Category: Other:

Golden Kamuy S3

Short Synopsis: Golden Kamuy resumes as Sugimoto sets out for Sakhalin in search of Asripa. Along the way they will hunt criminals, fight large mammals and make a bunch of dick jokes. So many goddamn dick jokes.

Lenlo’s review:

Alright, I remember very little of Golden Kamuy, its last season airing almost 2 years ago. And yet almost immediately it manages to get me laughing again like it had never left. Don’t get me wrong, Golden Kamuy’s story isn’t bad. Sugimoto’s relationship with Ashripa is great and I really enjoy a lot of the interplay between the characters. But the comedy is where it’s at. Unabashedly making dick jokes, reoccuring pictures of scantily clad muscular men and perpetually escalating actions of petty spite all wrapped up in a single 23 minute episode. I have no idea if the season or story will be any good. But I damn well believe I am gonna laugh my through the next 3 months.

Potential: 70%

Mario’s review:

Golden Kamuy wastes no time as it follows right up where the previous season left off. This time, it’s another distinctive setting where the gang heads off to Sakhalin, an island which borders Russia. While the characters and the humor never take themselves seriously, the same can’t be said for its detailed depiction of unique cultures such as the Ainu and this time the Russian people in Sakhalin. The story might be a bit on the slow side this week, but the queer-baiting humor is as outragous as ever, and I mean that as a good thing. Watching these larger-than-life characters interact with each other in a madcap treasure hunt is a delight, while at the same time Sugimoto and Asirpa’s chemistry is strong enough  not to be overshadowed by the side characters. As long as it keeps up with its unique self it will be a wild ride to follow.

Potential: 60%

Ikebukuro West Gate Park

Short Synopsis: A gang of respectable, straight edge gentlemen escort a 12 year old girl around town to get revenge on some spooky drug pushers.

Amun’s review:

Ikebukuro’s first episode is a goose egg.  I was unable to find a single positive takeaway.  Give me back those twenty minutes of my life.  The plot was horrid – a randomly connected fruit merchant takes a little girl around to plant evidence to get rid of a drug merchant.  It’s actually worse than that (that summary sounds almost interesting on paper) – the big action scenes are jumping a fence and awkwardly kicking someone in the face.  The characters suck – suave suit “King” made me cringe.  “Hacker” zero one made me vomit.  And “G-Boys”…now it’s farce.  This is a caricature of an enjoyable show – you know it represents one but all the important parts have been removed.  The writing is amateur, the characters are flatter than a Type A moe, and the animation is Microsoft Paint level.  No seriously, there are some stills of the fruits that look done in Paint.  There are other atrocious examples of CG assisted …. something.  It’s hard to call this animation in good faith.  I guess the voice acting was okay!   There’s a positive.  Anyways, this has my vote as the worst first of the season.  I think I’d rather watch the wall humping show than this absolutely putrid insult to anime.

Potential: the Zero from “Zero One”

Wooper’s review:

Turns out giving a pseudo-action crime series to the team behind Yesterday wo Utatte (a dialogue-driven character study) wasn’t the best idea. Starting your episode with one of the least exciting animated car chases in recent years means you’ve got nowhere to go but up, and to its credit, IWGP does manage to improve from that point. Were you to graph that rate of improvement, however, the slope would be close to 0. There’s a preteen kid in this premiere who powers the plot by pouting, which causes the grown-up characters to 1) avenge her mother’s injury, 2) senselessly involve her in dangerous situations, 3) leak information ten seconds after having sworn not to, etc. As a result of both her nagging and the investigation it motivates, the G Boys (there is no better name for a group of wannabe hoodlums) discover an indoor greenhouse where a bad guy is growing a marijuana lookalike (nooooo!). Then we cut away from the investigation and get a few seconds of narration explaining how Weed Man is brought to justice, and the episode comes to an abrupt end. So too shall this review; spend your time on other, better anime.

Potential: 10%

Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear

Short Synopsis: Girl in bear outfit saves the village from a giant viper.

Mario’s review:

This third isekai entrance is sadly the most generic out of the three. The whole premise of this first episode focuses on how overpowered the main girl is despite wearing that ridiculous unbearably cute bear outfit. In other words, it’s wish-fulfillment fantasy to the max. Wait, it has another different factor going for it: instead of reincarnating in another world, the Main Girl simply plays her VRMMO game so we have a chance to see a portion of her real life. The issue with that is that even in her real life, Yuna is ridiculously overpowered as well. She claims she doesn’t need to go to school (which should speak to the otaku community out there), and she makes enough money from her games to pay for her parents’ vacation. Well, many claim that Kuma Bear finally breaks gender norms (instead of OP boys we have this cute OP girl) but it’s so lazily written it backfires. For a cute girl in a bear suit fix I’d rather rewatch Serial Experiments Lain instead.

Potential: 10%

Yuukoku no Moriarty

Short Synopsis: A handsome blond Moriarty works as a revenge coordinator in Victorian London alongside his slightly less handsome friends.

Wooper’s review:

What is this, the third Sherlock Holmes-adjacent anime in as many years? I wonder what’s motivating the Victorian detective boom in Japan. Whatever it is, Yuukoku no Moriarty is the latest cash-in on the trend, and its combination of straightforward crime fiction and Gothicism likely hits the right notes for a lot of viewers. Production I.G works often do, but I tend to find them stuffy unless there’s a strong character designer on board to prevent the ‘designed by committee’ look. Moriarty has precisely that problem, so it leans on shiny hair and eyes that change colors in various levels of darkness instead. It also goes all-in on the edge, most memorably in a cut matching the smile of a child-hunting criminal to the teeth of a Satanic statue nearby. I found all of this too much to swallow, especially since Moriarty doesn’t ground itself in a sense of who its main character is (apart from Super Genius). It’s procedural from the get-go, and while there’s nothing inherently wrong with that, I don’t feel like following a focus-grouped version of this character through a historical setting that substitutes authenticity for DARKNESS.

Potential: 30%

Mario’s review:

This premiere executes a quite solid crime scene that also serves as a convincing introduction to our main character, Moriaty, and his moral ambiguity. He’s more of an anti hero in this case, allowing murders to happen if they’re justified. And what’s more justified than executing a rich pedo bastard who kills teenage boys for sport? Yep, subtlety might not be the show’s strongest card, but the way Moriarty investigates proves credibility. His deduction (so far) doesn’t feel like a stretch and the mystery remains strong throughout the episode. Moriaty the show has its potential just like its main character, who’s more keen to dig further to the darker part of human desire (this time: hatred), but I will reserve my judgment until the other key character – Sherlock Holmes – makes an entrance. Really, I am interested to see what version of Sherlock they are going for as a perfect foil for this Moriaty.

Potential: 50% 

Kami-tachi ni Hirowareta Otoko

Short Synopsis: A muscular working man dies in his sleep and reincarnates as a 11-year-old slime-tamer boy.

Mario’s review:

With the rise of the isekai subgenre, we are bound to have something like this pop up three times every season. Kami-tachi’s premise goes along the same line with shows like Seventh Son and Ascendance of a Bookworm in how the MC is transported to another world in kid form with the memory and maturity (?) of an adult, hence they already have an advantage in their fantasy world. Kami-tachi adds very little to this formula, resulting in an okay but boring watch all along the way. First, the MC is absolutely boring. The way he embraces the cliche that he will be reborn in another world is grating. Second, the show’s comedy is misfire. The reason for his death should be hilarious if they play it right, but here it just feels off and awkward. The production is so-so and the story is nothing to write home about. This is strictly for isekai junkies only. 

Potential: MEH

Amun’s review:

Ah, Mario is being mean to isekai stans again!  Okay, but he does have some points.  This is generic any way you cut it – even the slimes look second rate (like, how hard is it to draw an interesting slime?  Takes literally any effort).  I didn’t think it looked that bad, but I agree it’s not likely to break any new ground.  Honestly, this episode was so generic that I’m having a hard time finding things to write about – I like pre-death MC’s haircut?  The deities were kind of funny?  This is very similar to last year’s Wiseman’s Grandchild – decent, mindless entertainment.  Actually, scratch that – it’ll probably be more like a slightly romantic, slime farm simulator.  I’ll probably end up watching all of it.

Potential: 50% – or if that haircut comes back

Maou-jou de Oyasumi

Short Synopsis: A narcoleptic princess abuses a band of innocent monsters in her quest for a good night’s sleep.

Amun’s review:

Your opinion of this show will hinge on if you liked Mairimashita! Iruma-kun – I certainly did.  We have similar art style, a kidnapping by a less than harmful demon, new amusing demonic setting to explore, and a particular quest (prevent human identity exposure and get a good night’s sleep).  I thought the gag humour was hit and miss – although I love how Maou-jou isn’t afraid to go dark (slicing up the sentient sheet sent a small shiver).  The big downsides are the bland hero and the bland demon king – Syalis was a pretty good story vehicle, albeit one dimensional.  Introducing the resurrection mechanic gave the plot an automatic escape hatch – but it also destroys any dramatic tension from the non-OSHA friendly demon king dungeon.  Basically, don’t expect too much depth of characters, art, animation, story…really anything of this show.  Just think of it as a peaceful prelude to a good night’s rest.

Potential: 65%

Wooper’s review:

The gag here is that a perpetually drowsy princess has her run of a demon’s castle, and she spends her time crafting sleeping accessories for herself. If that idea tickles your fancy, you’ll like this show, as it’s a very good version of that premise. If you think it sounds stupid, this premiere won’t do much to change your mind. Assuming you don’t hate fun, you might appreciate the wordplay in the princess’ name (Syalis), or the framing of her minor adventures as “quests” (and the joyous theme that plays whenever she clears one). A particularly cute detail was the mid-episode disappearance of her golden crown, which she traded for some scissors in order to make a soft headband for herself. Soft things are more conducive to sleep, after all! The storybook art style and variety in the creature designs both contribute to the fun of the show, too, as Syalis wanders appealing halls and abuses non-threatening monsters in her quest to design the ultimate snoozing experience. I don’t know if I’ll watch another episode of this, as the comedy’s expiration date is probably two or three weeks from now, but I sure enjoyed what I saw in the first one.

Potential: 50%

Senyoku no Sigrdrifa

Short Synopsis: Odin’s daughter helps save humanity but gets all of her allies killed in the process. Every time. It’s become a thing. So she goes to a laid back Japanese base to try and avoid team-killing her yuri-bait copilots for a change.

Amun’s review:

Recent years have seen just a rash of hobby or profession specific anime. From trains to tanks to WW2 planes – if there are otaku for it, it’s getting a show. Senyoku no Sigrdrifa is obviously made for aircraft enthusiasts of all eras (there are biplanes, Mustangs were in the ED, there were Vulcans for the Cold War era, even some of the modern Raptors. B-2 bombers? Sure. Even a futuristic Superfortress? Why not.) Even the main characters’ plane selections are rather clever – each being vintage but having different strengths and weaknesses; I especially like the inclusion of an aquatic plane – that leaves some room for interesting fight sequences. Anyways, as I’m sure you can’t tell, I do NOT typically go for these kinds of niche shows. My biggest complaint is if you’re not fanatical about the gimmick, then the show has no other legs to stand on. But Senyoku no Sigrdrifa just might have something else worthwhile – the character dynamics held off (mostly) on the yuri bait and actually portrayed a semblance of emotional depth. The announcement over the loudspeaker about the new Valkyrie’s Shinigami nickname was baller – I’ll watch another episode just for that. If we keep up an interesting storyline without devolving to the author’s otaku tendencies, this is definitely watchable.

Potential: 50%

Mario’s review:

Penned by the man behind Re:Zero, this double length episode has a big hurdle to clear. So far it does the job for me. While the setting is a bit generic at this point (military girls with exotic jet/ tank/ ship are a dime a dozen in the last few years), it delves more into the main girl’s psychology and how she finds herself at home in this new environment with a set of quirky cast members. There’s still more than meets the eyes too, with the unclear nature of Pillars. Although a tad bit generic I still enjoy the setting well enough and I like how Claudia bounces off with other characters. Does it justify its 45-minute runtime? Maybe not as it feels like 2 regular episodes put together, but I will definitely check back on it to see how dark things will become (yes, IT DEFINITELY WILL).

Potential: 60%

Iwa Kakeru! Sport Climbing Girls

Short Synopsis: An empowering story which doesn’t portray girls as sensitive, touch-me-not stereotypes and shows that we can also be just as competent in sports involving physicality. (Genre: Ecchi)

Lenlo’s review:

Look, you have to try really hard to fuck up a show about muscular women doing muscular women things with me. But somehow, some way, Iwa Kakeru achieved it. Now I don’t have the same issues with production Armitage has. For instance, that’s just how climbing walls look, the different colored holds and all that. I could do without the Candy Crush puzzle metaphor but uh… It isn’t the worst thing I’ve ever seen? No, my big issue is just as Armitage pointed out, the over sexualization of it all. Don’t get me wrong, I like fit women. But I like fit women doing things rather than the wall or the rope or whatever other weird fetish Iwa Kakeru is making up. And because of this, it just doesn’t manage to land anything. The hot girls part is ruined by the characters actions and them being some of the least appealing muscular women I’ve seen in awhile, while the actual narrative is ruined by… well, being an ecchi show.

Potential: Go watch actual women’s rock climbing out of 100.

Armitage’s review:

Just when you think you’ve seen it all, anime throws at you “High-school girls getting horny while watching someone climb a wall”.
Sighs
Are we gonna start lewding inanimate objects now? I mean, we could have had a good show here. We really could’ve. We could have had something close to an anime equivalent of the ‘Free Solo’ documentary. But, NO! Instead, we get crappy character motivations, an abhorrent sense of pacing between subsequent events, random camera shots of boob-shakes and ass-clenches and WALLS MADE OF UGLY M&Ms. Oh, and of course, none of this is well-produced, even. Because why do that, when you can have a girl make erotic noices while holding a rope instead?? The characters are stereotypical, their motivations are stupid, their conversations robotic. Nothing works like it was intended. Actually, I don’t even know what the intention was. Like, what is the demographic for this show?! Why, humanity? Why ya gotta let me down time and again?

Potential: of birthing a new ‘Wall’ fetish.

Munou na Nana

Short Synopsis: The class punching bag befriends a mind-reading transfer student at a school for superpowered kids.

Wooper’s review:

This premiere springs a twist on you near the end of its runtime, hoping to recontextualize the previous 18 minutes and hook you for the rest of the season. Ordinarily I’d refrain from drawing attention to that strategy and let the show do its thing, but my issue with Talentless Nana is that the twist doesn’t make up for the exceedingly dull prologue. It’s about students at a superpower-themed high school, where the teachers hope to train leaders in the fight against the Enemies of Humanity. The show wastes no time in wasting this already-tired premise; the best way to describe its vibe is “My Hero Academia without the wide scope,” or perhaps “Iruma-kun without the interesting setting.” The main dude is a wimp whose status as a Nice Guy is confirmed by a girl with mind-reading powers, so you know he must be Extra Nice (he even likes cats!). MC-kun and Miss Mind Reader grow fond of each other over the course of a painfully simple story (he’s suspicious of her kindness, but then she does something Extra Kind and he’s completely won over), and then the tweest drops in the final minutes. It’s a big one – maybe even a good one – but it doesn’t make me hopeful that the show will be any less lame going forward. Your mileage may vary.

Potential: 20%

Mario’s review:

This is one of these premieres where I’d suggest going into it as blind as possible (and be patient not to drop it before the end of the episode). Just like Ore wo Suki a few seasons back, the fun of watching this show lies in how it establishes some well-worn, tired cliches and then spins the hell out of them. For me at the end the twist works. It clicks as it asks the very nature of “who is the real villain here” as all we hear from the kids so far is that they have to fight something as vague as Enemies of Humanity – could that be humans without any special abilities? While the twist does not necessarily mean “better”, it more than establishes the direction the show is going forward – and I’m all for it.

Potential: 50% or “he even likes cats”

Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle

Short Synopsis: In a world dominated by women, handsome men pass the time by competing in reality-bending rap battles for their amusement.

Wooper’s review:

Well, that was a pleasant surprise. I expected this to be your standard sub-average bishounen showcase, but the camp value provided by its high-energy rap battles made it quite a treat. There are four hip-hop trios to choose from here, and each MC (that’s ‘master of ceremonies’ rather than ‘main character’) has a different profession or trait that dictates the nature of their mic attacks. The ex-navy officer’s song is accompanied by missiles fired from nowhere in particular; the blond playboy’s vocals are matched with storms of yellow rose petals; the gangster’s lyrics slice the frame into ribbons alongside knife sound effects. One dude even summons a skeleton from hell to prop up his massive speaker system, which I can only assume was conjured by his supernatural flow. Some of the characters have grating voices or stupid personality quirks that hurt the non-musical scenes, but when the beat kicks in and the boys start spitting, the result is undeniably fun. Even if this show doesn’t sound serious enough for your Highly Refined tastes, I’d recommend checking out the OP – I defy anyone reading this paragraph not to smile when the beat switches up midway through.

Potential: 40%

Mario’s review:

Woah, watching Hypnosis Mic makes me realize how far the male idol genre has evolved. Granted, male idol shows are among my least favorite genre, but here Hypnosis Mic basically turns everything up to 11 – ridiculous premises, checked, countless pretty faces with dumb quirks, checked, musical performances (or rap battles?), checked. And yet, it’s up there as one of the most entertaining pieces this sub-genre has to offer. It runs wild, it’s colorful and doesn’t really give a fuck about its ridiculousness, which for me remains its biggest hook. If you are looking for campy, over-the-top fun, look no further than this.

Potential: 40%

Lenlo’s Note:

What the fuck did I just watch. That is all.

Hanyou no Yashahime

Short Synopsis: Inuyasha 2: Flashback Boogaloo.

Mario’s review:

Inuyasha’s manga was huge when I grew up but sadly it was one of the few that completely escaped my radar. Watching this premiere it’s clear that this spin-off targets the nostalgic feels from the original fans, as it spends a huge chunk of its runtime on the original characters, and not much time on the new set of characters. Which is fine, I suppose. For me who is new to the franchise, it clearly does the job of establishing its world, its characters and the monsters that the gang used to face. It’s the new trio that suffers from not having enough screen time, so I’d say that next episode you get a more accurate sense of what this spin-off will be. I have fun with them all so far, but so far it gives me little reasons to follow it, because I just might as well spend the time to watch the original instead.

Potential: 20%

Wooper’s review:

Coming into this premiere, I intended to evaluate the next generation of Inuyasha characters with fresh eyes, not having seen the original series. That was made difficult by the episode’s nature, however, which was 75% Inuyasha flashback and 25% setup for the new series. The director made a smart choice to hook the original show’s audience with two decades’ worth of nostalgia, but for a first-timer, the whole thing felt very stale. It consisted mainly of the principal characters fighting identical versions of a plant-based demon, over and over, until Inuyasha finally used his Ultimate Attack, thus saving the day. The look of the series isn’t bad, but neither was it given the Dragon Quest treatment to breathe new life into its franchise – I imagine that Yashahime looks much the same as its prequel, just with more convenient digital effects work. There was a certain appeal to seeing grown-up versions of Kagome’s baby girls from the flashback, since they went from identical twins to polar opposites, but we saw so little of them that it’s hard to care about how that happened. Their origin story will arrive next week, so stick around for at least one more episode if you’re a former (or current!) Inuyasha fan. As for me, I’m letting this ship sail.

Potential: ?

Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei S2

Short Synopsis: The further adventures of Onii-sama the Overpowered.

Amun’s review:

One True Tatsuya returns! And there’s now a girl version of him! (well almost – she’s definitely not stronger than him, but she’s still pretty strong! Tatsuya actually had to dodge and grab her wrist hard….) Okay, so this is pretty much the same as the first season – Tatsuya is wildly OP (this episode reminds you about the very large crater he put in the ocean), an external force is investigating him (USA this time) and there’s some other subtext and a mysterious enemy. So yeah – this season, I’m sure, will be about adding the foreigner hottie (who happens to be the USA’s most powerful combat mage or something?) to the harem, maybe even jostling to second place behind imotou (who, we were reminded, is also crazy strong). Also some “magic” (saying it’s technology is like saying the loli is 400 years old – looking at you Re:Zero). USA girl is actually kind of like the maid from Kaguya, so I’m pretty down with that.

Potential: Tatsuya%

Jujutsu Kaisen

Short Synopsis: Yuji Itadori is possessed by a great curse, and must choose to use its power to exorcise even greater curses or be exorcised (executed) himself.

Lenlo’s review:

Easily my favorite premiere of the season so far. Horikoshi Kohei, mangaka of My Hero Academia, wasn’t joking when he called this the next pillar of Shonen Jump and this premiere makes me want to read the manga. Starting off, MAPPA knocked it out of the park production wise. Everything from the big action set pieces such as Fushiguro running down the hallway and the rooftop battle to the tiny, almost insignificant movements of characters in the background such as the dogs eating or Council President’s reactions. Add on to that some stellar directing with some consistently evolving visual gags, such as the kids posing with the coach in the background getting more and more absurd, and Jujutsu Kaisen becomes a joy to watch.

Beyond that though I also found it really engaging. Story wise it’s a pretty well set up Shonen; we won’t know more until it really gets going, as the MC was just taken over by the Big Bad. However I found a lot of the small characters’ motivations very compelling. Take for instance the lead’s grandfather’s death, which I found to be done very well. No over the top melodramatic screaming, just quiet shock, tears and grief. This subdued reaction made it feel so much more organic and believable to your typical anime reaction and that emotional connection laid the groundwork for Itadori’s entire character and set up the justification for him entering the conflict to begin with. I have no idea if Jujutsu Kaisen will be able to keep this up, narratively or production wise, especially because of the MAPPA curse. But as far as first impressions go, this is my favorite yet. I am all in.

Potential: 95%

Amun’s review:

Seems like every other season, a new exorcism show comes along. Some are rather low key (this year’s Toilet Hanako-kun), some more action packed (Blue Exorcist). Surprisingly, the Yokai shows don’t tend to lean too heavily into horror – Jujutsu Kaisen didn’t get the memo. While not as traumatic a premiere as Goblin Slayer (I’m still annoyed at watching that so unexpectedly), it’s clear that Jujutsu Kaisen isn’t afraid of a little blood or tentacle hands. Plus it’s MAPPA, so it at least looks amazing (and the OP is probably my favorite of the season). So if you want to see a cross between Parasyte (anime, not the live action movie) and Blue Exorcist/Hellsing Ultimate, this is your show. Only way I’m dropping it is if they start sacrificing plot quality for shock value.

Potential: 80%

King’s Raid

Short Synopsis: A knight’s apprentice and a dark elf from the medieval age find themselves involved in an interspecies war.

Wooper’s review:

I expected this to be one of the season’s worst shows, but while it’s certainly not polished or innovative in any respect, it wasn’t the trash heap I had predicted. Right off the bat, the show earns points by slowly introducing our main character, rather than putting us inside his head and treating us to a bunch of biographical voiceover. As an apprentice knight with a sad past, there’s nothing new about him, provided you’re even slightly familiar with the medieval fantasy genre. In fact, the whole of King’s Raid could be described as a patchwork of cliches: the apprentice knight, the infirmed king, the big titty priestess, the Dark Lord, the racist court advisors, etc. A band of Dark Elves who aim to overthrow Orvelia’s monarchy are the biggest draw here, since the show intends to follow them from week to week, rather than give them the Team Rocket treatment. Visually, the show falls woefully short of its subject matter’s demands, yet its commitment to traditionally-animated combat is admirable, especially during the demon attack in the last few minutes. The characters and settings, on the other hand, look like knockoffs of knockoffs, with their stylish bedhead and transparently digital assembly, respectively. There are more cons than pros here on the whole, but if you’re desperate for a new medieval fantasy anime, King’s Raid will do.

Potential: 20%

Lenlo’s review:

Thanks, I hate it. I gotta say, coming off of Jujutsu Kaisen, this just feels so… so painfully generic and incompetently structured. Visually, its generic, and looks even worse than most basic medieval fantasy anime. Narratively, it’s generic, throwing bare bones cliches such as “Dark elves bad” levels of racism and Knights in shining armor. I just don’t understand why anyone would watch this when you have so many better options out there. Not just in this season, but with medieval fantasy anime at large. Don’t waste your time with this, skip it and watch Jujutsu Kaisen instead.

Potential: Generic%

Dragon Quest: Dai no Daibouken

Short Synopsis: A young mage-in-training fends off a party of false heroes with the aid of his monster friends.

Wooper’s review:

Let’s talk about the CG Dragon Quest monster in the room: there are some ugly-looking 3D models in this show. They’re so ugly, in fact, that people are bound to make a huge stink about them, even though the show opts for 2D creatures most of the time. In general, it’s the scenes with tons of monsters on screen that suffer from that unfortunate production choice – apart from that, the show looks good. Really good, actually, which ought to be expected when Japan reboots one of its most beloved franchises. What’s awesome about DQ is that both the character and monster designs are packed with personality, and the bold linework in this series takes that charm point to the next level. There are fights aplenty in the first episode, giving both Dai and his opponents a chance to dash, slash, and magic their way across the screen in dynamic fashion. Dai’s kind spirit and hidden strength gave me serious Gon vibes, which is one of the things I liked most about the premiere – I want to see what will happen when he’s truly put to the test. The capsule system is really cool, as well, allowing for limitless possibilities in battle as early as episode one. I’ll be watching this one weekly to see whether the promising combat, characters, and story can create something special.

Potential: 70%

Amun’s review:

I vaguely know of the Dragon Quest franchise – the games were a bit before my time, and I was too young to watch the original version from Toei. In short, I think this is a remake, so I’ll treat it as such. Let’s be honest, Toei shows don’t really look that great – the designs tend to be childish/simple, pace fast, characters straightforward. I’m actually a fan of World Trigger but wasn’t as sold on Kitaro – Dragon Quest, for me, is not an automatic watch based on the studio. What about its other qualities? I think the story is too simplistic, there wasn’t anything original, character or storywise, and we’re going to have gamelike episodic plot-armor progression. Colours are all over the place too. The setting also feels like a low effort rip off of Greed Island from Hunter x Hunter (Wooper pointed out some other similarities too) – plus we have Pokeballs and Slimes. So many shows have slimes now – anime, why you do this? Next, we’ll have Slime High School! In short – if you’re ages 8-13, this show might be for you. Otherwise, nah.

Potential: 1%

Majo no Tabitabi

Short Synopsis: An apprentice witch trains under a weird witch to become a full-fledged witch.

Amun’s review:

Welcome to Kino’s Delivery Service! (I got a bit of Ancient Magus Bride/Somali and the Forest Spirit vibes too). In all seriousness, we have no idea where this show is going – episode 1 was just a backstory after all. What we can tell is that we have pretty standard character designs, some nice texture details (I liked the Stardust witch’s cloak/hat), and an open ended, dynamic world. The fight animation was nice, the writing with her parents’ instructions clever – this was as good of a prologue as you could ask for. Now the question becomes – where does Majo no Tabitabi go from here? Like Elaina, the sky – and the ground – are the limits.

Potential: 65%

Lenlo’s review:

Sadly I have a much more… mixed reception to Majo no Tabitabi than Amun. For one, I do think it was visually nice, mostly. The water effects were good, the fight was stilted but fine. The only thing that really stood out to me as looking bad were the fire effects. Oh boy the fire effects. They looked like they were applied in MS Paint, to be honest. Outside that though Majo looked fine. Story wise is where I have my big bugbear though, because I cannot stand how the parents’ story this episode was written. Not only did Elaina have absolutely no need to be taught that lesson with how Majo no Tabitabi portrayed her, but the lesson itself was incredibly stupid. I saw what they were going for with it, the idea is solid. But the way Elaina’s character was presented and with how it was led into makes it make no sense. She wasn’t shown to be arrogant or anything like that, and the Stardust Witch didn’t make any real effort to teach her anything before deciding to throw thunderbolts at her. Hopefully the rest of the season is better written, because I think there is potential here. But if this is the quality of writing we can expect it might be better to just skip Majo no Tabitabi entirely.

Potential: 45%

100-man no Inochi no Ue ni Ore wa Tatteiru

Short Synopsis: Reclusive guy gets isekai-ed to another world and starts a new life as a… powerless farmer?

Armitage’s review:

Well well well. What do we have here? An Isekai story with no gimmicks in which the player starts off at the bottom level and is forced to grind his way up instead of being ridiculously overpowered? An authentic RPG game world, complete with organic interactions with NPCs and actual care put into the game mechanics? Huh, 2 out of 3, show. Not bad. But I know where you’ll falter. Surely your MC is a Kirito clone who needs to appoint himself as the savior of every female character in the story? Wait, what!? He can actually be cruelly selfish and choose the best course of action even if it means abandoning his weaker party members? He has a… p-p-… personality?? Now that’s not very fair. You are not giving me any reasons to make fun of you, show! That’s not how it works. Sheh. Don’t ya know? You’re an ‘isekai’. Just turn back into a clichéd regurgitation of overdone tropes come next episode so I can call you trash and then feel guilty about watching you anyway. Sounds cool?

Potential: 90%

Amun’s review:

100-man writers had a brilliant idea: let’s take components from all the past Isekai that did well and put them together. Goblins (Goblin Slayer – I actually had PTSD on that first shot, to be honest), Resurrection (Re:Zero), and the Main character is a farmer (Hamefura) – Armi pointed out the similarities with Kirito above. I guess slimes are getting their own show later this season, so those weren’t available. 100-man is a bit of an isekai amalgamation…but it worked pretty well. Really, it’s the characters having some depth and some glaring weaknesses that makes this an interesting show – the visuals and designs are passable at best and this episode, at least, felt really rushed. How does this show succeed? By being more than the sum of its parts. How does it fail? By regurgitating worn-out tropes with subpar animation (and overdone CG). So far though, it looks pretty promising.

Potential: 65%

Tonikaku Kawaii

Short Synopsis: Mysterious girl saves an idiot’s life then shows up 3 years later with marriage papers.

Amun’s review:

I got some serious Kaiki in the snow flashbacks at the start of this episode (I forget which Monogatari that was – if you know, you know). I was confused why what I thought was a romcom started with a shot of a dying kid. But nope, this is the right show after all – definitely a strange premiere, looks like a modern Princess Kaguya (as Mario mentions). The MC is a bit nuts, the girl is 1000% sketchy (and superpowered?)…but for some reason, it’s a bit endearing. Like you know it should be a trainwreck, but you’re hoping it will somehow work out. This seems like a slim cast version of the Quintessential Quintuplets – if that’s not your cup of tea, this should be a pass. Also, this OP is actually hilarious – you have to listen all the way through.

Potential: 50%

Mario’s review:

Structuring itself as a modern spin on Princess Kaguya’s tale, this slapstick romance has a bit too much anime logic that makes it enjoyable (for us), but I don’t see it breaking any ground here. Structure-wise, it’s a typical setup of a romance: boy meets girl and falls for her at first sight, with a little twist that they are married and now we see how this relationship develops. The humor is a bit of a hit-or-miss for me, it works when our MC meta-acknowledged how easily a boy falls for a girl. But at the same time we have to endure lots of MC screaming out of shyness and it just gets more annoying by the minute. That girl is a perfect manic pixie dream girl from the moment that she enters and hijacks his poor lonely life, so we need to see more sides of her. For now, I am okay with the premise but I will decide if I am going to follow it through after 3 episodes.

Potential: 30%

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni

Short Synopsis: Bunch of completely sane kids hang together while playing perfectly non-threatening games, non-threateningly.

Armitage’s review:

As someone who’s a fan of the OG Higurashi and who wasn’t a fan of what I saw from PVs of this latest iteration, I went into this remake with more caution than excitement. And well, I came out of it feeling that way too. Look, if this is your first exposure to this series, I can totally see you like the first episode and even really enjoy it. But while comparing it with the beloved original, this just feels like a watered down rehash instead of a ground-up remake. The art style is bland as can be, making the show look like every other generic rom-com out there; the color scheme is almost sickeningly sweet and vibrant, especially for a horror show; and the VAs sound nothing like the personalities of each character. Higurashi is a show that lives and dies on its meat cleaver. And if the opening shot leaves you feeling… nothing, please DO NOT watch this adaptation. Go see the original. The animation is dated and takes a little getting used to. But that in turn, amplifies the creep factor of the series. Just watch that premiere and see how much better it is in comparison. The only positive and the one reason that I would give this remake a few more episodes before deciding to drop it is the production staff’s choice to bring back the original’s OP. And I hope against my better judgement, that the coming episodes are able to bring back some of its charm too.

Potential: 30%

Lenlo’s review:

As someone who has not seen the OG Higurashi and this is their first exposure to it… I don’t get the hype. Despite what Armitage said I think its looks are its strongest part, but that isn’t saying much. It’s very bright, yes, but the lines are clean and though some of the girls redesigns look like knock-off Monogatari Girls with that silly ‘3’ mouth thing, I think it largely looks fine. And looking at images/clips of the original, I can’t say that looked very good either. Neither the old nor the new series have very strong production but at least the old has the excuse of being 15 years old. Meanwhile story wise I am… slightly engaged? I’ll be honest and say that horror anime have never really grabbed me. As a medium, anime just doesn’t do horror well in my experience, not this sort of horror anyways. Some manga such as Junji Ito’s work can pull it off, and more psychological pieces like Perfect Blue/Lain/Mononoke can pull it off. But so far Higurashi doesn’t seem to nail that. Maybe it will turn into a sort of Children of the Corn, in which case I’ll be down. But at this point I am pretty desensitized to anime characters murdering anime characters.

Potential: 30%

Assault Lily: Bouquet

Short Synopsis: Teenage girls attend magic school and fight robots using transforming weapons and yuri (sub)text.

Lenlo’s review:

Alright, so you remember all the previous highschool magical girl schlock we have gotten this year like Lapis Re:Lights and such? Well this may sound hypocritical, but Assault Lily ain’t any of those. I can’t tell if it’s because Shaft is making it or the FLCL director is… directing it, but something about this just works. Visually the show looks good, the characters are very emotive and even 1 episode in it feels like a lot of work has been put into how they move. Meanwhile the CGI fight scenes are actually uh… good, somehow. Some were obviously CGI, but flowed really well, while others were framed in such a way I could barely tell there was CGI involved. It’s good shit yo! And to top it all off it feels like there is something deeper and darker underneath, something akin to the last Mahou Shoujo Shaft made, Madoka Magica. Tack on a KyoAni animation director in Nagahara and it’s a recipe for some good production. So yeah Assault Lily has a lot of good things going for it and I am looking forward to it this season for all the previously mentioned reasons. Or the thigh-highs. It could also just be the thigh-highs.

Potential: 70%

Wooper’s review:

Assault Lily: Bouquet reminds me less of Madoka Magica, which I’m sure it would love to be compared to, and more of Houkago no Pleiades, Gainax’s final TV anime. Sure, they’re both magical girl shows, but their status as death knells for their respective studios is the more interesting parallel. Shaft may have another project in the works for 2021, but the lack of creativity behind Bouquet says all you need to know about the studio’s future. It opens with a solid three minutes of narration explaining the setting and the main girl’s place within it, and new girls feed her factoids about more important characters by way of conversation. The character art seems to have been ripped from a D-tier gacha game. The animation is stilted during conversation, and CG models dutifully take the place of traditional drawings during all the interesting cuts. The script makes no attempts to hide its by-the-numbers construction; mere seconds after the major character relationships have been established, a plain-looking upperclassman materializes and instructs the main trio to hunt down the enemy of the week. This thing is amateurishly written and plainly produced, not to mention insulting in its yuri-baiting (“I’m not really a loose woman!” swears a redheaded girl, by way of apologizing for hugging her new crush). If this is the level at which Shaft will be operating going forward, then the studio is dead.

Potential: 5%

Haikyuu!! To The Top S2

Short Synopsis: Sweaty high-school boys fondle some balls on a national level.

Lenlo’s review:

Let me preface this by saying, I am a Haikyuu stan. I have read and own the entire manga series along with all the BD’s. I think the first 3 seasons are incredible, and I love me some volleyball bois. So it comes from a place of love when I say that something just feels… off about To The Top S2. Something about its production just feels flat visually. I can’t tell if it’s the colors, the occasional stiffness in the animation or the direction but it feels like Haikyuu is only 70-80% there. Like the last cour of To The Top, outside of the BIG MOMENTS it just feels off. Don’t get me wrong, I love the BIG MOMENTS, I love how malleable Hinata’s character model gets on his jumps and how expressive they can be. It’s just not happening often enough for me. Regardless, the first cour picked it up in the 2nd half and I am expecting the same here. I know the story is good, the manga is proof of that. The only thing in question is if they can nail the production and I am willing to bet they can.

Potential: 75%

Armitage’s review:

I need this show right now. 2020 has been a shitty year with every second anime being marred with production difficulties and delays in air schedule. The current Fall season is the last straw of hope our rapidly expanding community seems to be holding on to in this terrible year. And Haikyuu is the closest you can get to a guarantee in quality. It’s consistent as any multi-season series can be and for fans of the show, myself included, it’s simply comfort food. Which is something we all can do with a generous helping of.

Though, compared to its previous three iterations, To the Top has been… uneven. While the art style change has taken some getting used to and the animation’s budget cuts have been rather apparent, narratively it’s still been strong. It seems like we’re building towards some big narrative payoffs and this series has earned its reputation by delivering a sizable amount of those; episode in, episode out. There is still clear room for improvement here. And it seems like this second cour will be spread across one single match which is a format that lends itself to many such moments of catharsis. Pair all that with a revamped soundtrack and a killer new OP (those high notes!) and you have the perfect recipe for a sumptuous meal. And I would like mine jumbo-sized!

Potential: 85%