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Say good-bye to the hot summer temperatures with a refreshing fall breeze and a slew of new anime for your viewing pleasure. There are some big hitters making their triumphant return, like Fate/stay night diving into its Unlimited Blade Works route and Log Horizon starting its second season. Some crazy slice-of-lifes making their fall debut include the mermaid-related Ore no Furo Jijou and the Akiba based bookstore Denki-Gai no Honya-san. There’s also a bunch of your typical fare to fill in the cracks, like Kyoto Animation’s slapstick drama Amagi Brilliant Park, a Sunrise original called Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo, A-1 pictures’ part-medieval part-shounen Nanatsu no Taizai, a high school based fantasy known as Inou-Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de from Studio Trigger, and Studio Ghibli’s first foray into television with Sanzoku no Musume Ronja. One’s taste in anime can be really subjective, but I think this season’s offerings provide enough for anyone to find something they’ll like. So what are you waiting for? Start scrolling!
As a quick reminder, most entries are divided into two paragraphs:
- A brief introduction to the series and its premise, often with the starring cast of characters.
- The writer’s impressions, expanding on the plot and highlighting specific points of interest.
This season we’ll continue using our Expectation Levels. As always, remember that these reflect our own subjective excitement level for each show, and do not necessarily reflect how shows will pan out. For more information check out the Overall Impressions section at the bottom, which includes an expanded explanation of each category and a list of all shows by expectation level.
Disclaimer: Back in the ancient era of 2012, previews were done by a single writer, Divine. Unfortunately, none of the current writers are as crazy awesome as him, so we’ve divvied up the the process among our staff (Cherrie, Guardian Enzo, Kairi, Passerby, Stilts, Takaii, our tech guy Xumbra, Zanibas, and Zephyr) in order to maintain the quality of this preview. As always, we will try to point out what appeals to us in each series, in the hope that it will help you determine if it coincides with your tastes.
Disclaimer #2: Please note that this list does not reflect all the series airing this coming season. It is meant to be as comprehensive as possible, but omissions have been made for shows that stray from the anime norm or seem to be oriented towards young children. Please check out MOON PHASE for complete listings, syoboi for specific air times, and Fansub DB for a list of potential subbers for each series.
P.S. From Takaii: Once again, a huge thank you to the entire staff at RandomC for helping out with the preview. Without everyone’s consolidated effort, we probably wouldn’t have been able to pull it off. Also, for anyone looking for a second opinion, don’t forget to check out LiA’s Fall Preview, completely written by Enzo himself. And finally, a special thank you to all of you for continuing to support Random Curiosity. I really mean this — you are the best. Without you, there’s no us!
Technical Note: The chart below 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.
** Ai Tenchi Muyou! airs every day Monday to Friday at 21:55 MX (10/6).
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Tasked with enabling humans habitation on Mars, 21st century scientists devised a cost-efficient (albeit slow) method of terraforming the planet by introducing cockroaches and mold. Five hundred years later, the year is 2577, and the transformation is complete. A manned crew is sent to eliminate the roaches and pave the way for humanity’s migration, but upon their arrival, they realize that the roaches are no longer the ones they left behind. Now two meters tall, humanoid in form, and possessors of immense strength, they wipe out the crew–but not before they manage to send an emergency transmission back to Earth. Years later, humanity returns once again, armed with a new group of genetically enhanced warriors. Based on the immensely popular 2013 Manga Taisho Award nominee, this adaptation is being produced by LINDENFILMS (Aiura, Senyuu.), led by Hamasaki Hiroshi (Steins;Gate, Texhnolyze). Oh, evolution, how does it work? Essentially a mixture of Bug Wars and Starship Troopers, TERRAFORMARS focuses on the demolition of giant humanoid cockroaches and delivers with all the exploding bug guts, death, and destruction a premise like this demands. It’s a rather ridiculous story, but it’s extremely entertaining and possesses a bit of intrigue with its plot lines about evolution and the world itself. It remains to be seen if the latter developed to its full potential–I only previewed the first few chapters–and I’m not sure how LINDENFILMS will do with its first non-short TV production, but this should be worth watching (if only for the entertainment value and Hamasaki Hiroshi’s involvement). Whether you should watch this show depends on whether you like this sort of premise. If you’re squeamish when it comes to large bugs running all of the place, and if you’re sensitive to elements that some viewers may construe as racist, you may be better off passing on this series for something else.
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Have you ever wondered what life would be like working in a bustling bookstore located smack dab in (most likely) Akiba? Well wonder no longer! Denki-gai no Honya-san is the story of a high school kid named Umi (Ohsaka Ryota) and his struggle to survive at his grueling workplace. Between trying to deal with his rowdy coworkers – with nicknames like Sensei, The Director, and Zombie Girl – to periodic inspections from government workers whose sole job is to check that all the ero-hons or PORNOS are labeled and sealed properly, Umi definitely has his work cut out for him. It’s been a while since I’ve gotten this excited for a show after researching it. I’m completely in love with everything the manga has shown me, and I’m really hoping its unique charm doesn’t get lost in translation. From the art style to the Seitokai-levels of dirty humor, I had to restrain myself from reading too much. If I had to pick my favorite character, it would be a close battle between Umi and Hio (Takamori Natsumi). With the former being the straightman for just about everyone and the latter ending up in hilariously awkward situations (like rampantly running around yelling that she loves porn), there’s more than enough reason to like them both! All in all, if you’re looking for a quirky slice-of-life that’ll get you laughing, this show should definitely be on your list.
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Being a nerd is serious business in Japan, and Tsunashi Hajime (Suzumura Kenichi) is as otaku as they get: he makes his living blogging, gets worked up about video games, and sings only anime songs at karaoke. The only anomaly: he’s happily married, and to someone who’s nothing like him. Tsunashi Kaoru (Tamura Yukari) is a straight-talking, chain-smoking pragmatist with a stable office job, and she’s completely unfamiliar with her husband’s world. Not that that she doesn’t try. The story of Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken is the story of one woman boldly going where no one (sane) has gone before: cohabitation with a raving, shameless, internet-based organism. There is no Rosetta Stone for this. She’ll need to learn the language through trial and error alone. Does she succeed? Only for certain definitions of success. But it’s cute to watch her struggle nonetheless. This series will be comprised of 13 five-minute episodes. If anything, Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken has its target audience completely pinned down. It’s about otaku and for otaku, and if you’re not in tune with that culture (or at least the stereotypes surrounding that culture), you’re probably not going to get it. The humour of this fish-out-of-water comedy is, for the most part, parody, something for nerds to laugh at their own idiosyncrasies. The rest is wish fulfilment, the dream that there are those out there who are entirely accepting of whatever strange person you are deep down. The idea of the otaku, personally shunned and socially reviled, actually attracting a mate is as amusing as it is fascinating. And I suppose on some level the entire thing is a model for human interaction as a whole: the need to cross barriers, to find compromise, and to treasure what’s unique in each other. You don’t need to be a hardcore geek to appreciate Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken in that way.
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Based on a light novel of the same name, Amagi Brilliant Park marks the second time writer Gatoh Shouji has collaborated with Kyoto Animation to bring one of his original works to the screen. The story features misanthropic narcissist Kanie Seiya (Uchimaya Kouki) getting on with his generic high school life, until one day a mysterious transfer student Sento Isuzu (Kakuma Ai) threatens him, at gunpoint, to go on a date with her to the titular theme park. There Seiya meets self-proclaimed princess Latifa Fleuranza (Fujii Yukiyo), who assigns him a quest: take management of the park and attract 100,000 customers in two weeks. Unfortunately, Amagi Brilliant Park is but a decrepit remainder of the economic bubble from a previous century. Success will take nothing short of a miracle. Having had just a peek at the original source, Amagi Brilliant Park seems very different from what we’ve come to expect from Kyoto Animation, or at least its modern incarnation. Sure, comedy has always been in KyoAni’s genetic blueprint, but the apparent harem antics? Not so much these days. This may be a good thing because Gatoh Shouji’s Full Metal Panic!, which has had no new anime in eight years and counting, also does not fit into KyoAni’s current mold. Not that I expect Amagi Brilliant Park to also be a sci-fi mecha romp–far from it–but it does evoke some of that old KyoAni flair. For those clamouring for more FMP this may be as close, spiritually, as we’re going to get, especially with veteran director Takemoto Yasuhiro also on board. On my part, KyoAni has not really impressed since Hyouka, and what do you know, Gatoh was also involved there (with Takemoto), albeit in the (important) role of series composition. The evidence mounts: whenever the two collaborate, in whatever capacity, only good things happen. Amaburi promises to at least be something different, but I have faith it will turn out to also be something worth watching.
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Gundam is back and so is original creator Tomino Yoshiyuki. After nearly 10 years, Tomino returns to the scene as writer and director of Gundam Reconguista in G, a series made to celebrate the franchise’s 35th anniversary and “give children of Gundam fans a series to enjoy.” Set in a new era known as the Regild Century (R.C.), Reconguista takes place after the Universal Century (U.C.), a time of human prosperity and world peace, symbolized by a space elevator known as The Capital Tower. The year is now R.C. 1014, and space pirates wielding a unique mobile suit known as the G-Self suddenly launch an attack on the Capital Tower. As a Capital Tower Guard trainee, pilot Bellri Zenam (Ishii Mark) deploys in response to the threat, successfully fending off the attack and capturing the G-Self in the process. Upon doing so, he meets the G-Self’s pilot: Rayhunton Aida (Shimamura Yuu). Stirred on by inexplicable feelings for a pilot he’s never met and for a mobile suit he should know nothing about, Bellri suddenly finds himself piloting the G-Self, starting a series of events that will reveal Bellri’s destiny and change the Regild Century forever. Considering how Gundam Unicorn recently put a wrap on the Universal Century, Gundam Reconguista in G couldn’t have come at a better time. The first main line Gundam TV series since Age in 2012, Recongista arrives amid much fanfare as the franchise’s celebratory 35th anniversary work, and it comes with the added treat of original creator Tomino Yoshiyuki helming a Gundam series for the first time in nearly a decade. This is a Gundam series in every sense of the word, and despite the “children of Gundam fans” focus, I would say this qualifies as a must watch for all fans of the franchise. Ultimately, it’s a brand new story set in a brand new timeline, and it’ll be nice to see how it ends up while we wait for the imminent arrival of the Mobile Suit Gundam: Origin OVA. The fact that it’s oriented to new viewers also makes this a good access point to first-time Gundam viewers, although it’s no substitute for actually watching the franchise’s previous iterations.
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The second season of suffering continues for the players of WIXOSS after only a one-season break! The Madoka-esque show continues as Kominato Ruuko (Kakuma Ai) attempts to decipher the flurry of events that ended the first season. With Urasoe Iona (Seto Asami) as Ruuko’s LRIG and Tama (Kuno Misaki) nowhere to be found, Ruuko must continue to unravel the secrets of the card game WIXOSS, whose purpose and ultimate goal is still shrouded in mystery. Joined by her LRIGified friend Kurebayashi Yuzuki (Sakura Ayane) and Uemura Hitoe (Kayano Ai), the trio will unveil the madness behind the diabolical card game, as well as the secret behind Iona’s wish. With struggles of unrequitted love, friendship, and denying one’s potential, all wrapped in a manipulative contractual situation, Selector Spread WIXOSS has earned a label of J.C. Staff’s Madoka Magica in certain circles. Despite the flack, the show has become infamous for its constant flood of despair on every character, as well as extending the series one season longer than its spiritual predecessor. Fans of the first season should be excited to see the second season come out with all the loose ends that the cliffhanger left. Considering the decent job J.C. Staff did with season one, I expect season two to be on the same level of quality. This isn’t your Yu-gi-Oh! card game, this is psychological drama thanks to a card game.
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A kingdom is in turmoil. With a witch-obsessed advisor in control of the country while its king ails, the crown prince, Alfonso san Valiante (Nomura Katsuhito) seeks the power of the Gold Knight to aid his quest to retake the throne. His search leads him to Leon Lewis (Namikawa Daisuke), a young Makai Knight, adpoted son of Lewis Herman (Horiuchi Kenyuu) and biological son of the a late Makai Priestess. Although a capable fighter, Leon is unstable due to his mother’s death, and can lose control whenever memories of her arise. Perhaps this is why a fellow Makai Priestess Emma Guzman (Park Romi) distrusts the Makai Knights and has her own agenda concerning the country. Together, these unlikely four come together to fight demons, save a country, and make peace with their pasts. Honoo no Kokuin is the latest production of the prolific Garo franchise. Focusing mainly on horror, drama, and demonic folklore, the series will weave a story independent of the main franchise, yet borrowing the same feel as its predecessors. Since the series hails from a show that heavily used CGI and special effects, its no surprise that the anime will also feature such techniques. The quality of animation should be good with studio MAPPA, whose work on Hajime no Ippo: Rising and Zankyou no Terror has turned out well. Notable staff and cast include series composer Kobayashi Yasuko, as well as seiyuu Park Romi and Namikawa Daisuke. If Japanese folklore mixed with European medieval elements sounds up your alley, this might be a title to watch out for.
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In the early Meiji period, carrying swords in public was prohibited by the government. Samurai suddenly found that they no longer had a place in society and many became outraged. As a result, crime rates shot up and there was a need for further policing and detention. A small island on a lake, containing a massive tree, became the country’s most fortified and inescapable prison. Three brothers, the heirs to the Kumo family, were assigned the duty of catching and ferrying criminals to this prison. However, things in this lake town, and the Kumo brothers themselves, may not be all they seem. Another historical shoujo, Donten ni Warau leans even further to the dark side of the spectrum than the other shoujo offerings. The manga is popular enough and the story intriguing, if mysterious in some ways. The Kumo brothers seem at first like shoujo tropes all around, from their bishounen looks to their rather flamboyant style, but that isn’t really a detriment here. In fact, the art in the manga is quite pretty, and hopefully we can see the adaptation take advantage of that. In terms of plot, it’s hard to determine early on just what kind of series this is, but it does have quite a lot of action, spiritual magic, and fairly good characters. The first part of the manga focuses on the middle Kumo brother, Soramaru Kaji Yuuki), and his dream of becoming useful to and acknowledged by his older brother, though we do see quite a few dark threads beginning to unravel in the background.
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Touno Mamare’s MMORPG fantasy Log Horizon 2 is back for a second season. When the twelfth expansion of the global hit MMO Elder Tale launched, thirty thousand Japanese gamers (and several hundred thousand worldwide) found themselves sucked into the PC game’s world. Forced to deal with their complicated new reality, the adventurers of Akihabara banded together to form the Round Table Alliance, led by master strategist and “Villain in Glasses” Shiroe (Terashima Takuma). Together they tamed Akiba and formed strong alliances with the People of the Land. Now a real villain has appeared, and Shiroe – along with his guild Log Horizon, which includes the cheerful tank Naotsugu (Maeno Tomoaki), the loyal ninja Akatsuki (Kato Emiri), the rapier-wielding werecat Nyanta (Nakata Jouji), and a spate of promising newbies – is leaving Akiba on a new quest that could have major implications for their new reality. Log Horizon is the MMORPG anime I always wanted. It’s not just the MMORPG-style classes and magic—though those help suck the viewer in, since so many of us are familiar with tanks, healers, nukers, DPS, etc. It’s that Log Horizon embodies the cooperative nature unique to MMOs; they’re games not of individual heroes, but of groups and guilds. Even someone as powerful as Shiroe can’t do it all alone, and its in the group dynamics that Log Horizon 2 shines. It reminds me of when I played late 90’s / early 2000’s MMOs like Everquest and Dark Age of Camelot, which is fitting because Touno Mamare apparently based Elder Tale off his time playing EQ and EQ2. They had to censor some events during the first season becase of the channel it airs on, but the underlying story remained true, even if there were a few hiccups along the way. It’s an open question whether Elder Tale is a game or another reality, but the show’s feeling is that of an MMORPG through and through. I look forward to more adventures as the boys and girls of Log Horizon leave Akihabara on whatever crazy quest Shiroe has in mind.
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Before the Kaitou Kid was a recurring rival in Aoyama Goushou’s Detective Conan, he actually had his very own manga series, and it’s finally getting an anime adaptation this fall. Kuroba Kaito (Yamaguchi Kappei) is a young and budding magician whose father died eight years ago under suspicious circumstances. One day he discovers that his father was actually the alter ego of the famed thief and illusionist Kaitou Kid. Kaito decides to follow in his father’s footsteps and don the costume of the Kaitou Kid, carrying on his capers. Of course, this attracts the attention of the law, made doubly awkward by the inspector’s daughter, Nakamori Aoko (Ichimichi Mao), also being Kaito’s nominal love interest. And thus begins Kaito’s routine—operate as a professional jewel thief, evade capture, and conceal his secret identity—all while trying to uncover the mystery surrounding his father’s death. If a manga can ever be considered a cultural icon, then Detective Conan is one. It has a significant local and international presence, and has been going for a good twenty years and counting. Magic Kaito is of an even older pedigree—older, by now, than its target audience. That makes it slightly dated—it’s like something from the Silver Age of manga—but still evidently loved. Aoyama adds chapters to it between pumping out more Detective Conan, and the two have crossed paths enough for Magic Kaito to almost be a spin-off of Conan, despite its seniority. Indeed, Magic Kaito has already appeared in anime form as Detective Conan specials, so one can consider this season’s offering a remake of sorts. The thought of remaking the anime of an old manga may bring to mind Sailor Moon Crystal—they’re even bringing back the original seiyuu for the main role!—and one can make of that what they will. But A-1 Pictures usually gives their adaptations a fair bit of respect (and a respectable budget), so there’s no reason to not be positive. Fans of Aoyama Goushou’s works are probably obligated to watch Magic Kaito 1412. Even if you’re not one, something so closely connected to a Japanese cultural icon is definitely worth a look.
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Set in (fictional) Western Europe during a time of war, there lies the nation known as Zhcted. Though ruled by a king, it’s the seven Vanadis of Zhcted, beautiful women who reign over the country’s seven provinces and wield weapons they received from dragons, who strike fear into the hearts of their neighbors. Eleanor “Ellen” Vertalia (Tomatsu Haruka) is one such Vanadis, the silver-haired, red-eyed “Silver Fraulein” who leads a small Zhcted army against neighboring Brune. In the battle that follows, Ellen meets a young earl in the service of Brune, Tigrevurmud “Tigre” Vorn (Ishikawa Kaito). Tigre is an expert archer, and though he is defeated by the Vanadis’ overwhelming power, Ellen chooses to spare his life after witnessing his skills. In exchange, she takes him prisoner and asks him to serve her. Though the synopsis sounds terminology heavy, the setting really isn’t that complex; it’s medieval Europe, and countries are attacking each other for all the stupid reasons medieval European countries were always fighting (glory, pride, resources, grudges, boredom). But there’s something romantic about the medival setting that draws fantasy authors to it. War is a constant, but it’s not apocalyptic; it’s not a matter of good or evil, it’s just something people do, more a sport than a moral cause. I like how the story gives a realistic view of human aims in a medieval setting, as well as how the Vanadis’ magic is, at least so far, almost mundane. In a good way! Ellen bats arrows out of the sky and can move her sword with a word, but these are presented as the astonishing feats they are, rather than as commonplace as they are in so many other fantasy shows. I also liked Tigre instantly, though when he’s harassed by a bunch of sniveling nobles who think only swords and lances are “proper” weapons, it’s not hard to like the guy who sees the sense in sharpshooting. This is being produced by Satelight, who have a respectable track record with fantasy, and I can say the same about the staff. I don’t know if it will shatter stereotypes or upend expectations, but it’s looking like a solid fantasy series so far.
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In Uchihama Academy, the student body is busy preparing for their school festival. Their school will soon be moving to a newly constructed building, and this festival is the last to be held at the old campus. All the clubs at Uchihama plan to make it something to remember, but things are going awry. Students report ghosts, mysterious accidents and sudden narcoleptic fits that are plaguing progress at the old building. The Astronomy Club is commissioned to investigate. Akiyama Sou (Terashima Takuma) is a member of this singular group. But he needn’t go out in search of oddities; oddities find him. For example, mysterious transfer student Furukawa Yui (Tomonaga Akane). What are the circumstances behind her sudden and peculiar appearance? How does she know Sou? And why does she want to join the Astronomy Club? Some of you might recognise Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete by its French title: À la recherche du temps perdu, a direct allusion to an influential (and long) twentieth century novel. This apparent literary underpinning may set it apart from other anime adaptations of visual novels, which tend to be hit or miss. While this one still has that veneer of generic high school romance, there are already indications that it will lead to something more—more than even the hints of supernatural mystery may suggest. If anything, In Search of Lost Time speaks of the themes of its namesake novel: separation, regrets, and ultimately, tragedy. It also forgoes some of the multi-route-pick-a-girl affair for something more linear. Those familiar with the big finales of titles like CLANNAD ~AFTER STORY~ or Little Busters! Refrain may take heart in this formula. A closer point of comparison, however, may be ef – a tale of memories—a similarly introspective piece that ultimately comes together. We have several visual novel adaptations this season; I would expect Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete to hold its own.
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Two years after Fate/Zero, ufotable returns to the Fate universe with their first of two Fate/stay night adaptations. Like the original 2006 series, Fate/stay night (2014) focuses on the fifth iteration of the Holy Grail War, which revolves around “Masters” fighting for the Holy Grail, a device said to be capable of granting any wish. To aid in their cause, each Master is allowed to summon a powerful Heroic Spirit, a legendary figure from the past with powers based on his or her achievements. As this adaptation will focus on the Unlimited Blade Works route of the visual novel, the story will revolve around both Tohsaka Rin (Ueda Kana) and fellow schoolmate Emiya Shirou (Sugiyama Noriaki), who ends up caught in a war he knows nothing about. Brought together by circumstance, they fight to survive as they realize the ties of fate that bind them. I was quite excited upon hearing this series’ original announcement. ufotable’s treatment of Fate/Zero was a sight to behold, and rumors abounded that they would adapt the well-known and much liked Heaven’s Feel route. It didn’t quite work out as anticipated, but the fact that they’re planning to do HF in a separate movie makes it only a slight disappointment, and I’m eager to see how ufotable does things here. It’s surprising that they chose to go the Unlimited Blade Works route over remaking the original series, but it must be said that the events of UBW make it a more enjoyable choice. Whether or not you should watch this depends on your prior experience with the franchise, as those with experience should know what to expect. For those who haven’t experienced Fate/stay night (or the Fate universe overall), it’s a good a time as any to get started on one of the most popular fantasy franchises out there.
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Adding to Sunrise’s mecha lineup is the new original series Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryu no Rondo. Scheduled as two-cour, Cross Ange is set in a world where humanity has successfully obtained “Mana” technology. Akin to magic, the usage of Mana leads to the creation of an utopian Earth free from wars, starvation, and pollution. It is at this time that Angelize (Mizuki Nana), first princess and heir to the Misurugi Empire, realizes she is in fact a “Norma,” someone incapable of using Mana. In a blink of an eye, Angelize loses everything and becomes an outcast, shunned by society. A fateful meeting brings her together with a group of Norma girls, whom she joins in their fight against dragons from another dimension. Wielding the humanoid weapon “Barameiru,” Ange fights to survive in a world that discarded her, hoping to find something she can believe in. Here we go again. Sunrise is doing what they do best and adding a dragon’s touch while they’re at it. The premise is a bit generic, but the animation quality is bound to be high, and it’s great to see Mizuki Nana back in not only a main role, but also the singer for series’ OP. More Mizuki Nana is always a good thing in my book, but the jury’s still out on a series that interests me with its all-female cast–a rarity, considering the genre. Don’t get me wrong, the cast’s pedigree is anything but lacking, including Koshimizu Ami, Kitamura Eri, Kuwashima Houko, and Ishihara Kaori, but the blatant use of their pilot suits as fanservice has me tempering my expectations, as is the general lack of directorial experience from Ashino Yoshiharu. I think the safest bet here is to consider it your general Sunrise affair. It’ll likely be worth watching for fans of the genre, but it’s hard to tell whether there’s any significant appeal besides that plus its status as an original series.
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Part Sci-Fi and part AWESOME, World Trigger (or WaTori for short) is the story of the defenders of Mikado City and their constant struggle against creatures known as Neighbors. Four years ago, a portal to an alternate dimension opened and out emerged monsters that completely wrecked the eastern part of the city. With traditional weaponry proving useless against this new foe, a mysterious group known as Border appeared with weaponry known as Triggers that dealt with the new threat. Fast forward to the present where the people of Mikado City have returned to their daily lives with the help of Border and their defense grid that suppresses new portals from opening, you’d think everything’s peachy. That is, until a mysterious humanoid neighbor named Kuga Yuuma (Muranaka Tomo) appears with his special Black Trigger. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t too hyped about this show after simply reading its plot. I mean, how many times have you heard about a show that incorporates a mysterious threat that can’t be dealt with without special weaponry? Luckily the source material seems to downplay the whole catastrophic mess part in favor of giving you a super enjoyable story. Blending intense action scenes with a good amount of humor, and tossing in a few tsunderes for fun, everything about this show oozes shonen awesomeness. I’m a big fan of main character duos who grow off of one another, and Mikumo Osamu (Kaji Yuki) (the level headed one) and Kuga Yuuma (the OP one) don’t disappoint. So if you’re looking for a fun show that blends some sci-fi elements with the fairly grand shonen style fights, you won’t go wrong with WaTori.
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If you’ve wanted to scratch that medieval/fantasy itch, look no further than Nanatsu no Taizai. Taking place in the nation of Britannia, Nanatsu no Taizai, or the Seven Deadly Sins, were a group of seven powerful knights who were suspected of plotting to overthrow the king. After being disposed of by the King’s Holy Knights, all that was left were rumors of the members being in hiding. Years later, the King himself has been overthrown and killed by those very same Holy Knights. As the knights begin their tyrannical rule, the former king’s daughter Princess Elizabeth (Amamiya Sora) barely escapes and embarks on a journey to find the Seven Deadly Sins, in the hope of removing the Holy Knights from power and recapturing the throne. I’ve always been a huge fan of fantasy, and especially fantasy based in the medieval era. As I read the first few chapters of Nanatsu no Taizai, it slowly dawned on me that the story had the potential to become a really popular shonen anime. The characters are memorable and I wouldn’t hesitate to assume each member of the Seven Deadly Sins has some quirk that matches them to the sin they’re depicted after. On the plot, I love how there’s an air of mystery to the whole thing, even though the story is fairly simple. Toss in the remarkably level-headed main character Meliodas (Kaji Yuki), who’s also pretty epic in his own right, and I think you have all the pieces to turn this show into something really special!
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Made by Studio 8bit (Tokyo Ravens), Grisaia no Kajitsu is the first of what could be a line of adaptations based on Front Wing’s visual novel trilogy. Led by Tanaka Motoki (creator of the Rewrite VN’s opening sequence) and Kurata Hideyuki (Oreimo, TWGOK), this first installment focuses on the newest arrival at Mihama Academy, Kazama Yuuji (Sakurai Takahiro). In seeking a normal student life, Yuuji joins the five previous inhabitants of the Academy, which was established as a closed learning environment for students with special circumstances. The first and only male student at the school, his arrival may very well be the trigger that allows the academy’s students to overcome their traumatic pasts. That is, if Yuuji himself manages to face his own past, which could be the weightiest one of them all. Initially announced over a year ago, the arrival of this adaptation comes as a pleasant surprise after I posted about its source material not too long ago. I’m always excited to see a good visual novel receive an adaptation, and there’s much to be said about the series’ interactions and the strength of the cast’s stories once you get into them (more details in the spoiler-free VN retrospective). The problem is, it’s not an easy job to do an adaptation of a series with five distinct stories to tell, and the staff’s lack of anime production experience has me concerned. It’s balanced out by the fact that the visual novel’s original staff is assisting, but that doesn’t change the fact that a proper adaptation of Grisaia no Kajitsu is a tough task, and this could go either way. It probably won’t be a substitute for playing the visual novel, but it’s likely worth a look if the premise and/or my post have you interested.
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Erika Shinohara (Itou Kanae) is a high school student who believes in the power of appearances. Her friends know her as the mature, popular girl, and in keeping with her self-styled personality, she brags about having a hot boyfriend. In reality, however, Erika’s “boyfriend” is just a random guy she snapped a picture of on the street, and she has no more experience with men than most young girls. Unfortunately, Erika’s little white lie ends up backfiring when she finds that her “fake” boyfriend is actually her classmate, and that if she hopes to keep up her appearances, she’ll have to convince this “dark prince”, a sadist, to pretend to be her boyfriend for real. Unlike most of the other shoujo adaptations on the list this season, Ookami Shoujo is more along the usual lines of the genre. I find that to be less of a perk here, especially since the manga itself lacks the charm or grace of some of the better offerings (Strobe Edge comes to mind). However, the manga does have some comedy to go along with the drama, even if the characters are a bit flat. Erika is pretty much a normal heroine who happens to be a “wolf in disguise”, so to speak, and Kyouya (Sakurai Takahiro) is the classic sadistic (and rather abusive) bishounen. Obviously romance does bloom, and both characters end up genuinely liking each other eventually. It’s worth watching if you prefer simpler and to the point shoujo romances with a bit of comedy on the side.
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A new original anime from the creator of Kanon and sola, Sora no Method is the story of five friends who made a wish when they were younger. The wish was realized with a miracle in the form of a disk that hovers above their town. It’s been seven years since then, and Furumiya Nonoka (Natsukawa Shiina) has returned to the “Town of the Disk” after moving away to Tokyo for her father’s work. She’s reunited with her childhood friends, including the mysterious Noel (Minase Inori), a bright and innocent girl who appears to be of elementary school age … and has been since Nonoka left seven years ago. It’s always hard to know whether an original series will be good, so let’s go over its bona fides first. With script writer and original creator Hisaya Naoki on board, I would expect there to be a mixture of the realistic and the fantastic, and perhaps some tragedy as well. Director Sakoi Masayuki has directed before, but nothing lately and nothing I’ve watched, so I can’t speak to him. This is being produced by Studio 3Hz, a new studio, but it could be made up of industry veterans for all we know. As for the story, they’ve released precious little information so far, and the promo videos aren’t forthcoming. Right now we know there are five childhood friends with varying agendas + a mysterious little girl. It all piques my interest enough that I want to watch the first episode and see exactly what it will be about, but I can’t grab a hold of anything to know whether to suggest it or not. It’s reminding me of Glasslip or Natsuiro Kiseki, with its group of disparate friends and the wonder/miracle element, but I have no idea if that will hold true. We’ll have to wait until the first episode airs to know more, but hopefully it will at least turn out better than the former.
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Kokkuri is a Japanese table-turning variant once believed to have been a communication with the spirits, but has since fallen out of fashion. That is, until Ichimatsu Kohina (Hirohashi Ryou), an unwaveringly deadpan little girl, performs the ritual with the intent of summoning a spirit. And a spirit she gets, in the form of a white-haired, fox-eared young man. This Kokkuri-san (Ono Daisuke) initially intends to haunt Kohina like a good spirit should, but takes pity on her self-abusive lifestyle in which she subsists only on cup ramen. He is reluctantly roped into Kohina’s surreal lifestyle to serve as an ad hoc housekeeper. But Kohina is hardly going to be satisfied with just one spirit. Expect other supernaturals to join the fun, including creatively named characters like racoon-themed Shigaraki (Nakata Jouji) and dog youkai Inugami (Hirohashi Ryou). And more! Needless to say, hijinks ensue. 4-koma like Gugure! Kokkuri-san do not receive adaptations as often as their normal manga counterparts, perhaps because they do not typically conform to those traditional narrative forms. But Kokkuri-san isn’t the typical 4-koma, and it doesn’t let itself get stuck in the four panel format too rigidly. The stereotypical 4-koma is something of a light-hearted gag roulette, and while Kokkuri-san has that too, there’s some heavy themes about solitude, self-neglect, and societal commentary lurking under the surface. From the looks of it there are plenty of opportunities for black humour, though whether they’ll be fully capitalised on remains to be seen. Not that Kokkuri-san necessarily needs to buck the norm to be good—the staff is surprisingly solid with a seasoned voice cast (lead by Ono Daisuke, still eternally typecasted as good-looking young men). Perhaps the seiyuu talent is indicative of a strong character focus—you don’t need much more than a zany cast forced to interact with each other to produce comedy. If you’re in the mood for laughs from the occult this fall, then Gugure! Kokkuri-san is your ticket.
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Ai Tenchi Muyou! is another spinoff based in the Tenchi Muyou universe. With Masaki Tenchi (Kikuchi Masami) reprising his role as the male lead, he has to once again deal with some sort of impending disaster caused by none other than the devilish Washu (Kobayashi Yuuko). But in order to prevent it this time around, he must infiltrate a Girls-only school under the guise of a student teacher. For any of us who’ve watched anything Tenchi Muyo before, it should be clear just how rough of a time he’s in for. Oh, and did I mention the show is slated to be 5 minutes long airing every weekday? For those of you who didn’t grow up in the era of Saturday Morning Cartoons, the original Tenchi Muyo (I’m using original loosely there) that aired on cable television in the states was arguably one of the best anime of the time. It was a little raunchy, tossed in hints of romance here and there, and had an awesome depiction of what technology could be in the future. So when I heard the words “Tenchi Muyo” and “new show” in the same sentence, I was stoked. After doing a bit of research though, I’m not sure how I feel about this upcoming spin-off. Even if you look past the 5-minute nonsense, I can’t help but feel its use as a form of advertising for the city of Takahashi is only going to hurt it. It is Tenchi Muyo though, so you bet I’ll be at least taking a look!
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Humans, gods, and demons, though drastially different, once banded together to seal their common foe, the dragon Bahamut. The seal to Bahamut could only be opened by a key, which was split into half and split between the gods and demons respectively. All is at peace in the world of Mistarcia for many millenia, until one human disrupts the peace by stealing one half of the key. Amira’s (Shimizu Risa) intentions are unknown, but her path will undoubtedly cross that of Favaro Leone (Yoshino Hiroyuki) and Kaisar Lidfort (Inoue Go), who will find themselves at the crossroads of a battle between gods, demons, and humans once again. I don’t usually consider myself an action fan, but when I watched the promotional video, I was blown away. Although based on a mobile game, this adaption doesn’t look like a mere “cheap promotional show” with no heart. Although 3D CGI is utilized a fair amount, the amount of detail to the drawings and shading is remarkable. What’s most striking though is the art style, which is very distinct—of all the previews I’ve written this season, this one is the most memorable. It’s no surprise that MAPPA is the animation company, as their recent success with Sakamichi no Apollon and Zankyou no Terror have illustrated. The music is also a great addition to the epic feel of the show—Ike Yoshihiro might not be popular yet, but after this season, he may well be. Overall, I recommend this show to anyone looking for a “sweeping visual fantasy” of epic scale, complete with epically large Shadow of the Collosus scale foes.
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Let me preface this with this statement: this show is going to be absolutely hilarious! Orenchi no Furo Jirou, or the Special Circumstances of my Bathtub, is the story of a typical high school kid named Tatsumi (Shimazaki Nobunaga) and the life he leads after discovering a merman named Wakasa (Umehara Yuuichirou) lying on the side of the beach. Like all sane people, Tatsumi ends up taking Wakasa home and “saves” his life by tossing him into his bathtub full of warm water. To his surprise, Wakasa decides to move into his bathtub, which in turn leads to a bunch of crazy things happening. Things like a half-octopus, half-man with serious handyman skills named Takasu (Suzuki Tatsuhisa) randomly coming over, to his water and gas bill literally quadrupling. I still can’t get over how much I think I’ll enjoy this show. While I have some serious doubts about how it’ll hold up in the transition from a 4-koma to anime, there’s no doubt in my mind the show will be pure comedic gold. It’s not often you find a comedic duo that works right off the bat, but the contrast between the busybody Tatsumi and the hyperactive Wakasa seems to strike all the right notes whenever they’re within twelve feet of each other. And when they’re not, there are still other elements to hold the story up as it prepares to hit us with another joke. From the mantopus Takasu to the consequences that come with awkwardly high water and gas bills, I think there’s more than enough to keep the jokes flowing.
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What a delight it is to see Yowamushi Pedal achieve the success it so richly deserves (and I so richly predicted). Not only is Yowapeda itself a terrific series, but its popularity got mangaka Watanabe Wataru’s other manga, Majimoji Rurumo, a wonderful anime this past season (and shame on you if you haven’t watched it). Watanabe-sensei is a real talent, a writer of boundless wit and heart, and by all accounts one of the true nice guys in the business. Content-wise, things should be pretty straightforward here – it’s the much-anticipated third day of the Inter-high, which sees first Hakogaku and then Sohoku having clawed their way back to catch Kyoto Fushimi and the Chimera cyclist, Midousuji-kun. We don’t know if this season will also be three cours, but Yowapeda has proven popular enough (in terms of disc sales and massive merchandising tie-ins) to hope that we might eventually see something close to a complete adaptation of the manga, which is still ongoing. It’s not the staggering monster hit with females that Haikyuu!! and Kuroko no Basuke have been, but it’s a hit nonetheless – and it’s the sports manga that’s perhaps most effectively crossed over to the new audience while still retaining a sizeable chunk of the old. Yowapeda comes as close as any sports anime to bridging the gap between old-school and new-school, but more importantly, it’s simply a blast – a fun, exciting and witty series full of great characters and an unabashed love of cycling.
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If one were to learn about Japanese society entirely from their entertainment media, one would get the impression that high school in Japan is a very dangerous place. Every student is an alien, a time traveller, or an esper, and they’re called up routinely to save the world as we know it. But in Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de, the members of the literature club (of course it’s the literature club) suddenly gain superpowers, and nothing comes out of it. Kanzaki Tomoyo (Yamazaki Haruka) controls time. Kushikawa Hatoko (Hayami Saori) is an elementalist. Himeki Chifuyu (Yamashita Nanami) creates matter. Takanashi Sayumi (Taneda Risa) is a pseudo-white mage. Andou Jurai (Okamoto Nobuhiko) is a standard loser harem lead. Half a year has passed, but none of them have been scouted to attend a school for mutants or participate in deadly battle royales. Yet. Deep down, the literature club is confident that their physics-defying abilities have a higher cause. The superpower battles will begin any day now! Right? Adapted from a light novel by Kota Nozomi, Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de does not come off as a satire per se, but does make light of a number of shounen manga tropes. The idea of a bunch of people expecting the Call to Adventure that never comes actually has some depth for exploration, like a cross between Waiting for Godot and those chuuni shows, or a variation on the Suzimiya Haruhi schtick. Whether or not Inou-Battle continues in this direction remains to be seen; the promotional material paints the picture of an unassuming harem comedy. With over-the-top powers, of course. The bit of silliness will make Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de a perfect palate cleanser for those who already consider superpowered high school kids to be mundane.
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Princess Yona, sole heir of the Kouka Kingdom, is raised in luxury and lives in ignorance of the world outside the castle walls. Her father dotes on her, her childhood friend serves her, and she has no worries beyond her attraction to her cousin, the handsome Soo-won, and the annoyance of her unruly red hair. On her 16th birthday, however, everything changes when Yona simultaneously loses everything and becomes a fugitive of her own kingdom. With no one but her bodyguard, Hak, at her side, she flees her pursuers for the relative safety of the outside world where she will have to learn to fend for herself. On the heels of Pierrot’s adaptation of Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii comes another shoujo manga adaptation. However, Yona has far less in common with Soreseka than it does with Watase Yuu’s shoujo classic Fushigi Yuugi. As a result, Akatsuki no Yona leans a bit more toward the harem side of the spectrum, but it’s no “BroCage” either. It’s an adventure with dark undertones and some light humor on the side, and likes to reflect on Yona’s predicament as a fallen princess. Unfortunately, fans of Soreseka may not be quite as enthralled with this princess, though she’s not exactly a pushover herself. Unlike Nike, she is spoiled and weak at first and has to change to survive. However, she does have an army of shoujo boys ready to dazzle and save the day, and she does undergo vast character development, so if that’s more your style of romance, you should give Akatsuki no Yona a try.
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Kasga Arata (Matsuoka Yoshitsugu) leads a normal everyday life … until one day everything changes after he wakes up to a black sun, and a magician appears before him. The black sun was caused by a mysterious disturbance dubbed as the Breakdown Phenomenon, which disintigrated his entire town, including his cousin and childhood friend Kasuga Hijiri (Suwa Ayaka). Arata is saved by the grimoire Hijiri thrusts on him, which temporarily resurrects the town for his benefit. That’s what draws the magician Asami Lilith (Hara Yumi), and eventually gives Arata his ticket to Royal Biblia Academy, a school of magic where he hopes to learn how to resolve the Breakdown Phenomenon and rescue Hijiri from the other world. Waiting in the school are seven beautiful female magic users who might be able to help—the Trinity Seven. I like this story already! It doesn’t show in the synopsis, but based on the source material it has the potential to be an upper tier fantasy-action harem show. First of all is Arata as the male lead. He’s unabashed about his tastes and perversions, though he’s not goofy about it like Issei. He’s also decisive; this is no wimpy guy who will be pushed around by his harem—he’s going to be the one doing the pushing. But his haremettes are fun too. Some of them start out stereotypical—Lilith is a textbook tsundere to start—but others are quirky from the get-go, either fueling his antics or perpetuating their own. This is the story of a guy who will take a good long look at a naked girl if given the chance, and will enjoy the accidental grope if it happens. But it mixes in some surprisingly serious material in the beginning, and in the manga, it works. The trick will be whether Seven Arcs can balance the tone between serious fantasy-action and silly harem comedy, and that’s a delicate act. Director Nishikiori Hiroshi has experience, though nothing quite like this, and while series composition is being done by Yoshino Hiroyuki, who has Magi, To Aru Majutsu no Index, and Strike the Blood on his resume, he also did series composition for one Guilty Crown, so consider my optimism tempered. If they can balance things well, this could be one of the best fantasy-action harems out there, but I’m going to need to see more evidence before I sing it any more praise.
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A year after the series’ original run, Gundam Build Fighters Try returns with a new cast of characters led by Fumina Hoshino (Makino Yui). The sole remaining member of Seiho Academy’s Gunpla Battle Club, Hoshino finds herself in desperate need of two additional members, as three are now required in order to participate in the national Gunpla tournament. In a chance encounter, Hoshino stumbles upon transfer student Kaimiki Sekai (Togashi Kazumi), who joins the club along with model-building champion Kousaka Yuuma (Uchida Yuuma). In a time where Gunpla Battle has never been more popular and new rules and battle modes are the name of the game, they begin their march to the top, eager to reverse the academy’s decline following Iori Sei’s victory seven years ago. While I didn’t watch the original series, I heard good things about its entertainment value and how it’s essentially a celebration of the kits that formed the basis of many fans’ childhoods. The director may have changed–Watada Shinya of the Gundam AGE OVA takes the reigns–and the cast may be completely different, but there’s no reason to expect anything radically different with this new iteration of Gundam Build Fighters Try. Sunrise will be Sunrise in regards to its animation quality, and the core story about Gunpla battles remains the same, meaning this will stay a Gundam series made for Gundam fans. It goes without saying that fans of the original series will find something to like here, though Gundam fans who haven’t watched the original should be able to join in too, courtesy of the new rules and cast.
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Hi sCoool! Seha Girl is part of the Sega Hard Girls multimedia project, which reimagines Sega video game consoles as anthropomorphized goddesses who appear all over modern Japan. The anime follows the story of Dreamcast (Ichimichi Mao), Sega Saturn (Takahashi Minami), and Mega Drive (Sega Genesis, Izawa Shiori), who have just enrolled in SeHaGaga Academy at Tokyo’s Haneda Otorii station. They are given an assignment required to graduate by a suspicious teacher, and to clear it, the girls have to dive into the world of Sega games. The girls must try their best to graduate without anything going wrong. I was a Sega kid. I had a Genesis, I had a Dreamcast, and then I gave up on consoles when the Dreamcast died an ignominious death. Yet I still don’t understand the nostalgia for Sega consoles, nor the multimedia anthropomophized (and frequently moe) franchises it spawns (Ex: Aoi Sekai no Chuushin de, Choujigen Game Neptune, this). Don’t get me wrong, Sega games were fun! Maybe they still are. Sega still exists, right? But the consoles were just a way to get to the games. This project is being directed by Sugahara Souta, who also directed gdgd Fairies and Boku no Imouto wa “Osaka Okan”, so at least he’s in familiar territory. The entire premise just seems like a shallow nostalgia grab, and I have little desire to encourage this kind of pandering. It could be good, but I wouldn’t bet on it. If you’re nostalgic for Sega consoles, or have a fondness for low-budget CG adaptations—they’re using the MikuMikuDance software, like in Minarai Diva—this could be up your alley. Otherwise I would probably steer clear. I usually only account for one exception with odd premises like this, and since I’ve heard good things about Neptunia, I’m going to assume that was the one. I’ll be skipping this one unless someone tells me it’s amazing.
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Academy student Kakei Kyoutarou (Majima Junji) loves reading peacefully. His childhood wish was to read magical texts, which was soon granted with a caveat that he spread happiness and kindness to others. Although his days in the library are initially solitary, a text from someone only known as the “Shepherd” changes everything. Under the distant guidance of the Shepherd, Kyoutarou ends up meeting many girls, such as the excellent cook Shirasaki Tsugumi (Yonezawa Madoka), the high-class and self-sufficient Sakuraba Tamamo (Saitou Yuka), the stoic Misono Senri (Yamamoto Nozomi), the girl-next-door Kodachi Nagi (Tanezaki Atsumi), and the polite Suzuki Kana (Sendai Eri). The five of them all share an interest in the library and/or Kyouarou, and are most likely the people he must spread happiness to. When you’ve got to list a whole bunch of girls after one guy, it’s definitely from a visual novel, which Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai hails from. Labeled as the best Bishoujo VN of 2013 by Getchu, its strong points draw from its excellent music and character design. It’ll be interesting to see such an esteemed title adapted by Hoods Entertainment, which has been taking interesting risks with the likes of Kanojo ga Flag wo Oraretara and Nazo no Kanojo X. With only one-cour, the series will have to be economical to quickly tell its story. For seiyuus, I’m personally excited to see Majima Junji onboard, whose voice is underused, considering how well he played Ryuuji from Toradora!. Saito Yuka is also a welcome sight, whose voice of Chizuru from Seitokai no Ichizon is also appropriate in her assigned role. Although the quality and staff is up in the air, I do recommend watching this series if you like visual novel character designs and plots. With the ranking so high, I’m sure that loyal fans and newcomers alike will find something to enjoy with this large female cast in tow!
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BONES reprises its adaptation of Sakaki Ichirou’s light novel from Spring to bring us Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle. Picking up from the end of the first season, gun-toting, magic-shooting Chaika Trabant (Anzai Chika) is still lugging her coffin across the continent, intent on collecting the body parts of her dismembered father. Acting bodyguards for the Coffin Princess include former mercenary Tooru Acura (Majima Junji) and his stoic yandere (yes, that’s a thing) sister Akari (Hara Yuuko). As their quest brings them into conflict with mystical native fauna, government authorities, and the Chaika family franchise, there are always unsettling questions. Why are there forces that wish to see them fail? And for that matter, why are there forces that wish to see them succeed? Hitsugi no Chaika reminds me of an RPG plot, but from the villain’s point of view. Our protagonists are trying to collect what seem to be the parts of an Evil Mage Emperor and the antagonists are a quirky band of adventurers who have come together to stop them, but are always one step behind. There certainly is an epic adventure feel to the whole affair, and the first season proved to be a fairly fun fantasy romp. The writing had a tendency to dip a bit heavily into exposition, but a good chunk of the setup (like world-building, back-stories, various mysteries, etc.) should be done by now, which leaves us with more time to get into the meat of the narrative. Which is good, because the last season ended at a climatic point (at least as far as the antagonists are concerned), and there are plenty of plotlines left unresolved. We can also expect more crisp action sequences and those hints of romantic tension. There’s no indication that BONES means to deliver anything different from the first season, so if you enjoyed that, odds are you’ll enjoy Avenging Battle as well.
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A worm-like species of alien called Parasytes has invaded Earth, taking human beings as hosts by wrigging in through their noses and ears and taking over their brains. A young man, Izumi Shinichi (Shimazaki Nobunaga), falls prey to a Parasyte named Migi (Hirano Aya) when it tries to enter his ear and fails, burrowing into his arm instead. Since Migi fails to inavde Izumi’s brain, the two become seperate entities residing in the same body. Upon realizing that Izumi is still human in his mind, other Parasytes attempt to kill him, leading Migi and Izumi to learn to work together in order to survive. The latest in a recent surge of adaptations including creatures that eat humans, Kiseijuu is in actuality a very old manga (it began in 1989; wow, it’s older than me). It’s rare in the first place that a manga this old is only now getting an adaptation (and it gives hope for those series that have passed into silence without seeing the light of a television screen), but it does offer variety in style. The synopsis doesn’t sound that original in our time, but it’s actually a pretty creepy and chilling story, and doesn’t focus one-mindedly on the Parasytes as evil creatures. Instead, we see both Izumi’s dilemma and Migi’s, as well as that of how Parasytes in general exist in their human hosts. Character oriented and psychologically driven, Kiseijuu promises to deliver a slightly denser plot than most, and it seems to be in fairly good hands as far as adaptations go.
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P.A. Works enters the ‘making-an-anime’ genre with its newest production, SHIROBAKO. The story revolves around a group of five girls who each play a distinct role in producing an anime. Miyamori Aoi (Kimura Juri) leads as director, while the aspiring writer is Midori Imai (Ouwada Hitomi). Misa Toudou (Takano Mami) is in charge of the 3D CGI, while Yasuhara Ema (Kimura Haruka/a>) is the representative animator. Finally, Sakaki Shizuka (Sakaki Shizuka) represents a new seiyuu in the industry. These five, along with supporting animating cast members, will reveal the hardships of anime…or not. While technical aspects of anime production will be revealed, the story will mainly be a heartwarming tale of friendship and lots of donuts. As a collaboration between P.A. Works and director Mizushima Tsutomu, SHIROBAKO has potential to become a fairly decent “anime-about-anime”. Judging from the PVs, the animation quality won’t be on-par with some of P.A. Works’ previous productions, Mizushima Tsutomu still has some great titles behind his back, such as Another, Ika Musume and Girls und Panzer. Promotional videos indicate an authentic portrayal of its premise, unlike Glasslip of last season. In fact, the show itself will focus less on dramatic and interpersonal drama, and more on the technical and group struggles of producing an anime. Since this is original material led by an experienced director, this may be Mizushima Tsutomu’s way of lifting the curtain on the anime industry to the general public, even if done in a broad and simplified manner. If the combination of a behind-the-scenes premise with the standard P.A. Works character design interests you, watch a few episodes and see if those expectations are met.
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Two years after its initial air date, PSYCHO-PASS returns to the noitaminA block for a much anticipated second season. Like its predecessor, the series will focus on a dystopian future originally crafted by Urobuchi Gen (Fate/Zero, Madoka Magica), where one’s mental state, personality, and likelihood of committing crimes can be quantified and represented by a statistic known as a “Psycho-Pass.” In a new age led by the Sibyl System, inspectors at the Ministry of Welfare’s Public Safety Bureau use special weapons known as Dominators; capable of performing instantaneous measurements of one’s Psycho-Pass, they dispense justice on those that would seek to commit crimes. PSYCHO-PASS 2 will continue the story of inspector Tsunemori Akane (Hanazawa Kana), who will be joined by the MWPSB’s newest inspector, Shimotsuki Mika. Mardock Scramble’s Ubukata Tow will replace Urobuchi Gen as the writer for this series. When I first watched PSYCHO-PASS, I enjoyed how it showed this incredible world where technology pretty much determines your entire life, and how, just when you started to think there’s no way a system like that would work in the real world, the show explored and subverted the rather clear flaws of this system. For example, bystanders get their Psycho-Passes infected by being near traumatic scenes or people are assigned to detention facilities when they are young because of one Psycho-Pass scan. I expect the second season to explore three things: Tsunemori’s interaction with the Sibyl System, the new recruit getting accustomed to life as an inspector, and the whereabouts of the ex-enforcer Kougami Shinya (Seki Tomokazu). This show gives me the same vibes as another favorite sci-fi show, Ghost in the Shell, and I’m looking forward to more action and crime scene investigations. If you’re interested in this series but haven’t watched the prequel, you may want to skip the first season entirely and instead watch the New Edit version, which gives a good recap plus some extra content.
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Arima Kousei (Hanae Natsuki) was a child prodigy, a piano player instructed by his mother. Though he had a lot of promise, his career came to a screeching halt when his mother died and he became psychologically unable to hear his own piano playing despite having good hearing. After a failed recital, Kousei becomes depressed and refuses to play again. His world becomes plain and without color until he meets Miyazono Kaori (Taneda Risa), a beautiful violinist with plenty of spirit. She helps Arima become interested in music once again and has him realize that passion is just as important as technique. A-1 Pictures is bringing us the adaptation of Naomi Arakawa’s award-winning manga of the same name, and from the PVs, this looks like it’s going to be one pretty production. On top of that, Ishiguro Kyouhei, who worked on the quirky Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun, is directing, which promises us some interesting things as far as characterization. Being a series about music also wins a point in my book, and the series seems both straightforward and charming. Obviously this is a character-driven show, and Arima’s PTSD-like problem serves as the reason for why he finds Miyazono so alluring and special. Hopefully the romance and drama aspects are well executed, and if so, I find no reason why this shouldn’t be one of the best series of the season.
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Tired of people calling anime weird Japanese cartoons? Tired of getting suspicious looks about your hobby? Tired of being on all the government watchlists? Then this show is…hell yeah, for you! It’s time to embrace the stigma and watch something completely ridiculous! And it doesn’t get much more ridiculous than Ore, Twintails ni Narimasu.. This is an adaptation of a light novel by Mizusawa Yume, in which high school hairstyle-fetishist Mitsuka Souji (Shimazaki Nobunaga) is visited by Thouars (Uchida Maaya), a girl from an alternate dimension. She grants him the power to use his love for the twin-tails hairstyle to transform into a superpowered twin-tails girl named “Tail Red”. Now he and his childhood friend Tsube Aika (Aisaki Yuuka), alias “Tail Blue”, must fight against monsters that have suddenly invaded the town in conquest of twin-tails. The fate of the world now rests on their shoulders. Let it not be said that Ore, Twintails ni Narimasu. ever pretended to be anything other than what’s on the tin. And if the summary sounded tongue-in-cheek to you, make no mistake: I can’t make this stuff up. Frankly, if you’re going to make something like I, Will Become a Twin Tail, you might as well be completely shameless about it. While guys turning into girls isn’t necessarily new or high brow, this show separates itself with what can only be described as surrealism. If you think about it that way, Ore, Twintails ni Narimasu. works out to be a strangely postmodern super sentai series. The absurdity of the premise is but a deconstruction of superficiality in anime. Underneath the action and the harem comedy is a self-aware commentary on…something. About hair. Whatever. So, yeah, anime can be art, peoples. We’re going to run with that.
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From the amazing studio that put out amazing movies like The Wind Rises and Kiki’s Delivery Service comes their first foray into the realm of television with Sanzoku no Musume Ronja, or Ronja the Robber’s Daughter. Based off of the popular children’s novel of the same name, the show focuses on the journey of a young girl named Ronja (Shiraishi Haruka), the heir to a village of thieves, as she slowly discovers the secrets of the dark pine forest she resides in. Secrets that can make a kid grow up too quickly. And while it’s hard to say how closely Studio Ghibli will stick to the source material, it looks like we’re going to get a whimsical tale as Ronja discovers the joys of growing up and finds out what it really means to live. Seeing how it’s possible that this may be the last work Studio Ghibli ever produces—or at least, the last one for a while—fans of the studio may be disappointed to learn that even though Ghibli is directing the show, the character art is being entirely handled by Polygon (who animated Sidonia no Kishi), meaning we’re getting really thick CGI. That’s a shame considering this may be the last time we see the beloved studio, and even more so because the charm of the show will probably be undermined by the CGI. It’s also unclear just how much the series will be influenced by the book, so at the moment it looks more like a slice of life show with adventure thrown in. We do know that Goro Miyazaki is directing, and that he’s quite good at these kind of productions, so hopefully the CGI will not be a major detriment for anyone interested in watching.
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Produced jointly by CONNECT and SILVER LINK, Bonjour: Koiaji Patisserie is an anime adaptation of a mobile game app that is currently in production. The story revolves around Haruno Sayuri (Ishikawa Yui), a girl who attends a confectionery school on a scholarship to learn how to make sweets so she can open her own pastry store. There she meets many handsome and suave men who are either learning or teaching others the joys of candies, desserts, and pudding! This includes Aoi Mitsuki (Kakihara Tetsuya), Kouduki Ryou (Ishikawa Kaito), Hanahusa Gilbert (Kimura Ryohei), and Suzumi Yoshinosuke (Midorikawa Hikaru). Bonjour: Koiaji Patisserie‘s director is Akitaya Noriaki, who also directed Bakuman, and its character designer is Yukihiro Utako, the creator of Makai Ouji: Devils and Realist and the artist for the Uta no Prince-sama manga. This series will be available as a web release on NTV On Demand, Nico Nico, and Hulu. There’s not a lot of information about the anime—or the game, for that matter—but what’s obvious is that this is an otome series. We don’t know anything about the main character, other than that she’s really motivated to start her own patisserie, but I’m sure she’ll meet and develop relationships with the other charming (and very good looking) men of this series, such as the popular and kind Aoi Mitsuki or the brusque Kouduki Ryou. Since this is a show about making sweets, I’m interested to know whether there will be any cooking or baking competitions. I’m not expecting anything over the top like Shokugeki no Soma’s cooking matches, but I can easily imagine an episode dedicated to the guys competing to win the main character’s praise or to assert dominance over each other (in the kitchen, of course). And as expected of someone of Yukihiro Utako’s caliber, the character designs are really nice and clean, and they really bring out the personalities of the men we’ll be seeing in this confectionery school. If you’d like to see attractive men making sweets, this may be the show for you.
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The hugely popular Japanese dating game on mobile, Girlfriend (Kari), is getting an anime adaptation. The twist: a cast list that is way too long to list, and can be found here. Centered around the concept of choosing your ideal girlfriend (and her ideal voice), the game is an ambitious project in itself. The anime is no less inclusive, with well over 30+ voice actors portraying 30 different girls (as of this writing), with voices including the likes of Kugimya Rie, Sato Satomi, Harada Hitomi, Kato Emiri, and more. Not much about the plot has been revealed, nor how the anime plans to convert a game with over 100+ characters into a cohesive show. With a huge backing from fans for its mobile app, a good number of those users will most likely follow this show. SILVER LINK. is qualified to handle a show full of girls no matter what direction it takes, considering its passing success in handling Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? and Nourin as romantic comedies. However, without much more information, all that can be said is that the scope of the project is at least ambitious, hoping to appeal wide due to its large selection of girls and their various “moe points”. If you’re the kind of person who likes the concept of IDOLM@STER with the many-girls approach, then this experimental anime may be something to check out. Just think cute-girls-doing-cute-things, but with a cast eight times larger. Whether that will work is up in the air, but at least SILVER LINK. will know how to make these characters appeal to their target audience.
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In a supposed “era of the gods”, four middle schoolers form a “Hero Club”, with one goal in mind: dealing with the “Vertex”. With Yuuki Yunna (Terui Haruka) leading the charge, she is accompanied by her fellow clubmates: wheelchair maiden Yougou Mimori (Mimori Suzuko) and sisters Inubouzaki Fuu (Uchiyama Yumi) and Inubouzaki Itsuki (Kurosawa Tomoyo). Together they enjoy a fairly normal middle school life, except for those moments when club activities call. It’s a slice of life about cute-girls-doing-cute-things plus fantasy action, all mixed into one package. Studio Gokumi has been one of my favorite underdog studios for a while, especially their comedy division. With Kishi Seiji as director, we can expect some well-directed scenes—the man does the best with the time and source material he’s given, which could be good news, considering this is an anime original production. While the show has fantastical elements, consider it a combination of slice of life with some fun fantasy elements, much like how Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? played out this summer. I’m already liking the character designs, which aren’t too extravagant, yet are uncommon enough to distinguish themselves from the herd. It’ll be even better once we see the transformation scenes, especially from our wheelchair-bound heroine Tougou Mimori. If slice of life club activities plus fantasy fighting is up your alley, give this four-person cast a taste.
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Mushishi is like a gift to anime, and anime’s gift to the world. Timeless, ageless, heartbreaking, fantastic and beautiful – there’s nothing else like it. It seems almost redundant to summarize the show, because Mushishi is never-changing – every episode is frozen in time, both in the narrative and literal sense. I don’t know what’s more remarkable – that we don’t see any other series try and copy Mushishi, or that it’s managed to be as much of a commercial success (a modest one) as it has. I suspect if Mushishi had premiered now, it would have failed to find the audience it did in 2005, because that sort of viewer isn’t watching anime any longer – but fortunately, the series seems to have banked enough supporters to keep the new disc releases from sales ignominy. It’s remarkable how little Mushishi changed in the eight-and-a-half years it was gone – it returned as if it had never left, as magical and mystical as ever. You’ll rarely see backgrounds this beautiful or writing this subtle and profound, or stories and characters that will stay with you for so long. Mushishi is special, and this season will bring the comprehensive adaptation of Urushibara Yuki’s manga to a close. Artland’s financial adventures may have given it more fits and starts than ideal, but if we get through this cour (and with Artland, it’s never safe to assume), Mushishi will – like Hunter X Hunter – be that exceedingly rare great manga that gets the anime adaptation it deserves.
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| Release Date | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 09/18 | Ane Log OVA | 姉ログ OVA http://websunday.net/rensai/anelog/ |
Bundled with manga Vol. 5 (Limited Edition). |
| 09/18 | Fantasista Stella | ファンタジスタ ステラ http://websunday.net/rensai/fantasista/ |
Bundled with manga Vol. 8 (Limited Edition). |
| 09/20 | Strike Witches: Operation Victory Arrow OVA ストライクウィッチーズ Operation Victory Arrow http://w-witch.jp/ |
Episode 1 of 3. |
| 09/22 | D-Frag! OVA | ディーふらぐ! OVA http://www.d-fragments.net/news/ |
Bundled with manga Vol. 9 (Limited Edition) |
| 09/24 | Gokukoku no Brynhildr: Kara Sawagi. | 極黒のブリュンヒルデ http://www.vap.co.jp/gokukoku/ |
Episode 11.5. Bundled with BD/DVD Vol. 2. |
| 09/25 | Bakumatsu Rock: Mystery! Onsen Kaijiken ze yo!! OVA 幕末Rock 湯煙推理劇[ミステリー]! 温泉怪事件ぜよ!! OVA http://bakumatsu.marv.jp/anime/ |
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| 09/30 | Buddy Complex: Kanketsu-hen – Ano Sora ni Kaeru Mirai de バディ・コンプレックス 完結編 ―あの空に還る未来で― http://news.buddy-complex.jp/app-def/S-102/news/?p=743 |
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| September | Hayate no Gotoku! OVA | ハヤテのごとく！ OVA http://ani.tv/hayate/ |
Episode 2 of 3. Bundled with manga Vol. 42 (Limited Edition). |
| 10/03 | Nisekoi OVA | ニセコイ OVA http://www.shonenjump.com/j/2014/05/140519news03.html |
Bundled with manga Vol. 14. |
| 10/9 | The iDOLM@ASTER Movie http://www.idolmaster-anime.jp/movie/ |
BD/DVD Release. |
| 10/11 | Zephyr | ゼファー http://rejetweb.jp/zephyr/ |
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| 10/15 | Sekai Seifuku: Bouryaku no Zvezda – Shin Zvezda Daisakusen 世界征服～謀略のズヴィズダー～ 新・ズヴィズダー大作戦 http://www.sekaiseifuku-zzz.com/pkg/07.html |
Episode 13. Bundled with BD/DVD Vol. 7. |
| 10/17 | Inawa no Kuni no Alice OVA | 今際の国のアリス OVA http://websunday.net/rensai/alice/ |
Bundled with manga Vol. 12 (Limited Edition). |
| 10/22 | Watashi ga Motenai no wa Dou Kangaete mo Omaera ga Warui! OVA 私がモテないのはどう考えてもお前らが悪い! 未放送第13話 http://www.ganganonline.com/special/watamote7/ |
Episode 13. Bundled with manga Vol. 7 (Limited Edition) |
| 10/25 | Kuroshitsuji: Book of Murder OVA | 黒執事 Book of Murder OVA http://www.kuroshitsuji.tv/bom/ |
Episode 1 of 2. |
| 10/29 | Hybrid Child OVA | ハイブリッド チャイルド OVA http://www.hybridchild.jp/ |
Episode 1 of 4. |
| 10/29 | New Prince of Tennis OVA | 新テニスの王子様 OVA http://tenipuri.jp/ |
Episode 1 of 5. |
| October | Tsubu★Doll OVA | ツブ★ドル OVA http://www.tubudol.com/ |
Episode 1 of 5. |
| 11/12 | Mouretsu Pirates: Abyss of Hyperspace モーレツ宇宙海賊 ABYSS OF HYPERSPACE -亜空の深淵- http://www.starchild.co.jp/special/mo-retsu/gekijo/ |
BD/DVD Release. |
| 11/15 | Kuroshitsuji: Book of Murder OVA | 黒執事 Book of Murder OVA http://www.kuroshitsuji.tv/bom/ |
Episode 2 of 2. |
| 11/17 | Daiya no Ace OVA | ダイヤのA[エース] OVA http://diaace.com/ |
Episode 1 of 3. |
| 11/18 | Nozo x Kimi OVA | ノゾ×キミ OVA http://websunday.net/rensai/nozokimi/ |
Episode 2 of 2. |
| 11/21 | Suisei no Gargantia: Meguru Kouro, Haruka OVA 翠星のガルガンティア～めぐる航路、遥か～ OVA http://gargantia.jp/blog/?p=1953 |
Episode 1 of 2. |
| 11/21 | Yuru Yuri Nachuyachumi! OVA | ゆるゆり なちゅやちゅみ! OVA http://yuruyuri.com/ |
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| 11/22 | LOVE STAGE!! OVA http://lovestage-tv.jp/ |
Bundled with manga Vol. 5 (Limited Edition). |
| 11/26 | Hybrid Child OVA | ハイブリッド チャイルド OVA http://www.hybridchild.jp/ |
Episode 2 of 4. |
| 11/26 | IS: Infinite Stratos – World Purge OVA IS〈インフィニット・ストラトス〉ワールド・パージ編 OVA http://www.tbs.co.jp/anime/is2/ |
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| 11/28 | Lupin the IIIrd: Jigen Daisuke no Bohyou | LUPIN THE IIIRD 次元大介の墓標 http://jigen-movie.com/ |
BD/DVD Release. |
| 12/09 | Date A Live: Encore OVA | デート・ア・ライブ アンコール http://store.kadokawa.co.jp/preorder/888800000003/ |
Bundled with Encore LN vol. 3. |
| 12/09 | Shingeki no Kyojin: Kuinaki Sentaku | 進撃の巨人 悔いなき選択 http://shingeki.net/#!/page/comics_15_16ltd |
Episode 1 of 2. |
| 12/10 | Persona 4 The Golden Animation: Thank you Mr. Accomplice ペルソナ4 ザ・ゴールデンアニメーション Thank you Mr. Accomplice http://www.animate.tv/news/details.php?id=1409330831 |
Alternate ending. |
| 12/10 | Rakuen Tsuihou: Expelled from Paradise | 楽園追放 -Expelled From Paradise- http://rakuen-tsuiho.com/ |
BD/DVD Release. |
| 12/12 | Ao Haru Ride OVA | アオハライド OVA http://aoha-anime.com/ |
Episode 13. |
| 12/12 | Strike Witches Operation Victory Arrow Vol. 1: St. Trond no Raimei ストライクウィッチーズ Operation Victory Arrow Vol.1 サン・トロンの雷鳴 http://w-witch.jp/ |
BD/DVD Release. Part 1 of 3. |
| Fall | Futari Ecchi (2014) OVA | ふたりエッチ (2014) OVA http://futarihanime.com/ |
Episode 1 of 3. |
They say that the Fall Season is one of anime’s biggest, and I wouldn’t disagree — there are quite a few diverse offerings this season. With some awesome sequels like Log Horizon 2 and Fate/stay night Unlimisted Blade Works ready to strut their stuff, and a bunch of new shows to fill in the gaps, I can’t help but feel that we’re all going to have a lot on our plates. Thanks again for going through our preview! I hope it was able to provide you with some useful information or help you find something new to watch!
Onto the rundown! Our rubric remains the same, with the five main expectation levels ranging from High to Low, plus Niche and Established hanging around for special cases. Hopefully this guide will help viewers with limited time know which shows to try first, based on our preliminary examination of the show’s staff, seiyuu, and source material.
We arrived at these levels by convening our regular (and reliably shady) “anticipation council,” which consists of Zanibas, Zephyr, and Stilts. While we’ve gone to great lengths to be as objective as possible, we’re all fallible human beings around here, and even the most well-considered predictions can prove themselves wrong in a hurry. Take these designations with a grain of salt.
Note: The lists are sorted in alphabetical order.
The Rundown:
High expectation shows give us 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 we feel you should keep an eye out for. We’re also expecting good things from these shows, so if they fall short, disappointment is understandable.
- High Expectations: Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works, Mushishi Zoku Shou 2nd Season, PSYCHO-PASS 2
Moderately High expectation shows are ones that came close to joining the High expectation crowd, but missed out due to one or two elements that gave us concern. The series underpinnings are generally strong, but there is just something that keeps us from putting all our hopes and dreams on these shows. They still have most of the makings of very strong series, so if you watch only the “best” shows but want more than what the High category provides, keep an eye out for these as well.
- Moderately High Expectations: Amagi Brilliant Park, Gundam Reconguista in G, Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle, Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu, Log Horizon 2, Sanzoku no Musume Ronja, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso, Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete, Yowamushi Pedal: Grande Road
Moderate expectation shows, also known as “True Moderate”, 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, in many of our experiences 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. Personal tastes come heavily into play, so your mileage will vary.
- Moderate Expectations: Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo, Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken, Denki-gai no Honya-san, Donten ni Warau, Garo: Honoo no Kokuin, Grisaia no Kajitsu, Gugure! Kokkuri-san, Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de, Madan no Ou to Vanadis, Nanatsu no Taizai, Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji, Orenchi no Furo Jijou, Selector Spread WIXOSS, Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS, SHIROBAKO, Sora no Method, TERRAFORMARS, Trinity Seven, World Trigger, Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru
Moderately Low expectation shows don’t seem to be aspiring to much, but it’s hard to call them bad exactly. They might focus on senseless humor or fanservice, but there’s often at least one element that elevates them above other members of their genre. Once again, personal taste comes heavily into play with these shows, because if they’re part of one of your favored genres then chances are you’ll enjoy them no matter what. Just don’t expect them to break the bank with originality.
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Moderately Low Expectations: Ai Tenchi Muyou!, Akatsuki no Yona, Bonjour: Koiaji Patisserie, Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai, Girlfriend (Kari), Gundam Build Fighters Try, Ore, Twintails ni Narimasu
Low expectation shows don’t seem to be striving for much and choose to focus on more frivolous aspects such as senseless humor and fanservice. 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: Hi sCoool! Seha Girl
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 under-appreciated, but can turn out to be hidden gems for that very reason. Includes some works oriented toward younger audiences.
- Niche: N/A
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 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 we treat them differently.
- Established: Magic Kaito 1412
I am going to watch Vanadis just for the relative lack of Tomatsu this year.
Lack of Tomatsu is a crime against humanity.
Grisaia no Kajitsu.. The visual novel was so awesome and creepy at the same time. Looking foward towards it
I will watch the new Tenchi Muyo.
Ryoko is awesome. 🙂
Ahhh Ryoko……my first,last and only anime love… That cyan hair, wicked smile and ruthless monstrous power….with that said. KEEP YOUR DAMN DIRTY PAWS OFF MY GIRL FABIO!!!!!!! I‘LL KEEEEEL YOU!!!!
I really think Gundam Build Fighters isn’t given enough credit for what it accomplished. For one, back when it was first announced, practically everyone said that there was no way it could not suck and that Gundam was dead after Age. Then it aired and not only did it surpass expectations as more episodes were released but it brought in new watchers to the Gundam franchise. Does it have it’s problems, yes it does but it was still a fun ride when it aired and I know Build Fighters Try will be as well. And I really hope the ost is as awesome as the original.
To anyone who hasn’t watched Gundam Build Fighters and isn’t sure if they should watch it, I say watch at least the first 6 episodes. If it doesn’t strike your fancy then drop it. If you want to watch it, you can watch for free LEGALLY on Sunrise’s youtube channel. So don’t let the premise turn you away from Gundam Build Fighters. Give it a TRY (shot).
Yeah, I definitely felt Gundam Build Fighters got a lot more hate than it deserved, much like AGE (at least when it came to the first 2/3 of it).
Sure, the story was nothing “deep” or philosophical or anything you’d expect from a (UC) Gundam show, but it was fun, the characters were very likable and unique from each other, and the various customized Gunpla were awesome to watch fighting each other. And considering Try is a direct sequel to Gundam Build Fighters (seven years after, IIRC) rather than an entirely separate series (like Build Fighters was to the first Gunpla OVA), I’m hoping we get much of the same that Gundam Build Fighters gave us and maybe more.
I have to agree with you guys — Gundam Build Fighters was pretty awesome. From the moment that announcer yells “PLEASE SET YOUR GUNPLA” in that robotic voice, my body was ready.
I cannot agree more.
While Gundam Build Fighters is far from being the deepest of all the series in the Gundam franchise, I personally think it is the most enjoyable. You would think that being a fan of other Gundam series would make you dislike it for being a shameless plug for the plastic models, it actually does the opposite and makes it even more amazing.
When AGE was first released, people hailed it as a return to the boyish charm of the original Gundam, but that failed spectacularly. And when Build Fights was announced, people pegged it as the last nail in the coffin. However, despite being only about plastic models, I think Build Fighters is the true return of Gundam charm that AGE failed to deliver.
I’m holding fairly high expectations out of the second season.
Sometimes I just want to watch a no strings attached, carefree kids’ show from time to time and just be able to enjoy everything that comes with it- celebrations of youth, fun, and stupidity (the kind that only kids can really pull off)- and sometimes those series end up being a lot more than just that.
The show was a lot of fun. Sometimes the Gundam series tries to get a bit too serious and it ends up really not working for me, but GBF was just a rollercoaster of simple straightforwards fun, which is fine by me.
Absolute agree. Sometimes it’s just nice to return to what I enjoyed about mecha anime and arguably what got me into anime period in the first place and just have a good old fun time without all the cynicism and popularity grabs that the genre tends to suffer from currently (eyeballing Aldnoah.Zero). The staff has an idea, they’re demonstrably committed to making it work, it’s just genuinely enjoyable for me to watch, what more can I really ask for if the first season is like the second. It helps that the 2D animation quality is phenomenal and puts a lot of the fights in more “serious” mecha anime to shame.
I love Build Fighters. Its without a doubt a big love letter to Gundam fans.
To me its Gundam in its most honest form: A marketing of Gunpla while still having tons of fun with Mecha battles. And its devoid of the ham-fisted double standard approach that I’ve been hating on mainstream Gundam. (Remember kids! War and killing is bad! Just buy our Gunpla models of highly destructive war machines!)
Just to elaborate on the expectations for GBF:
It’s a give and take. I mentioned in my preview that it’s a Gundam series made for Gundam fans. You’ll like the series if you like Gundam, but for those who aren’t fans of the series won’t necessarily find as much to like here. So the expectation level takes that into account. It’s meant to be a general thing for your average viewer, not to hate on it or discredit it in any sense of the word. It’s merely that the expectation levels have to be tempered for other viewers that may not like Gundam.
Meanwhile, Gundam fans clearly will like it more, so the expectation level can be disregarded for those fans precisely for that reason, which is why I made a note in my preview about that.
@ Zephyr – Gundam Build Fighters was the first gundam show I’d watched, and one of the few mecha shows I’d watched (I broke in with MJP), and I absolutely loved it. So I wouldn’t discount it’s appeal to non-Gundam fans. It nostagicly reminded me of Pokemon (which I watched as a kid), but was obviously of much higher quality, since I can’t stand Ash’s voice anymore, and tend to throw things when I re-hear Pokemon.
I have abnormally high expectations for this sequel season. 🙂
I’m not discounting its potential appeal. It’s highly possible for it to appeal to non-Gundam fans, but the fact is that people who aren’t in to Gundam are likely to look at it and go “Hmmm.” rather than label it as a must watch, and that’s really the point here: going in with the right expectations.
The basic thing is that it’s a Gundam show made for Gundam fans. Some may not like it as a result, but that doesn’t mean it’s not possible you can’t. It’s just about making sure the expectations are proper before going in and in this case it’s better to be slightly toward the lower end of the moderate spectrum than say, labeling it a moderately high, because that would mean it has a high amount of general appeal, which is not necessarily the case.
Indeed, if you gave it say, a mod high, it’s more likely for a non-Gundam fan to go in expecting something that they shouldn’t, which would set the tables more for disappointment more than anything. The way the expectations are now, it leaves a lot of room for it being a pleasant surprise, which is a lot better alternative. The name of the game here is watch cautiously. You may find yourself pleasantly surprised or you might not. But at least if you don’t, you won’t be going “I was misled” or what not.
Anyway, it’s a more reserved expectation level more than anything. Grain of salt and what not.
I don’t see why it being aimed at Gundam fans should be held against it so much expectation wise, if anything it just makes it look like there’s a bias against the franchise on the part of the blurb writer or something or at the very least a lack of knowledge and appreciation. I mean god knows the franchise barely gets any respect at all these days nor does the mecha genre, but here you have stuff like Fate/Stay Night which is obviously aimed at Type/Moon fans by and large yet for some reason that’s highly anticipated while Build Fighters Try is lowly anticipated and you don’t see anybody holding it against it or believing it can’t attract new fans or ones that haven’t really been into a Type/Moon work before.
I just wish people would come out and admit more freely they don’t think much of the Gundam franchise and possibly that they feel on some level that mecha is a lower tier genre (sorry but I see a lot of soft bias against the genre and low expectations in general except when there’s mega popular staff like with Aldnoah.Zero) and that’s okay, but it’s like I just don’t get why these things are held so much against particular genres and franchises while others it’s seen as not a factor. Action is action and fun is fun and tons of things are designed with a primary install audience in mind (Gundam BF also sought to win over new franchise fans which it largely did with it’s first season so I don’t see why that wouldn’t be accounted for) so to me it’s just plain bias and there’s not much else to be reasoned about it.
Also just a couple of factual corrections for the blurb on G-Reco, Tomino is returning after 15 years since his last Gundam TV series Turn A Gundam, not nearly 10 so it’s actually been a lot longer than they make it sound here, not sure where Zephyr got that number from exactly or if he’s talking in general and about about the Wings of Rean OVA that came out in 2006 or something. Even then Tomino still directed a short called Ring of Gundam for the franchises 30th anniversary in 2009.
Also Gundam Unicorn does not put a wrap on the U.C franchise at all either chronologically speaking or production wise since Gundam The Origin is coming in 2015. Hell just watching it makes that incredibly obvious since it ends with events still to transpire and there’s plenty of conflict to be had after. It comes right smack dab in the middle of the timeline in U.C 0096. Maybe do a little more research or ask a friend here guys. I know it’s kind of a long complicated timeline, but it’s really not that hard to look this stuff up and there’s plenty of resources for this sort of thing:
http://gundam.wikia.com/wiki/Universal_Century
Personally, I don’t think the expectations level is really that bad. It isn’t so much a strike against GBF as it is the fact that, regardless of what secondary demographic it happens to appeal to as well (like non-Gundam fans like me), it was indeed made for Gundam fans. There’s no getting around that. The series is a nonstop parade of homages and shoutouts (apparently a lot of the major characters are based off of characters from other Gundam series).
And it’s fine if non-Gundam fans look at it a go “eeeh”, because that’s kind of what people outside a fandom do for any other franchise, especially one that’s as big a homage to the series proper as this is. In the end, the expectations is just the opinions of a small group of people. People can have different opinions. If some of the RC writers aren’t really interested in GBF, I don’t think it’s a big deal.
THAT BEING SAID. THIS IS ME AGGRESSIVELY ADVERTISING GUNDAM BUILD FIGHTERS TO ALL NON-GUNDAM FANS (YES THE CAPS ARE NECESSARY) BECAUSE IT WAS A SUPER FUN SHOW AND YOU DON’T NEED TO BE KNOWLEDGEABLE ABOUT GUNDAM TO ENJOY. GO WATCH IT.
Ok, plug over.
Gundam Build Fighters was AMAZING. I was one of the few people who completely wrote it off when it was first announced, thinking it was some lame children’s plastic toy commercial. Boy was I wrong! Gundam Build Fighters has the true essence of Gundam in it. A worthy addition to the great franchise. The anime had great characters, a fun plot, and most of all, AWESOME Gundam battles. I can’t wait for the next season. Hopefully Sei and his friends will make a cameo appearance or two. Their story was more or less completed in the first season so I can understand the new cast, still it would be nice to see them pop up for nostalgia’s sake. Maybe they’ll even be the new last boss XD.
Dat dericious Rinko though…
Worth watching for the MILF.
Right, can’t forget the one of the greatest MILF in anime history either.
Also, to Zephyr, I’m not really a Gundam fan. I’ve watched bits and pieces (usually the beginnings) of a few series, but I don’t think I’ve ever made it through any one in it’s entirety except GBF, so it’s enjoyment factor is most definitely not limited to only fans of the previous series. Granted, I’ll admit I got almost none of the shoutouts or callbacks to previous series, so I’m missing out on a bit, but the characters and story were enough to make it enjoyable even without knowing all that. In fact, I think it’s a nice standalone show for new viewers as well because it’s basically separate from all the other series.
It’s also just plain fun. Never underestimate the power of fun XD
Definitely the most surprising show for that season.
I literally came to a point where I gave up on Gundam due to the 00 S2 trainwreck. This however managed to put me back on track. I’m hoping this delivers since I haven’t watched AGE so I can’t imagine how this director will handle the show.
I hope they manage to capture the tense moments of the battles. The OST side is safe as long as the guy who did the original is involved. He really shines for making tunes for competitive themed shows. I really like his work on Haikyuu.
Thanks for this post. I initially blew it off as “too childish” simply after a glance at the promo picture (I didn’t even read the premise lol). After reading this, I gave it a shot, and ended up marathoning through it in 2 days. It’s certainly got the entertainment factor. I’m glad I didn’t miss out on this and now eagerly await the 2 new Gundam series this season.
Mushishi and Psycho Pass, oh yeah!
Don’t forget Fate stay/Night
Book of murder OVA!!!!!! Gosh , I can’t wait after just how damn good this season was
I am very interested in:
World Trigger
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (too bright animation for me, but I somehow like it)
Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji (Kasai Kenichi)
Will definitely watch:
Mushishi
Psycho Pass
Hybrid Child OVA (^^)
May be:
Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS (Satou Keiichi)
Orenchi no Furo Jijou
Yowamushi Pedal: Grande Road
Looks like it’ll be a pretty good season
Mostly ready for Fate, Log Horizon and Grisaia. If the Grisaia anime turns out to be good, I’ll probably give the VN another try. The demo kinda bored me since it was pretty long-winded.
Also hoping that Amagi Brilliant Park might be finally a new Kyoani title that doesn’t play it safe like the last one’s and that I like.
Still have to watch Psycho Pass S1.
Wow, there are a lot of shows which look somewhat promising this upcoming season! I’ll be checking out 15+ shows, which is more than I can ever recall even considering to watch in previous seasons. Unfortunately there’s nothing new that I’m completely hyped for, but out of this spread there’s bound to be one or two gems! Goodbye sleep…
Terraformars – Could be a good sci-fi action flick, but I’m not really expecting anything more.
Amagi Brilliant Park – I’ll check this out from respect for FMP, but to be perfectly honest the plot description just doesn’t really sound interesting to me. Sounds like one of those trashy Adam Sandler movies…
Gundam Reconguista in G – I love Gundam, but I’m still working my way through the rest of the UC. I’m guessing I should wait on this one until I’ve finished Age.
Wixoss – To be honest season one really didn’t leave me with a burning desire for a second season. It just didn’t have the energy or charisma to get me fully invested in the characters or setting. I’ll hold off until I hear about the end of this one.
Garo: Honoo no Kokuin – Sounds interesting, I’m always up for a good action fantasy show with elements of politics sprinkled in.
Log Horizon 2 – Counteraction rising! I’ve really missed my weekly dose of the good MMO show.
Madan no Ou to Vanadis – It’s always amusing to see Medieval Europe viewed through the Japanese lens. Could be fun, but I can’t tell anything more until it starts airing.
Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo – Giant robots vs. dragons? Sunrise you beautifully mad maniacs… WHY HAS THIS NOT BEEN DONE BEFORE?!
World Trigger – Gotta agree with you on this one, the setting does absolutely nothing to inspire excitement (and brings up repressed memories of Black Bullet). I’ll give it a chance, but have very low expectations.
Nanatsu no Taizai – ALL HAIL BRITTA- oops, wrong show. Premise sounds OK, but the art style looks a bit weird. Could be good if the characters and plot are.
Grisaia no Kajitsu – This is my grand experiment for the season; after seeing some hilarious screencaps I decided to read the source material beforehand and experience the joy of being one of the “read the manga” folks. The VN itself is quite good (despite having enough food porn and pacing issues to give George RR Martin a stroke), but I’m worried that they’ll flubb up the character dynamics and humor. Or go with someone other than best girl. Either way, it should be interesting to view the show from the other side so to speak.
Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS – Man, there’s really a lot of western fantasy this season. The setup is fairly standard but solid, so it will all come down to the execution again.
Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de – The idea of a bunch of superheroes not having anything to do actually sounds like a pretty hilarious premise to me, definitely gonna give this a shot.
Trinity Seven – Could be a good action harem, but after Bladedance I’m somewhat wary of the genre. As long as everyone’s not a tsundere [shudders].
Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle – More Chaika? Yes, Chaika!
Girlfriend (Kari) – Will check out for the moe and lolz, but am not expecting much
Ore, Twintails ni Narimasu – (ಠ⌣ಠ)… This is firmly on my “watch while drunk” list.
Thanks for the reviews!
>best girl
Who is that? Amane?
The pacing issues worry me.
About Grisaia no Kajitsu: seeing as it’ll be one of the few shows that I actually played the VN of(Amane’s & Yumiko’s routes only and not gonna bother with the rest), I’m actually somewhat hopeful that the anime might be able to eliminate some of the issues I had with the VN, which is that drag’s out way too much in the common route and I consider this a rare case where not having enough time can actually work in the adaptation’s favor.
@boingman
Best girl is definitely Amane although despite that. I did her route first without hesitation but I actually found Yumiko’s route more interesting. I guess it’s because
Show Spoiler ▼
Personally, I hope they adapt Yumiko’s route since it has some pretty well-written & exciting romance(moreso than any of the other routes, or so I hear) and
Show Spoiler ▼
Haven’t finished all the routes yet so the best girl crown is still up in the air, but from what I’ve seen so far picking any of them will piss of at least someone. Supposedly there’s a route where he goes with none, which may be what they decide to adapt…
dont worry about Trinity Seven, the characters are way better especially the MC, its more a town own version of high school dxd
Ill watch Mushishi and thats it since im not stupid enough to enjoy the rest of the lined up anime above.
“Look at me! I am so sophisticated because I only watch deep and thoughtful anime like Mushishi!”
#MushishiMasterRace
Trinity Seven tops my “I NEED THIS” list by a mile. It is one of my favorite manga reads right now, and I’m really looking forward to the anime. 😀
Oh man, what a season: New Fate, more Chaika, Yowapedal and Mushishi and also finally Grisaia airs (Dear god, 8bit, don’t ruin it! ಠ_ಠ)! Plus, I bet I’ll find some new favourites from the stuff I don’t know yet..
And to think this is the season I’ll be so busy I won’t be home, or anywhere near technology for that matter, for sometimes weeks a time T_T
Damn you, real life!! *shakes fist*
Wow this season has some amazing series. A Garou anime was unexpected. I enjoyed the live action series so will be checking it out.
Fate/UBW is a no brainer and is the big one of the season.
Trinity Seven was a great manga with one of the best harem protagonists ever made who isnt your stereotypical pansy. Will definitely check it out animated.
Log Horizon and Psycho Pass both gets 2nd seasons.
A lot of the new shows even, seems interesting.
This’ll be a busy season.
Chaika’s back! Grateful.
Wow, a bunch more this season that I’m willing to at least check out than before lately.
In terms of Fate/UBW, at least, being an actual series, it should be able to provide a lot more development and fill in a bunch of the holes left from the movie version. And considering Heaven’s Feel is a movie, perhaps there may be a series of it later on too, I’d hope.
And Chaikas. Chaikas everywhere. lol
I AM THE BONE OF MY SWORD
Yeah, if they want to reboot a 10-year old franchise, UBW is definitely the way to go. It starts out ‘normal’ enough that you can introduce people to the series with character introductions, everyday life & school, and have enough light hearted moments to make the two cours fun to watch. On the other hand, Heaven’s Feel demands familiarity with the characters and the story, and gets serious very quick.
The UBW movie only covered the core plot aspects that dominated the second half of the UBW arc; there’s a lot of source material left to make a proper TV series out of.
UFOTABLE-quality Unlimited Blade Works reality marble will be orgasmic.
GG Harddrive. So much shows..
I’m quite looking forward to World Trigger and would definitely be on board with Mushishi except I have yet to watch the first season of the new series.
I’ll check out Ronia, although finding out that it’s CG dampened by enthusiasm. I really didn’t like the animation in Sidonia.
Fate/stay Night !!!!! UBW!!!! Rin!!!!
People die if they are killed !!!
Can’t wait to see how they will adapt this into anime. So hyped about this.
People die if they are killed !!!
ok so the sequels ( chaika , fate , mushishi and psycho ) are what makes this season interesting
other than that it looks like a dull one
When I first started anime/manga, there were series which I really loved and wished to see animated. It is my joy and pleasure to see my six years of devotion bear fruit, as many of the beloved manga I read have received recognition in the form of anime adaptions, though I have also been severely disappointed at adaptions that did not go as brilliantly as I’d hoped for. Fortunately those disappointments have been far and few, and I have found more unexpected pleasant surprises, whether by chance or by providence.
Strangely, I look back to the ‘Random Manga’ button with a nostalgic craving, since that was the very button which introduced me to four of the adaptions we see on the Autumn List, which are ‘Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji’, ‘Denki-gai no Honya-san’, Shigatsu Kimi no Uso, and ‘Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken’. That button was also how I tried to find new material to devour after exhausting all the shounen that existed 5 years ago. Nowadays, most of what I read/watch today is obscure Seinen/Shoujo that’ll probably never get an anime adaption. The monochromatic, printed, paper world manga finds itself confined to is also perfectly fine, as manga has a uniquely unequivocal beauty, that is more than worth settling for in comparison anime.
While I still rely upon the ‘Random’ to decide what I watch, the ‘Manga’ has been replaced by ‘Curiosity’. I hope that says everything about my gratitude to you guys :)))
There’s precious little in this season that I really want to watch that aren’t already established series (my shining light of sanctity Mushishi being the major one for me) so I’m not entirely sure how to feel. Most LN adaptations really just aren’t my thing, so that limits a lot of the season.
Cross Ange wasn’t on my radar either until someone told me that Shikata Akiko was doing the music for the show (*insert ear shattering screams of joy here*) at which point I am basically bound by personal duty to watch the whole damn thing just for the soundtrack. I think this is her first time doing music composition and not just singing the opening or end songs. So like, it could bomb in the worst way possible and I would still watch it. But it’s Sunrise and mecha, so I’m willing to bet it’ll at least be a pretty good show.
ALSO I WOULD LIKE IT TO BE KNOWN MY EXTREME DISAPPOINTMENT THAT HEAVEN’S FEEL IS GOING TO BE A MOVIE. I love UBW, don’t get me wrong, but there’s a reason it didn’t work as a movie (which UFOtable already did), which was too much content jam packed into too little time. It didn’t work the first time, so I don’t know why they think it’ll work with HF, which has even MORE content to pack into too little time. Heaven’s Feel was my favorite route in the game so I’m just….arrrrgh.
Unless there’s an announcement that it’s going to be a series of movies (ala Kara no Kyoukai), I’m going in with pretty low expectations.
As I’ve already said to you on Enzo’s blog: firstly, UBW movie was made by Deen, not Ufotable, and secondly, it’s highly likely that there’s gonna be several HF movies. And I doubt that they gonna be hour and the half long. Ufotable and Type-Moon are not stupid and I think they know what they’re doing.
Well I sure hope they know what they’re doing with HF.
WHoops, that’ll show me XD In which case, that was very pretty for a DEEN movie (ok, maybe I’m not being fair, but their shows usually aren’t…um highest quality production)
The rest of my trepidation still stands though. The main problem is that, assuming their shooting for a fall release date, when you’re this close to production release and there’s still no news about the movie being a series of movies, it usually isn’t. Kara no Kyoukai went in with the fact that it was going to be a series of movies established. I’m sure hoping it’s more than one movie, because most anime movies are not an hour and a half. They’re usually quite a bit shorter.
They’re not shooting for the fall release date with HF movie(s). As far as I know, they didn’t even announced the release date.
Yeah, there is no release date scheduled at this time and considering ufotable’s already working on fate/stay night 2014 (which will be a split 2-cour), it’s more like a summer/fall 2015 for HF more than anything.
We’ll see how it goes. Ufotable has a good track record so…
Thanks for letting us know about Shikata Akiko!!:D I didnt want to watch that show, guess Ill give it a try now;)
I ADORE Shikata Akiko. Most people just know her for her songs in video games and anime, but she was a indie composer first before she was a singer. I loved her soundtrack for Hanakisou. This should be the first time she’s composing for an anime show so it’s like, watershed moment or something (probably not but it is to me shhhh).
I’m probably going to throw the soundtrack for Cross Ange around like a red-headed stepchild when it’s released. My goddess of music needs more worshippers *____* *may be slightly too obsessed*
Very high Chance to watch this season:
Trinity 7
Log Horizon 2
High Chance to watch:
World Trigger
F/Sn: UBW
Gonna watch if I have time:
Grasaia no Kajitsu
Amagi Brilliant Park
PS: What!! Trinity 7!!! You’re Coming!!! Praise the (Black) Sun!!
my picks which are thankfully a bit more concentrative this times although I still hope I can drop some. lol
Amagi Brilliant Park (long time no see Bonta-kun! Are you packing this time as well.)
Gundam Reconguista in G (give it a try)
Garo: Honoo no Kokuin (look ridiculous but might be up my alley)
Madan no Ou to Vanadis (kick ass woman I hope)
Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo (give it a try)
World Trigger (give it a try)
Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS (give it a try)
Orenchi no Furo Jijou (for the lolz)
Akatsuki no Yona (yes shojo is back, but we will see)
Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu (give it a try)
Sanzoku no Musume Ronja (give it a try)
Donten ni Warau (give it a try)
Sequels:
Log Horizon 2
Selector Spread WIXOSS
Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works (got to better then the original anime)
Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle
PSYCHO-PASS 2
It pisses me off to see the Gundam “”Reconguista””. It’s supposed to be the Spanish word “reconquista” (reconquest), but Tomino gave some BS explanation about how Japanese fans prefer the ‘g’ sound instead of the ‘q’, so they changed it.
I guess it’s this kind of thing that prevents anyone in Japan from learning foreign languages well.
Yeah, Spanish gets the same treatment like all the other languages. We have “Break Blade”, “Zwei Herz” for next Fate/kaleid and now “Reconguista” but my all time favorite has to be the one from last exile. in ep 1 you can see the name of the airship in greek (just), but just to make sure, they also put the feminine and neutral form behind it so that the ships name is now “dikaios/dikaia/dikaion.” they obviously just looked that up in a dictionary and didnt even know that there are different grammatical gender in this language. Nothing, not even reconguista, will ever top the flying “he just/she just/it just”
This season has Log Horizon and Chaika… and other stuff that I’ll probably watch too. I don’t have time to do detailed picks right now, and my list always fluctuates thanks to reviews alerting me to things I wouldn’t have paid attention to and such, but those two there are locks.
Also, FYI, À la recherche du temps perdu (In Search of Lost Time), is the longest novel ever written, according to Guinness World Records
Hello there again Kairi. About your Akatsuki no Yona’s preview, yes, it is animated by Pierrot who animated Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii but I wish that you didn’t compared SoreSekai’s female MC to AnY’s female MC because they are complete different characters despite being a princess, right?
Well, thats only my opinion but one more thing, welcome back Kairi :3
I completely agree with you there. Both heroine’s are their own people and live in totally different worlds.
Having sped through the currently translated manga of Akatsuki no Yona, I really think the expectations should be higher than they were for Soredemo. I enjoyed Soredemo and it’s manga, but Akatsuki is really setting everything up for the quite the epic. It’s going in a much different direction, and so the comparison of the two really falls flat.
But I digress. Very excited for it among a few others, and hope it gets a good adaptation! =)
While I agree that Akatsuki no Yona is the more epic series of the two, it’s also got a much slower startup. Sure the Fire tribe and Water tribe arcs get seriously tense and dramatic, but the first dozen chapters are essentially just gatheriing teammates, which is fine, but if we’re looking at a one cour show (which we probably are), I don’t know how much they can fit in. And I’d hate to see it rushed in order to reach the later arcs.
Good list, better than I expected! I’m going to be checking out quite a few… (really, help me)
Terraformers
Denki-gai no Honya-san
Amagi Brilliant Park
Garo: Honoo no Kokuin
Magic Kaito
Madan no Ou to Vanadis
Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomet
World Trigger
Nanatsu no Taizai
Grisaia no Kajitsu
Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji
Sora no Method
Gugure! Kokkuri-san
Orenchi no Furo Jijou
Yowamushi Pedal: Grande Road
Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de
Akatsuki no Yona
Trinity Seven
Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle
Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu
SHIROBAKO
PSYCHO-PASS 2
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso
Bonjour: Koiaji Patisserie
But those are just to see the first episode or two to see how I feel.
But by far I’m most excited about “Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso.” It looks absolutely stunning and definitely the type of anime I love most. I’m also really excited for YowaPedal, Chaika, and Orenchi no Furo Jijou.
Here’s hoping that Stilts will blog about Madan no Ou to Vanadis.
So fucking hyped for Fate/stay night.
I’m also totally fucking stoked for Gundam Reconguista and Mushishi.
I’m a little worried about Psycho-Pass 2 since Urobuchi isn’t writing it, but I’ll give it the benefit of a doubt.
Gundam Build Fighters was also fun as fuck so I’m definitely watching Try.
Might also watch Terraformers, Kiseijuu, Cross-Ange, Amagi Brillian Park, Madan no Ou to Vanadis, and Ai Tenchi Muyo.
What’s the OAV titled ‘Zephyr’ about?
The link isn’t working. Let me fix that!
“The story revolves around the boy band named Zephyr, who lives in the slums of Tokyo in the near future. They stopped producing music after a war. One day Ned, the lead vocalist, receives a message on his phone from his girlfriend who he thought died in the war.”
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-08-08/satelight-rejet-announce-collaboration-event-anime-zephyr/.77436
And yes, I had to reply to this because it shares my name, haha.
you were pretty much required to!
Yikes! I thought you lot were taking the piss…
So, looks like Free! meets Beck.
I remember reading the manga of Parasyte a loooong time ago, it was really good, definitely looking foward to the anime.
The Heavens smile upon me! Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu & TERRAFORMARS !! I am truly blessed!
YEESSSSS!!! Ufotbale is doing Fate/Stay…I was waiting on this since I heard the announcement months back. So that’s a must. Then, Madan no Vanadis as I have been following the light novel. Hope they do it justice. Mushishi 2nd season and then maybe Chiaki and Log Horizon.
Not really impressed with the preview and not so sure why I’m getting the impression usually darker and more mature shows tend to be classified as high and moderately high expectations.
I’m looking forward to Log Horizon 2, Amagi, Psycho Pass, Donten ni Warau, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso, Inou Battle, Yowapeda and Fate/Stay Night UBW
ah another season and still no Rozen Maiden…
It would also feel exceedingly heavy watching unlimited blade works after a full season of a cute illya doing cute things.
No Oregairu S2?
OVA’s airing tomorrow, so it’s not part of the Fall.
things I am interested in and why:
Terra-formers – ok it’s Space Marines versus Bugs, give m that flamer, sarge!
Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken – for it’s silly idea… we all know there is much higher probability than otaku will end up with a vampire, witch, demon or angel than some down-to-earth office lady… which means the probability is less than zero. still, nice fantasy to have!
Garo: Honoo no Kokuin – for it’s european medieval climate, and political struggles for the kingdom’s throne
Log Horizon 2 – because it is moar of log horizon, if you haven’t watched it already, go do it NOW!
Madan no Ou to Vanadis – swords and not so much sorcery, interesting take on fantasy
Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete – supernatural trouble in a seemingly normal if old school? count me in!
Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works – because it’s UBW dammit!
Ai Tenchi Muyou! – THE original harem king is back, and i can have never enough of his haremettes.
Akatsuki no Yona – for the Princess trying to survive after her lifestyle goes out of the window…
Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle – Shocking truth! I like Chaika!
PSYCHO-PASS 2 – one of best animes since few years (imho) gets a second season – must watch for me
Sanzoku no Musume Ronja – Studio Ghibli + Astrid Lindgren = WIN
12 shows in total, plus whatever I pick up here as “lauded hit”. Gonna be a busy season…
Why is there so many shows? I can’t…
My watch list:
Terraformars – I’ve never actually seen a live cockroach before. Anyways, action and death, the recipe for fun.
Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken – Actual adult main characters in a comedy setting? I’ll watch for this being an extremely rare occurrence in anime if nothing else. (And Yukarin.)
Amagi Brilliant Park – “We heard you like FMP, so we decided to do the other Gatoh Shouji work.” Based Kyoani trolling, lol.
Gundam Reconguista in G – I am ashamed to say that I’ve never actually seen a Tomino directed Gundam (though I’ve got the first series, Z and ZZ sitting around somewhere) so this’ll be my first time seeing his work.
Log Horizon 2 – Currently watching the first season and through 15 episodes I can say this is a guaranteed watch. (Hopefully I can finish this and my 50 or so other backlogged episodes from this season before it starts.)
Madan no Ou to Vanadis – Truthfully, I don’t know too much about this other than Tomatsu Haruka is in a major leading role. That pretty much makes any series a must-watch for me.
Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete – So, I kind of laughed when I read the preview there by Passerby. He went into all this stuff about the story (influence, themes, comparisons, etc.) and when I decided to watch this, it was pretty much just to see how they adapted Kurehito Misaki’s amazing art. My priorities… lol.
Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works – Redemption for that cash-in movie from DEEN. UBW’s my personal favorite of the three FSN route, mostly because
it has the most Rin tsundere momentshas the best pacing of all the routes and Shiro’s actually tolerable for the most part. Did I mention more Rin?World Trigger – Blind watch, I seriously know nothing.
Nanatsu no Taizai – Pretty standard shonen as far as plot structure and tropes go. I’m kind of uneasy about Sawano handling the music as his style doesn’t seem like it fits the series. Also kind of disappointed in the casting except for Tatsuhisa Suzuki as Ban and Fukuyama Jun as King.
Grisaia no Kajitsu – Don’t even really know if I should watch this. VN got backlogged and this kind of seems like it could be a butchered rush job. I might just put it on hold so I get the intended initial experience.
Sora no Method – I enjoyed both Kanon and sola so I’m hoping this garners similar enjoyment.
Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de – Anybody who actually reads my pre-season tl;dr’s (anybody? T_T) knows whats coming next. Hayamin♥. Also, I find anime chuuni shows to be hilarious.
Gundam Build Fighters Try – Hayamin♥. Wait Aila might not be in this? Insta-dropped. 😛 The first season was pretty fun if nothing else. I still can’t get over the whole “With Plavsky particles we could possibly cure thing like cancer.” “Don’t mess with our Gunpla!” exchange.
Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai – Those butchered character designs. Well, if nothing else I’ll get to hear Saitou Yuka and Yonezawa Madoka again. That’s always worth it.
Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle – Excitement level. High. Second season. Waited impatiently. Celebration! (And I’m pretty sure that was terrible, but I wanted to try once. I’ll never do it again, I promise! T_T)
SHIROBAKO – Hopefully P.A. Worked steps up their game from Glasslip. I’ve actually kind of been interested in the whole process of how animation teams work, so hopefully it’ll provide some insight into that for me.
PSYCHO-PASS 2 – I haven’t watched anything by Ubukata Tow so I’m kind of intrigued how he’ll continue this. Hopefully he can construct a villain that rivals Makishima. (Even if that ends up being you know who.)
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso – Animation looks gorgeous (how surprising A-1) and I’ve always been a sucker for stories like this. Waiting warmly. I know Hayami Saori’s in this, but I’ll restrain myself since it doesn’t seem appropriate for this kind of show.
Ore, Twintails ni Narimasu. – I expect to be laughing my a** off majority of the time I watch this.
Sanzoku no Musume Ronja – I figure I might as well watch this sort of as a possible farewell tribute to Ghibli even if I haven’t watched all that much of their stuff. (I believe I’ve only watched Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away.)
Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru – I feel like I’ll regret this.
Holdovers are SAOII, Argevollen (why am I still watching this?) and AgK.
Mushishi and WIXOSS need to be caught up on.
Might watch Trinity Seven, Akatsuki no Yona and Cross Ange depending on receptions and time.
So that’s like 25 series with a possibility of 30.
I can see the ending already. orz
Aw yeah Chiaka fix coming! So excited, also I’d like to say we’re getting into fall but already there’s snow over in Alberta OTL;;
There was, but it has already melted (thankfully). Did feel like Christmas for a good 3-4 days though 😛
I will definitely take a look at these:
Amagi Brilliant Park
Magic Kaito 1412
Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works
Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji
Sora no Method
Akatsuki no Yona
Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso
Sanzoku no Musume Ronja
===
Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle and Mushishi Zoku Shou 2nd Season will also be checked out once I finished their first seasons. As always, thank you for the season previews, Random Curiosity! They are a pleasure read every time (-^o^-).
Goddamn why did I choose this year to go back to university, there’s so much that I want to see but am going to be hard pressed to find the time (evening labs can go f*ck themselves :D)
Chaika
Log Horizon
Terraformars
Fate Stay Night
WIXOSS
Kiseijuu
Psycho-Pass
Plus all the SoL/comedy offerings that look interesting and carry overs from this season (Akame, SAO)
Multivariable calculus practice might just have to take a backseat for a few days a week 😛
Seeing the Bonta-kun, I am sure that everything that has happened to that theme park in the backstory of Amagi Brilliant Park is all Sousuke’s fault. Every single one of them. How on earth are you supposed to be attracting visitors with a shotgun-packing mascot, eh?
It’s all his fault and the poor MC is going to fix it. Good luck to him.
nice summaries from Passerby, amusingly trechant. more sycophantism from Enzo (majimoji = mediocre btw).
looks to be a resonably good season overall.
P.S. – what series would people recommended to start with for a person who hasn’t watched any of the fate/stay animes?
@lebleu: “P.S. – what series would people recommended to start with for a person who hasn’t watched any of the fate/stay animes?”
If you’re asking whether there’s a need to watch any of the previous series before watching Unlimited Blade Works (UBW), I’d say no. Unlike the UBW movie, I expect UBW TV series to be just fine on its own (the UBW movie was very compressed).
Other than that, I’d probably stick with the VN route order = FSN -> UBW ->HF (Heaven’s Feel – movie out later). As for Fate/Zero, you could watch that whenever, even before FSN, though you might be better off having some exposure to series in general before watching it. So maybe FSN -> Fate/Zero -> UBW when it airs. I won’t speak as to which route is “better” since everyone has their favorites, but I do think that FSN visual quality is noticeably worse than the later series.
Thanks for this daikama. I was about to ask if it’s necessary to see the 2006 TV series and/or Unlimited Blade Works before jumping into this new adaptation. The only Fate related anime I finished was Fate/Zero. I only got through half of the original Fate/Stay Night anime and never watched the Unlimited Blade Works movie.
I would personally say that experiencing the VN order (Fate –> UBW –> Heaven’s Feel) is optimal because while the stories of each route can certainly be standalone there is an overarching meta-narrative that connects the routes in order.
That said, the original Deen series is a somewhat…sub-par. I wouldn’t blame anyone who decides to give it a miss.
Yeah, the VN order’s probably the best way to experience it and make sure you don’t miss any details and what not, but there’s a kind of irony to it that if you watch it that way, you’re starting with the original F/SN, which is arguably the worst of the Fate anime franchises out there.
At least though, if you watch F/SN, UBW (Movie) or UBW (ufotable ver), HF (ufotable), then Fate/Zero, you’re only going to get things that are more enjoyable as you go on so, there’s that.
yes that’s why I asked – i tried the original FSN series a few years ago and couldn’t really get into it; didn’t particularly like it TBH.
since you guys suggest watching the original first, hopefully they will remake the original series and then I can get into the franchise.
I was thinking ufotable was going to remake that at some point, but they’re doing UBW and HF instead, so it’s probably not likely any remake will happen soon (if at all). Better to get started rather than wait at this point, as the alternative is to wait until the split cour of ufotable’s F/SN 2014 is done in the Spring, wait until they release HF a cour or two later in theaters, and then some.
Yeah the Fate route in general is consider the least interesting routes by a majority of fans. Even playing through the VN I feel that it is a bit of a chore to do. It’s (even according to Nasu the creator) poorly written. I also find the Shirou/Saber romance unrealistic and boring.
Cyberdemon,
Can’t say I share your feelings. Saber is my favourite character from the franchise, and though the anime really was no good, I immensely enjoyed her route in the VN (the ending was beautiful!). Which is why I’d suggest to newcomers to the series to play the game instead of waiting for a remake. Especially now that are several improved versions (voice, cg, and all that) out.
Incidentally, I never liked Sakura too much, so to me HF was simply good to quite great and not the “omg amazing!” most people think.
Orenchi no Furo Jijou=Shimazaki nobunaga and Suzuki Tatsuhisa <3 Saw on their twitter about nagging they have to work together again.ahaha Of course Free! couple <3 I mean….buddies.lol
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso has beautiful artwork, even official homepage. Psycho-pass 2, Mushishi, Fate/stay night, Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji, etc.
Hybrid Child OVA!! Nakamura Shungiku-sama I love you <3 Can't wait for the release season for Junjou Romantica 3!! (too early for excitement.lol)
Log Horizon, Sanzoku no Musume Ronja, psycho pass 2, Fate Stay/Night, & Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle are my most anticipated
Will also be checking out Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS.
Might try to add one or two wildcards into the rotation. Will be busy since there’s a few good summer season shows that will be going forward into Fall
“Second” seasons form the foundation of my watch list – Fate UBW (hence the quotes around second), Log Horizon, Chaika, etc. Will also try some other shows (“3 Ep. Rule) though that part of my list is still undecided. Some notes about a couple of shows:
— Terraformars
Perhaps I missed it, but I didn’t see any mention of the Terra Formars OVA (already out) which covers the first 6(?) chapters of the manga. You can get it at the usual places. I didn’t watch the OVA, but read through most of the translated manga. Personally, I’m going to pass on the show, but those interested in the series should probably watch the OVA.
— Madan no Ou to Vanadis
Read the LNs and I like the series (JMO). Tigre is not a typical, worthless harem male lead. Definitely no “Ichika issues” here. There are a number of battles fought (large and small) featuring some decent tactics so there’s potential for good action depending upon how well the adaptation is done. And that brings me to my main concern. Normally, I would be looking forward to the anime adaptation, but I have concerns over adaptation quality risk. Been burned too many times before on that. :/ Studio aside, personally, the show’s director does not inspire much, if any, confidence.
My main concern is about rushed pacing/excessive material cuts/trying to cover too much material for the allotted air time (regardless of one or two cours). There’s a character listed on the official anime site who does not appear until LN vol. 06 >_> … and LN vol. 06 is not a good place to end. So I guess that means the anime will attempt to cover 6 1/2 or 7 (or God forbid 8) LN volumes. Either that or there is some serious rewriting going on with the anime. What’s frustrating is that the end of LN vol. 05 is literally a perfect place to stop. Seriously, I can’t see how you can ask for a better ending point other than the actual end of the series. *sigh*
So while I do plan to watch the anime adaptation for at least a few episodes, my expectations are “prepare for worst, hope for something better.” Perhaps unfair, but I’d rather be pleasantly surprised than disappointed (again). That being said, I would NOT dissuade anyone interested in the anime (or any series for that matter) from watching, but I would temper expectations for the reasons noted above.
FYI – Here’s the PV for Vanadis
I’m hoping that they do vol.1-5 justice (assuming this is one cour), and then show Show Spoiler ▼
in the stinger of the last episode, as a sign of things to come. I don’t think you have to worry about the warfare part, though- there’s an interview with Tatsuo Sato (the director) on the anime’s website, and he really seems really fascinated with the war aspect of the story. So hopefully, they’ll do the source material justice. I’m not going to complain if they downplay/remove the overt harem/ecchi elements of the series, though- those are probably my least favourite parts of the novels.
(And I wouldn’t say that Tigre’s immune to the Ichika syndrome, heh- he’s just a relatively mild case).
@N “I’m hoping that they do vol.1-5 justice (assuming this is one cour), and then show…”
Five LN volumes in 12-13 episodes (e.g. one-cour)? I’ll pass on that. Don’t see how you can “adapt” that much into 12-13 episodes and still do “justice” to the source material. Maybe LN volumes 1-3 in 12 episodes. Log Horizon Season One worked just fine with 5 LN volumes covered in a 25 episode, 2-cour run (even then some stuff was cut/shortened here and there). So I don’t see why similar pacing wouldn’t work for Vanadis (ironically produced by the same studio).
Perhaps I’m mistaken, but I don’t see either one happening (e.g. one-cour run or only vol. 1-5 covered). Your spoiler is on the official anime site character list which is why I posted I think at least 6-7 LN volumes will be covered (or there will be some serious rewriting going on). With that much material to cover, I’m expecting a 2-cour run.
Without a doubt, the shows that I’m looking for the most is the new Fate, Psycho-Pass (since the first season still give me chills) and Grisaia, because the Novel is one of my favorites.
I’ll pick almost everything else, but those 3 are my biggest hopes
Please… do NOT fuck up Madan no Ou to Vanadis, Nanatsu no Taizai or Orenchi no Furo Jijou.
Soo many fantasies..what is this, a Game of Thrones backlash?
I’m sad that the fantastic summer season is coming to an end..along w/ HxH and Haikyuu :'( But I guess this is what a normal season is like, 3-4 standout animes for me.
Gonna be tuning in for Psycho-Pass 2, Yowamushi Pedal, and Donten ni Warau for sure. Might check out Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso and Denki-gai too.
I’ve been hearing people giving undue grieve to Gundam Build Fighters Try – and I don’t care. I watched the prequel and I like it!
I am so disappointed in Sunrise and Tomino. Since Unicorn just finished a while ago, one would think that it is about time to make a proper series out of F91 since it is the series that would follow chronologically. Then they can proceed with a 50 or so episode of Crossbone gundam which every gundam fan is holding their dikcs for.
Then they do this shit. Another shitty gundam series aimed at the so-called “children of Gundam fans”. Didn’t AGE do that job already?!?! I will watch the new series but I will go in with no expectations.
My freaking god…. Fall 2014 has some of the biggest names in Otaku history and I love it!
Fate Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works- Fuk Yeah! The hole that Fate Kaleid Ilya is to be plugged up with the best route that Fate Stay Night has to offer! I am HYPED!
Log Horizon 2- Another heavy hitter has returned in full glory! Akatsuki I missed your loli ninjaness so much!
Madan no Ou to Vanadis- One of the greatest war Light Novels I’ve ever read. Very good depiction of thousands vs thousands of soldiers. I cant wait!
Grisaia No Kajitsu- I may be a Fate/Stay Night Visual Novel fanatic but Grisaia No Kajitsu is most certainly the best Visual Novel I have ever came across. While it did lack the action that made the Fate series so enjoying, the character driven story makes Grisaia one of the funniest/saddest/traumatic/emotional VN I have ever read. I have extremely high hopes for this…. and I’ll be pissed off if it isnt a masterpiece
PS: Senjogahara Hitagi is gonna be in Grisaia *wink*
PSS: Curse the lack of an edit button
Kaitou Tenshi Twin Angel: Paradise!! OVA
Suisei no Gargantia: Meguru Kouro, Haruka OVA
IS: Infinite Stratos – World Purge OVA
Ane Log OVA
Sanzoku no Musume Ronja
Ore, Twintails ni Narimasu.
Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle
Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai
Trinity Seven
Akatsuki no Yona
Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de
Ai Tenchi Muyou!
Grisaia no Kajitsu (MAYBE, i am not really good with tragedy animes)
Nanatsu no Taizai
Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo
Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works (GOTTA SEE IT)
Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete
Madan no Ou to Vanadis
Log Horizon 2
Amagi Brilliant Park (just because of the full metal panic bear in the background lol)
Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken
TERRAFORMARS (seems good)
HOLY SH*****T…. i cant remember the last time i wanted to see so many new series… and to only select 5 of these without conting the ovas… it will be HARD, but the first 3 are already decided. 1 Fate. 2 Trinity Seven, 3 Log Horizon… the others will be hard
Tatsunoko Production is replacing Production IG for PsychoPass Season 2.
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-09-18/psycho-pass-2-cast-staff-promo-video-unveiled/.78920
Also, Log Horizon 2 listed for 25 episodes.
yea i could tell from the promotional video that it wasnt production IG doing the animation…something just felt different…had to do with the camera perspectives, shading, and artistic layouts
It’s been awhile since I’m actually looking forward to a Kyo-Ani title. Their last really good series was Hyouka, and that was also a collaboration between director Takemoto Yasuhiro and FMP writer Gatoh Shouji, so I’m glad that they have reunited to work on Gatoh’s new novel Amagi Brilliant Park.
Also looking forward to see more characters illustrated by Nakajima Yuka (Papa no Iu Koto wo Kikinasai, the DL Action doujinshi series) appear on screen.
Why is Urobuchi not writing Psycho-Pass Season 2?
Urobuchi seems pretty disinterested in writing endings to the series he does write, never mind sequels.
He’s also working on a bunch of stuff at the moment too (like the Exiled from Paradise movies).
He added a lot of meat to Psycho-Pass, but I think it will survive fine without him. Personally, I find his name rings hollow these days.
Katsuyuki Motohiro’s outsider film maker experience would have had the greater influence on the show’s style & design. Tatsunoko Production replacing I.G is odd though.
There are several staff changes across the board:
– studio
– writing team
– day to day production director (related to studio change, I guess)
– art director
This isn’t necessarily a bad thing in and of itself. However, you kind of worry that Psycho-Pass 2 is more of an obligatory sequel (because Psycho-Pass sold well) than a show that everyone wanted and was prepared to make.
It probably doesn’t even need a sequel (you could say that about a lot of series), but it certainly deserves one (you can’t say that about a lot of series).
Log Horizon 2 – Loved the first season so have high expectations for enjoyment.
Psycho-pass 2- First season was interesting despite the hiccups.
Mushishi Zoku 2 – It’s Mushishi nothing else needs to be said.
Trinity Seven – Oh please merciful deities don’t let this adaption suck like so many recent ones.
Chika – Because it is quirky.
Given the last two seasons which have disappointed me immensely, I will be sticking to only these titles. Everything else doesn’t pique my interest.
Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken
> “There is no Rosetta Stone for this.”
That’s a good thing right? 😛
Amagi Brilliant Park
Premise seems incredibly generic but it’s by the creator of FMP? Have to give it a shot then.
Gundam Reconguista in G
Another “kiddy” Gundam seri–
After reading mega-dark’s comment, I’m going to try Gundam Build Fighters despite dropping AGE.
F/SN UBW
Looking forward to ufotable + Kajiura Yuki’s OST + Shiro being badass
Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo
Hopefully it’ll be a good popcorn flick at the very least.
Grisaia no Kajitsu
Curious as to how badly they’ll screw it up
Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS
Doubt there will be much plot but going by the trailer, there’s action eye candy in spades.
Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai
If only it August’s Aiyoku no Eustia instead (which I only just finished reading a few days ago T.T)
I’ll try most of the shows next season but I suppose the only thing I’m really looking forward to is UBW. Hoping to be pleasantly surprised.
The composer is actually Fukasawa Hideyuki. And he’s awesome. He was the lead composer for Mahoutsukai no Yoru, and the soundtrack in that VN is incredible, so you don’t need to worry about the soundtrack for the UBW.
> Girlfriend (Kari)
I’ll just leave this hilarious thing about the game here: http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/chloe-lemaires-japanese-speech (yes, this character will be in the adaptation).
top list of of anime i want to watch this fall
1.Mushi-shi- It’s freaking mushishi….the directorial display, narrative cohesion, and moral profundity that oozes out this series is enough to be satiated for weeks on end….then you got to shoot up again because you realized how good of an experience it was
2. Parasyte- I love me some good psychological horror, and in the right hands, this classic manga can instantly become a profound anime series
3. Fate/stay night (UBW)- It’s fate- F***ing/stay night. I personally think the default route is the weakest, with UBW striking a great balance between the other two routes, and Heaven’s feel being the darkest and most gripping. Essentially, if Ufotable is going to do a set of movies for Heaven’s feel (which im almost 100% positive they will otherwise they would have never announced it this early), then i sure am glad UBW is being made into tv eps while HF gets the movies…the tone of HF works better in movie format.
4.Psycho Pass S2- The whole first season of Psycho Pass served as Akane’s character arc, and while characterization wasnt exactly Psycho-Pass’s strong suit, the world building and cases where and there was some interesting ideologies being explored with the characters. Now is the time i expect for S2 to relly bring out the big guns and capitalize on the many strengths of the series while ironing out the weaknesses. Akane’s character arc was the entire build up of the first season…now let’s see her be a badass with what she has learned, streut her intelligence, and become an even more interesting lead along with the rest of the cast. Here’s to boarding the psycho pass S2 hype train…i always appreciate good anime that tries to use the medium for truly interesting stuff and challenge its viewers with some compelling story-telling.
………..yea that’s it. Im fairly interested in everything else on the list and to be quite honest, im actually optimistic about this fall season. I dont think it is as terrible as it may seem or that others make it seem. I will be looking out for kyoto animation’s amagi brilliant park because on the technical side of things, i really respect kyoani as an animation production. Their drawings are almost always moving within the frames, expressive, and vibrant. The artist there really took animation 101. They have a great understanding of how to use the medium of animation reach out to the audience even if their actual material may be lack luster at times. I think the stuff coming out by Mappa certainly looks interesting as well. Im always looking out for any works by Mappa seeing the talent that composes that production studio. It seems like they are finally getting into putting out more work. Overall, I feel like this season is going to surprise us and ive usually been on the money when it comes to judging an anime season.
This is going to be one heavy cour…
Continuing Shows that I’m watching:
Sword Art Online 2 – It’s finally starting to show more actual sword arts, not just the butts…(not that I’m complaining or anything)
The “must see” shows of the cour:
PSYCHO-PASS 2 – Will this finish the PSYCHO-PASS world? Cause I don’t think it can continue for another season after this…
Gundam Reconguista in G – An original Gundam Series? COUNT ME IN!
Selector Spread WIXOSS – let the mind screwing continue…finally
Log Horizon 2 – (the only Saturday show I’ll end up watching for sure) – it’s watchable for me, since I’ve read through the LN already…
Gundam Build Fighters Try – *crosses fingers for the show not to run out of ideas mid way through.*
The “3 episodes timer” shows:
Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo – interesting mech designs (a statue on the head? that’s new), though the story sounds like something from similar mech shows (ie. buddy complex for the most recent example in my memory).
The “Blog Stalking” shows:
Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken – may end up skipping it…especially when it’s right after 2 much more established shows
Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomet – may give it a whirl, seeing PASSERBY is comparing this to Ef and CLANNAD…
The “no no no no no no no no no no*cliff drop* ” Catagory…(I’m making it up, it’s still “blog stalking”):
Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu – hmm….old-school animated Retro Horror? might have a peek (through gaps of my fingers, that is.)
TERRAFORMARS – Arcade Fighter Action,
BodyMutation Horror, Alternate Planet Sci-Fi…I may have to second guess my judgement of even pushing myself for a second look at this show.I’m looking forward to:
Log Horizon 2
Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works
Parasyte
Mushishi Zoku Shou 2nd Season
I’m a bit reserved on:
Amagi Brilliant Park
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso
Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS (because of the dragon)
I still need to see the first season:
PSYCHO-PASS 2
Bonta-kun!? I would love to see something on the level of Fumoffu, that Rugby episode still cracks me up.
Huh, didn’t realize Shingeki no Bahamut (AKA Rage of Bahamut in English) was getting an anime. Seems like mobile apps/games might be a new source for adaptations? I’ll give it a look, though I have no idea where the plot will lead. It is nice to see that some of the beautiful art from the cards is being reproduced in animated form.
Never actually watched the original F/SN, as I’ve heard it’s subpar, though I have played the VN. Looking forward to UBW, especially as it’s being done by ufotable rather than Deen.
Hopefully Log Horizon and Psycho-Pass both pick up where their first seasons left off, I enjoyed both immensely.
Grisaia is on my (rather long) list of VNs to play, so dunno if I’ll watch it as it airs; I don’t want to ruin the experience and the best medium for most stories is the original. Might marathon it in the future, or maybe I’ll bump it up the list and finish it before it airs.
Gotta finish marathoning 5 or 6 shows from this season, and I’m sure I’ll pick up some of the ones I haven’t already mentioned.
Would be great. Fumoffu has to be one of the funniest anime comedies I’ve ever seen.
Thanks guys as always! Really appreciate the time and dedication you guys put into this for us!
*vigorously slaps AC Vein*….I BEEN WAITING FOR THIS sooooo bad!!….thanks!!
Ohh and BTW- “This may be a good thing because Gatoh Shouji’s Full Metal Panic!, which has had no new anime in eight years and counting, also does not fit into KyoAni’s current mold.”……………THIS, is the saddest thing i‘ve read all year.
Psycho-Pass 2 is gonna be the one I’ll be checking out… I just want MORE development for the enforcers, like Shion and Yayoi. I also want more team-ups with these ladies, if possible. Without spoiling the 1st season, Akane got paired up with Kogami (obviously, great main male character though), Ginoza and Masaoka. Kagari and Yayoi? Barely even got some screen time… which is a little disappointing. I honestly would have preferred a few episodes where both Kogami and Akane would have been paired with Kagari and/or Yayoi to see how the dynamic would have turned out.
Just… don’t screw up the relationship between Yayoi and Shion, ok?
The ones I’m sure I’ll see:
– World Trigger (from what I read and from what I saw on its first CM, I’m really intrigued. A pity this hasn’t a big support)
– Yowamushi Pedal: Grande Road (it’s back for me – can’t wait)
– Gundam Build Fighters Try (loved the first series (it’s so different from a normal Gundam series) from , so I can’t wait for this sequel)
But I might also watch out for a few others, such as the 2nd season of Log Horizon, Donten ni Warau and maybe also Orenchi no Furo Jijou
Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu. It’s been so long since I read the manga… I thought this day would never come.
Loved Passerby’s preview of “Ore, twintails ni narimasu…”, i couldn’t stop laughting the entire time until he started being all serious and then started laughting again.
Great writing Passerby.
That stuff? It writes itself.
Thanks for this preview. However, the anime that I anticipates the most in this season is Tribe Cool Crew, which is not in this preview. I got a feeling that it will give a pleasant surprise the way Gundam Build Fighters does.
The list above is not comprehensive unfortunately =( and we note that on Disclaimer #2 above. However, thanks for the heads up for all the folks reading ^^
Will there be multiple people reviewing “Fate Stay Night unlimited blade work” and will “Divine” also reviewing something this season?
If you’re talking about coverage of UBW, I’m quite certain someone will cover it. Divine will be at least continuing coverage of Argevollen last I checked. Full blogging picks haven’t been done yet, so no other details at this time.
Finally, Ufotable will show how you do a proper way of saving an anime.
/glassesadjust for more Database! Database!
Living in a database, database
Wow Wow xD
Are you ready for the punchline?
there´s nothing from shaft this season, maybe they’re working in kizumonogatari D:
One can only hope.
I’ll watch
Psycho-Pass 2
World Trigger
Denkigai no Honya-san
Le Fruit de la Grisaia
Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken
Grisaia no Kajitsu
Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji
Girl Friend BETA
Inou Battle Within Everyday Life
World Trigger seem like interesting show.
Am I missing something about Zephyr’s preview of Build Fighters Try? Why is it that despite him hearing good things about the entertainment value of BF and having nothing bad to say about Try his expectations of it are “moderately low”?
The expectation levels are not judged by the sole writer of the article. It’s based on a collective agreement from (mainly) Zanibas, Zephyr and Stilts and maybe another person if a tie-breaker is required. We’re trying to capture what the “general” audience expectation levels should be. Hope that helps =)
I mentioned it in a comment-chain above, but basically my reasoning was that it’s a Gundam series made for Gundam fans. In that context, those that aren’t fans of the genre may not find as much to like about it, which is why expectation levels are tempered slightly because the levels are for the perceived average viewer. Of course, it doesn’t mean typical viewers may not like it, just they’re not as likely to feel the same as a Gundam fan would, the latter of which clearly would have different expectations of the series.
So while it might be enjoyable, it could depend a lot on your view of Gundam in general, hence why moderately low, which basically means approach cautiously. Don’t be surprised if you’re a non-Gundam fan and don’t like it, but don’t assume that it means you won’t find anything worth watching either. Just make sure not to expect a masterpiece or anything of the sort.
Its sad that you guys put akatsuki no yona on moderately low expectations because its a really great manga. Yona is an amazing character who evolves into someone much different than when you first meet her in the series and it also has the luxury of having great characters in the mix. I hope you guys give this a blogging chance because trust me the story is huge and interesting. You won’t regret it.Its really rare that I get excited over a female heroine because honestly in the shoujo genre they are a rarity. As for my picks this season its definitely Akatsuki no Yona and Mushishi.
Where’s the poll? I’m interested in what RC patrons are interested in.
“Captain, huge wave of awesomeness incoming!”
“But we haven’t even overcome the previous wave!”
Damn, I need to catch up on this season’s show.
I’ll have the poll posted within the next day or two. Giving the readers a chance to go through the preview first.
Poll posted and new button for the fall preview =)
This season really seems to be the season where many good shows get their 2nd season (Psycho Pass, Log Horizon, Hitsugi no Chaika, .. etc) , and some unexpected ones get adaptions (Parasyte, Nanatsu no Taizai).
2nd Seasons i will watch:-
–Psycho Pass 2 (It’s always good to watch a thought-provoking anime from time to time, one that deals with heavy dilemmas and moral issues, and the first season of PP delivered that in spades, i want to know what will they do now to create more thought provoking conflicts)
–Log Horizon 2 (loved the fresh take on the “trapped in an MMO” theme done many times before, the attention to detail and mechanics while also world building and developing the characters, it’s quality entertainment and i want to know what’s going to happen next).
–Mushishi Zoku Shou 2nd season (It’s Mushishi, i need no excuse to watch it, ’nuff said).
New series i will pick up for sure:-
–Gundam Reconguista in G (i’m a big fan of Gundam and mecha anime in general, it’s interesting to see Gundam done in a new style and one that’s interesting like this).
–Parasyte (While i never read Parasyte it was on my “to read” list cause i heard a lot of good things about it, it’s the scary but fascinating body-snatchers scenario, so it’s good to see psychological and body horror animated based on quality material)
–Nanatsu no Taizai (I’m a sucker for medieval fantasy themed manga, add to that the theme of the seven sins and i’m in, funny thing i just happened to check Nanatsu manga and pick it up only to find the anime announced, lucky me)
–Shingeki no Bahamut (I’ll admit that i’m picking this one first and foremost for the fantastic characters designs, animation and epic magic battles, just watch the trailer and you will understand).
–Sanzoku no Musume Ronja (It’s Ghibli, need i say more, i love everything Ghibli, and i don’t care if it has CG, the company did a fantastic job on Sidonia, in fact an all CG series works way better than mixing animated cells and CG, it’s more coherent, either way i’m really hope we will still find the magic of Ghibli here CG or not).
Show i might check (bless the 3 episode rule):-
-World Trigger
-Terraformers
-Denki-gai no Honya-san
-Madan no Ou to Vanadis
-Hitsugi no Chaika
I need to see this Animes in Motion to get a feeling for them. Pretty Pictures and Text can be just a nice Illusion. But when it comes to entertainment there the chaff separate from the wheat
I’m so happy to see people putting Denki-gai on their to-watch list :’)
I really hope it’s as awesome as the manga is LOL
So many things to watch this season!
YES
Denki-gai no Honya-san | October 2
Amagi Brilliant Park | October 2
Grisaia no Kajitsu | October 5
Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu | October 8
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso | October 9
Maybe+
WIXOSS 2nd Season | October 3
Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de | October 6
Girlfriend (Kari) | October 12
Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru | October TBA
Maybe-
Orenchi no Furo Jijou | October 6
Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai | October 8
SHIROBAKO | October 9
“A worm-like species of alien called Parasytes has invaded Earth, taking human beings as hosts by wrigging in through their noses and ears and taking over their brains”…Sounds like the Yeerks! 😛
And not to rail on Chaika season 2…but BONES, where is my Darker Than Black season 3?! ;___;
Thanks for the preview, guys! Look forward to following the posts since there’s less and less time for me to actually watch the shows. @_@
My guess? No DtB3 ever because 2 didn’t get enough disk sales. I’m as devastated as you are. Every season I hope. But if DtB taught me anything it would be that optimism gets you killed. Very applicable lesson.
I’m the same in that regard 🙁 I know it’s less & less likely that we’ll ever get more DtB but I still hope from time to time. I guess it’s time we give up on the idea though…SIGH!
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! never give up on the idea that a third DTB could happen…neveeeerrrrrrrrrr hahahaha : P. If we give up, we may actually never see a sequel. DTB (season 1 anyway and the gaiden OVA’s) are some of my favorite anime of all time. I liked season 2…just not as much as i liked season 1. I liked the fact that DTB was a supernatural anime series that actually handled itself seriously, with great writing and an execution similar to that of refined live-action action dramas. I really want to see more as the lore of DTB has sooooo much room to explore and expand.
It’s one of my all-time favorites as well. Although I don’t have the numbers, I remember S1 being fairly popular while the 2nd season season might not have been all that great, it’s hardly bad. A main problem which BONES probably realized but it was too late was how the 2nd season came out before the 4 OVAs, leaving viewers with so many questions. Even if those questions were answered when we got the OVAs, a lot of people were left with a “meh” impression of the 2nd season, at least when compared to the 1st one. I think there would be a reasonable number of people interested in a 3rd season featuring our awesome chinese electric batman – whether it’s a prequel or another sequel.
@MgMaster yea that’s pretty much what i assumed; regardless of how interesting the OVA’s were, the “meh” feeling viewers had from S2 was so pungent that BONES perhaps wanted to hold back on continuing the story.
I haven’t watched any fate shows except Fate/Prisma [Magical Girl]. Is it alright for me to watch Fate/Stay Night UBW?
Perhaps, but free your mind from the Fate/Prisma time line, here the Cards have Masters
I would expect that UBW, being a full anime season, will start from the very beginning and you won’t be left out of the loop. In fact, it may be better if you somehow forget everything you know from Prisma Ilya. Get that brain bleach going.
If you have odious amounts of free time, though, it’d be best to start at some version of the first Fate route for the most complete experience. It won’t necessarily be for any plot, but more for the thematic buildup. No, it’s not required reading and none of it will be on the test. It’s just in case you are really obsessive about stuff like this. And it’s completely fine if you’re not.
can whoever blogs UBW please make a mention of whether it does start right at the beginning (and hence is OK for newbies to the franchise) or not.
thanks.
Amazing season so far. Looking forward to Log Horizon, Chaika, Seven Deadly Sins, Gundam Reconguista and Twintail.
* cant forget Fate/Stay Night
From a 1st glance, fall 2014 looks pretty mediocre to me 🙁 Also, I haven’t seen this many RomComs in a while. It means I have to try most of them in hopes of maybe finding one or more that stand out, besides settling with 2-3 mediocre ones. There’s little “I know for sure I’ll like this.” and more “I’m gonna have to give try this out.” this season for me.
Shows that I’m somewhat excited but uncertain nonetheless for are Psycho Pass 2, Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete & Akatsuki no Yona(at the same time, I’m also very worried about this one as I can easily see myself dropping it in a heartbeat if it plays those reverse harem tropes too much).
Shows that I’m moderately interested in but will surely watch ’till the end no matter how they turn out are Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works, Grisaia No Kajitsu & Hitsugi No Chaika S2.
Otherwise I’ll be trying out:
– TERRAFORMARS
– Amagi Brilliant Park
– Madan no Ou to Vanadis
– Cross Ange Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo
– World Trigger
– Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji
– Sora no Method
– Gugure! Kokkuri-san
– Ai Tenchi Muyou!
– Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS
– Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de
– Trinity Seven
– Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai
– Kiseijuu Sei no Kakuritsu
– SHIROBAKO
– Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso
– Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken
– Denki-gai no Honya-san
Trying out 20+ shows will be a 1st for me and as usual, I’ll be happy with 8-12 among which some will be above average, some will be good-to-very-good and a great one which I can consider a candidate for my AOTY(of course, more never hurt but I’m satisfied just finding one per season, or every two seasons even). At any rate, here’s to a season full of much-needed surprises!
Oh and of course, can’t forget Kuroshitsuji: Book of Murder OVA. Definitely excited for that!
Will Watch
Denki-gai no Honya-san
Amagi Brilliant Park
Nanatsu no Taizai
Ai Tenchi Muyou!
Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de
Akatsuki no Yona
Gundam Build Fighters Try
Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu
Will Try
Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken
Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo
World Trigger
SHIROBAKO
Donten ni Warau
Will Wait For Someone to Canary First
Sora no Method
Gugure! Kokkuri-san
Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS
Orenchi no Furo Jijou
Trinity Seven
Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso
A pretty good season overall, though for me personally not as interesting as Summer was.
Why is Akatsuki no Yona moderately low? :'(
I wonder if setting of Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo is ripped from Broken Blade of vice versa. The magic world there human mastered magic and forgot other science, main lead what can’t use magic and thus shunned by others until have chance in giant robot to protect others. Even titular mech strongly resembles Delphine from Broken Blade. Only 2 major difference between them is main lead is female and fight against dragon instead of other mecha (although I hope that will be too). Still I watch for Cross Ange just in case it can stand on its own merits.
Hmm… Junichi Akutsu did the mecha designs for Geass and Gundam Seed. Perhaps it’s more apt to say it resembles a mixture of the Strike Freedom from Seed and the Knightmares from Geass more than anything eh.
As for the former… hmmm… I kinda got more of an Escaflowne vibe with the dragons and bits myself, but I can see what you mean.
Then I first saw image of main mecha on this page first though was “It look like Delfine”. Maybe it was because of low resolution and mech seen from above, but now after I looked on main site of Cross Ange I agree with you, it is really looks like cross between Freedom and Lancelot. Aside from that what more can you tell about Cross Ange please. What designer of Code Geass mecha in project already enough to jump my hope up several times, but story don’t impress me because its as I said just like Break Blade. In my opinion Sunrise do either masterpieces (Code Geass) or complete garbage what painful to watch (Gundam Age). Its just my opinion, but other people in project (not seiyu) how they other works was? My fear: Design may be great but story is utter cr*p, because as you said “blatant use of their pilot suits as fanservice has me tempering my expectations” but to me then someone use fanservice to much its spell doom to everything else. For example Fuuun Ishin Dai Shougun. There was very little information about it before release but I had good hopes. After it was released I watched only 2 episodes, first and last. Of course this example is worst case and I don’t think Cross Ange will be this bad, but without good story it can became just another case of bad mecha porno there good visual bud not depth at all.
Madan, Log Horizon, Fate, and maybe a few others….Hard Drive…prepare to be filled!
Definitely gonna watch Psycho Pass and gundam but I’m seriously worried about FSN. I’ve seen the UBW movie so I pretty much get the idea of what events would unfold in the series and I honestly think the first FSN anime had a more fulfilling resolution than UBW, at least in terms of serving as a sequel to Fate/zero.
Hopefully, ufotable will do a proper remake someday…
the anime adaptation of madan no ou to vanadis was looking good until it turns out it going to be a train wreck with 6 volumes turned into 12 eps. That means 9 different battle in 12 eps its impossible for this to be anything but bad
Oh, no…
@ikramit: “The anime adaptation of madan no ou to vanadis was looking good until it turns out it going to be a train wreck with 6 volumes turned into 12 eps.
I agree 110% that it would be a train wreck if they tried to “adapt” 6 LN volumes in 12 episodes. However, I haven’t seen anything official (or otherwise) stating that the anime will for sure be one-cour, 12 episodes. Did I miss something? Was that officially confirmed? If so where?
Thanks.
Definitely Watching:
Akatsuki no Yona (High expectations – just more worried it won’t get enough time/eps)
Orenchi no Furo Jijou (Really like the idea – should be funny as all get up!)
Parasyte (Looks great – really curious where it’ll go)
Log Horizon (Loved the first season)
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (sounds promising)
Psycho-Pass 2 (Loved the first season)
As for everything else…will be playing it by ear and seeing.
Looks like I’m gonna be watching 80-90% of the new shows this time around. My backlog is no where near being completed though, shit…
if Sora no Method’s studio was drawing Trinity Seven, then that would be fantastic……….
Sora no Method (I am watching for plots……)
Trinity Seven (pushy male lead + harem =
hentaiplots, right?)Denki-gai no Honya-san (I already saw a little bit of plots in the preview)
Parasyte (if it is not as censored as Tokyo Ghoul)
TERRAFORMARS (it looks more like Fist of the North Star than Starship Troopers, but that is great, too.)
Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works (was this shown in ova already?)
Akatsuki no Yona (looks new to me)
PSYCHO-PASS 2
Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle
Mushishi Zoku Shou 2nd Season
Amagi Brilliant Park
> Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken | 旦那が何を言っているかわからない件Top
http://www.dreamcreation.co.jp/danna/
Animation: Dream Creation
Dream Creation is a production company. Animation one is Seven. Like with all the past Seven’s short series.
@daikama
scroll down and you will see pre order dvd sales options for all 12 epdoise :http://www.madan-anime.jp/product/ and all vanadis are set to appear so v6 or anime original both of which are terrible
@ikramit: Thanks for the info (not going “shoot the messenger” :D), but wow… Just WOW! Un-freaking real.
— “…so v6 or anime original both of which are terrible.”
Could not agree more. WTF are they thinking? Who makes these decisions? Is there some massive financial incentive to “adapt” as much source material as possible? Dammit! So much for any expectations other than FUBAR adaptation. :<
Log Horizon: Studio Deen will replace Satelight for animation and art direction. Other than that, the staff remain largely unchanged. Hopefully this means we’ll be looking at better animation in S2 =3
Also PV: http://www9.nhk.or.jp/anime/loghorizon/2nd/movie/
The character designs seem slightly closer to the LN art.
Here is a youtube upload of the PV, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSHRFIYEmck
News has been out for a while, I wish someone can update the main article of the studio change and PV.
New designs needs sometime to get used to for me. I have a bad feeling about DEEN and honestly their track record isn’t as good compared to Satelight. At least PV confirms the part I wish this season should cover.
panty and stocking 2… why…
Zeypher-chi!!
It’s going to be a blast!
mushishi is good, but can’t understand the constant fawning over it. rather overrate in that regard.
“Mushishi is like a gift to anime, and anime’s gift to the world”
…
Lol steady on now
http://s.mlkshk.com/r/NPY4
I do like it and it is good, just think that the constant ‘worshipping’ is a bit much
If there’s one thing I don’t really get the constant fawning and fanaticism over Fate/Stay Night and yet I still think it’s a good show, I just never got why it’s supposed to be the be all end all. I mean all Type/Moon stuff I’ve found pretty interesting, I guess there’s just nothing that really convinces me as to why it should be elevated so far above the rest of the pack in terms of expectations and anticipating, same with Psycho Pass. Plus we’re talking about an remake adaptation of a 10 year old visual novel game so many people are already familiar with. It just strikes me as kind of odd and kind of damning that that’s the show most people are looking forward to along with a sequel to a sci-fi psychologically thriller that has basically undergone a total overhaul in the staff and studio working on it.
The original Fate/Stay Night anime was never considered good, but the source material has a big following as does the Nasu-verse in general. UFOtable is also one of best renowned anime studios out there and they did a great job with Fate/Zero and KnK so that’s a big reason why the hype for this new adaption is so high.
Well when you think about it, the most anticipated stuff is usually going to be these kinds of shows. There are always surprises that challenge for the best of a season, but if we knew which those would be they wouldn’t be surprises.
The most anticipated is obviously going to be something that has something familiar. Sequels certainly fit since you are already familiar with the quality that can be there. And for UBW, if a VN has the staying power to spawn all these sequels even now then it’s not surprising that people are hyped for it.
Agreed. They are laying the praises a little too thick on Mushishi. It’s good IMHO and I like it but let’s not go overboard.
Totally right? I mean, how can other people love a series that you think is just good? It’s just inconceivable.
Mushishi is the kind of anime that many ‘anime connoiseurs’ want to brag having watched it because it’s so ‘deep’ and ‘thoughtful’, as compared to the other trashy contemporary animes which only the tasteless masses would enjoy.
I somehow compiled a list of 21 shows I want to watch. Throw in Akame Ga Kill… My goodness. I’ve never touched more than 15 shows before. My free time :*(
Hmm this season seems like it’ll be a hit or miss for me. Not sure what to think about any of the titles.
After being spoiled for a season with Haikyuu, Baby Steps, and Nozaki-kun; and to a lesser extent Aldnoah, Hanayamata, SAO2, and Zankyou, I feel a little disappointed in this lineup. But you never know till the season starts!
I agree. Spring anime had so much flair that this lineup just runs at second this year. Not that I’m complaining. This buys me time to finish my initially planned to-watch list and just catch up later on in the highly
received shows.
SSSSSSSSSSSLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!
don’t get this.. and its bugging me lol.
can someone explain to me please? 🙂
Watch Aldnoah Zero.
5 minute Tenchi episodes . . .who exactly thought that was a good idea? :/
Here’s all you need to know about Grisaia no Kajitsu.
And also this.
wow thanks for the list! definitely looking forward to watching Grisaia. Lets hope it is as good as the VN.
Ugh…so much fantasy!
*sigh* but still, there are a few scifis this season
Two Gundam shows + the return of YowaPeda and Psycho Pass = awesome season for me.
Damn, I was hoping for a Fate Heaven’s Feel anime. The UBW movie wasn’t particularly awesome, but hopefully a series will be able to flesh out what the movie jumped around.
Me too. UBW was the path I liked the least. HF was a surprise, definitely a different flavour from the othe two.
Hope the movie won’t be too watered down.
i saw Gundam Reconguista in G promo video, and my Heart enjoy the Style. The Drawing technique is 70-80 years Style. a bit of Nausicca, in short many Studio Ghibli vibes, raised inside me
But my Brain, was a bit disappointed. This “old stuff” is nothing for the Generations of today. As if they watching TV in these old tube televisions. Today the generation is used to HD, Handy and Computer CGI, even TV Promotions are more present Style as this one feels.
I think i saw a bit of CGI Sequence at this Space Lift. But compare this Style with a Update Anime Style, like Aldonoah Zero. The Vibes of the current Animes is different
i think, the younger Generation will not get hooked, because of the viewable content (and the 70-80 sound effect)
But i will give this Show my 3 Episode “do i get hooked?” test
Now i found it again, this Art of Drawing Style and Time-slot, reminds me of Ozuma Anime. Yes, this Anime, with this Submarine under the Sand. Same Vibes.. And Do someone watched it? At that time i was thinking Ozuma was just an Time-slot filler and that was in year 2012…
Source: https://randomc.net/category/ozuma/
Man what is up with this season? After going through the list it seems like i’m following 23 series and I have no idea how i’m gonna keep up. On another note I sure am worried about the Grisaia no kaijutsu adaptation. Those of you who have also read the VN probably know what I’m talking about. Without adapting all the routes most of the story will be unknown and people wont be able to fully enjoy the series. At the same time considering how difficult it will be to use all the routes because of how the stories overlap. All in all I think the adaptation will turn out bad which is heartbreaking for a fan like myself.
Urgh… I don’t know what to watch! Or rather, where to start!
Fate/Stay Night
Mushishi Zoku Shou 2nd Season (Tomino’s back FTW!!!)
Gundam G Reconguista
Sanzaku na Musume Ronja
They’ve got greater pedigrees talent behind them, not to mention looking the most promising.
OMG Denki Gai no Honya-saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!
That’s an awesome little manga. Could be another Nozaki… it won’t have as broad an appeal, definitely, but I’m so stoked for this.
Oh yeah, Log Horizon 2 is a definite watch for me as well. I’ve already read through vol.7, so I’m wondering how far they’re gonna go, and how they’re going to animate it. (Vol. 8 is coming out this week, IIRC.) Should be fun!
More Chaika, that’s good. Koutei, koutei, kansha!
In a similar vein, Madan no Ou to Vanadis might be good. Read some of the source material, and it’s not bad. Might be more interesting animated.
Oh, and Yama no Susume continues! (I think? I hope?)
Other than that… everything else gets 3 eps. I’ve got a pretty wide and weird strike zone, but those shows that don’t do it for me get the boot pretty fast. Yeah, the Ghibli thing gets the same chance as “OreTwintails.” Pedigree can sometimes inform, and sometimes deceive. (Even great directors make bad shows from time to time, and even wretched sounding shows can be pretty damn entertaining!)
I’m particularly looking forward to Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso. Amagi Brilliant Park and Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete look interesting too. I actually have hopes for Akatsuki no Yona since I liked Scrapped Princess and it seems reminiscent, but I suppose we’ll see.
‘Not really feeling it with the action-y series this time around. I haven’t been following the originals and Zankyou no Terror from this season was a disappointment for me, so I’ll likely hold off unless I hear a lot of positive things.
I discovered this site a few months back and thought it seemed pretty cool, but I forgot about it afterwards. After happening onto a different anime blog, I remembered this place and figured I’d start following once the fall season starts.
Nice to meet you, everyone~
hmm i’m waiting the most for donten ni warau
i love the manga but i’m bit worries…12 eps and the manga is completed…hope they won’t cut/change to much
and no airing date yet 🙁
The most stacked season since FOREVER.
2 Gundam series
3 sequels
1 remake
2 completely new shows
I don’t even know how I can watch all of these…. God dammit..
Also sad to know that Gundam Build Fighters Try will have a different director. I really like how the director paced season 1. Here’s hoping he delivers.
The following shows are looking forward to it:
1. Denki-gai no Honya-san
2. Amagi Brilliant Park
3. Selector Spread WIXOSS
4. Madan no Ou to Vanadis
5. Aikatsu! 3(Not in the lineup above)
6. Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete
7. Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo
8. Grisaia no Kajitsu
9. Sora no Method
10. Ai Tenchi Muyou!
11. Inou Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de
12. Trinity Seven
13. Hi sCoool! Seha Girl
14. Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai
15. Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle
16. SHIROBAKO
17. Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso
18. Ore, Twintails ni Narimasu.
19. Girlfriend (Kari)
20. Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru
The Following shows are NOT looking forward to it:
1. TERRAFORMARS
2. Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken
3. Gundam Reconguista in G
4. Garo: Honoo no Kokuin
5. Log Horizon 2
6. Magic Kaito 1412
7. Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works
8. World Trigger
9. Nanatsu no Taizai
10. Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji
11. Gugure! Kokkuri-san
12. Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS
13. Orenchi no Furo Jijou
14. Yowamushi Pedal: Grande Road
15. Akatsuki no Yona
16. Gundam Build Fighters Try
17. Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu
18. PSYCHO-PASS 2
19. Sanzoku no Musume Ronja
20. Bonjour: Koiaji Patisserie
21. Mushishi Zoku Shou 2nd Season
22. Donten ni Warau
well, it depends what am i watched.
Anime compatibility :
djian87 will not get along with pokpok.
Damn so this is how the affinity system work.
Lots of awesome stuff this season. Should be a welcome break from the enigmas like Glasslip and Ald.noah Zero (which had an ending I unfortunately hated).
That said, I’m most looking forward to Amagi Brilliant Park, Fate/Stay and Madan no Ou as well as Log Horizon. Amagi for its humor for as far as I’ve read the manga, which seemed pretty solid with an awesome protagonist, Fate/Stay simply for the UBW storyline, Horizon to continue a good story with solid characters and Madan for what should be a good mix of everything.
Madan’s obviously my favorite since I’ve read quite a long way up the novels, and most of the characters are given ample time for development. For any novel adaptation though, I’ll still be cautiously optimistic about how it will fare.
For now, really looking forward to the new season.
Really excited to see Madan no Ou; in my opinion the light novels are really interesting, though I kind of wonder how they will translate to animation.
I have to wonder why UBW is being done again when there’s already been a movie made for it. Sure, a full series can go into more detail than a movie, but I’d like to see something new done.
Seems like a fairly interesting season, will probably pick up random series.
This season looks pretty disappointing. :/ Psycho pass is the only series that caught my eye.
I don’t get why there isn’t a slice of life or even action/supernatural show with a whole bunch of straight manly looking men in their 20’s-30’s going around living their life, and all of them having interest in a different women.
Instead I see a bunch of girly looking men all going after this ONE chick. A bunch of girly looking men in the edo period. Or a bunch of girly looking men being well…..girly in general.
Is that the ‘WANTS’ from anime fan girls but I’m a different fan girl and just like my men to look manly?
Fist of the North Star and Jojo.
o.o cant wait!!
Knowing the original novel, I would say Amaburi will rock as an anime.
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My watch List (mostly pre-established for me):
1) TERRAFORMARS – Liked the manga, a lot of action fighting Alien at Mars with political, betrayal, and hidden agenda spice up from inside. Very informative on introducting insect and animal around us but not known by many.
2) Selector Spread WIXOSS – Its like watched the train wreak, its killing me inside on all tragedy but I can’t stop watching. Need more Tama’s “RU, BATTORU~!”, hope she is back soon.
3) Log Horizon 2 – Nuff says. More bad ass Megane and Akatsuki~.
4) Fate/stay night Unlimited Blade Works – Ufotable & FSN. What could goes wrong.
5) Yowamushi Pedal: Grande Road – I can’t believe I missed this awesome manga! After skimmed through a few chapter, I am totally hooked.
6) Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle – Chaika…back.., Kansha!
7) Sanzoku no Musume Ronja – Did someone say Studio Ghibli & Goro Miyazaki?
Will gives these series a try;
1) Amagi Brilliant Park – Fumoffu~
2) Gundam Reconguista in G – Don’t know much about Tomino Yoshiyuki. Only watched gundam only from Gundam Wing onward. Will try to see if how the series goes with its original creator in lead.
3) Madan no Ou to Vanadis – The manga is quite good, but worry the adaption might fall into fan service trap.
4) Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete – See if this can evoke my feel train.
5) Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo – Dragon VS Mecha = Dragon Flare vs Laser Cannon.
6) Grisaia no Kajitsu – heard a lot good thing about the VN.
7) Sora no Method – “Kanon” and “Sola”. Will give it a try.
8) Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS – Ok, I am sold to promotion material, Berserk vibe, Colossal and dragon.Hope not too much CGI.
9) Gundam Build Fighters Try – heard a lot good thing about the original Gundam Build Fighters. Might marathon it first before see this.
10) Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu – Not a fan to the arts, but will give it a try for fight for survival plot.
11) PSYCHO-PASS 2 – Dang, stop at ep. 3 season 1, need to marathon it.
Including Shirogane no Ishi Argevollen & Akame ga Kill. This will be 10 hours a week for anime. Time management, time management… D:
I’m going into this season blind, I only know about Log Horizon lol. But I’m looking forward to downloading a load of stuff and seeing if a show is worth watching, I’ll likely check this place out to see what people think of stuff to get some suggestions.
I have maximum expectations for Log Horizon. I’ve read all of the volumes and especially the sixth was awesome so I look forward to see it animated now. Anyway it doesn’t look there’s enough material for 25 episodes, does it? Do we expect anime original arcs maybe?
Anyhow this season sure is packed with UBW remaked and first studio Gibli’s serie. Time to buy another HD…
Having read the Nanatsu no Taizai manga, this is definitely a gem to watch out for. Unless they completely screw up the simple plot and the action scenes….
This season is gonna be so great with Mushishi and Psycho Pass 2. OMG CAN’T WAIT!!!
@Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS
This is Cowboy Bebop in a Fantasy Setting with heavy Spanish Blood. Favaro!!! Yes, yes.
oh, and a “Long John” *snickers* 🙂
Shingeki no Bahamut GENESIS Ep 2:
I must say this. if this Episode had some CGI in it, then it fooled my Eye. I dont saw any difference. But then The Animation so far is Top notch.
You should give it a try, if you loved Cowboy Bebop.
Ep 03:
A Episode with a bit of Action again. But here and there you could see some little drops in Animation quality. Looks like the Budget Wound is about to hit the Production. But fear not, the Episode is still good Animated.
Many thanks for the preview as always, finally organized myself to read it. You guys’ preview is still my favorite.
High Hopes for this season 😀
@Shirobako
I dont want to spoil the beans, but Oh my God, this Girl has amazing Driving skills. Drifting goddess Oi-chan!!!
Just to say, that i Like this Anime. We are now in Episode 3, and i get good entertainment. Please continue doing so
@Ore, Twintails ni Narimasu.
This Show is on my Temp Watch List for 3 Episodes.
Episode 1 is okay, i think i need more Episodes to get a Grip.
For my gusto, the Boy has a strange fetish…
i can not stopping getting Vibes from this Show:
Haiyore! Nyaruko-san W
The Girls remind me strong of this Show…
Same Producer or something? Can an Otaku help me out here?
Hey is anyone going to blog the first episode(s) of Shingeki no Bahamut?
Sorry but is anyone gonna review Shingeki no Bahamut? I just watched the first episode and it is imho awesome!
Sorry, we kind of missed the boat on that (and Terra Formars). Everyone was super swamped when it was released, so by the time any of us watched it (me), it was a week too late to blog it.
It’s looking like I’m going to keep up with it though, so you can expect to hear about it on the monthly impressions & perhaps podcasts. We’ll be better about intros (and picking up worthy shows) next season, when the first few weeks don’t feature three writers going on hiatus and two being on or freshly back from big vacations, lol
Aww, that sorta sucks about not covering SnB. I just watched the first 2 episodes of it and its so fun. Really a breath of fresh air. Especially love the character design (sorta reminds me of cowboy bebop for some reason). Their faces are so expressive and their body shapes and sizes are so varied and ‘normal’ looking compared to the constant deluge of perfectly proportioned anime gals and guys.
After so many animes where the main characters are your basic brown/black/blonde hair with normal looking hairstyle, its fun to have a main character with an orange afro.
And the animation’s really cool ^^ Still can’t believe it’s based off of a video game.
As for TerraFormers, I can do without it. I thought Tokyo Ghoul’s censor was bad but the Terraformers censoring thing is ridiculous to the point where I might as well just watch a blank computer screen.
It’s never too late to post about something. Oh well I’ll look forward to reading about it in the monthly impressions.
@ RC staff: any ETA on the Winter 2015 preview?
@ RC staff: any ETA on the Winter 2015 preview?
someone from RC have info?
Shut up already. The Fall season isn’t even over yet.
1 cour/season = 12-13 episodes. most currently airing animes are current on episode 11, i.e finishing in next week or week after. i would classify that as close enough to the season end to warrant at least some info on when the next preview can be expected.
i come to this website primarily for the season previews, as i suspect is the case for a significant number of people. therefore it would be nice, and in the interests of a large number of visitors, to give an indication of when the next one might be out.
if you disagree, be civil/rational about it at least.
Look at the season preview category. You can expect the post to go out on, before, or shortly after the same day the winter preview was posted last year.
When in doubt, just wait. We don’t miss previews. You can rest assured it will always come out before the new season begins in earnest.
Oh, and we never give an indication of when the preview will be out, because the answer is always the same: “Same time as last year.” So I wouldn’t expect any updates until it appears, this time or in the future. We’re too busy actually working on it.