Category: Some Quick First Impressions

Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Darou ka IV

Short Synopsis: Silver haired wonderboy and half naked elf fall deep into a chalky world with lots of monsters.

Amun: I think I’ll be covering DanMachi IV as a weekly (probably bi-weekly) post, but I figured while I’m here in first episodes, I’ll put my two cents in here. The last half of this season ended less than ideally, and we’re right back in it with….not much happening. The CG twin headed dragon got better this episode, but it’s still not great. There’s some questionable service of beat-up Ryuu and Bell – and not much else going on. I did like the party fighting the floor boss – there were some good moments, but the animation felt a bit lacking at times. I’ve always said DanMachi does a superb job of disguising subpar animation (usually with two stationary animations used in conjunction), and this episode showcases some new twists on that. No matter what, this doesn’t look like it’ll be DanMachi’s best season….or likely its worst. I do feel very apprehensive that there will be lots of sad flashbacks with Ryuu: I’m not looking forward to that. Although there’s a small memory of a conversation with Ais at the episode’s beginning, this is pretty clearly a Ryuu centered arc. So I’m strapping in for a necessary season, but probably not a terribly enjoyable one. Hopefully I’m wrong – in a good way! Just the prevalence of CG and remembered sadness doesn’t have me feeling terribly hopeful. I’m definitely watching it anyway.
Potential: Needs more Ais

Tensei Oujo to Tensai Reijou no Mahou Kakumei

Short Synopsis: Genius cute princesses get up to hijinks and there’s some larger plot or something.

Amun: I don’t 100% know what I just watched…all I know is there’s going to be yuri. And honestly, this wasn’t the worst yuri bait ever – the heroic entrance through the glass was pretty great. After that…I just don’t really know what to expect. I guess this is technically an isekai (which is an extremely lazy explanation for the heroine’s inspiration to fly and obsession with brooms). Is this a magic show? Political drama? Love story? Action-Comedy? No idea, and probably a bit of all of the above. Tensei Oujo looked pretty good and had decent pacing (despite the dramatic dance disengagement dragging on dreadfully). This looks like a show not quite sure of its identity and off on a bit of an adventure – while it sounds grand in theory, these kinds of shows normally get muddled in the middle before trying to tie out at the end. Still worth a few more episodes though – if even just for that crash landing scene. Lol, that was pretty great.
Potential: 50%

Mario: This premiere awfully functions as a prologue, given that after it ends I still have no clue what direction it will take from there (maybe going up as the two take flight at the end?). Instead, the episode spends more time exploring our two main girl leads: the princess Anisphia and Euphyllia and so far that’s a success. Both the girls ooze with personality – Anisphia is fearless, impulsive and tends to break the rules, whereas Euphyllia is serious and collected. The episode conclusion “a girl who loves magic but magic doesn’t love her back and a noble girl who was born with everything but had nothing” nicely sum up their situations and the fate to come. Tensei Oujo isn’t without its issues, however. The isekai’s element is shaky at the moment (the show is better off without its isekai-tag for all I care) and the Princess’s proposal to take Euphyllia at the end still feels pretty weird – not out of queerness but because they had zero connection beforehand. Well, at the very least, this episode convinces me to check out some more.
Potential: 40%

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale

Short Synopsis: On her way to the Capital to pursue her sugar art, a girl buys off a Fairy slave to protect her during the trip.

Mario: It’s amusing that before coming to this show, I had no real expectation for it. Upon watching it, I was nicely surprised on the road it took, in more ways than one. The elephant of the room here remains its treatment and view of slavery. No, I’m not here to pass our moral judgment of slavery, so I’ll be brief on this. The show has its stance on the issues – showing the abuse to the fairies by their owners, and Anne’s own moral view. It’s great the way the show eventually challenges her own point of view (be friends with the slave?), and how she realizes that there is more to the issues that meet the eyes. Her realization upon witnessing him killing other people like a killing machine nicely wraps up the episode. Apart from the show’s main duo tension, Sugar Apple makes the most out of its designs. Both the fairy’s design, especially their wings, and the background designs, are full of details and characteristics. The characters, especially Anne and Shall, are two-dimensional and I’m up to see the chemistry between them. The only thing I am a bit afraid of is the romance bait. Not to say there is anything wrong with romance, but I believe the characters and their tension are strong enough that you don’t really need romance factor in this equation at all.
Potential: 50%

Lenlo: Like Farming Life, Sugar Apple Fairy Tale seems good at what it wants to be but not my speed. It reminds me in a lot of ways of Spice and Wolf actually, with a young human traveling with an ancient fantastical creature. It remains to be seen if their relationship will be as good as Holo and Lawrence, but the fact that the comparison came to me at all is a good sign I think. Beyond that the action wasn’t bad, and Shall seems like a much more forceful partner, giving me hope that he at least will push their relationship forward. My big hope though is that Sugar Apple will actually dive into the sugar/candy craft a bit, and allow our lead girl to actually learn and practice the trade. If it can do that while keeping the two together and progressing their relationship, I think this could be a really good time.
Potential: 50%

Spy Classroom

Short Synopsis: It’s a classroom. Of Spies. Who are girls. And apparently not very good at spying. Think Princess Principal meets Assasination Classroom (the ones who were bad at it).

Mario: It’s an interesting premise that does feel like a proud child between Assasination Classroom and Princess Principal. There are some nice setups – the girls are not the best but are the worst students, and the teacher is so skillful but teaches poorly… but overall I feel that something is missing in this episode, and that it doesn’t flow well at all. Take, for example, Klaus’ motivation for picking these girls. Some might say that he scouts them thoroughly and picks them specifically for the mission, all I see is that he just doesn’t give a damn. In the second half the episode focuses only on Lily and Klaus one-upping another, and that brings a fair share of goodies and baddies as well. The bad news is that it occasionally trades logic for “sounding smart” (she who can withstand toxic, is she Poison Ivy??) and the tones are all over the place. The good news is that it does make both Lily and Klaus a more interesting lead to follow along. With all that said, I am still curious so I might tag along to find out more.
Potential: 40%

Amun: You know, I did the comp with Princess Principal and Assasination Classroom, but I’m feeling a bit more Talentless Nana-san after all. And you know what, those are all pretty good shows. Is Spy Classroom? Well…that remains to be seen. For starters, I really like the trend towards having strong characters with obvious flaws – and a genius at everything but teaching is worth seeing. My issues start with the rest of the class. It’s pretty clear we’re going to have an attempted assassination of the week, culminating in a team mission that succeeds despite all the odds. That’s fine – my problem is that this is a rather large cast (7 girls, I think?) That’s over half a season of just introductions…and I’m not sure I’ll last that long. Despite that, this was a pretty decent start – I think the twist was pretty obvious, but there was a fine line between a klutz and a psychopath here that was navigated quite deftly. So I don’t know – will this exceed expectations or just fade into an oversaturated season? Odds are on the latter, but I’ll give it a few more episodes to see.
Potential: 30%

Tomo-chan is a Girl!

Short Synopsis: Tomo Aizawa is an athletic tomboy trying to get her childhood friend and crush, Junichirou Kubota, to see her as a girl and not another one of the guys.

Lenlo: It’s time! The season has begun! And first up is… Tomo-Chan. Gonna be honest, this doesn’t look that good. Visually it’s alright, some nice colors and direction. But it’s nothing too special, nothing that’s really going to elevate the material. And boy does that material need elevating. It’s not a good sign when every single relationship in the show is better than your leading couple. Junichiro and Gundo, Tomo and Misaki, Gundo and Tanabe, the list goes on. I enjoyed their interactions far more than I did the actual leads, Tomo and Junichiro. In fact the only thing those two have going for them is that Junichiro appears well aware that Tomo is a girl and is purposefully denying/pushing back on it, likely because he himself is afraid of a committed relationship. If Tomo-Chan actually dials in on that and gives him a reason to say no beyond “To stupid to notice she’s a girl”, then maybe there’s some potential here.
Potential: 30%

Amun: I guess I didn’t hate Tomo-chan, but I can’t say I loved it. This feels very much like a lesser Shikkimori-san, which was decent enough, but certainly not worth formula copying. Tomo-chan is more in the vein of “shout until it’s funny”…or well, punch until it’s funny. Like Leno says, the supporting cast has some potential – and the hints that Jun is actually not as dumb as he looks are pretty much all that’s keeping me going. Gundo is pretty funny though; I did love the whiplash of the poor duo – I guess some of the comedy did land after all. I just need a bit more from the titular Tomo-chan to make this worthwhile.
Potential: 40%

Revenger

Short Synopsis: A samurai teams up with a special organization to clear his name and take down the local gang boss.

Mario: Overall it was a solid premiere. True to Urobuchi’s brand, the episode features a protagonist whose ideals and honor are crushed and destroyed. Sounds familiar, right? The episode lays out some neat choreography and music, so on the production side it is a delight. From a writing point of view, so far it establishes well the main characters, namely Kurima and Usui, and I certainly want to see more of them. It doesn’t shy away from the violence (a plus for me. There are some creative killing methods there), but at the same time it’s also on the verge of melodramatic and heavy-handed. So far, that isn’t a big turn off but I really hope it doesn’t rely on that later on.
Potential: 60%

Lenlo: You know, I really wasn’t expecting much from Revenger. I thought it was just going to be another Pretty Boy Samurai Show. You know what I’m talking about, the ones where every character has a shtick and a different hair color. And to an extent, it is still that! There are 5 pretty boys fitting different archetypes that each fight differently. But what I wasn’t expecting was the sheer brutality of the show, nor the legitimate tragedy that is the lead’s backstory/motivation. One leads me to believe Revenger will have a far more adult style to it moving forward, rather than the generally safe style these kinds of shows usually do. Meanwhile the other gives me hope that there may be an actual story here to enjoy. Only time will tell if it can live up to these hopes, but it’s done enough to make me want to actually watch and find out more.
Potential: 50%

Tsurune – The Linking Shot –

Short Synopsis: The 2nd season of Tsurune, Kyoto Animation’s premier “Handsome Boys Doing Handsome Things” show.

Lenlo: Jesus Christ it’s just so goddamn pretty. Say what you want about the story, personally I actually quite like Tsurune’s portrayal of the sport and the connections built within it, however I know it isn’t for everyone. But you can’t deny just how good Tsurune looks and sounds. I wouldn’t be surprised if it ended up being the most solid production of the season. That said, it’s the 2nd season of a 5 year old show. At this point you probably know if it’s up your alley or not. If you want to watch a character drama about pretty boys shooting arrows, give it a shot. Go try the 1st season. I know I was pleasantly surprised by it and you might be too.
Potential: 50%

ONIMAI: I’m Now Your Sister!

Short Synopsis: A shut in is turned into a loli, ecchi bullshit ensues.

Lenlo: You know how the anime community has this reputation in conservative circles for being filled with pedophiles and sexual deviants? Onimai, and shows like it, is why. This show is pure ecchi trash, and I can’t find it in me to respect anyone who not only watches this but likes it. I wanted to quit 5 seconds after the OP started, but I kept watching for you. And let me tell you… It’s not good. Just don’t watch it. Please.
Potential: Am I going to prison for watching this? Will you?

Mario: Thank you Lenlo for the passionate vote of disapproval. Let me fill in by dissecting it objectively. Yes, Onimai is a dumpster fire. Its leering at the underaged body, although not explicitly showing anything, is deeply uncomfortable. But even if you bypass that, the fact that the brother was manipulated by his sister without his consent (and at one point we see her hiding a spy camera) is troublesome. The main themes of the show are about 1) the expectation from the roles one’s supposed to perform and 2) what it feels like to be born with a different body. As such, I can feel it resonates on some levels if they can pool these issues effectively – which I highly doubt the show can pull off. Onimai’s mind seem to be occupied by Mahiro’s new found body and having Mahiro actually accepting his fate. No boy, just no.
Potential: “Bottomsley” – as in, the bottom of anime’s hell pit.

TECHNOROID: OVERMIND

Short Synopsis: Androids form a boyband to prevent their power, and thus their lives, from being shut off. Except it’s nowhere near as dark as that kind of existential crisis should be.

Lenlo: So let me get this straight, Overmind is about… hot android boy bands competing to be the top hot android boyband in a tower named after the myth of the Tower of Babel? I’ll be honest, I’m not feeling anything at all from this. As far as idol premises go its one of the more unique ones, but that doesn’t exactly make it good. It’s just an excuse to get 4 generic, color coded male designs on a CGI stage singing music composed by committee. Not a winner I’m afraid.
Potential: 0%

Mario: In all disguises of futurist settings, Babylon’s tower (that gives me a strong Hunter x Hunter’s arena vibe), and androids that occasionally have their heads dropped off when bumping to each other (such flawed designs if you ask me), Technoroid (maybe I should capitalize the name but I haven’t the heart to do it) is an idol show at heart. As such, it has all the trappings of an idol show: awkward CG live performances, hot boys and girls with color-code and zero personality, rival bands that might or might not be an avatar for some real-life bands… to be fair, Technoroid is more ambitious than that. Throughout the first episode, the band tries solving a kid’s grieving issues as well, and in the process learns about emotions and… singing together in live performances. Yeah, you read it right. For all of its ambitious settings and trying to break away from idol’s simple formula, the show sadly hampers itself by its silliness of “why do we need to sing together” or “why we need to pay pills for electricity” bits. It’s clear that they don’t take themselves so seriously, so why do we?
Potential: 0%

Ningen Fushin: Adventurers Who Don’t Believe in Humanity Will Save the World

Short Synopsis: A band of Isekai misfits form an adventuring party.

Mario: Welcome to 2023 with – of course, the most cash-cowed genre in the anime world at the moment – an isekai offering. I will start off with a positive, Ningen Fushin has an amusing concept: a bunch of distrust members form an unlikely group and eventually save the world. In the right hand, this premise could turn into something affecting (they all go through traumatic events), or a satire in the same vein of Konosuba that pokes fun at its characters and the isekai tropes. Sadly, Ningen Fushin is destined to be mediocre. First, the mash-up elements between RPG fantasy and modern day idols are jarring (and only makes sense from an otaku’s point of view). Second, the episode tries to cram so much backstories from multiple characters that it has little room to breathe. Moreover, in order to give the characters a solid cynicism, it walks on many troublesome tropes that I am not keen of: a false rape acusation, an asshole partner who will turn the table at a flick of a finger… Ningen Fushin isn’t bad per se (we’ve seen worse), it’s just bland and average.
Potential: 20%

Lenlo: I’ve found the first generic isekai of the season. The idea is interesting enough I suppose. Rather than a single loser MC with a grudge against his original party, we have 4. Each one of the core party members has a chip on their shoulder from some past life event. If they had a decent enough personality, some kind of interplay, then I could get into it. Watching some misfits who really don’t belong together create a family is nice! But I just don’t have any faith in Ningen Fushin to be able to do that.
Potential: 5%

Bungou Stray Dogs Season 4

Short Synopsis: Various (loosely based) literary characters, headlined by Osamu Dazai, try to outwit (or outshoot) each other.

Amun: Let’s be honest: Bungou Stray Dogs is a B-tier show that just keeps getting renewed – and I love it. This season is starting off with a flashback on the founding of the detective agency, featuring Yukichi Fukuzawa (the Armed Detective Agency President) and Ranpo Edogawa (the actual detective of the detective agency). I remember there were throwaway lines about how the Armed Detective Agency was created as a home for Ranpo, and it seems this is exploring that. I don’t know much about the President, so it’s interesting to take a look – Ranpo has always been a pretty flat character to me (think Sherlock Holmes), so seeing him as a little kid is kind of fun. Also VERY interesting to see the President having serious parallels (cell phone, assassin background) to Kyoka Izumi, who he later brings into the fold. I bet this flashback arc lasts half a season, like others have in the past, but it’s still a nice twist on what can become a set-piece show. The noir aesthetics aren’t half bad either (especially considering this is a pretty flashy show). Of course, Bungou Stray Dogs always thinks itself overly clever when it’s really just entertaining, but four seasons in, this should come as no surprise. Good start to the season!
Potential: 75%

The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague

Short Synopsis: A rom-com between a stoic girl and her colleague, Weiss brother AKA Ice-Man.

Mario: Despite the cold title, the episode is much warmer than you might expect. It’s cute to see both characters slowly get to know each other and support one another in small ways, the real issue I have with it so far is that it is a bit monotone. We get to see Ice Guy blushing and bringing snow to the office multiple times and as a result it gets pale at the end. The show leans hard on the romance side as well. I don’t mean it as a negative aspect, but by focusing on this couple, the show doesn’t give enough spotlight to other members of the cast (well, except the cat). The visual is on a conservative side. It doesn’t look bad but it doesn’t excite me either. I can see myself returning to this series from time to time for the coziness, but don’t expect it to be a hit this season.
Potential: 30%

Lenlo: I’m very much in the same boat as Mario here. Ice Guy seems like a very calm, low-key sort of office romance. In a lot of ways I can appreciate that. I like romances involving young adults capable of having conversations and slowly getting to know each other more than I do highschool over reactionary crushes. In that sense, Ice Guy is right up my alley. However, just as Mario says, its visuals leave a lot to be desired and the characters themselves, while fitting the “chill” themes, have very little emotional range. I realize I was just complaining about over reactions, but there’s such as thing as not enough of a reaction. It doesn’t have to be huge, subtle moments are generally stronger. But I feel like we didn’t get much of either here. Maybe I’ll warm up (heh) to Ice Guy after an episode or two. But as far as first impressions go, I’m not feeling very passionate.
Potential: 20%

Urusei Yatsura (2022)

Short Synopsis: A hopeless pervert finds himself with a jealous alien roommate after catching her in a fate-altering game of tag.

Wooper: I don’t know how much further removed this reboot could have been from the 1980s anime. Perhaps that’s for the best, since its loud colors and hyperactive tone may appeal to a new generation of fans, but personally, I watched this premiere with at least one eyebrow raised at all times. It was so committed to its vivid aesthetic that even its speedlines were rainbow colored, and some shots defied my understanding entirely. I mean, what the hell am I looking at here? To be clear, the presentation only dips into that sort of ultra-neon territory for isolated shots, but they demonstrate that the show has very loose boundaries when it comes to color design. The reboot animates with more proficiency than I expected (which is great!), though the way it zips from one scene to the next makes it feel like the director had Keanu Reeves’ mindset in the movie Speed: go too slow and your anime explodes. This stretches already-thin relationships like Ataru and Shinobu’s hot-cold attraction to a breaking point, removing the sympathetic aspect of her character so that she comes across as merely shrill. I’ve got more gripes that I could list, but it’s better that I end on a note of praise – Hiroshi Kamiya supplied a perfect performance as the lecherous, ill-omened Ataru. I’m sure it wasn’t a hard pick, since he’s played similar characters in the past, but hats off to the casting director nevertheless for making the right call.
Potential: Not for me

Mario: I was looking forward to this reboot as Urusei Yatsura was one of the more popular shows back in the 80s, and it’s pretty amusing to see how they’ve adapted it for modern audiences. The result is a mixed bag. I enjoy the visuals well enough; the character designs pop out, and I don’t mind that it goes bananas with the color palette. It certainly has the retro aesthetic that I seek. Unfortunately, it’s the story that feels dated and aimless. Is this love-triangle bickering going to be prominent for the rest of its run? It feels loud and one note after just one episode. The worst thing, however, is how broadly-drawn the main characters are – they don’t feel one bit believable or likeable. We don’t know them as individuals so we feel nothing for their relationships. This is the kind of show where you can only take it at face value and not think hard about the plot or characters afterward. As much as I enjoy the production, looks alone can only get you so far.
Potential: 30%

Mairimashita! Iruma-kun S3

Short Synopsis: After an exciting summer break, the Misfit Class gets an ultimatum to stay in their comfy classroom – with new lessons from eccentric tutors.

Amun: I previewed Marimashita before the season started, so I have a general idea of where this season is going (at least at first). Getting back to Babyls, Marimashita wastes no time diving into the new challenges: tutors and required ranks. How does it look? I personally really enjoyed what I read of this season’s material, and this episode didn’t do anything to dissuade me. If anything, I think they’re handling the pacing really well, since I could have seen them rushing through the groundwork. If I have any complaints, it’s going to be the lack of Ameri-san this season: why couldn’t she build on the incredible groundwork of last season’s date? One step forward, two steps back, I suppose. All in all, no surprises here – but for what started as an average comedy going into its third season, that’s an accomplishment in and of itself. I’m in it all the way.
Potential: 100%

Cool Doji Danshi

Short Synopsis: A handsome college student makes one faux pas after another, but at least he looks good doing it.

Wooper: This show is unsubbed at the time of this writing, so I went in raw for my final first impression of 2022 – except I cheated by following along with the manga scanlations on my second monitor, so I was able to follow the episode just fine. Cool Doji Danshi is a relaxing half-length CGDKT (cute guys doing klutzy things) with appealingly simple character designs and frequent cutaways to patterned backgrounds. It’s sparsely animated, but I did enjoy the realism on display during Hayate’s slow morning routine, which made clear use of reference footage. Hayate is the sort of guy who would forget his head if it weren’t attached to his neck, which poses difficulties everywhere from work to drinking parties to convenience store trips. People note his absentmindedness wherever he goes, but they don’t say anything about it (save for his best friend and his nagging boss) because he’s got such a cool aura about him. It’s refreshing to watch an ikemen series that isn’t about an idol group – girls still swoon upon meeting Hayate, but that’s because of his clumsiness as much as it is his good looks, and he gets a nice monologue towards the end about accepting the parts of himself that he doesn’t like along with the parts that he does. I enjoyed my time with this episode, and if I understood Japanese I’d probably watch more, but for now I’ll have to hope that some generous soul will start subbing it in the coming weeks.
Potential: 潜在的な

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War

Short Synopsis: A pair of rookie spirit fighters get bailed out by the local neighborhood watch.

Amun: It has been 3,850 days since the last seasonal episode of Bleach aired. While there have been various movies, these have really been self-contained stories that typically had no bearing on the overall storyline (we’re also not counting that weird BURN THE WITCH series that happened a few years back). Bleach’s reboot is one of the more surprising stories in the past year or so – one of the original shounen pillars back from the dead? Is this the case of a beaten dead cash cow or will it be a retelling, like Hunter x Hunter’s remake a decade after the original? Well apparently neither – looks like new ground is being broken. The verdict? ahem This is THE. SINGLE. BEST. REBOOT. EPISODE. that I have ever seen. Bar none. This episode hits all the right nostalgia notes (if you didn’t get goosebumps hearing “Center of attraction” then I’m a little worried about your anime childhood) while managing a very difficult feat: making hybrid-real backgrounds and CGI monsters look incredible. I don’t think I’ve seen another anime manage a hybrid approach this well (maybe Titan I guess?) The main characters still get plenty of old fashioned drawing love…and we haven’t even seen half the Soul Society cast yet!!! The designs, from the characters to the text don’t look dated in the slightest – this is Bleach brought into the 2020s. I don’t know how good this season’s storyline is, and I don’t care – if even a fraction of this level of effort is exerted on future episodes, then they can be fighting exiled Hollow dandelions, doesn’t matter. My hopefulness is off the charts. I did not know I wanted this, I did not know I needed this, but my goodness am I excited that it’s here.
Potential: If you have ever enjoyed any shounen anime, you should watch this. This is not potential, this is really happening. We are blessed to be alive.

Lenlo: It felt… surprisingly good to be back in the world of Bleach. The design, the sounds, the characters. I enjoyed seeing them again. Make no mistake, this show is going to live and die based on nostalgia. But so far, that nostalgia is hitting hard. Combine that with Kubo’s great designs and some more modern animation and I’m back in the 2000’s watching saturday morning cartoons and having fun. I don’t expect it to do much narratively, this was one of my least favorite arcs on that front. But it seems like the pacing has been drastically improved from what Bleach used to be like, what with the series being done and not needing much filler (We hope). I also have high hopes for the health of the production after hearing the announcement that it’s going to be 4 split cours, thus 13 episodes every 6 months. So maybe, just maybe, Bleach will be able to have a consistent production across its entire run. That would go a long way towards making it worth watching. And yes, the CGI Hallow stands out, but as monsters they suffer from it less than say… CGI humans do. Anyways yeah, it’s Bleach with a modern coat of paint. It looks good, seems healthy, if you like standard Shounen then you are going to have some fun here. Personally, I’m going to be reliving some of my childhood.
Potential: 50%

Chainsaw Man

Short Synopsis: Yo there’s a cute chainsaw doggie, and he’s a good boi.

Amun: So I come into Chainsaw Man a bit naive – I’ve heard the hype (and read Aidan’s very informative pre-season primer). I also don’t have any predispositions for or against it – I’m really a blank slate. Coming in, the closest comp I could think of was Dorohedoro, which I felt started well and then went off the rails a bit (chainsaws and crocodiles are similar, yeah?) Watching this episode…there was more emphasis on the story and less on the gore than I expected. Never thought I’d see an anime that made me a) feel emotionally attached to a chainsaw dog and b) think a chainsaw was cute, but here we are. Now the problem I have is simple: the visuals. This episode was WILDLY uneven in production quality. Zombies are an area that’s pretty forgiving for mass CGI – and even then I really didn’t think the fight scenes looked that clean. There were some parts that looked hand drawn, and those looked great – but they weren’t consistent by any means. I get a bit of flashback to last season’s Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer: I can see there’s a quality story underneath, but it’s being held back by production. This is MAPPA, so I would have expected at least the first half to come out looking sharp, but I’m worried we’re out of gas already (puns intended). I’ll keep going for a few more, but I need some better visuals for this show to live up to its potential.
Potential: 70%

Lenlo: I’m just going to come out and say it, Chainsaw Man was strictly fine. I didn’t love it. And despite what Aidan may think, I didn’t hate it. It just sort of exists for me. For every beautiful wide shot or well animated bit of action, there was a matching shot of janky CGI, dark washed out colors or poor aliasing. Combine that with taking itself way too seriously for what it’s actually about, and you end up with something neither excites or puts me off. My hope is that as the series goes on it will start to add a bit more color, embrace the levity inherent in the series more. At the very least I want them to make it look better. I suppose the long and short of what I’m saying is this: Narratively I’ve never cared for Chainsaw Man, and that hasn’t changed after seeing it animated, I simply don’t think it’s written well. But my hope was that MAPPA would at least be able to make it a production juggernaut for the season, and even that seems to have been betrayed. All that’s left after both of those is a perfectly fine, serviceable, irreverent show that I’m sure you’ll be able to get some enjoyment out of if that’s your thing. And if you want to hear “unbiased” praise? Then keep an eye out for Aidan’s posts, he’s going to be covering it. As for me? I’m surprised he even let me write this.
Potential: 50%

Noumin Kanren no Skill bakka Agetetara Nazeka Tsuyoku Natta.

Short Synopsis: An overpowered farmer cannot help but gets involved in saving the kingdom, despite his best efforts to stay hidden.

Mario: Ah here we go, isekai-kun. This show is not bad per se, rather it suffers from being toothless, harmless and unmemorable. It’s about a boy who maxes out his stats (the episode literally has the stat tabs. Why?) because he’s into farming so much, so when we meet him, the guy already achieved godlike power. The plot goes exactly like you would expect: he easily defeats bad guys to the awe of others, and he runs away from recognition…just because. I’d say that the manner in which he kills the flying dragon – with a boomerang carrot – is so absurd that I wonder why the show isn’t aiming for a comedic/satirical edge. At least then we could have some fun watching it! The show is mindless enough that I reckon it might be one of the popular shows of the season, but for me I’d rather watch Pop Team Epic – at least it tries something completely different.
Potential: 10%

Amun: Alright, this one’s a bit of a meme. We have a farmer who maxed all his mundane stats, so he gets the super rare boost of being OP from Mother Earth. Sure, I guess. But defeating a dragon with a CARROT?! Then eating said carrot. You can’t be serious. The other issue I have with this show is how bad the CG looks. I mean, that’s the opening scene – it doesn’t typically improve in quality from here. It’s kinda funny seeing him beat up his enemies with a hoe (that’s the literal farm utensil, not disparaging any of the waifus). The main bad guy is edgy and yells alot, but I strangely enjoy his character design (very Key). This show definitely has no nutritional value, but if you can enjoy something “so bad that it’s good”, then this is for you.
Potential: Meme%

Mob Psycho 100 III

Short Synopsis: The third, and final, season of “Local boy goes through puberty and has difficulty controlling his emotions, exploding in psychic mayhem”.

Lenlo: It’s happened everyone, the Anime of the Season has aired, pack it up and go home. My joy at Mob returning aside though, I really did love this episode. There were some small inconsistencies writing wise, like Reigen having to figure out its career survey time of year despite Mob directly asking him about it earlier. But that wasn’t anything more than a blip on what was otherwise a really nice reminder of what their relationship has become and how much they have come to respect and care for each other. Combine that with Mob’s continued excellent production, expressive animation and beautiful color palette and you have what is my favorite show of the season. But I kind of expected that to be the case way back when it was announced, so no big surprise here.
Potential: 99%

Amun: While Mob is back – and that’s great – I can’t help but feel a little sad as this is clearly the beginning of the end. It has been a bit since the last season, and I must admit, I’ve sorta forgotten who Reigen’s new assistant is (was he a former baddie last season?) – that aside, it’s nice to see our cast again. The plotlines look pretty straightforward, with Dimple reverting to his old ways, and Mob looking to take his next step plus fighting his new status as resident deity of the broccoli tree religion (that’s a weird sentence). Of course, the visuals are still fantastic, and Mob + Reigen dynamic is top shelf – everything we’ve loved is back in spades. I think the OP showed it best, with watching Mob grow up – that’s how I feel as we start this final season: a bit bittersweet to see our favorite OP psychic finally graduate and end our journey together. But we’re not done yet, and there’s still tons of evil spirits and silly humans to take care of!
Potential: 90%

Blue Lock

Short Synopsis: A gifted player from a losing team gets invited to join Battle Royale: Soccer Edition.

Lenlo: I’m just gonna come out and say it, Blue Lock is fun. Locking 300 egotistical assholes into a building and telling them to hunger-games-style eliminate each other to become the best forward in Japan? No “friendship” or “teamwork” here, just actively hunting down the strongest person and kicking their butt in soccer? Yeah, it’s dumb. But Blue Lock plays it so straight that I can’t help but have a good time. And this is reinforced by its visuals as well. Strong, sharp linework, crazy eyes and proportions the more characters fall into their own ego, the muscles. It looks good! The soccer looks jank most of the time, the space is obviously CGI and you can tell, as is the ball and a lot of the background characters in any given scene. But Blue Lock distracts from it well most of the time, enough that it only marginally impacted my experience. So yeah, as far as “stupid Shounen fun” goes, this is probably one of the stupidest, funnest, and most “Shounen” shows of the season. And I’m gonna watch it.
Potential: 65%

Mario: Speaking about “diamond in the rough”, woh boy, I just can’t get past how silly Blue Lock is. Although it presents itself as a soccer anime, Blue Lock is more akin to Kaiji or Squid Game – a survival, twisted thriller show with a moral-ambiguous protagonist. To heighten all the drama and personal conflict, the show amps it up to 11. Just look at the prologue when our MC’s decision backfires on him – it’s so committed to its drama that it’s on the verge of collapse under its self-importance. The show totally lost me when the GameMaster appears and explains his twisted nonsense philosophy. He’s completely over-the-top with crazy eyes (I’m not a fan at all with the character’s designs) and exaggerated gestures. Likewise, the players are decidedly selfish and villainous. It’s certainly appealing for those who like to watch what becomes of the ultimate anti-hero striker, but as the one who also feels Squid Game is overrated, I can safely say that Blue Lock is not for me.
Potential: 10%

Fuufu Ijou, Koibito Miman

Short Synopsis: Two students resolve to improve their relationship after they’re forced to live together as part of their high school’s marriage practicum.

Mario: It’s such a blatant set-up to get a boy and a girl together who eventually fall in love to each other (I expect it’s more of physical attraction and have nothing to do with understanding each other), and of course to add more spice to it, they both have a love interest who happen to be together themselves. There are lots of red flags for this show (and sorry, unlike Wooper, I cannot come up with any positivity). The first issue is that the episode is chock-full of tired tropes, from character stocks (the virgin type, childhood friend, gal girl…) to situations you literally see in countless anime before (potato-kun’s reaction to being close to a girl, he’s unable to call his crush by her first name), and the list keeps piling up. Second, Potato-kun is so plain and so far possesses zero charisma, and that extends to the whole cast as well. Last, the set-up itself of grouping a male and female students as husband and wife is stupid enough that I can’t really buy the concept itself. Oh well…
Potential: 10%

Wooper: Positives first: this series’ high-contrast color design, which would come off as garish in most other shows, does a fine job of complimenting and countering the personalities of its female and male leads, respectively. I also liked the ED’s groovy synth lines, sultry vocals, and 80s-inspired art direction – it has to be one of my favorites of the year so far. Too bad everything else about Fuufu Ijou gave me an allergic reaction, especially the premise of high schoolers cohabitating in order to “prepare for marriage.” What it actually prepares for are cleavage shots, bad teen angst, and quantifiable romance for ranking-obsessed otaku. The students at this school can’t graduate unless they get a good grade on their marriage simulations, and the fluctuations in their couple scores are updated in real time via a digital readout in their living rooms. You know, just like a real marriage! The gloomy male protagonist (who is so pitiful that he monologues about acting sad to attract his childhood friend’s attention) and his domineering gyaru partner can’t stand each other, but they have to work together to achieve Rank A and get their choice of roommate during the next phase of this ridiculous experiment. Except oh no, she’s too sexy, and what if they end up falling in lurve?! Every character introduction and story development within these twenty minutes seemed designed for people whose brains can no longer feel shame, or have transcended the need for such a response. If you belong to either of those categories, you might enjoy this, but I’m not enlightened enough to avoid the embarrassment factor here.
Potential: 10%

The Eminence in Shadow

Short Synopsis: A delinquent with delusions of being a hero faces off against his ultimate four wheeled foe – his consolation prize is catgirls.

Amun: This first episode will be Eminence in Shadow’s best. Unfortunately, it wasn’t very good. There was a real chance for something unique here, but alas – cat girls won the day. I guess the premise is a bit different – I don’t remember any delusional delinquent isekai off the top of my head. I do think it’s pretty hilarious that no matter how great a martial artist he was, truck-chan wins in the end (should have been a ninja, I guess). Using a side character as the fake-main in episode 1 is starting to become standard practice, but Eminence just used it as fan-service. This seems like a furry power fantasy show from here on out – so if that’s your thing, then banzai, I guess? I’m personally out.
Potential: 1%

Lenlo: You know, I kind of had a little bit of hope for this show at first. I thought it was doing something clever! Rather than being a generic isekai show, it would instead being about a delusional incel who thinks he has been isekai’d, shown through the lens of his fellow classmates around him so we can see just how insane and maladjusted he is. All the while giving us the classic silly setups and action sequences expected from Light Novel Isekai garbage. But as the show progressed it fell more and more into that classic power fantasy trap. Until right at the end it just… dove headfirst into it. It was quite the disappointment to be honest. And it’s not like the show was very good before that either, it was so boring it reminded me to pay my taxes the day they were due (today). But now it’s lost anything to possibly make it unique, and thus, also my interest.
Potential: 5%

Legend of Mana: The Teardrop Crystal

Short Synopsis: A curly-haired hero decides to help an unfriendly traveler in locating his royal companion.

Wooper: My opinion on this premiere is of virtually no importance, since its parent game is not among the small handful of JRPGs I’ve played, but here it is anyway: The Teardrop Crystal takes a decent stab at creating a living fantasy world, but puts far less effort into writing an interesting cast. On the plus side, the art direction is mostly successful at masking the use of CG background elements, covering furniture with dotted lines to simulate wood grain and choosing convincing textures for greenery during exterior scenes. By contrast, there are moments when the show makes its 3D usage obvious, such as the trees that whip by during moments of high-intensity travel, or the map that springs to life after the main characters lay their hands on a mysterious jade artifact. These moments lean into the series’ fantastical roots in a natural way, so no problems there. My issue lies with the cast, especially the main character Shiloh – he’s the selfless, upstanding, helpful sort who passes his days waiting for something to occupy his attention, which is about as boring as fantasy writing gets. Just as you’re forced to accept a video game’s playable character as your POV because they’re the one you control, we’re forced to see The Teardrop Crystal’s world through his eyes because he’s the character who’s on screen the longest, and for no other reason. RPG fans aren’t likely to think twice about this kind of setup, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it, so I can’t really recommend the show on its own merits.
Potential: 20%

Lenlo: Wooper already gave a good technical look at the series, so I’m going to give a more emotional one. One where I talk about how I couldn’t look away from the lead’s poorly drawn, sticker-lick abs that didn’t fit at all. Or how ridiculous his design is at all. Or how much this first episode felt like a dull JRPG cutscene intro, complete with shoddy PS2 CG and slow, dare I say glacial, pacing. I ended up checking the timestamp every minute or so thinking “We’re almost done right?”, but it never was. I don’t care that this actually is a JRPG adaptation, that’s irrelevant. I just wanted it to be a good JRPG.
Potential: 0%

Bocchi the Rock!

Short Synopsis: A chronically shy high schooler is invited to join an amateur band as a substitute guitarist.

Wooper: This premiere exceeded my expectations by a sizable margin, mostly due to the array of tricks it used in forming its main character’s personality and worldview. Hitori is shy, awkward and friendless, which is a combination of traits possessed by dozens (if not hundreds) of other anime characters, but very few of those anime have taken such a multi-stylistic approach in depicting such a character. From its very first scene, where Bocchi the Rock drains the color from its childhood flashback to signal Hitori’s lack of zeal for life, the show experiments with different ways of illustrating its protagonist’s isolation: narrating her lonely middle school years in song, fencing her off from a happy family during a scene at a playground, using warped camera angles to put as much (or as little) distance as possible between her and her peers, responding to a humiliating moment by rolling the credits midway through the episode, and putting her in claustrophobic spaces like closets, trash cans, or (as in the eventual concert scene) a cardboard box. Hitori’s constant monologuing during the episode infuses these moments with humor, but the script pays respect to her anxiety as well, striking a nice balance of tones that had me rooting for her success. Some of the photographic backgrounds weren’t integrated as well as others, and a few strained line deliveries took me out of the zone while watching, but on the whole I found this episode to be varied, fun and even a bit therapeutic.
Potential: 70%

Mario: Bocchi the Rock is endearing. Granted, a shy, introverted lead is amongst my least favorite character types in anime, but I suppose it’s more due to the way anime tends to exaggerate these traits and offers nothing else in terms of their personality. Here in this episode, we really come to know Hitori and thus can get behind her shyness and her need for attention and acceptance from the peers. As a cherry on top, the show knows how to instill these insecurities while both making it light-hearted enough and never looks down on their characters. I love her self-written song about how she still has no friends despite her effort of learning guitar. I find it relatable the way she finds consolation in the online world instead of the real world. And I enjoy the way she gets dragged into live performing – half-exciting for the opportunity and half-scared if she messes it up. It helps that other band members play a great contrast to Hitori, and so far it helps that the music is pleasant enough. I cannot wait for more. Truly a pleasant “diamond in the rough” for me.
Potential: 55%

Do It Yourself!!

Short Synopsis: A klutzy girl decides to join the DIY club to make things with her own two hands.

Mario: For a CGDCT show, and as a CGDCT resident, I am happy to report that Do It Yourself is a solid offering of this season. The premise is simple and formulic, but it’s how they get there that raises it above the rest. The first strength here is how the episode successfully establishes our main character, Serufu, with just enough personality and charm. She’s a klutz (think of Yui from K-On), but it’s the small moments we witness from her – her struggling to commute from home, her worry towards the growing distance with her best friend – that makes her totally relatable. Second, the visuals are similarly charming with watercolor-like backgrounds, expressive character designs and a unique setting that mixes a present-day town with modern technology (on that note: it feels weird to me that her childhood friend’s main house gate is electronically guarded, but her room window can be easily accessed). Lastly, the topic at hand is DIY projects, which is a great way to showcase the unique spirit of each character as they make things they like with their own hands. It brings out such promising potential that I’ll surely visit Serufu and the gang again next week.
Potential: 50%

Lenlo: Do It Yourself is… It’s fine? The designs are cute I suppose, though not really my style, and it moves and looks good enough. Definitely one of the more expressive, and unique, shows of the season visually. But narratively it’s just your classic Cute Girls Doing Cute Things: Arts and Crafts edition. It’s a Slice of Life cutesy show where nothing is going to happen and you watch it purely for the chill vibes. Sort of like Yama no Susume this season and hiking. If that’s up your alley, then awesome. I think Do It Yourself is probably one of the better chill vibes kind of shows to air in a while. But for me? This 23 minute episode felt like it took an hour to get through. There’s nothing to really get my attention, nothing to hook me, make me sit down, and want to watch more.
Potential: 30%

Bibliophile Princess

Short Synopsis: A young Noblewoman who loves books and a Prince who wants to dodge royal politics get engaged. 4 years later, has this convenient “marriage” run its course? Or will they fall deeper in love?

Lenlo: This is about as Shoujo romance as Shoujo romance gets. And my god is it boring because of that. It’s just so clinical with its dialogue, and the visuals lack any sort of depth to their coloring. It’s all one big bright colored blob. Maybe if the leads had some sort of chemistry I could sit through it. But they have about as much personality as these stock-standard books. Like just look at the other “lords”, they all look exactly the same with slightly different hair colors and eye shapes! I just… This late into seasonal previews, I don’t have the energy to deep dive on just how dull this is.
Potential: 5%

Mario: It’s the damnedest thing when you watch an entire episode and still haven’t a clue what the main story is gonna be. We have an entire episode tracking closely from the POV of our main princess (an attribute I do appreciate), seeing her accepting an arranged marriage just to read books, and falling in love with the Prince, and falling in and eventually out of favors with other hot lords. And the point of all that is… what exactly? Will our Princess become an unlikely villain because of her bitterness? Is it a story of her becoming a victim from the coldness of others that has nothing to do with her? Either way should be fine if the show is more clear about where it wants to go. Visually-speaking, Bibliophile Princess has the traits of typical shoujo (with roses and all that), but the style does run in isolation with the (lack of) romance of the story. As a character, sadly we don’t see much of Elianna’s personality despite staying in her headspace all the time. Her most defining trait is that she loves reading books, but we frustratingly don’t get to know much about books. I have no doubt that we will get a fuller picture in the next episode, but I won’t be around to check out more from the show, all things considered.
Potential: 20%

Shinobi no Ittoki

Short Synopsis: A boy who wants to enjoy a normal life finds out that he’s the future head of a ninja family, which is being targeted by a rival clan.

Amun: If there was an award for how many overused tropes could be incorporated per 20 minutes of airing, Shinobi no Ittoki would take the cake. From the painfully obvious seduction to the big “reveal” of the ninja retainers, this was not well-written. I also really hate the ninja outfits and the weird sci-fi/motorcycle helmets – the fight scenes were mediocre at best. Unlike the delinquent in Eminence in Shadow, ninjas beat truck-chan! Who knew! The masked ninja bodyguard was the only slightly redeeming character, and that’s because she said like 3 lines. Nothing about this stood out in a good way, and I really am not that interested in seeing anything more.
Potential: 1%

Mario: TROYCA studio might be most well-known for their Idolish7 works… you know, a male idol show, but when it comes to Shinobi no Ittoki, the closest point of reference would certainly be their Re:CREATORS. They are both original shows that take a “fresh spin” to their respective tropes. For Shinobi no Ittoki, it’s an old-school feud between two clans in a modern setting. But maybe it was only me who expected the “fresh spin” part because the episode is painfully plain and average in its story and the characters. We can tell the events that happened in this episode ahead right after 5 minutes (that is not a great sight), and to top it off, the way the episode establishes Ittoki’s normal life doesn’t feel remotely believable in the first place. Ittoki isn’t that memorable as the main character himself, so far he’s a step behind everyone, the audiences included, in catching up with the story. I still see the show’s potential, as its main hook – their ninja clan has to fight against the other clan – still hasn’t been fully explored yet, but as far as the first episode goes, it is plain and soul-less.
Potential: 20%