Category: Some Quick First Impressions

Kaguya-sama: Love is War -Ultra Romantic-

Short Synopsis: Four nutcases and one airhead procrastinate in their student council duties by turning mundane situations into major crises.

Lenlo: You already know by now what this is. Or whether or not you like Kaguya-sama. The only real question here is if Season 3 maintains the same level of quality as the last two. And to that I can confidently say: Yes, it does. This first episode felt just like any other episode in the series. It was fun, with a number of clever gags and premises that got me chuckling as the layers to each got peeled away. I vastly prefer this kind of layered comedy to anime’s more general slapstick, so it’s nice to see it back. Supporting this, Shinichi Omata continues with his fantastically clever and inventive direction. He brings so much to the series, so many visual queues like the camel that simply didn’t exist in the manga. Augmenting it for our personal silver screens. My enjoyment of this series isn’t in question, I know for a fact I’m going to have fun here. The only question in my mind is whether or not this will top season 2, should they have improved their drama abilities, or if it will be about the same quality as before.
Potential: 80%

Wooper: That opening montage was a heck of a reintroduction to the world of Shuchiin Academy. Even if some of its explosive pink imagery was recycled from season 2’s finale, its appearance sent a clear message: we know you remember these characters, and we know you’ve been waiting for their return. They’re especially welcome sights after watching a barren winter give way to a bleak (thus far) spring season – Kaguya-sama’s reliability is something anime could use more of, so I’m happy it’s back. We’re already making new discoveries about the student council members, such as Iino’s weakness for sexually-tinged motivational mp3s and Kaguya’s archery-honed hand strength, and this premiere puts them to good comedic use. We even got a Hayasaka appearance in the season’s first outing (overseeing Kaguya’s tentative first steps into the world of smartphone literacy). What else could you want from this show? Other than an arm wrestling story that doesn’t conclude with a girl’s victory resulting in her humiliation, I mean. Kaguya ought to be a little cooler under peer pressure than she was a year ago – at least enough to brush off the teasing of the chumps she just beat. That nitpick aside, I enjoyed the whole episode (but I hope something else can outperform it before these first impressions are through).
Potential: 75%

The Dawn of the Witch

Short Synopsis: Three mages get to know one another while carrying out an escort mission for a royal academy.

Mario: Damnit, up until I finished this episode, I hadn’t realized that it is a spin-off of Grimoire of Zero, a show I did watch back in 2017 but have since forgotten about. I did enjoy the mismatched duo of Zero and the beastfallen Youhei in the original series, but the fantasy setting is unfortunately so generic that I didn’t make any connection between this show and Grimoire of Zero (and no, Albus’s name didn’t ring a bell). Structure-wise, this first episode is clean enough to establish the quest to come and some minor conflicts along the way. The team is rescuing their fellow classmate Kudd at the moment and I can see him joining the group real soon. The interactions between the cast is just about enough… but unfortunately the dialogue drags a bit for me here. I suppose the titular witch is the worst offender for this, as she tends to act like a 6-year-old kid and the show has a tendency to amp up her tantrums, and her old-school way of talking. The main dude doesn’t fare any better, as he has as much energy as a koala sleeping in a tree (Koalas spend 90% of their time sleeping by the way). As far as “adventure” goes I can see it appeals to the target audience – it has the fun of adventure, peppered with the cast of diverse characters and a hint of political / racial tension, but otherwise if you want something deeper or more adventurous (in terms of style and storytelling), you can look elsewhere.
Potential: 30%

Wooper: Another fantasy anime destined for the digital landfill, this time set in the Kingdom of Wenias (heh). Honestly, my brain was mostly glazed over during this episode, but I still picked up on the perverted storyboarding – I’m sure you can imagine what that means, so I won’t go into any more detail. I also remember that the headmaster of Wenias’ Academy of Magic (for there must always be a magic academy) was named Albus, but instead of a bearded man with twinkling eyes peering over half-moon spectacles, she was a boring blonde lady with big boobs – give me old and wise over hot and uninteresting any day. As for the main character, he was the wettest of blankets (your classic anime underachiever with nothing in the way of personality), so his traveling companions’ attempts to get him talking resulted in some pretty dull conversation. That’s the one thing I can give Dawn of the Witch credit for, though – it tries its hardest to establish both context and character through conversation, rather than putting a narrator in our ear and calling it a day. Whether it succeeds in its goal is up to the individual to decide; personally, I found it mind-numbing, but I’ve also seen at least a dozen versions of this setting and/or premise that were far worse.
Potential: 10%

Tiger & Bunny 2

Short Synopsis: An array of sellout superheroes gang up on criminals to look good for the camera.

Wooper: I should have known better than to look forward to the second season of a show whose first season I couldn’t finish. Tiger and Bunny are as uncoordinated and childish as ever, making the prospect of watching them in 2022 even less appealing than it was in 2011. They’re left in the dust by all of the other heroes when responding to a robbery during this episode’s protracted intro sequence, and they resort to the silent treatment after one of them takes the other’s energy drink from the break room fridge. Those “other heroes” are no better – amalgamations of stereotypes and stock character traits, one and all. The show doesn’t seem to have a point of view regarding its corporate sponsorship gimmick, which is one of the most frustrating things about it. Midway through the episode, Tiger and Bunny are forced to go golfing with one of their company’s richest benefactors, who’s thrilled to be in the presence of two manufactured superstars, and their response is one of mild inconvenience. Very few of the heroes (if any) are frustrated by the attachment of a points-based ranking system to their work, as though they have no real opinions about the superhero business. To top it all off, the post-ED scene that teases this season’s villainous duo sends them whizzing past camp and straight into the loony bin. If you’re a T&B fan, bon appétit – seriously, clean your plate so I don’t have to eat the leftovers.
Potential: Not my thing

Mario: I have fond memories of the original Tiger & Bunny. While it’s nowhere near my favorite series of that year (2011 was still one of the great years in anime), I found the very idea of superheroes incorporated with reality shows and business to be fun, and a good way to satirize the consumerism of today’s world. This first episode more than satisfies that idea, introducing a new “normal” as the superhero teams are now functioning as pairs, or “buddies” to use the show’s term. It’s great to see the old gang back with some fresh new faces, and so far they are a delight. I also feel that the way they set up a new status quo is well-done, because as the before and after-credits suggest, things will get far out of control later on. I might have preferred if they stayed in this light mode of characters’ nonsensical bickering and reality-show satire rather than the over-the-top, exploding action-drama later on, but all I can say for now is that I feel right at home watching these characters again.
Potential: 50% – or “Feels right at home”

Shachiku-san wa Youjo Yuurei ni Iyasaretai

Short Synopsis: Smol ghost girl brings overworked salarywoman tea and love.

Amun: Think Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid – and then reduce it to about 5% the content (swapping dragons for ghosts and other fantastic beasts). This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, except that this episode tells, then re-tells the same couple hours from multiple perspectives. Just not a whole lot happens (a few rice balls get stolen and wtf is up with Japanese corporate parties). Our main characters are standard enough – I like how anime programmers now use VS Code (and apparently the gender balance in Japan seems a lot healthier than the US according to anime). Cute ghost is cute – but how has no one noticed the literal apartment in the supply closet? Should you watch it? If you want something simple and sweet every week, then sure!
Potential: 50%

Mario: Shachiku-san is like that of a marshmallow. It’s sweet, it’s squishy… but even with just 20 minutes it feels awfully long as there isn’t a lot going on behind its premise. You could summarize the show in one sentence, and by the second half it repeats the same story again with just another perspective – an utter filler if you ask me. The plot is beyond “simple” to an extent that I think it would fare much better if it were a short. Out of all the shows I have watched so far for this season, unfortunately it’s Shachiku-san that tries its hardest to please everyone, but precisely because of that its sweetness just overwhelmed everything else and left a bitter taste instead. Oh “Pwease”.
Potential: 20%

Heroine Tarumono!: Kiraware Heroine to Naisho no Oshigoto

Short Synopsis: A country girl moves to Tokyo and gets to work on acquiring her ideal high school life (with a few snags).

Mario: Heroine Tarumono must try harder to win me over. There’s a sense of familiarity about its school settings and plot, and so far while it doesn’t put any wrong steps, it’s hardly memorable either. As far as I know the show shares the same universe with Kokuhaku Jikkou Iinkai movies, and many of the old cast did appear in this episode. The main focus, however, is about this new pumpkin country girl Hiyori who is a manager of her classmate / idol duo. So far I don’t really care for any character, and the plot can go implausible at times (the job hunting, her living alone in a big city. Really?) but the production is otherwise solid. I’m not that invested to the story to stick around longer, but I can see that it has a solid formula and if they play the cards well, this could become a sleeper hit of the season.
Potential: 30%

Wooper: This is the best start to a “girl becomes manager of a male idol group” show that I’ve ever seen, low bar though that may be. The main character has a concrete personality, there are more than two women with speaking parts, and the series has concerns outside of how awesome idols are. I was impressed by all sorts of things while watching this premiere: an around-the-horn style cast introduction, decent character animation, and even a scene where three newly-introduced girls make friends without batting an eye. Can you remember the last high school anime you saw where the prospect of chatting with a classmate wasn’t cause for anxiety? I’d practically forgotten how pleasant that could be until Heroine Tarumono reminded me. It’s not all good news for the series, though. Lead character Hiyori is so shrill that it’s tough to endure her voice when she enters her upper register; she has plenty of good qualities, but listenability isn’t one of them. The part-time job she stumbles into isn’t particularly promising, either, revolving around two teen heartthrobs who are also her classmates. Based on where this sort of anime typically goes, there’s all the reason in the world to fear that Tarumono’s uncommonly strong start will be for naught, but Hiyori’s well-meaning nature and strong work ethic have me hoping that her show will beat the odds.
Potential: 40%

The Demon Girl Next Door Season 2

Short Synopsis: Weak/broke but otherwise happy demon girl must defeat a traumatized but overpowered magical girl – or just be friends with her.

Amun: “Demon Girl Next Door” is a heartwarming take on “magic girl vs demon girl”, with surprising nuance wrapped up in a “poverty” comedy. Season two picks right back up, with the focus remaining on the latest magic girl to join (who I guess is really into citrus). “Demon Girl Next Door” is at its best when it explores Momo’s flaws and inner struggles – Yuuko’s screen time is mostly fine, but can get a little grating, as she’s cosmically behind the curve. The overall mystery (such as why her father is spirit sealed inside a cardboard box) looms over the comedy, and I’m interested to see if that’s fleshed out a bit more this season. To me, this is a season sleeper if it can rise above “haha, poor and weak = funny” – which I believe it can.
Potential: 80%

Lenlo: I mean… It’s Machikado. This is the exact kind of moe slapstick comedy I don’t like. There’s no layers, no complexity, to anything. If what you want is a wholesome, brainoff, feel good moe blob then I think Machikado will pay off for you in spades. But I don’t have enough time in my day to spend 30 minutes watching fluff. So this is a pass from me.
Potential: 10%

The Rising of the Shield Hero S2

Short Synopsis: Unexpected giant spirit tortoise terrorizes the world!

Amun: Shield Hero is best when it’s the edgy underdog that isn’t afraid to get a little scummy. For me, season one ended in a strange place – it felt like the world was expanded larger than it should have been. Season Two looks to narrow the scope with just one special event boss to fight…wait, a giant spirit tortoise? That’s seriously what it is?! The subplot of the newest party member probably will be a decent sized plot line…which I honestly don’t really care about (I don’t even really remember who that is). The most striking plot device so far is the rage shield – it’ll be interesting to keep an eye on. The visuals are still good, and I think the “mood” or “vibe” is still properly sour – I expect this to be pretty similar to season 1. Only thing is, after seeing this episode I just feel a bit down – maybe it can counteract some of the other sweeteners of the season.
Potential: 75%

Lenlo: I’m sorry, you can’t make me watch this, something something trashy slave fantasy bad.

Deaimon

Short Synopsis: A former runaway returns to his grandparents’ confectionery and discovers that they’ve already chosen a successor to run the store.

Mario: This was, for my money, the first truly solid first episode of the season. Deaimon has many admirable qualities: its art is pleasing to the eyes, its backgrounds are vivid and lived-in with a soft color palette (they remind me of Tsuki ga Kirei, which is a good thing) and the characters are thoughtful and well-developed. Well, it’s still guilty of many anime tropes (the red eyes, I never got those) and this first episode doesn’t really break any new ground story-wise, but it more than makes up for these shortcomings with grounded characters with intimate relationships. We already get to witness a deeper side of both Nagomu and Itsuka, both their personalities and their insecurities. Itsuka’s fear of rejection might not steal our tears away like 4-year-old Kotaro did (did Kotaro Lives Alone air this season, or last? It’s hard to categorize), but the bittersweet emotion at the end is well earned. I am certainly looking forward to more.
Potential: 60%

Wooper: Deaimon is sweet like the treats sold at the series’ confectionery, but it’s not particularly filling. It’s an informally adoptive father/daughter story (Japan seems to put out one of these every couple years) with an emphasis on mild comedy, even relying on a bit of costumed street music to resolve its first dilemma. The conflict between disapproving father and prodigal son is smoothed over with some comedic overreactions and a scene of the dad playing sergeant as his son does push-ups at five in the morning. That’s all fine – a light tone comes as a welcome change after oodles of anime that bear a grudge against decency – but I struggled to find anything to hold on to while watching. The ten year old girl helping to run the sweet shop has a past full of parental abandonment, but the premiere merely glances at it before averting its eyes. The chain of events that led the son to run away from home is beyond silly, making his return much less of an event than it ought to be. Deaimon is a pleasant enough watch, and the fuzzy filter used for the background art is easy on the eyes, but it’s not funny or warm enough to make up for its airiness.
Potential: 30%

Skeleton Knight in Another World

Short Synopsis: More “gamer wakes up in an MMO” bullshit, now with bonus rape.

Wooper: What’s the point of a “viewer discretion is advised” notice if it appears while the scene requiring discretion is already underway? Skeleton Knight in Another World (or “Skeleknight,” as I was planning to nickname it before I gave up twenty seconds into this episode) opens with just such a warning, only by the time your eyes shift to the top of the screen to read it, a girl’s skirt has already been torn in half by her would-be rapist. His accomplice has her friend pinned down a few meters away, breasts mostly exposed, camera perfectly positioned for maximum jiggle. As if things couldn’t get any sicker, the first guy gleefully announces that his soon-to-be victim has peed herself. This was the point where I closed my video player, feeling more disdainful than disgusted. There’s little doubt in my mind that the hero of the show stepped in to rescue both girls just seconds later, but that doesn’t change what a garbage pile this premiere was bound to be after that sort of beginning. If I’m going to watch an anime that contains sexual violence, it’s going to be Ninja Scroll or Berserk – something that uses the act to comment on the cruelty of its world or characters. If you open your seasonal isekai (strike one) with a rape scene (strike two) just so your hero can save the damsel in distress (strike three), you’re out.
Potential: None

Lenlo: You have no idea how tempted I was to, in the first 2 seconds of this show, immediately close it. However seeing that is exactly what Wooper did, I felt the need to stick it through. To really see what this show is about. My conclusion? It’s just crappy Overlord. Which is saying something, since Overlord already wasn’t very good. It’s like someone saw the arc where the lead dresses up as a knight to hide being a Lich, thought “That was cool”, and made an entire show about it. And that includes all of the shitty MMO skills/stats/gear crap that has come to permeate the Isekai genre. The sad thing with Skeleknight though is that, at least going by the OP, it could have been something! It could have embraced all the stupidity of its concept and gone full-camp and been fine! It wouldn’t have been a good show. But it would have at least been mindless fun. You can see it in a few places that actually got a chuckle out of me, like the randomly assigned backstory. But it’s like a single glittering copper piece in the dung pile that is the rest of this show. And that’s just sad.
Potential: 0 Copper Pieces

Amun: As the resident isekai enjoyer, I must thank Mr. Wooper for sacrificing his eyeballs to warn us of this opening. I only wish someone had warned me with Goblin Slayer…

BIRDIE WING: Golf Girls’ Story

Short Synopsis: Blondie with a tragic upbringing plays underground golf to survive.

Mario: Most of its runtime Birdie Wing is ridiculous and inconsistent, but that’s precisely the reason why it has its own charms that other sports anime seem to lack. It frames its main character not as a traditional sportsperson, but as an underdog superhero at times (what’s with all the special moves and money-shot still images?). The plot carries the same bizarre sense of logic – you have a girl who poses as another pro golfer and gets away with it, inconsistencies across the board (look at the tree that gets chopped down within just a few frames), and uneven production that looks bad half of the time and looks great only in key moments… but guess what? I’m buying it all. At least, all the characters are fun to watch and I cannot wait to see what ridiculousness they can cook up next. Count me in on this ride.
Potential: 50%

Lenlo: The sad truth of Birdie Wing is that… it just doesn’t look good. It’s ambitious at times, I’ll give it that. Going for these full-green camera shots, following the ball as it bursts through trees and over the rough. But the CGI is painfully bad and the composite is about the same. I understand why Birdie Wing did it. They had to try anything they could to make golf of all things interesting to watch. So they made it about hot girls, added in some Jojo-esque super-powered swings and tried to have some crazy action shots. It’s kinda fun and wacky, going for that same energy Sk8 had last year. But unlike Sk8 or Jojo, Birdie Wing fails to nail that thin line where camp is good for me. At the end of the day this is still an uninteresting golf show and I have little desire to watch more of it. Which is a shame, because I was hopeful that this might be a surprise of an otherwise sequel laden season. Least the blondie is kinda cute.
Potential: 20%

The Greatest Demon Lord Is Reborn as a Typical Nobody

Short Synopsis: If you don’t have friends, just reincarnate! [This is actually a really, really terrible message if you think about it]

Lenlo: Dear Lord who art in Heaven, please free me from the garbage Fantasy Light Novel trend. Surprisingly enough, despite its similarity to I’m Quitting Heroing in premise, this isn’t the worst series I’ve seen today. Turning a big demon lord into a chuuni got a chuckle or two out of me. I don’t think that’s enough to carry the show, I was still checked out for most of it. But it’s more promising than the other crap I’ve watched today so for that it gets a slightly higher score. Watch this if you want the not-worst fantasy light novel of the season to fill some time.
Potential: 5%

Amun: I’m pretty sure you could graph Lenlo’s scores vs mine and find a perfect inverse correlation. While he thinks Greatest Demon Lord is better than I’m Quitting Heroing, I think it’s quite a bit worse. This is an annoying evolution of isekai – the reincarnated OP demon lord trying to find friends. However, I think this is likely better than last season’s Shikkakumon, which was a monotonous march to the finish. There’s some potential for an interesting backstory with the reincarnated pair with betrayal, elf-racism, etc. – but I really didn’t engage with either character’s sob story. This is Silver Link, so expect some of the awkward fight scenes they’re known for – I’m not expecting this series to look amazing. The bottom line? “Watch this if you want the not-worst fantasy light novel of the season to fill some time.” (See – Lenlo and I did agree on something.)
Potential: 35%

RPG Fudousan

Short Synopsis: A pink-haired mage finds employment as a real estate agent and gets to know her coworkers (and shows superior knowledge of flowers to close a deal).

Wooper: This is Tomoaki Koshida’s fourth attempt at directing a series that anybody cares about, and from the looks of this premiere, it’s destined to be his fourth failure. This episode commits a big faux pas not even a minute into its run, when it directs two characters to excessively praise the female lead for something she’s not very good at (in this case, her unremarkable singing). Whenever you read a script or watch a series that flatters its own protagonist this way, you can be reasonably sure the rest of the story will take the easy route as well. Sure enough, RPG Fudousan does this at every available moment. In place of a plot, it tosses off a few lines about its fantasy land experiencing a post-war golden age, then busies itself with vapid exchanges and gags among its cast. The characters are designed with a single-minded focus on cuteness, to the point that they don’t seem capable of anything other than basic biological functions and cloying pleasantries. There’s a girl named Fa who exists strictly as pedo bait, shedding her clothes at various points and speaking with a childish lisp that’s sure to drive its intended audience wild. That’s the only value RPG Fudousan has, really – as a honeypot to attract lolicons so they don’t congregate around better shows.
Potential: 0%

Amun: Mmmm, this was a bit of a letdown. If you came in expecting cute girls to work in a cute workplace, doing cute things – this was spot on. I was hoping to see a slice of life dealing with a forced change of professions based on post-war circumstances in a fantasy land. What I got was a nudist loli dragon, an exhibitionist/type-A/genderbender warrior, a blonde perfect girl, and our generic lead – who, and this is weird that it bothers me this much, has shoes that do NOT match the rest of her outfit. Seriously, those little heel boot things completely clash with the rest of the quasi-Victorian witch outfit going on. Her professional attire matches them a little better, but still – get her a different pair of shoes! Like some flats with a cat design buckle would have been perfectly on character there – even given her some extra depth. Maybe it was to drive home the point of a country girl trying to not look it – it still annoys me. Sorry, we got off track there. There are probably better slice of life series this season – go watch those.
Potential: 15%

Black★★Rock Shooter: DAWN FALL

Short Synopsis: Sleepy robot (?) girl saves some kids from bad robots.

Amun: I think I’ve seen the original ONA, and I definitely watched the 8 episodes that came out about a decade ago. Obviously there’s the original song and music video that catapulted the titular character to fame. However…I have no idea how any of that is related to Dawn Fall, except that the character design looks very similar. If my foggy memory serves, last time Black Rock Shooter was in a high school and switching between the post-apocalyptic world; this time around seems pretty set in the dystopian future of man vs machine (maybe she was fighting the same big boss at the end?). There are some pretty common robots-becoming-human themes here – although Mr. Sexbot 3000 was a bit of a surprise in his, erm, approach to deeply understanding humanity. There’s a bit of self-aware humor here (which, given some of the translation issues, might be more of a fansub editorial than the actual script), but the dialogue is pretty sparse. Given the oddities with the release licensing (Disney+ strikes again), I think the best hope is a legitimate fansub group picks this up. The big takeaway is that Dawn Fall looks great – in fact, I think they could have slowed down a few of their shots in the fighting sequence, there was just so much action packed in. Sure it’s CG, but that was always BRS’s MO, so no surprises there. My guess? It’ll be easy on the eyes and light on the plot. Sounds good to me!
Potential: 60%

Mario: I came to Black Rock Shooter without any real expectation and I got out of it mildly impressed. I have no prior knowledge to Black Rock Shooter franchise, but I have no problem following the story as 1) it is a reboot and 2) Dawn Fall is very light on plot and big on explosions. Yes, the story is such a mess (when you see a battle right off the bat without knowing whom to root for, it’s a bad sign), the characters are just cardboard figures at the moment (the main character has – yeah, you guessed it – amnesia), its visuals look consistently confident at all times. The CG fights blend together well, so does the choreography of the fights. At the moment, Dawn Fall is one of the titles that flew under the radar the most – it is only streaming in Japan and hardly gets a proper sub, and its appeal is mainly for those who have experienced the franchise before – but I am here to claim that it looks more polished than half of the current season’s offerings, if you can shut down your brain because the plot doesn’t really matter.
Potential: 40%

I’m Quitting Heroing

Short Synopsis: Single-handedly defeating a demon army does not provide the expected job security for a hero.

Lenlo: I really wonder if me and Amun watched the same show because seriously if it walks like isekai trash, quacks like isekai trash and has all the visual blandness of isekai trash then lets just call it isekai trash. Yeah there’s no opening scene where some schmuck gets hit by a truck and gets teleported, yet aside from that everything about this series has the structure of one. From the oft-repeated shallow fantasy crap to what I consider to be bland and standard visuals. This show is just painfully boring. It took me an hour to get through a 24 minute episode because none of it had any charm. Visually and narrative this comes off like a series made by a bunch of old men in committee, not by someone with any actual passion. So yeah, count me out. I’d rather watch Shield Hero than this. At least that revels in its trashiness.
Potential: 0%

Amun: This is one of my most anticipated non-sequel shows of the season (the other being Spy x Family). From the first episode, I’d say….they probably spent all their budget on the premiere. You can tell from the little animation tricks, especially when fighting the full formed demon. Which, if this turns out to be even decently animated, I think it’s still fully serviceable – I’m just a little concerned to see some shortcuts this early on. The character adaptations from the manga feel okay, although I feel as though Leo came off a little wooden (I imagined him a bit more cocky, but he feels pretty bland for someone who is that OP). That said, I love this premise – and I think even this MC has some potential. Normally, we’re seeing MC’s with “soft-skills” who are wildly weak or reincarnated, overpowered heroes who were supposedly awkward in their past life but still end up with the harem – Leo lacks people skills to such an extreme that he managed to go from the savior of the country to the villain. Now that’s talent. However, it’s hard to strike the balance between a character the viewers want to cheer for and someone completely insufferable. All in all? I’m still here for a few more episodes (probably the whole season, to be honest), but I’m trimming my expectations slightly.
Potential: 70%

Tomodachi Game

Short Synopsis: Five students are dragged into a series of psychological games in order to repay one person’s debt.

Lenlo: The best way I can describe Tomodachi Game is knock-off Squid Game. It’s not that Tomodachi Game is a bad premise, nor that the game played is dull. Rather it’s that Tomodachi Game falls into the same trap that every other series trying to mimic Kaiji does: It cares more about the games than it does the players. Despite the fact that it’s the players, the characters and their circumstances and why they are playing to begin with, that makes these series work. Squid Game works because we care about Seong Gi-hun, Abdul Ali, etc. Kaiji works because of how much time we spend with him and how we come to know him. But Tomodachi Game dives right into a 5-person game, only giving us a single second of flashing character cards and a few small scenes for each. I don’t know, or care, about any of these people yet. I don’t buy their friendship or their bond. In fact, because of the way this show is framed, I have doubted its authenticity from the beginning. Suffice to say that this was a miss for me, despite some colorful directing.
Potential: 20%

Wooper: I was sure that this was going to be terrible, but Tomodachi Game’s playful storyboarding managed to rescue this episode – during the gambling scenes, anyway. The consistent use of diagrams explained the rules and illustrated the stakes for each character, and a few colorful backgrounds gave the games an exaggerated feeling that I kind of liked. There’s a clear mandate here to emphasize the psychological aspect at the expense of everything else – probably the right call given the show’s limited resources, but it does handicap the characters in a major way. The series is in such a rush to get to the debt repayment games that it introduces the cast with on-screen paragraphs, and the way it pits Money and Friendship against each other in the protagonist’s flashbacks is some of the most blatant theming that any anime has served up in recent years. All five kids are such nonentities that there’s no reason to care whether they get through the games or drown in debt; the brown-haired girl in particular is a nauseatingly transparent representation of innocence. Tomodachi Game might be worth somebody’s time if future episodes get much crazier, but it’s so thinly written that I’m done after one.
Potential: 25%

Vanitas no Carte S2

Short Synopsis: A bunch of vampires, vampire hunters, a vampire doctor, and some spooky clowns go to fight an ancient monster, only to get time warped and fight each other.

Armitage: It’s kind of strange to see vampire anime making such a return to the mainstream all of a sudden. I have been known to bemoan the lack of representation for bloodsucking white people in this medium but lately I have been feeling spoiled for choice. Sure, most of them are still your standard fare and barely better than mediocre. Your Vlad Love and your Kyuuketsuki (Mars Red is good tho, fight me) and it’s easy to see Vanitas no Karte belonging to the same crop. But it really does do enough to stand well and above the rest of its clan. Its light-hearted colorful exterior is an affront for a philosophical, dark core and it isn’t afraid to tear its own chest apart to give us a glimpse of its beating heart. It’s good stuff, to put it shortly. And while this season 2 premiere doesn’t necessarily kick things off in blistering fashion, it has earned enough goodwill from me in its previous season to be fully onboard with what comes next. I see this following in the footsteps of Golden Kamuy and building up on a first cour that laid the groundwork to turn into something truly special as it goes along.

Potential: 80%

Amun: Well that was pretty weird. No secret that Vanitas’ first half didn’t have the strongest ending – but the second half has certainly started off strangely. Our merry band of frenemies (and legitimate enemies) goes out to find this “Beast”, only to get time warped. Alright then. I’m getting tremendous Re:Zero S2 vibes from the timeskip, the snow, and the mysterious new goth girl. Which isn’t really a bad thing, but a bit unexpected from our buddy French vampire show. The fights and animation still look great, so I’m along for the ride – but I’m concerned that the story is starting to wander.

Potential: 75%

Futsal Boys!!!!!

Short Synopsis: Two high school boys put some mean ol’ bullies in their place with mad futsal skills.

Mario: I admit that I had reasonably high hopes for this original sports show, and as a result I was let down by the first episode. But while the premiere isn’t a standout by any means, It’s still a functional one. In the span of 20 minutes it establishes the basics of futsal, introduces the team and the personalities of our main characters. The only issue with that is that by doing so it forcefully creates a mock-match and pushes the drama in all directions. The production is subpar for a sports show, unfortunately, hence we get a fair share of still screens even in this first episode. I’m still intrigued to see how the team will shape up so I will be checking in for the next few episodes, but as with any sports show my concern is whether or not they could end this conclusively in a cour.

Potential: 30%

Fantasy Bishoujo Juniku Ojisan to

Short Synopsis: Two guys are whisked away from their mundane lives to live in a fantasy world, but one of them loses an important package in the process.

Wooper: Congratulations to the makers of this show for waiting until the 20 minute mark to display a midair menu detailing the main characters’ stats. I know it’s hard not to replicate every trope of reincarnation anime immediately upon summoning your protagonists to their new world, so the fact that Fantasy Bishoujo was able to delay such a well-loved staple for so long is proof of its rookie director’s patience. I hope to cultivate the same sort of patience within myself as I wait for this isekai romcom, which has already hooked me after a single episode, to air each week. It will take a determined heart and a diligent mind not to read ahead in the manga and find out whether these thirty-something men, one of whom was cursed with the body of a teenage girl, will confess their feelings for each other. But damn it, if a first time director can master her impulses and put the focus on her characters before feeding us those oh-so-sweet video game menu screens, I can surely restrain myself for seven days at a time. Those week-long waits will make each new episode that much better, I just know it!

Potential: 0%

Sabikui Bisco

Short Synopsis: A bow-wielding terrorist crosses a lifeless desert in order to meet a doctor specializing in illegal mushrooms.

Wooper: Sabikui Bisco may be the most ambitious anime of the winter season. It’s set in a future where rust is spreading across both planet Earth and the bodies of its inhabitants; its far-out costume design has half the characters dressed in masks and/or cloaks; and its fixation on mushrooms dips into the realms of both medicine and combat. More than its setting or visual themes, though, the main thing I noted about this premiere was its habit of jumping between locations and conversations. From a man trying to hide his identity from a pair of border guards to a black market mushroom dealer haggling with a food stall owner to a teenage doctor operating out of a brothel, Sabikui Bisco did a more than decent job of keeping things connected despite its plethora of characters and ideas. It ended on a strong note as well, with two people who we’d seen on opposite ends of a desert finally meeting in the episode’s last scene. I’m less enthused about the show’s production, unfortunately, as the eye-catching scenery isn’t sufficient to distract from the stiff character animation or the shortcuts taken when depicting Bisco’s mushroom barrages (rather than sprouting, the toadstools simply appear in frame with a cluster of airborne rubble hiding their point of origin). I’ll be sticking with this show for a while, but it’s got a lot more to prove if it wants to be truly memorable.

Potential: 60%

Armitage: I love this world. I mean, not our own, obviously, but the world that Sabikui Bisco paints across the densely packed 24 minutes of its runtime. Desert dunes and retro-futuristic cities. Traders of skin and automaton lizards for car rides. It’s all just dripping with cool while never feeling overly moreish. It almost feels like Xam’d lost Memories went on a cyberpunk bender and was found on the side of the road the night after. The character writing here isn’t going to win any awards and like Woop mentioned the actual character animation is not all that great. But these are all issues I am willing to overlook if we can get a deep dive into the underbelly of a world that for now appears to be a living breathing thing of its own. Hopefully, this will FINALLY be an LN adaptation that doesn’t crash and burn after a promising start.

Potential: 70%

Koroshi Ai

Short Synopsis: An assassin cons a bounty hunter into going on a date with him by doing her job for her.

Lenlo: I’ll be honest, there’s nothing in Koroshi Ai I haven’t seen done better elsewhere. Visually it’s pretty weak, but in a season as bad as this it’s still probably in the upper half. The storyboards are uninspired and everything looks like it’s lit from a singular source from directly above at all times. It’s just not that good looking. Meanwhile narratively the premise of competing assassins/spies/whatever falling for each other is fine but I can’t help but think of works that have done it far better. Stuff like the currently releasing (and soon to get an anime) Spy x Family. Koroshi Ai is trying for something darker than that, true. But I don’t think it has the chops to pull it off if this episode is anything to go by. It couldn’t sell me on the assassins, it couldn’t sell me on the romance, and it couldn’t sell me on it being a visually interesting watch. And if you can’t sell me on any of those… Why bother watching?

Potential: 0%

Mario: In a rather weak season – the weakest in recent memory actually – Koroshi Ai remains one of the most promising shows, but I still have heaps of issues with it. I feel like I’m in the minority who buys into this “creepy” advance of Ryong-ha Son, an assassin who has the hots for our lead girl. He’s unpredictable for one thing, and he can be over-the-top and still fit into the premise. But my interest in the chemistry between them doesn’t hide the fact that the show looks pretty bad at times. Furthermore, for the pulpy mystery elements I’m feeling a bit mixed. The show doesn’t tone down the violence on any of its killing scenes, but why is that exactly? Wouldn’t it need to go much darker later on? Despite some issues, I’m in for a few more episodes to see where the lead relationship goes from here.

Potential: 40%

Kenja no Deshi wo Nanoru Kenja

Short Synopsis: In a riveting turn of events, an MMO player decides to change his character’s appearance from male to female.

Wooper: Full disclosure: I bailed on Kenja no Deshi’s premiere halfway through the episode. Once you get a look at its first two images you’ll understand why – this is an anime for people so addicted to MMOs that they feel uncomfortable watching any other sort of story unfold. It opens with a bunch of narration explaining the lore of the game, and follows that up with scenes of characters praising it as though they were part of an in-game advertisement. The OP sounds like the sort of karaoke song that would only be selected if somebody got really drunk and picked it by mistake. The mid-episode battle scene is so poorly laid out and relies on such unattractive CG that it’s a wonder nobody pulled the plug on the entire show after seeing it. (Then again, the people who greenlit this show probably don’t care.) Usually I can get some satisfaction out of dunking on these greasy light novel adaptations, but this one was so hideously unimaginative that I couldn’t make it through. Do not watch this anime.

Potential: 0%

Lenlo: You know, I thought Wooper was exaggerating. I thought that I could come in here, make an MMO joke, something about “Just go play FF14” since that’s been my addiction lately. But when I watched the episode it was… it was one of the most aggressively mediocre things I have ever seen. Even people who like the Isekai MMO genre will find nothing here. Everything Wooper said above is true and more. Just go watch Leadale. Or Log Horizon. Or hell SAO, at least that one looks pretty decent most of the time. Just don’t watch this.

Potential: Why does this exist %

Tribe Nine

Short Synopsis: A brash fisherman and a quiet bullying victim join an Extreme Baseball team in Neo Tokyo.

Wooper: Tribe Nine was one of the most common responses in our Winter 2022 poll, which had me curious coming into its first episode. I was expecting a dumb sports anime and nothing more, but maybe I’d overlooked something that would make it stand out from the pack. In short, I was hopeful… but I shouldn’t have been. Tribe Nine is even more frivolous than its promo material had led me to believe, with characters so thin they’d disappear if they turned too far to the left or right. There are two audience surrogates, one with plenty of self-confidence and one with none, and at least a third of the dialogue revolves around those traits. Another third is dedicated to Extreme Baseball, the government-ordained method for rival gangs to settle disputes in this dystopian version of Tokyo. (Too bad the show puts almost no effort into making that future believable or even appealing.) I’d tell you what the last third was about, but it got drowned out by the show’s nonstop electro-rock and EDM soundtrack, which blared through my speakers in nearly every scene. Annoying music and anime go hand in hand, but when it’s overused to the point that you’re startled by its absence, I start to wonder why I’m listening to (or watching) that particular show at all. Tribe Nine’s engine-powered bats, digital catcher’s mitts and violent defensive play make it worth a look for ironic anime fans, but personally, I found this episode to be a swing and a miss.

Potential: 15%

Amun: Hey, I liked the soundtrack – I thought it went well with the neon theme and high octane action. Premises and backstory are for the first 30 seconds, let’s not sweat the details of how high-tech gang battle beanball became the legal recourse for general disputes (and apparently is exempt from property damage or liability…how does insurance even work in this world?). It’s probably the character designs, but I’d describe this show as a Tron meets Danganronpa, just less kill-ey and without an overarching premise. Oh yeah, and mech baseball – which honestly, wasn’t as dumb as it sounds. Yes, the cast can barely be called characters, but they’re colorful (visually that is). I’ve seen worse. Tribe Nine requires you to brain-off and just vibe to some Neo Tokyo ball games – I’m down for a few more episodes.

Potential: 40%

Sasaki to Miyano

Short Synopsis: A high school delinquent falls in love with the underclassman who loans him BL manga.

Mario: While I am certainly open to discovering more shounen-ai anime, I don’t think I’ll go along for the ride with Sasaki to Miyano. The two leads are likable enough, but the non-linear style distracts from the flow and lessens their chemistry instead of highlighting it for me. All these segments could have been arranged chronologically so we could see their relationship develop, whereas the out of order version we got prevents us from getting a grasp on where their relationship lies. In terms of how the show handles their chemistry I am half and half so far. On the one hand, I appreciate its different approach in how it gives space for the characters to breathe. On the other side of the spectrum, it still relies on tropes (like the beginning scene or when Sasaki forcefully grabs poor Miyano). It’s sweet and pleasant so far, but it risks becoming repetitive as it goes.

Potential: 30%

Wooper: Having read the first few chapters of Sasaki to Miyano prior to this premiere, I can say that the anime does almost nothing to set itself apart from the manga. The lack of 3DCG background characters was a nice surprise, as were little things like textured storm clouds and sunny train interiors, which allowed me to appreciate the visuals rather than be embarrassed by them. The score was similarly pleasant – piano, strings, flute and a bit of bass – but better yet was the show’s lack of dependence on music to push itself forward. The dialogue managed to do that without much assistance, which is something to strive for when directing a slower-paced story. Sasaki to Miyano isn’t aiming to tell a highly involved tale, though, and it’s not difficult to picture its potential death by repetition. Sasaki has a crush on Miyano, but doesn’t yet identify as gay, so he’s constantly checking himself for appreciating the other boy’s hair or hands or body line. “W-wait a minute… Miyano is a dude! That’s so weird!” is a thought that will probably flash through his mind upwards of thirty times before the show concludes its run, which doesn’t sound like my idea of a good time. But forget about me – I’m sure there are people who love watching anime characters discover their sexuality after a lengthy denial phase, and this is a decent version of that premise.

Potential: 30%

Tensai Ouji no Akaji Kokka Saisei Jutsu

Short Synopsis: A genius prince’s guide to raising a nation out of debt (hey, that’s the title of the show!).

Amun: Bah. This was worse than I thought. For me, Tensai Ouji is an imitation of the other Genius Prince Isekai, which is an imitation of Amagi Brilliant Park, which really wasn’t that great of a show to begin with (although I do love it). The settings are pretty static – I feel we’re going to be spending significant time in the prince’s office (although, they splurged for the first episode and went out to the battlefield). The problem is that although a story exists somewhere in this episode, it was told in possibly the least interesting way possible. The rapport between the prince and his assistant was the only good thing I saw, and even that’s probably a fluke. It doesn’t look good, the story’s not interesting, the character designs are boring…I probably won’t be on this train for long.

Potential: 5%

Mario: I have one word for this show, and it’s “lazy”. And I don’t mean the laziness of the MC-kun who happens to be way overpowered, it’s the writing that doesn’t seek to deliver anything special. The only joke this show tells in 25 minutes is that despite the fact that he hates his position and wants to sell off his nation as soon as he can, his “tactics” backfire and he ends up doing good for the nation instead. Does it pay off? No, it’s not even funny to begin with. Is he interesting to root for? No, he’s whiny and has a bunch of girls who literally do his dirty work for him. Am I bored? You bet I am.

Potential: 0%