword Art Online, Kyoukai Sen II, Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita and Rinne no Lagrange 2. I still have a huge backlog of this seasons shows that I’ve saved to watch in one go from start to finish, so I’ll probably be adding other shows to my watch list after the premiere episode reviews come out.
Awwww… I knew people would appreciate Div’s efforts on the preview =) Seems like a lot of people take his opinion into consideration so… we’ll see if we can convince him to blog more in the future as one-off posts 😉
We do, we do!
We’re counting on you, Cherrie. Divine listens to you, it seems 😉
Dammit Divine, you’re the best blogger I’ve seen in the internet. I could care less for these new shows, I just read the whole thing because it was yours.
Thanks for the post, Mr 🙂 Good luck with your (Android?) projects!
“The “impossible to adapt”, highly convoluted, and extremely difficult to appreciate anime based on Kawakami Minori’s unbelievably long “short novels” returns with its scheduled season season”
typo there? isn’t it supposed to be “second season” ? 🙂
This preview may have been rushed out the door editing-wise so that it’s posted close to two weeks before the start of the new season…
(I still spent most of the last two weeks working on it though…)
WHAT!!! Previews by Divine…O_o !!! WTF, I had to give myself a couple slaps to ensure I was not dreaming…I wasn’t and it hurts. That aside, perusing the choices…I guess after a stellar spring season, I felt the incoming one is disappointing. The only one that sparked a bit of interest was Sword Art Online, but I may be wrong on some dark horses.
First off, I’d like to thank Divine for taking time out of his hectic schedule to put together this wonderful season preview (You spoil us, Divine, don’t you XP)! Nice seeing you around every one in a awhile and hope all is going well.
Horizon II is unequivocally my most anticipated show of the coming season (For reasons that I’ve stated ad nauseum sporadically over the last 6 months and will abstain from repeating here.), but several others on the list stood out to me as well.
Kingdom and Chouyaku Hyakunin Isshu: Uta Koi in particular caught my eye. Kingdom’s feudal Chinese setting and general plot description are precursors that may be indicative of a story like that of Horizon’s that is both intricate and politically driven- but one that is more grounded in reality. And the atypical 38-episode count could indicate that somebody went out of his/her way to get a run that would be most conducive to the pacing of the original story. Of course, all these allegations are based merely on circumstantial evidence and are in no way conclusive; whether any of these things actually hold true remains to be seen…
As for Chouyaku Hyakunin Isshu: Uta Koi, I was surprised that the manga was originally created by some guy who made it big off of NicoNico MAD vids; that someone whose background is in making viral videos would try a hand at something as refined as semi-educational feudal drama (And be so successful at it) is quite intriguing- makes me think that this show’s probably some kind of chimera; a feudal drama with historically blasphemous modern twists that nonetheless works in harmonious synergy with all its other elements to create a coherent contradiction that is refreshing, unique- and most importantly, relatable to a modern audience…of course, again, everything’s speculative at this stage, I haven’t done any serious research on the matter…
As for the rest of the shows, they all seem like the kind of stuff you’d expect from any typical anime season- some great, some awful and everything in between- but none possessing the (arguably) avant-garde element of the aforementioned 3 shows. In other words, nothing terribly innovative, but they’re anime staples- as it happens, I’ll probably end up watching most of them nonetheless like every other season…of course, if anyone feels like venturing out of their comfort zone and trying out something new, the three shows that I mentioned are the ones to look out for…
Wow Summer Preview. Thanks Div.
For me, I’ll be watching the sequels Horizon 2, RnL 2 and Dog Days’.
For the new ones, SAO is definitely on my top list. Been pumped for it ever since I picked up the LN(PV2 where though D:). Though that’s the first time I encountered that title for the Nerve Gear, NERDLES. Can’t remember where it was mentioned in the LN. Oh well.
To add, I’ll also be watching Muv-Luv, Jinrui was Suitai Shimashita, Tari Tari, Natsuyuki Rendevous, Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate, Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouto ga Iru!, Hagure Yuusha no Estetica, Campione, Kokoro Connect. I might pick up Binbougami Ga, Ebiten and Dakara Boku wa H ga Dekinai, though the latter is unlikely as I already have Hagure Yuusha as my seasonal fanservice show and I didn’t quite like what I saw in the PV.
*counts* Damn, 13 shows plus 3 in pending. And here I was saying I will cut back this season as the season looks a bit weak but let’s see. It’s too early to dismiss it I guess until it already aired. So yeah.
PS. The HSDxD OVA will be bundled in the vol 13 of the LN. Just saying 🙂
Gravatar email fail D:
Well reading back, I might consider watching La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia too. The cast is pretty top notch and I’m a sucker for that. The premise looks a bit interesting too. So yeah.
Let’s hope this will be a good season, though considering the Spring was a pretty amazing season, I can see why me and some would dismiss this season, what with the lineup and all being somewhat “generic”. But I’m not picky in my shows and I enjoy watching as long as it entertains me. I’m a fairly shallow person after all orz
Only RandomC makes these previews sound way more positive than they should be. I’m trying to cut down on my watch list…but it looks like I’m going with
–Horizon 2, Lagrange 2, Dog Days 2 (the sequels)
–Natsuyuki Rendevous (Josei + the director = Win)
–Sword Art Online (dropped Accel World for this..hopefully the MC here isn’t obnoxiously preachy and yay no Yuki Kaji – I’m sure Enzo loves this)
–Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate (Character designs are beautiful! Plus more Yuuichi Nakamura as a teenager doesn’t hurt :P)
–Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita (Looks heartwarming, but it’s mostly a parody series? No wonder Seiji Kishi is directing…animation looks much better than Persona 4 what the hell lol)
—Kokoro Connect (Silver Link’s doing a great job with Dusk Maiden..and Miyuki Sawashiro <3)
I'll bite the bullet and give Dakara, Boku wa H ga Dekinai a chance. I've always avoided ecchi series but DAT seiyuu list (Aya Endo and her natural ojou-sama voice mainly)and..yeah I'll give it a chance, it's my first real ecchi series!
AND..Eureka Seven A0, Shirokuma Cafe, Hyouka and Gundam AGE..that's 13 series so exactly the same as Spring. Yay…fun.Oh boy, If I only didn't have to go to college now..
Don’t worry, the MC for SAO is the perfect fantasy character. He’s all that embodies the Mary Sue character done right. Basically take Kira Yamato, remove all of his emo and make him even more badass. There isn’t need for too much character development because he embodies the ideal person.
Well, to be fair one can argue that Kirito did become a bit emo during Red-nosed Reindeer, but it was very understandable, and is quite the /mantear jerker 😛
Well I kinda meant in the main story where Kirito’s already completely developed as a character.
I wonder if his sex scene with Asuna will be alluded to.
there’s no way they’ll animate 16.5 😛
hinting at it… maybe, but I doubt it.
It will at least be implied.
And note that 16.5 wasn’t in the printed version of the novels.
They’ll be animating the printed ones I think.
And before you ask, yes, Aria was published in Dengeki in the May issue.
The SAO’s MC won’t be obnoxious, and actually I find that all characters in SAO are really memorable and like-able, only problem with the series would be how they will adapt the light novel into anime… Show Spoiler ▼
Actually, they’ll be cover the side stories that took place during the SAO arc as well in chronological order, so there’s at least 2 volumes + the Aria side story to animate. My guess is that Show Spoiler ▼
its gonna be
Show Spoiler ▼
That’s great to hear. Show Spoiler ▼
Hmmm, nope Show Spoiler ▼
Thanks for the summer preview! as for me I’m checking out La storia della Arcana Famiglia, Hakuouki Reimeiroku, Natsuyuki Rendezvous and maybe Chouyaku Hyakunin Isshu
my preliminary picks:
rinne no lagrange 2 – loved the first series,
muv luv alternative – the setting picqued my interest
yuruyuri 2 – liked the first series too, down to epic nosbleeds, expect more of same
natsuyuki randezvous – a romance among (gasp!) adults? no highschooler in sight? older female love interst? sign me in!!!!!
sword art online – as an mmorpg fan myself (currently levelling up 4th toon in SWTOR, thank you…) I can relate to the setting, and while “trapped inside a game” trope has been a bit overplayed since at least the hack./ series , I dont mind it that much.
more TOSHINO KYOUKO!!!
“Toshinou Kyouko!”
AkariAkariAkariAkariAkariAkariAkariAkari＼Akkariiin／
AND MORE TOSHINO KYOUKO!!!
Absolutely hilarious video you linked there. Just how do you manage to dig these kind of gems ?
I’m excited about how many people are excited about Kyoukaisen season 2. You guys have good taste! Just sayin’ ^^
I’m tempted to get a Mixy gravatar =3
Looking forward to your mega post on KSnH, Stilts. Horizon tan FTW!!!
KSnHII is my most anticipated anime this year. Seriously. Yes, there have been other really good anime, but nothing has captured my attention like this show. Once you pierce the veil of incoherence, get the bucketful of characters straight, drink the Kool-Aid, and sit back and relax, it’s a smashing show. (But there is prep work involved.)
Is it perfect? No– it’s obtuse, riddled with jargon, and difficult to get into, and it caters mostly to the novel readers who already know what’s going on. But it has the most awesome Pope in anime in a long time. (Tes! Tes! Tes!) There’s also an awesome confession/debate/declaration of war as well that’s one of my favorite scenes of 2011.
Don’t bother if you didn’t watch the first season, understand it, and get what’s going on, because you will probably be lost, confused, and wind up posting Angry Things in poor Stilts’ blog posts. (And be prepared for a storm of new characters to keep track of, too.)
i have a question…
is Blood Lad not included on this summer season ??
I believe it is now a Fall anime.
I’m still waiting for TLR Darkness tv series info and looking forward for the OVA.
Any sources stating that it’ll be turned into an anime? Would like to watch it for the service
I don’t see Blood Lad and Arve Rezzle: Kikaijikake no Yoseitachi in the preview.
Mistake or those shows aren’t for summer ?
As usual, thanks for the preview who is really helpful.
Blood Lad –> Fall at the earliest.
Arve Rezzle –> OVA or something. Not much info about it though. :X
All of the sudden, I feel like watching more shows this season. >‿‿<
Amazing as always, a nice and a very informative season preview.
Divine you should also put your name on the Plan to Watch as well. But I guess you’re still busy.
My watch list:
Everything that is in this review.
Hope your hiatus ends soon Divine. While everyone’s been doing great since you’ve been gone, it’s nice to have you around too!
For me, I want him to be happy and have a stable life and let him be for now. LIFE IS HARDER this days.
Love your blog.
You guys should check the Yuru Yuri ♪♪. Its AWESOME.
Definite watch –
Lagrange II (And yes… OP I is ringing in my ears)
Tari Tari (Oh PA Works… You completely blow me away once again)
Sword Art Online (Yuki Kajiura! XD)
Kokoro Connect (Seems EXTREMELY tame for a SILVERLINK production)
Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon (Simply because I watched the first season)
As for the rest, I’d just wait for RC entries first =D though BD and OVA releases aren’t included in this list though
Despite picking up fewer shows as compared to past season(s), I’d say that summer is quite cool.
About Chouyaku Hyakunin Isshu: Uta Koi. Divine had this to say “the only real intangiable is TYO Animations’ involvement — a studio that’s collaborated on many productions but haven’t led too many of their own.”
I just wanted to point out that while “Tyo Animations” is a new brand name it’s in large part made up of people from “HAL Film maker” which might be a name people are more familiar with.
I actually wasn’t aware of that, so thanks for pointing it out. I liked some of HAL Film Maker’s stuff.
A lot of sequels for shows I didn’t watch in the first place and a lot of shows I’m not that interested in. I need the space to catch up on my backlog anyway.
It sucks that I have to be in China when SAO comes out 🙁
The only show I’m guaranteed to watch this season is SAO. For some reason ever since last season I’ve been watching anime less and less to the point that I skipped 3 episode of Fate/Zero and dropped KoreZombie.
My only fear is that the anime can’t bring out the true goodness of SAO.
There seems to be a tendency to produce shows with all-or-mostly female casts lately. Just looking at the gender distribution of the current season it seems something like that:
####################################
# All or mostly female cast
####################################
Binbougami ga!
Joshiraku
Rinne no Lagrange Season 2
TARI TARI
Yuruyuri
Campione!
Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai
DOG DAYS’
Ebiten: Kouritsu Ebisugawa Koukou Tenmonbu
Hagure Yuusha no Estetica
Horizon II
Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate
Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouto ga Iru!
Moyashimon Returns
Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse
Oda Nobuna no Yabou
####################################
# About even
####################################
Chouyaku Hyakuninisshu: Uta Koi.
Kokoro Connect
Natsuyuki Rendezvous
Sword Art Online
####################################
# All or mostly male cast
####################################
Tanken Driland
Hiiro no Kakera
La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia
Hakuouki
Kingdom
I’m not saying it should be the opposite but I guess I would like to see more balance. I find it harder and harder to find shows with cool male characters to watch and this season looks like it will be even harder then usual.
I know shows are produced based on what currently sells and my tastes are not in the majority, but still – it shouldn’t be that hard to find shows that I like.
Actually Moyashimon has 4 male, 3 female and 1 crossdresser. XD
I agree with you, Darklord.
The problem is not the male/female ratio per se, but the lack of interesting male characters. Most anime shows these days either have a reactionary male character (protagonist without a personality, who is supposed to mirror the viewer’s reaction inside the show in order to give a deeper feeling of immersion, generally used to interact with the story’s romantic interests. They are very useful to sell toys and other products, but don’t add much to the plot, generally have generic character design and are not memorable in any way) or a flamboyant Gary Stu (fanservice for the female audience). Both kinds of character are very feminine (looks, personality, overall story) and don’t count as a male presence in a show.
Current season had a decent number of good male characters (Fate/Zero 2nd Season, Hunter x Hunter 2011, Sakamichi no Apollon, Tsuritama, Uchuu Kyoudai, Zetman). It had a good balance between the sexes, which is part of the reason why many people enjoyed it.
Next season, however, is completely unbalanced. Kingdom being the only show with strong male presence, whereas the other new animes are filled with reactionary characters and flamboyant Gary Stus.
I agree with everything you said.
You are especially right that the current season has been very refreshing change of pace with a strong male presence. It’s been a while since there was a season where I could watch more than 5 shows and the current one is such a season – I am watching and enjoying all the shows you mentioned and a couple of others (Jormungand, Eureka Seven AO). Unfortunately almost all of them end pretty soon and the new season doesn’t seem to have many good offerings.
Maybe SAO looks promising especially if the main character is as good as other people say.
OMG ! THE SUPERGENIUS A.I. IS BACK!! NOTHING COMPARES TO HIM..
YuruYuri! I’ve been waiting for this!
But the ‘alternate universe’ was planned as an integral part of the story from the start, it wasn’t a spinoff to squeeze some more cash out of existing characters.
I’ll admit that comment was a bit presumptuous, but it was by no means intended to reflect reality, hence why it’s in a sentence of my “impressions” paragraph and starts with “generally”. It’s just the initial impression I got before reading a bit of the manga. I did provide the flip side at the end though, saying that I heard good things about the series and that Satelight’s production quality looks top-notch.
a Must Watch is Sword Art Online, I’ve finished volume 1 of the novel and it was excellent! hope they match the greatness found in the novel in this anime adaptation~
With such a precise preview like Divine’s, the new season is just getting my attention more and more already. If Kokoro Connect is not hentai then it’s 4 shows for me liao. I’ll see about it anyway. Thanks RC as always!
Glad to see you back Divine. Hope everything is going well on your end. You might be busy, but it’s good to see that you still want to work for the site.
Summer will be interesting if not the least. However, I was hoping to see new seasons for Durarara!! and Sekirei, because these shows were left with plot holes and unfinished business. Nevertheless, I’m glad to see that Lagrange is still a new season this soon.
i’ll watch Campione! for the french kisses…
hmm temptingg just need eps numbers on all of it to make sure really don’t want to step long run land mine showing.
Nice work again, more power to RC you guys rock, i thank you guys for doing this every season.
Ah, Divine’s swansong, eh? And a good one as well.
As I get older and my schedule piling up, I will have to be very selective on what I watch. So on top of Accel World and Hyouka, which will be carried along into summer 2012, I’ve only picked the following 3:
SAO – Kawahara Reki’s other work Accel World + A-1 Pictures compelled me to be interested, Kajiura Yuki’s score convinced me. Not to mention this would actually be full circle for Kajiura, after coming into fame for scoring another MMORPG-themed series in .hack//SIGN, also featuring a character unable to log-out.
Tari Tari – PA Works – nuff said. HanaIro’s BGM was impressive, hopefully with a music-themed plot, music should also be enjoyable. So yes, like SAO, music was one of my primary criteria for picking up a series this season.
Kokoro Connect – Silver Link impressed me throughly with C Cube and Tasogare Otome. Plus Kokoro Connect’s illutstrator is Horiguchi Yukiko, who of course did the character designs for K-ON and other Kyo-Ani series.
I’ll probably also watch H-ga dekinai as a “guilty pleasure”. It’s been a long time since an ecchi series made me laugh loudly since kiss-sis, which is also done by Studio.feel.
Yay…its a Divine post…*reads*
Thank you DIVINE for the list.
Watch List:
1. La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia
Try to watch:
1. Moyashimon Returns
OVA:
1. Tight Rope OVA 2
2. Hakuoki – Kazama Chikage Chapter
Much appreciation for the preview. It’s a big help for finding shows that I might like besides the ones I already know I’ll watch.
I had a rather full plate (well, full for me) during the spring season, so I’m trying to rein things in a bit.
Definite:
Moyashimon Returns & Natsuyuki Rendezvous – Noitamina shows are almost always a definite watch for me. The spring set of shows have set a high bar for the summer.
Tari Tari – While I wouldn’t call myself a huge slice-of-life fan, I enjoyed Hanasaku Iroha well enough. PA Works’ art is the main draw for me.
High interest:
Binbougami ga! – The manga’s premise had always interested me. I never found time to read it, so I’ll use the anime to check it out. Sunrise involvement is a plus.
Sword Art Online – I passed on Accel World, but I like the premise of this series better. The series being 2 cours requires a bit of a commitment, but I’m willing to take a shot. A-1’s involvement is a plus.
Moderate interest:
Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai. & Kokoro Connect – Honestly, these aren’t usually the type of shows that interest me, but I feel like broadening my horizons a bit and the premises sound interesting enough to try them out.
Low interest:
Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita – Not quite sure what to make of it from the description, but it sounds like a quirky little series I might enjoy.
Chouyaku Hyakunin Isshu: Uta Koi. – An historical romance is something else outside the norm for me, but again, I feel like trying something different.
Campione! – I’ll wait to see what kind of reviews it gets before deciding to check it out.
Thanks for the preview, Divine.
I really appreciate all the effort and time you’ve put into it.
Thanks for the preview. Sadly, only couple shows interest me.
I keep hearing of “Hori-san to Miyamura-kun” OVA. Is it true that it will appear this summer?
Thanks for the preview Divine!
The previews didn’t gave much hope for the next season, but
after watching the promo’s I have to say there are plenty shows to look forward to
TARI TARI, for it’s stunning graphics and HanaIro setting
Moyashimon Returns, very clever promo’s, especially #2
Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate, gorgeous girls their school uniform look a bit like Saber’s
Sword Art Online, have hopes for A-1 pictures and looks better than Accel World. This picture gives me chuckles every time though http://i.imgur.com/5gR31h.jpg
Kokoro Connect, what would Kyoani think about the K-on copy. The style is exactly the same
Sanka Rea, Hyouka and Sakamichi running alongside keeps the summer season interesting
1. Sword Art Online
2. Muv Luv Alternative
3. Campione
Thanks for very comprehensive preview Divine. Nobody does the season preview like the master and you’ve been greatly missed. Hopefully you’ll be “asked” to write the season previews again. I’ll go as far as beg if it helps 😉
It looks like I’m gonna be pretty swarmed with animes this summer. Top on my list are Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon II, Rinne no Lagrange 2, Dakara Boku wa H ga Dekinai and Muv-Luv Alternative Total Eclipse. I’ll probably check out La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia, Jinrui wa Suitai, Chouyaku Hyakusin Isshu Uta Koi, Yuruyuri ♪♪, Natsuyuki Rendezvous, Campione, Sword Art Online, Hagure Yuusha no Estetica and Kokoro Connect.
Guess I’ll only watch SAO from the list… The LNs are quite interesting, after all.
So do you play Diablo and such in your free time, Divine?
Just a little bit…
Wow, I thought you’ve already finished hardcore mode like the way you Big Boss’d MGS4 (those two aren’t really related, are they). Guess working still take a toll on your stamina, eh.
Yay! Moyashimon Returns! I really hope you guys blog it. 😀
Looks like kimono is making a comeback this summer.
Great to have you back, Div. It’s just too bad you didn’t have a stronger season to work with – some of these shows can’t have been easy to write about.
Jinrui is the one I see sleeper potential in. Everyone is going to watch SAO of course, and it’s easy to figure Natsuyuki will be excellent, but Jinrui has gotten too little attention so far.
I wonder. Ψ(´▽｀)Ψ
Divine! Thanks for the preview! 😀 It’s great to have you poke in around once in a while. (:
I’m a sad person, but anime make me feel better… C’mon, Moyashimon and YurYuri; I’m already happy.
Big Daddy is back !!!!!!! not
Thank you for this Divine preview. Without substarcting any merit for current writes, I miss you so (bromance!!!). Too many years with your writing style really took its toll on me. Please remember to surprise us like this as much as posible. !!!!!
Hi:
I have a question:
why the most anime shows start after midnight?
Because anime is for adults not kids?
This summer seems a be stronger than the last 2 seasons. But still :/
No.
The two I’m most excited are Sword Art Online and Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita, but there are other ones I’ll check out as well: Tari Tari, Uta Koi, Natsuyuki Rendezvous, Koichoco, and Kokoro Connect. I may decide to check out Campione or La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia.
It seems like a bit of a mediocre season, but I’m still a bit excited.
Yuru Yuri 2
Rinne no Lagrange 2
Nothing more need to be said… Except maybe expressing my absolute respect to Divine: not only does he find time to do the seasonal preview (once again showing his, dare I say excellent taste in anime), he even reads people replies to it. How is that for awesome ?
Sword Art Online looks like it’s going to be awesome.
Yuru Yuri 2 is a must.
Tari Tari could be a sleeper
I’m going to hold off on Rinne though.
Hmm, from this season the ones I know I will watch till the end are Kokoro Connect and Swords Online. I have others on my list but dunno if I will continue watch them or drop them.
MOE MOE-KYUN SEASON? :>
+1 for divine
this season doesn’t look to good, nothing catches my interest straight away, so far korokoro connect is the only one i am even thinking of watching
Checking out= La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia, Kingdom, Chitose Get You!!.
Checking out only for ecchi scenes= everything else.
My disappointment in this season only heightens my eagerness for the next season, which will likely have Little Busters! in it.
This season has way too much stuff that interests me. I won’t have the time for all of this! What will I do? What will I do?
There are alot that interest me this season but still one title will beat them all
SAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.
Been my most anticipated show ever since I heard about being make into anime, I already finish reading all 9 novel and most of the side story. Can’t wait.
Hmm… to me, nothing looks interesting AT ALL…
So this is the entire summer lineup? Wow.
Well that means no new anime for me until fall. (Unless fall has a similar lineup to this.)
A few of them I’m looking forward to…
SAO, Horizon, Muv-Luv, and Dog Days. 😀
My “priority 1” list is pretty much this, but MLA:TE is my #1 must-watch.
*Still wishing for an anime of the main series*
Apparently Total Eclipse is set many months before Takeru appears in Alternative. So a prequel.
Which is a little disappointing.
wow, there is not much here at all, might check out the Sword Art Online but other than that it looks like not many series with any substance at all, not to say that the Sword Art Online has a lot either, but I might get some nice battles at least.
There aren’t that many fights in SAO. Only 2 boss battles, 2 duels, and a few monster skirmishes.
Well, there’s a lot of gory deaths at the beginning. And traveling, level grinding, etc.
I guess you could say this like pretty much like WATCHING(not PLAYING) an MMORPG with RL elements+drama.
SAO actually does have a lot of depth if you read the light novels, in volume 4 it looks at what a soul is.
I’ve been reading Binbougami ga!, and it’s quite entertaining. The poster art, however, doesn’t seem to indicate good visual quality.
Interesting season. I’m excited for Moyasimon as the original was good fun. Also digging Kokoro Connect, which I first heard of over a year ago.
Natsuyuki Rendevous and Tari Tari could be interesting too.
MMORPGs, Kajiura Yuki, Hamauzu Masashi, Toshino Kyouko!?, Gallet de Rois, a Rias look-a-like, incest, feels, and HORIZON!?
o_o
..and here I was.. thinking about getting a new job to pay for my PVC Pre-orders.. XD #fml
I’ll watch try to watch most of these shows even if they are mediocore at best Why? i gave up on “exspectations” in anime a loong time ago, i learned it’s best to enjoy a show for what it is instead of what it could be.
So many shows, so few time…
Oh, Random Curiosity… your previews are always so divine.
Well i’ll probably check out Sword Art and Hagure Yuusha no Estetica looks interesting too me but seriously this season looks like moe crap. But despite that i’ll probably look into a few more of them and see if i like anything else. Also WHY IS THERE NO UBEL BLATT ANIME ADAPTION THIS NEEDS TO BE DONE!!
So you’d take rape and violence crap over moe crap? Both seem like crap to me.
You should ask the same question to a berserk fan and see what kind of answer you get.
LOL Cool down summer fags. There’s a lot to be done and a lot of time to spend by you kids.
Anyway UB is on hiatus. So an anime isn’t really something to hope for… yet.
It’s kind of sad that I just don’t enjoy animes like I used to. Last season I only watched Fate/Zero and Kore wa Zombie Desu ka. This season I’ll probably only watch SAO. It is the one of the few light novels I’m still keeping up with as it comes out. And the first novel was definitely one of my favorite reads as a fantasy junkie.
If your into fantasy, like me, give Tanken Driland and Dog Days the three episode rule. 🙂
Quite lacking so far.
Well, overall it looks like a decent season but probably not great. I’m really looking forward to Moyashimon and quite hopeful for Natsuyuki Rendezvous, Tari Tari, Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita, Hyakunin Isshu, Code Geass Gaiden OVA, .
SAO is a must watch to me. The only complaint i have is the character design dont look as cool as the LN. But this anime will still get so much WIN! including Yuki Kajiura’s involvement
SAO was my most anticipated anime for the season, but somehow it looks… too (awfully) bright. The LN gave off a much darker feel, which matches the context and setting of the show. If the trailers were to be an indicator of anything, it would be that the anime might turn out to be something pretty different from what I imagined while reading the LN.
the situation in-game might’ve been grim, but it is still a game world, one that wasn’t designed to be a grim-dark place.
Yep, so I believe that it would be a light-hearted anime revolving around comedic and adventure action elements, which could turn out to be a better variation than the image I had in mind while reading. Just felt that the stories in SAO might fit better with a less cheery backing.
eh, there is not much in the way of cheerful light-hearted comedy in SAO tbh. I can think of a few comedic scenes, but by and large it’s mostly srs biznz mode.
I think it’s because Aria in the Starless Night is included which starts the story off on a cheerful point.
I hope the first episode will open up with a media-res with Kirito fighting the lizardman, then some point before he gets back to town, flash back to the beginning. But then again, it might screw up the ragout rabbit scene and his relationship with Asuna.
Japan, I am disappoint. Nevertheless, a couple of series on my list.
really? no one mention Campione?, that series quite good.
Yuri Yura ra ra ra Yuru Yuri~ ♪♪♪♪
Now this is going to be stuck in my head all day. I know the melody so well. ;_;
BEST OPENING SONG EVER!
Not many catches my attention but SAO is definitely one in my watch list!
hurgh…well at least there’s a few OVAs to look forward to…
Oh god is taht muv-luv….. must watch….since its one of my fave vns….
also grabing sword art online…. not taht good of a season compared to the last one…
Looking forward to Rinne no Lagrange s2, Yuru Yuri s2 and Sword Art Online! YESSSSSS
So this year SUPERNATURAL spring is about to over and next month FANTASY summer awaits. I like fantasy genre so I have no problem with most of the new shows, but I can’t say I’m not wishing for a more diverse genre season.
Wow…i think its the worst season ever…o_o
I’ve written a lot of season previews, and there are people like yourself who say that about every season.
Then they come back midway and see a bunch of series generated a lot of buzz and hop back onto the bandwagon…
And then there are people like me who never say it, who’re saying it about this season!
Anything can happen, shows can surprise, and summer is usually weak anyway. But on paper, this season is one of the weakest in years.
Fall looks bloody amazing though. 😛
Better for sure, though I don’t see enough yet to make me think it’s going to be as good as Spring. Are you assuming stuff like Little Busters for Fall, or going by just what’s confirmed?
I wonder enzo. I wonder. >|3.
I think its a plot by the dwindling anime manufactures to give a Crappy summer season to get people out into the LIGHT to reap real life benefits,hence keep “slightly” healthy so they can come back and give their $$$ for the fall seasons….but then again I do alot of drugs, so what do i know
Yeah, sadly every season it’s always:
“I don’t like it so it sucks”
If I talked that way with my friends, I would be arguing with them about everything. Let’s just agree to disagree. 😛
True story by Divine.
It had been said EVERY FREAKING SEASON, that I would like to volunteer to be the one saying it in Fall, even though I know I’ll probably be watching tons of stuff again by then.
Definitely looking forward to Rinne no Lagrange.
I will most likely check out Kokoro Connect, SAO, Natsuyuki Rendezvous, and Kyoukai no Senjou.
I probably would not have given Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai a chance at all, based on the title and premise alone. But Divine’s summary had me at “a tsundere who isn’t overly violent”, so I’m definitely checking that out.
This season does seem to be jam packed with, as someone mentioned earlier, MOE MOE KYUN.
Don’t get me wrong; she still lashes out at him quite a bit in the beginning. 🙂
“Boku H” is definitely an interesting romantic comedy though. I found the early parts of the manga surprisingly enjoyable. It got me looking forward to the anime.
I checked out the manga, and the characters are interesting. For one, the MCs don’t annoy me, so that’s a big draw for me. And a tsundere that gets less violent? Count me in.
Although judging by the promotional video, it feels like there may be some anime original material.
The new animes that aren’t continuations that I am looking forward to are Sword Art Online, Tari Tari and La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia.
Bleh this season is terrible
Moyashimon Returns is a definite must watch for me, I’d long given up hopes on a sequel to the marvellous first anime series, so this is welcome. I’m also hoping it might spark Kodansha into releasing more of the manga….
Natsuyuki Rendezvous also looks to be the kind of show Noitamina always did best.
Joshiraku – it’s more Kumeta, which is good, but I do wonder if J.C.Staff will ‘get’ Kumeta’s comedy the way that SHAFT/Shinbo always did.
Rinne no Lagrange 2 – because i liked the first series.
Yuru Yuri 2 – likewise.
Outside of those, then there are quite a few things I’ll give a few episodes to, and a few things I’m going to avoid like the plague.
Only 6 anime for me this season, everything else is nothing but the same repetitive crap and I’m so sick of all this romcom/drama garbage.
I’m also sick of the overly sexed moe moe garbage too, it’s annoying, but hey it’s anime and it’s japan amirite?
This season of anime sucks.
Anyone waiting for this? I cant wait.
Mardock Scramble: The Second Combustion BD & DVD release 7/25
http://m-scramble.jp/combustion/
Where is Arve Rezzle in your anime poll? I can’t vote for it in my top 5.
Ah, too bad. It’s now listed as an OVA. 🙁
You know I have to say I love how popular “Shot of generic looking male surrounded by females with different hair colors” is.
I’ve decided 8 animes for the next season. I only watch 5 animes this season.
dog days. and horizon…thank goodness cuz this list is SNOOZE FEST! but isnt that the point ITS SUMMER PEOPLE, work on those tan line’s yo!!!
What a worthless season. Japan gets shittier and shittier as the years go by. Now it’s shows featuring an assemble of Japanese schoolgirls and their cliche whogivesafucks. Can we just go back 10 years?
Even if we go back 10 years, you’d still be just as worthless then as you are now.
Ten years ago there were loads of “Japanese schoolgirls and their cliche whogivesafucks” series too. It’s just you have bad memory or that “old times were better” load of crap on your head.
About the latter there’s a cure for you: just don’t overthink things and watch the series, then decide if you like them or not, or else you will miss series you would like. Don’t sell the bear’s hide before hunting it.
>Ten years ago: Fan rage(for good or bad) inducing plot, shitty graphics.
>Now: same fan rage inducing plot, graphics that would stun everyone ten years ago.
Pick one.
Please please, I hope SAO is adapted epically. I was so happy to hear that an anime would come out this summer! Hopefully exposure from the anime will generate more interest in the light novels leading to more translaters and editors on BT. 🙂
The previews look almost too cutesy and colorful, but I know the music will be epic. Hopefully the dark feel of the LN is captured too.
Thank you for the preview Divine and thank you RC staff for your hard work!
Rinne no Lagrange Season 2 – looking forward to it since season 1 ended.
TARI TARI – cute girls, nice art.
Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse – first 3 episodes, i will stare at boobs first then decide whether to go or not.
Binbougami ga! – cool art
Moyashimon Returns – smexy legs 🙂
Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate – pretty girls. must watch :3
Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouto ga Iru! – black-haired heroine. :3
Joshiraku – for the seasonal doze of lulz
Hagure Yuusha no Estetica – not another guilty crown. o please!
Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai. – shiny elbows and skin art :3
Sword Art Online – the heroine!
Kokoro Connect – i wish this will be something good. high expectations
Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon II – watching coz i watched season 1, thats all.
Oda Nobuna no Yabou – bra under kimono/yukata?
>Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon II – watching coz i watched season 1, thats all.
I smell a tsundere… Admit it: what they said was impossible actually happened. Horizon was animated. Too bad it wasn’t turned into a JRPG, which would be 100x better.
It wasn’t impossible in the sense that it couldn’t be made into a show, it was impossible in the sense that it couldn’t be made into a good show.
As a novel it may be fine just to shoehorn tons of info and exposition in because the reader can take it in at it’s own pace. There’s also the fact that it’s way less limited in terms of material. The show has to squeeze as much as it can into twenty minutes for what, twelve episodes?
I remember staunch advocates of the series actually belittling other watchers for not understanding the show. And you know what? That’s bullshit. It’s one thing to expect the watcher’s attention. It’s another to expect them to take a class on it. Even if some people caught on to the general plot, there’s also the loads of other characters, places, and historical events. I ask any casual audience member to name even 1/4 of all that needless exposition they threw at you in the first three episodes. If somebody has to look for supplementary information outside the show in order to remember half the character names or understand what’s going on, then as a show it has failed to deliver. Who knows? The novel may be great, but we’re not discussing the novel.
>If somebody has to look for supplementary information outside the show in order to remember half the character names or understand what’s going on, then as a show it has failed to deliver.
That’s bullshit. Don’t tell me you don’t understand why manga and LN authors agreed to have their works turned into anime? Why an anime would entice you to look for info outside the anime?
You know, top, you could say that instead of taking class on about a certain anime, it’s actually trying to gather fans for the novel. If you looked for info outside the anime, it won and did it’s work.
Lol no it’s not, it’s a different medium entirely from the novel. Take Berserk, Stephen King’s IT, Watchmen, Avatar, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Lord of the Rings, etc. A straight adaptation for the work would never work on film. There’s simply too much material to cover. So directors and writers condense and take new liberties with the work in order to make them appropriate for viewing. The successful films are capable as standalone works. They are films first and novels second. You flat out don’t treat them the same way. Moviegoers aren’t expected to go home after each viewing supplementing their knowledge in order to understand the what they just watched. A good movie makes people want to read the books, it doesn’t expect them to.
Horizon failed miserably in that regard. One of the cardinal rules of fiction is to show, not tell. And they spouted their exposition incessantly. And this doesn’t literally mean never talk about things, but the viewer isn’t suppose to realize that the only reason characters are talking is so that the audience understands what’s going on. (And for all their awful exposition, they couldn’t even do that right.)
They could worked wonders by anchoring events around Tooru and gradually introducing events and characters, giving the series some sort of direction. Or any number of other ways to better give the series some sort of ground. But no, they threw useless information at you at hundred miles per hour, jumping around from scene to scene with no rhyme or reason. And if you don’t believe me, watch the first few episodes with some casual viewer. Some random friend etc. Then ask them to name some of the important historical events or even the names of the classmates. Or better yet, ask them to describe the plot.
The author’s agreed to green light the show for more attention? So what? Being a good show is still a different matter entirely.
Oh my God! The next season is overflowing with amazing series. Man, and I still have a lot backlogs from previous seasons too.
Wtf is with that extended time format? “Saturday 26:28”? 😀 Why not “Monday 2:28” ?
That’s just how Japanese broadcasters list it, because viewers are expected to stay up on Saturday to watch a show, not get up on Monday morning at 2:28am (using your example).
This is just how they deal with the fact TV time slots after midnight are legitimate times for shows to air. It’s pretty messed up if you ask me, but that’s just how it is.
Its for the time schedule of the people living in Japan since our time culture is different from ours and Japanese are very strict with time. Since people in Japan have tight schedules, broadcast station has to fit the time where people can watch it at work and home as well. 5AM as indicator as start of broadcast and start of the day and 28 indicates the end of broadcast. Its really confusing to put the end of the day broadcast using 1AM which already means another day for Japanese.
Example for time slice: Since old people come how late, broadcast people has to set it to 8PM to 9PM(20:00-21) and that anime that aims for teens 16 up with those fanservice airs at 11PM to 3PM(23:00-27:00) since children are already sleeping at that time. This of course, just an example.
Remember that Japanese are call people of the rising sun. People rise when the sun rise. People start where the sun rise.
I would just like to point out that Sunday exists between Saturday and Monday.
I only hope in “La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia”, if there will be italian words (probably), the fansubber take a little time more to translate them well… other manga / anime like Katekyo Hitman Reborn (which btw looks really similiar to this anime) had terrible translations…
I heard Code Geass : Akito the Exiled would OVA would come this July. Was I misinformed?
_sigh_ Takahiro Sakurai in an incest harem anime? so wrong.
I know right?! And yet I’m strangely compelled to watch this, if only because I’ve never ever seen him in a lead harem role. Or maybe he has and I just haven’t watched it lol.
But I’ve really been wanting to hear him in lead roles again, so I’ll probably watch this regardless of its quality.
Does Cloud Strife count? It’s not an anime though XDD
Mah List:
-Yuruyuri: The first season was Ok minus the stupidity that was Kyoko/Ayano ship. I HATE that pairing. But it’s not like it’s ever going to happen LOL. Hoping to get more Yui/Kyoko, my OTP XP
-Natsuyuki Rendezvous: I got so tired reading the usual romance shit and all. But the premise of this one is so interesting. I love that the woman is 8 years older than the guy LOL. I also feel like this show is going to to make me laugh and cry DX
-Rinne no Lagrange Season 2: S1 was fine.
Kokoro Connect: I’ve been waiting for a tv adaptation of this to come.
Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon II: Just watching this for Malgot/Marga XDD
BETA confirmed to be in Muv-Luv Alternative Total Eclipse. Its a definite watch now.
what about Blood Lad? anyone has news for it? i thought there would be an anime for that. I saw it in moetron’s anime chart and squidoo list.
I believe this was stated in previous comments… Blood Lad will be airing in Fall.
SUMMER-FAGS! IT’S HERE! DA BEST SUMMER OF OUR LIVES!(…at least for as long as you have lived. I dunno if there will be another one after this.XD)
So onto my list:
1. SAO
2. RNL
3. KSnH
4. Campione
5. Tanken Driland
6. Muvluv Alternative
7. La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia
Crap! I forgot to add “8.Dog Days” XD.
Wow, this season looks like shit.
Kingdom seems interesting, I would also want to watch sword online
Thanks divine! I cant survive without these previews.
Shitload of harem and nothing I really want to watch…at all!! And I thought this season was bad….*facepalm* They really need to cut down the harems and bring in more quality work like Sakamichi no Apollon and Zetman
The king appeared! But really thanks for the season preview Divine. I’ll be looking out for the already familiar ones like Yuruyuri, Dog Days, Horizon, and Lagrange. Among the new ones I’m interested in are Binbougami ga after reading the manga and Sword Art Online since it’s from the same guy who wrote Accel World, to name a few.
huhuhu there’s no Hayate the combat butler :((
Man… there nothing much this season… Most of them are harem + comedy, and I’m not that much fan of harem genre. For harem fan it’s heaven sure, I guess SAO looks nice but later on it will become another harem (You know this if you read the light novel). Hagure Yuusha no Estetica look nice too but looks like another harem though. Muv-Luv looks nice and I hope it’s not Yuri since I hate Yuri anime. And Tari Tari… well I guess another slice-of-life that focus on GIRLS FRIENDSHIP? We got tons of that already… so I hope not (But maybe it is, since “all-must-be-girls anime” seem to be popular in Japan right now…)
Was hoping an anime that have TRUE romance that doesn’t have harem… oh well whatever. (Chouyaku Hyakunin Isshu: Uta Koi doesn’t count since I’m not a fan of historical anime and it’s art too)
I want to see they animate chapter 16.5, of SAO novels.
If no on the TV series, they could at least make an OVA
/gg
Summer her it comes…
My summer list:
1.) Binbogamiga
2.) Jinrui
3.) Tari Tari
4.) Ebiten
I somehow like shows that might have hidden potential. Like rare gems that can be found on the street. They can be either genuine or fake.
The rest of the show, I will surely watch.
might try Hagure Yuusha no Estetica , other than that , nothing is particularily interesting.An anime that isn’t listed here , and isn’t on the other link either called “Aruvu rezuru:Kikai jikakae no Yousei Tachi” seemed interesting…but since it appears to be nonexistent in any other summer 2012 preview , I don’t know enough about it to decide to watch it.
A bit too many continuations, but i’m real excited for Sword art and Connect.
As for the rest, do like I do! At least watch the first few episodes of everything. See what peaks my interest, and if shows improve of the course of airing, we’ll find out in time.
BRING ON THA THu…eh..SUMMER!
A few of the shows, such as SAO and Horizon have another PV. I’m not allowed to link them, so you’ll have to look for them yourself.
Checking the pre-order and DVD/BR sales news, I was shocked that Horizon II made a near-complete shutout of Amazon’s top 10, which leaves me wondering what’s so special about this title: is it because it’s convoluted that it deserves much praise, or does the discs include some sort of a rare freebie?
Having seen the pre-air, I have marked Lagrange 2 on my calendar. Same thing for Sword Art and Total Eclipse.
Also, I want to see Chitose Gets You! on the strength of Sayaka Nakaya’s potential as a beginning lead voice actress (instead of just being known as a member of the largest pop group on the planet).
As a fan of the Campione light novels – I’m worried but also excited about the anime!
thank you, Divine, for making the season preview again. made me have more shows in my list this season.
Thanks for the preview!
First of all, thank you RC for giving these wonderful season previews…
The Summer 2012 season is another unforgiving season with a ridiculous amount of shows that interest me,
Carrying over from previous seasons will be the ff:
– Accel World, AKB0048, Eureka Seven AO, Hyouka, MS Gundam AGE, and Saki Achiga-hen
My Summer 2012 anime line-up:
– Rinne no Lagrange S2 (Guaranteed) – I’m not exactly a big fan of the whole thing but I completed the first part so its only natural for me to finish it and see the whole thing ends.
– Tari Tari (Decent) – I only manage a few episode of Hanasaku Iroha so I’m not sure of this, but I will try a couple of episodes first before deciding if I will continue this.
– Jin Rei wa Suitai Shimashita (Good) – interesting premise and animation is enough reason to try this out.
– Chitose Get You! (Poor) – I only seen a glimpse of Kodomo no Jikan and I don’t really mind the setup.
– Muv-Luv Alternative (Decent) – mecha action is all good but with Eureka Seven, Gundam AGE, and the returning Rinne no Lagrange I’m not sure if I have enough thirst to watch another mecha series this season.
– Yuri Yuri (Good) – I haven’t watch the first season but lots of cute girls and comedy just mix together for me.
– Binbougami Ga (Good) – interesting premise of fortune and misfortunes.
– Moyashimon Returns (Decent) – another series that I haven’t watch the first season but the premise is really interesting I might actually check this out.
– Natsuyuki Rendezvous (Decent) – I’m not really into the premise but this series has a little bit of mature feel on it.
– Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate (Guaranteed) – animation by AIC and a lot of similarity to Haganai is the icing of the cake.
– Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouta ga Iru! (Guaranteed) – just reading the preview and looking at the character designs is enough to put this to my “Guarantee” list.
– Joshiraku (Decent) – Let see how the comedy will work…
– Hagure Yuusha no Estetica (Good) – I like the other series from Hobby Japan like the Queen’s Blade and Samurai Girls, as long that this series is not heavily censored (if it has ecchi materials) then I will watch this series but if is filled with heavy black or white lines then might as well wait for the uncensored version to come out.
– Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai (Good) – premise is interesting enough specially with the comedy and romance tag.
– Campione! (Good) – interesting premise filled with action and gods but the male protagonist worries me, will check this out.
– Dog Days (Guaranteed) – I like the first season with it’s lighthearted feel, non-lethal large scale battles, and hint of romance, I’m actually pretty excited with this series.
– Sword Art Online (Guaranteed) – might be the series to watch out this season with all the people behind this.
Kokoro Connect (Good) – Body swapping? Let see how this will work…
– Ebiten: Kouritsu Ebisugawa Koukou Tenmonbu (Decent) – the premise is interesting and a potential good harem also, might check this out.
Each new season I will always tell myself that 15 shows is my limit (including the carry-overs from previous seasons) but with the large amount of interesting series to watch out, I’m not really sure “again” anymore.
I think the only anime that I’m most excited for is Sword Art Online. I fell in love with Accel World, so this is guaranteed for me.
About 95% of watch what Stilts is watching, I’m watching too LOL XD
I might check out TARI TARI.
What the fuck? Wasn’t there supposed to be a guy in Ebiten Kouritsu Ebisugawa Koukou Tenmon-Buor or is that a trap?
Harem season! \(^__^)/
Kind of underwelmed with the summer anime but will give some series equal chance. My favorite so far for summer is Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita. Never fails to give me a smile with its satire, observant cynical main character, and general quirkyness.
SAO seems alright so far but feels rushed but has vast potential lies in future episodes…If it can portray what made the light novels so popular at a more steadier pace.
Muv-luv…eh…i’ll go for few more episodes. I like the Binbougami-ga manga though and the anime follows it faithfully.
Fate/Zero is definitely the most hypest show for 2012. Hard to beat 2011 though which gave some of the most unique shows (Steins;Gate(personal favorite), Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Mawaru Penguindrum).
Oops, forgot to mention Anohana…
Can you write a season review in addition to a preview? I’m the kind of person who likes to watch a series all at once or many episodes at once. What I’m asking for is like the Retrospective Look that you’ve done in the past albeit less frequently. Four times a year, I’d like to hear which series in the past season was done well and which was disappointing. And maybe we could hear about series you’ve been watching but not blogging.
Just a suggestion. I don’t want to create more work if you don’t have the time.