Spring Season 2018 Preview

Some seasons feel like they have ended before they have truly begun but that last season really couldn’t have ended any sooner. It’s funny as the word bad doesn’t quite describe it as the anime last season was basically fine quality wise. But everything was of such mild averageness that it sucked the enthusiasm out of all the writers on this site, including myself. There wasn’t a single anime that I would consider great and far too much easygoing fluff shows that didn’t leave much of an impression.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel my friends as this new season just may make up for the old one’s failings. We got a lot of sequels admittedly, but they are sequels to interesting shows at least, some of which needed a sequel very much. Not to mention we got high potential shows which are not sequels. Last season it was hard to find anything worth watching but this season we may have too much we want to watch. Both are not exactly ideal but I much prefer the latter to former.

So same deal as last time. I check out all the source and staff and see what we might be in for. Poll down below to vote which shows you wish to have covered. Thanks to Mario for gathering images, helping out with the format and chipping in on a few shows. Also forgive me for the lateness of the preview but things have been very busy lately for me.

 

The sequels/Shorts I don’t care about

Akkun to Kanojo (short)

Amai Choubatsu: Watashi wa Kanshu Senyou Pet (short)

Amanchu! Advance

Beyblade Burst Chouzetsu

Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei-bu HAPPY KISS

Fumikiri Jikan (short)

Hoozuki no Reitetsu 2: Part II

Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin

Koneko no Chii: Ponponra Daibouken 2

Ladyspo (short)

Lupin III: Part V

Lostorage Conflated WIXOSS

Omae wa Mada Gunma wo Shiranai (short)

Oshiri Tantei (short)

Shokugeki no Souma: San no Sara – Tootsuki Ressha-hen

Tachibanakan Triangle (short)

To Be Hero 2

Uchuu Senkan Tiramisù (short)

Souten no Ken: REGENESIS (prequel)

Wakaokami wa Shougakusei! (short)

 

Series I don’t care about

 

3D Kanojo

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Studio: Hoods Entertainment

Director: Takashi Naoya

Script/Series composer: Deko Akao

Source: Manga

Hikari Tsutsui is a high school boy who is satisfied with the virtual girls he encounters in anime and games. He does not have many friends and he lives in his own world. One day, when he is stuck on pool cleaning duty, he is approached by Iroha, a “real girl” who is showy and popular with boys.

The good thing about this show is that the manga is complete so this could very well be a full adaption. The bad news is this is overdramatized shoujo nonsense where people get bent out of shape over the slightest of trivialities. There are likely those who might find it engaging but as for myself I just look at this over idealised version of love and shake my head. I can’t really see the relationship in this one as anything natural and more comes across as teenagers getting all over excited about pure infatuation. This is the director’s second show with his first being Touken Ranbu: Hanamaru. Series composer fares better with her most recent work being “After the Rain” in the current season. She also did Snow White with the Red Hair and Flying Witch so this looks to be in good hands on that front. If you happen to like Shoujo manga or anime this this might be for you but most certainly not for me. I hate shoujo with a passion.

 

Aikatsu Friends!

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Studio: Bandai Namco Pictures

Director: Shishou Igarashi

Script/Series composer: Yuuko Kakihara

Source: Original

The new anime will have a theme of “Aikatsu with your friends!” and will center on a new protagonist named Aine Yuuki, who is good at making friends, and is enrolled in Star Harmony Academy’s general education track. She befriends Mio Minato, the school’s top idol, and becomes an idol herself.

Aikatsu Friends is a 38 episode show about idols in a high school and boy do I sure have no interest whatsoever. This is a spinoff of Aikatsu which is a show that had 178 episodes…oh my god. Look, I just don’t see this franchise having a story that requires 178 episodes to tell. I sure do look forward to the day the idol craze dies and hope it isn’t replaced by something more annoying. Director and Series composer did nothing of note. Sorry about not putting a lot of effort into this one but let’s be blunt, if you aren’t already into this series I am fairly certain this show isn’t going to suddenly convert you.

Alice or Alice (short)

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Studio: EMT Squared

Director: Kousuke Kobayashi

Script/Series composer: N/A

Source: Manga

This story gives a look at the daily life of a pair or Alice twins and their older brother who has a sister complex. Them eating meals, getting into fights, playing with friends… Would you like to peek at the heartful daily life of the cute Alices?

A 4 Koma manga so that means we got quickfire gags and not much substance. I have no real sense of humor when it comes to anime comedy most of the time but even with that I can tell this manga is just terribly unfunny. And comedy is all that it’s got cause the story isn’t there and the characters are archetypal. It’s bad, just pass on it. Trust me on this.

 

Butlers ~Chitose Momotose Monogatari~

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Studio: Silver Link.

Director: Masaru Takahashi

Script/Series composer: Megumi Shimizu

Source: Original

Koma Jinguji (Jay) is the smart and handsome student council president. His elegant smile captures the hearts of women. Tsubasa Hayakawa is a multi-talented and gentle shop assistant at a café. His cafe latte with owl latte art is very popular with female customers. The two men travel through time to fight their archenemy. The charming “Butlers,” as they are called, fight supernatural battles and also experience a slapstick comedic life at their academy.

The word of the day is fujoshi bait. Alright it’s an original property so I don’t have any sources to look at and judging it like this may be unjustified, but just look at it. The promotional material and PV are showing off these boys as much as they can. You got your typical boy band line up and some poor excuse for a supernatural battle story to pretend it’s otherwise. This ain’t Shakespeare and you know it. It’s the first work of booth the director and series composer. If I am wrong then I will gladly admit so but I am more than willing to bet that I am not.

 

Caligula

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Studio: Satelight

Director: Jun’ichi Wada

Script/Series composer: Touko Machida

Source: Video Game

The Caligula Effect is set in a virtual reality program known as “Mobius”, created so people can escape pain in their lives and live in an idyllic high school setting, forced to live out their 3 years Indefinitely. The main protagonist is one of a group who realize that they are in a virtual world, and form the “Go-Home Club”, a group dedicated to escaping from Mobius and its god-like overseer program, a vocal program called “μ”. They oppose the “Ostinato Musicians”, a group who supports μ and sees the Go-Home Club as traitors.

With any video game adaption it’s best to go in with low expectations, and those expectations should be lower when the game it’s adapting has an average review score of 5/10’s. I haven’t played it but from my estimate it looks like a poor man’s Persona which is rather unfortunate seeing as Persona also has an anime this season. I expect this to get overshadowed very fast and forgotten even faster but it is a wonder why they are attempting to gather promotion for a game that just isn’t particularly good. Wouldn’t that be better reserved for something like Radiant Historia, Atlus? On that topic, can we have ports of your games to other systems? You know there is a platform called PC that exists with a whole host of fans who would be more than willing to throw money at anything you got. Anyway we got the director of SukaSuka and Disappearance of Nagato Yuki. And the series composer behind Centaur no Nayami and Chain Chronicle. Oh and she’s doing Happy Sugar Life in the future, that’s rather interesting. Anyway when it comes to this show you likely are better off watching Persona 5’s anime instead.

 

Captain Tsubasa (2018)

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Studio: David Production

Director: Toshiyuki Kato

Script/Series composer: Atsuhiro Tomioka

Source: Manga

Remake of the first series.

Tsubasa Oozora is an 11-year-old elementary school student who is deeply in love with football and dreams of one day winning the FIFA World Cup for Japan. He lives together with his mother in Japan, while his father is a seafaring captain who travels around the world. Tsubasa Ozora moves to the town Nankatsu to increase his skills as a soccer player. He is challenged by the Super Goalkeeper Genzo Wakabayashi. He then agrees to compete and see who was the best soccer player there.

It’s David Production back with another series that isn’t Jojo part 5. Yes…why isn’t this Jojo part 5? Where is Jojo part 5 David? Where is it?! Alright jokes aside it just looks like a pretty typical sports series to me. This isn’t the first sports anime out there, not even the first to tackle football. Only difference is that this one is a lot more hot blooded and full of older tropes. Including highly enthusiastic exposition like “Holy jesus mother of christ Tsubasa just kicked a ball off a hill. By god!” Perhaps it’s just my general disinterest in football talking but this isn’t really grabbing me. There is some novelty but not enough to carry a full series. We have the director of Level E and the series composer has done a whole bunch of stuff of varying degrees of quality that it’s hard to gauge him. But one of his most recent efforts was 18if. If you like sports anime this might catch your interest but not much else here for the non-football lover.

 

Comic Girls

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Studio: Nexus

Director: Yoshinobu Tokumoto

Script/Series composer: Natsuko Takahashi

Source: 4-koma Manga

Moeta Kaoruko ia a 15-year-old high school student and manga creator, who uses the pen name Chaos. After ranking at the bottom of a reader survey, Kaoruko’s editor recommends that she enter an all-female dormitory for manga creators. Kaoruko’s roommates are shoujo manga creator Koizuka Koyume, teen romance manga creator Irokawa Ruki, and shounen manga creator Katsuki Tsubasa. The girls support each other as they work to become better manga creators.

Cute girls be mangaka. I swear I have seen this before. Mangirl was it called? After last season I just have no patience whatsoever for these kinds of shows. This one really is exactly the same as any cute girls show you can think off. Topic may be different but the content is the same. Director is a first timer who is directing two shows this season which should totally not backfire at all. Series composer hasn’t really much to brag about besides maybe My Love Story and Tokyo Magnitude. Guess if you need a fix of this then it’s not a terrible show but part of me wants these shows to die out because god they must be running out of ideas by now.

 

Devil’s Line

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Studio: Plantinum Vision

Director: Yoshinobu Tokumoto

Script/Series composer: Kenji Konuta

Source: Manga

Tsukasa, a college student, is rescued from an attack by a devil, one of many vampires that can blend in among the human population. Anzai, her savior, is a half-devil who exploits his supernatural gifts as a member of a shadowy police task force that specializes in devil-related crime in Tokyo. As Anzai continues to keep guard over Tsukasa, the two quickly forge a tentative bond—one that Anzai fears will test his iron-clad rule of never drinking human blood…

Uggh…there’s just something about this one I really don’t like. Maybe it’s the fact that this girl falls for this guy immediately after losing her current boyfriend and the guy pretty much forcefully kisses her out of nowhere. Basically it feels like a unhealthy relationship heavily romanticized with shoujo melodrama and I just hate it. Besides that this story is nothing new – it’s vampires so it’s the usual thing of them dealing with bloodlust while working for normal happiness. I don’t really see anything remarkable or that makes it stand out from any other kind of vampire fiction. The director has worked a lot of secondary roles but this is his first time in the director’s chair for a full series. Series composer is working on two other shows besides this and his resume isn’t too impressive. Look, unless you are a particular fan of vampire romance stories, I don’t think this will be remembered.

 

Dorei-ku The Animation

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Studio: Zero-G

Director: Ryouichi Kuraya

Script/Series composer: Ryouichi Kuraya

Source: Manga

What if you could enslave anyone you ever wanted? Well, this comes close. The SCM lets you enslave anyone who is also wearing an SCM, at a price. One must win over the other, at anything, in order for the other to become their slave

My original first impression of this series from the cover art alone is that it was some BDSM thing and while it loves to represent itself with that kind of imagery it has nothing to do with it. Really it is a show about mind games, or at least trying to be as people enslave other people for their own agenda by making them play games. Think “No Game, No Life” though on a more realistic scale. While the concept is interesting, unfortunately this story falls apart on a number of levels, one of which being the large cast of characters that it jumps between. It starts with two people we think are the main characters only to jump to another pair of characters and another pair. With every new pair once again someone needs to explain the device and how it works. The narrative doesn’t seem to have a central plot and seems mainly character driven which moves to the next flaw. There is not one likeable character in this story, not one. They are all self-centered, abusive, idiotic scoundrels and the while some you may feel sorry for, that doesn’t last for long as they too become horrible. Case in point, the first chapter has a guy who thought that the best way he could break up with his girlfriend gently was to pretend he was gay and give another man a blowjob in front of her. Oh, and the reason he wants to break up with her is because she burped in his presence. Those are the kind of characters we got here people. Director and scriptwriter is the same fellow and seems he has mainly worked with series done by this relative new studio who made Dive, Tsugumomo and Battery which I have not seen beyond the first episode but seem to have mediocre reception. I suspect this may interest people at first but eventually viewers will drop off once they realize that they hate all the main characters.

 

Gegege no Kitarou (2018)

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Studio: Toei Animation

Director: Kouji Ogawa

Script/Series composer: Hiroshi Ohnogi

Source: Manga

The stories center on an inhuman boy who straddles the line between the human and supernatural worlds.

I would like to be able to tell you what this show is about. I would like to…but the truth is that even after looking at several chapters of the manga, I still have no idea. Most I can gather is that this boy runs into supernatural stuff and hijinks ensue but the story structure is just so random that I can’t get a grasp on what is truly happening. For example, some old man is looking for an Ox spirit, finds it and dies. Then our protagonist somehow gets possessed by the spirit and it makes him take up some job performing. Then he gets kicked out for playing music from the underworld or something. It’s just that I look at this and think, “Okay, that happened. What now?” Director only previously directed Precure and the series composer worked on Birdy, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and Noein. Yeah I can’t make head or tail of this one. I guess just check it out and see if it’s for you?

 

Gundam Build Divers

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Studio: Sunrise

Director: Shinya Watada

Script/Series composer: Noboru Kimura

Source: Original

The Gunpla Force Battle Tournament is a big event held in GBN once per year. Competing in the final round are Avalon, led by the champion Kyoya Kujo, and the elite 7th Panzer Division led by the cunning Rommel. Starting with Kyoya’s Gundam AGE II Magnum, a variety of Gunpla take to the field to determine which is the strongest force!

Seems this series is a spiritual successor to Gundam Build Fighters which makes me wonder why they didn’t just call it a sequel. So is this the state of the once mighty Gundam? Gone from stories about war to children’s toys. Not sure how Gundam Build Fighters turned out but seems it wasn’t a bad show at least. Despite not being a fan of Gundam though I can’t help but look at this as a downgrade. Director previously directed a season of Gundam Build Fighters of course and series composer’s previous work is Kokkoku and the rest of his CV is rather bad with series like Knight’s & Magic and Seikoku no Dragonar. I feel this would be a series to appeal to fans of Gundam Build Fighters rather than something to jump into for a first timer.

 

Gurazeni

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Studio: Studio DEEN

Director: Ayumu Watanabe

Script/Series composer: Hideo Takayashiki

Source: Manga

This is the story of Natsunosuke Honda, a pro baseball player—a relief pitcher who has been playing pro in a team called Spiders for 8 years. The team operates as a highly-stratified society, where the player’s performance determines his annual salary. Natsunosuke is one of the highest paid players in the game. He measures how good players are by how much money they make, and he intends to be on top and stay there, and as such is always looking for players to challenge and does everything to insure that he is better than they are.

What to even say about this one? Well it’s baseball, except with financial dependence. Meaning that players need to think about job security when playing as how well they do effects their paycheck. I only managed to read the first chapter which mainly was about the protagonist explaining the system and calculating finances. Besides the weird quirk though it’s basically a baseball anime and that is a sport I never found particularly interesting. Director is directing the other baseball anime this season and previously did Mysterious Girlfriend X and Space Brothers. Series composer worked on Maison Ikkoku and Rainbow.

 

High School DxD HERO

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Studio: Passione

Director: Yoshifumi Sueda

Script/Series composer: Kenji Konuda

Source: Light Novel

The fourth season of High School DxD

You know I am not sure why but I tend to have a soft spot for this series over the rest of the usual tripe that this series wholeheartedly embraces. For someone who often decries fanservice in anime it may be surprising to see me actually enjoy a series like this. For make no mistake, this show is exactly what it looks like and I will not deny that it is pure fanservice mixed with some of the most stereotypical shounen crap you can think of. Yet I still find myself softening towards it and perhaps it’s because this series does not put up any pretense of pretending to have some story to tell. It’s silly and it knows it. But I don’t deny that could be my own bias. You watch this for boobs, butts and some decent action. I guess it reminds me of the harems of yesteryear and thus I go easy on it. Fact of the matter is I would gladly take another season of this over more Symphogear or god forbid, Eromanga sensei. Anyway we have a new studio doing this season and it looks like this series is actually getting good animation for once. The action might go from passable to actually pretty entertaining. We got the director of Rail Wars so that doesn’t bode well. Series composer doesn’t fair well as his most recent effort was King’s Game The Animation which was a trainwreck. Though that could be blamed more on the source. Staff looks bad but this series doesn’t exactly require Shakespeare. Still I will likely end up watching it, as it is fun garbage.

 

Isekai Izakaya: Koto Aitheria no Izakaya Nobu

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Studio: Sunrise

Director: Katsumi Ono

Script/Series composer: Shin Yoshida

Source: Light Novel

The anime center on a bar called “Nobu” — located in Kyoto, Japan, but with a door that is connected to the bar in another world. The visitors include denizens of the other world, and customers seek out its excellent “Toriaezu Nama” ale and cuisine.

Mario: The food-porn sub-genre might be the only slice-of-life type of show whose appeal I can never fully grasp. Its main sell is to get a group of people who spend time cooking or enjoy delicious foods on display. The joy of just looking at the dishes’ presentation and the “eureka” moment of having first bite. And I am here, looking at it from the far-distant screen, feeling nothing. I love good food but I have absolutely no interest in watching them on-screen. With Isekai Izakaya, didn’t this idea already get done last year? Mixing food-porn with isekai to grab our attention? Again? Granted, Isekai Shokudou has more fantasy elements than this, but looking at the PV, I don’t feel very confident. The visuals look lackluster and the character designs aren’t inspiring – even those from the old era look plain and old-school-y. The director’s previous works, however, are quite solid – he directed Hataraki Man and the Senki Zesshou Symphogear franchise. The series composer worked with the director in Yugioh! 5D, so at least… this can only get better, right? I don’t have high expectations for this one, unfortunately.

 

Juushinki Pandora

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Studio: Satelight

Director: Shoji Kawamori

Script/Series composer: Toshizou Nemoto

Source: Original

On the day the Xianglong (Shanron or Soaring Dragon) Crisis occurred in 2031, Leon Lau was right in the middle of the unfolding events. The Quantum Reactor, a next generation energy device developed to replace dwindling environmental resources, exploded and unleashed an unknown energy. As a result, the global environment changed overnight. Living things (besides humans) and machines each underwent their own unique evolution, and the B.R.A.I. (Biological Revolutionary of Accelerated Intelligence) entities in particular evolved and came into being. Because of them, humanity was driven to the brink of extinction. Humans fight the B.R.A.I with M.O.E.V. (Multi-purpose Organic Evolution Vehicle) variable units. Seven years after the Xianglong Crisis, Leon is in the wilderness on the edge of the “absolute defense city” Neo Xianglong. Living with Chloe Lau under a “family pact,” he conducts his own research to counter the B.R.A.I. The awkward Leon and the busybody Chloe. They live day-by-day as if to forget the past for the moment. However, threats unrelentingly draw near.

I spy with my little eye an annoying imouto character. No source so I need to go by promotional material, and while the concept is interesting I find myself put off by the character designs and the presence of some standard tropes in the trailer. The little sister character in particular. The director appears to be the creator of this series and I don’t know much about the fellow other than he had a hand in designing the Transformers line of toys. He’s previously directed Macross Plus, Macross Frontier, AKB0048, Macross Δ, Sousei no Aquarion and Aquarion Evol. He also seems to have some other original anime coming which is called “The Next”. This guy looks to have a lot of experience with mecha so this could have some potential. Series composer did Log Horizon and the Towa no Quon movies. This is a wait and see kind of show as we really need to look at it properly before any real judgments can be made, though based purely on superficial attributes I would see it as a decent mecha show but not something that could become great.

 

Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi

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Studio: Gonzo

Director: Yoshiko Okuda

Script/Series composer: Tomoko Konparu

Source: Light Novel

The series centers on a female college student named Aoi, who inherited the ability to see spirits from her late grandfather. Aoi prides herself on her cooking, and one day she’s feeding some agricultural spirits when suddenly a god and the master of the “Tenshinya” (Heavenly Inn) appears and takes Aoi away. He says that due to her grandfather’s debts, she must become his bride. Aoi hates this idea and instead declares that she will pay back her grandfather’s debt by working at the Tenshinya.

Isn’t it fascinating that in harems girls are often the proactive ones in love, and yet in reverse harem shows the boys are more aggressive? it’s almost as if media portrays to either sex that they are not the ones to make an effort and instead should just wait for what they want to fall into their lap. Not really the best lesson…oh right the preview. It looks fairly typical really, willing to bet this might be the best of the female targeted anime this season but that isn’t really based on any kind of evidence. Only that the of the other two, one’s an otome and the other just looks low effort. Then again Gonzo are not exactly a high tier studio.

 

Kiratto Pri☆Chan

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Studio: Dongwoo A&E/ Tatsunoko

Director: Hiroshi Ikehata

Script/Series composer: Kazuho Hyodo

Source: Original

First-year middle school girls Mirai Momoyama and Emo Moegi are two aspiring idols who decide to use the “Pri☆Chan System,” a system used by famous people and companies to broadcast content. Like many girls starting their own channels and uploading content, the pair decide to become their own producers, starting their own channel in an attempt to become Pri☆Chan idols.

If I didn’t hate idols before, I most certainly do now. How much money do these shows make honestly? Are Japanese otaku so easily satisfied that they just buy boatloads of the exact same show without remorse? Anyway, the director did Mahoujin Guru Guru and Akiba’s Trip: The Animation. Series Composer did Relife and Akiba’s Trip: The Animation. Look I don’t think I have to tell you this is a waste of time. Let it fall on the pile of other idol anime and be forgotten.

 

Last Period: Owarinaki Rasen no Monogatari

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Studio: J.C. Staff

Director: Yoshiaki Iwasaki

Script/Series composer: Hideki Shirane

Source: Video Game

The story takes place in a world where fantastic beasts called “Spirals” are born from isolation. Those who can defeat the beasts are called “Periods.” Haru is an apprentice Period who belongs to the Arc End 8th Branch. However, after a mysterious theft incident, there is an economic collapse, and the Arc End headquarters abandons the 8th Division, leaving only three Periods left, including Haru. Haru and the other two Periods start their work to rebuild the 8th Division.

As with any video game adaption, your expectations should be low. With the exception of Visual novels, there hasn’t really been a video game adaptation that truly shone. Except maybe Gungrave. But to make matters worse, this is an adaption of a smartphone game which means it is rather doomed. Smartphone games are not really known for storytelling prowess and I highly doubt this will change that. The trailer has some truly cheap animation and the premise looks to be cute girls trying to be funny. We got the director of Familiar of Zero and the series composer of Yumekui Merry, Hidan no Aria, Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Darou ka and Boku no Kanojo ga Majime Sugiru Shojo Bitch na Ken. I would pass on this, it looks pretty bad.

 

Lost Song

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Studio: Dwango/ LIDENFILMS

Director: N/A

Script/Series composer: N/A

Source: Original

It tells the story of two young women in a fantasy world of music and war. One is Rin (Suzuki Konomi), an energetic girl who loves to eat and who lives in a verdant frontier village. The other is Finis (Tamura Yukari), a songstress who spends her lonely days deep within the royal palace. Both share a special power no one else has, a miraculous power that can heal wounds, create water, and stir the wind—the power of song. Guided by destiny, the two young women each face an arduous journey. The shadow of war looms over the kingdom, and loved ones will meet their deaths as silent screams echo through a stone prison. As their destinies intersect, will the final song be one of despair or hope?

Mario: Another title in Netflix’s string of original shows (reminds me that I need to catch up with other Netflix shows), so what do we have here? A non-isekai fantasy show (thank god!) that uses songs as its source of magic power (huh?). I guess the only good thing that will come out of this show is the soundtrack because it seems this story is made to have its two girls sing as much as possible. The PV looks decent with fantasy settings and passable character designs… until the jarring CG gets in the way. And at just one minute, this obvious issue isn’t a good sign. Director and Series Composer are a total mystery, but we already know Theme Song Lyrics and Theme Song Performers so yeah, you probably know what aspect this show will cash on. Really makes me wonder what Netflix saw when someone pitched this idea to them.

 

Mahou Shoujo Ore

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Studio: Pierrot Plus

Director: Itsuro Kawasaki

Script/Series composer: N/A

Source: Manga

This story is about a 15-year-old girl who is a newbie idol in love with her best friend’s brother who is also a popular idol. But she runs into a scary yakuza guy and finds out that her mother was an ex-magical girl, and the yakuza guy was her mascot. Her love interest gets kidnapped by demons that look like burly men with cute squirrel heads. So she contracts the yakuza to become a magical girl, which in this story means she turns into a handsome guy in a magical girl outfit. On top of that, her love interest shows an attraction toward her magical guy form. Her best friend turns out to be in love with her and also becomes a magical cross-dressing guy to save her life. Thus, their manager, who is a magical girl geek, then decides to turn them into an idol unit.

I was half convinced this was a surprise sequel to Pop Team Epic with that description but seems not. Anyway this show is rather off the wall but unlike the previously mentioned, in a much less creative way. See this show is attempting to parody the magical girl genre but instead of mocking the genre staples they instead just subvert expectations and pray that it’s funny. But the subversion is rather on the predictable side like “Oh hey she turned into a magical boy instead of a magical girl, isn’t that weird?!” or “Oh hey, she fights her enemies with grenades and brute force instead of magic, isn’t that weird?!” But having seen half a dozen magical girls parodies with the same kind of jokes this just doesn’t really do anything for me. The director really hasn’t worked on anything worth noting and I don’t know how Pierrot Plus is involved with Studio Pierrot but I call this adaption doomed just by their mere involvement. Though even if this wasn’t the case I don’t think this will catch anyone’s attention for long.

 

Mahou Shoujo Site

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Studio: production doA

Director: Tadahito Matsubayashi

Script/Series composer: Takayo Ikami

Source: Manga

Asagiri Aya is a young girl who has fallen victim to bullies at her school. Looking for a way to escape her troubles, she looks to the internet for distraction, when a mysterious website called “Magical Girl Site” appears. Simply viewing the page is all it takes to hurtle Aya headlong into the deadly world of the Magical Girl Apocalypse. There, it’s fight or die, against a seemingly endless array of savagely adorable, frilly-skirted killing machines, each armed with magical powers and an unquenchable thirst for blood and chaos.

So fun fact, virtual youtuber Kizuna Ai is starring in this anime. You might not know her but she’s basically a cgi anime girl youtuber that does lets plays and general comedy. She’s pretty entertaining as well…unlike this show. This story very much feels like a teenager watched Madoka Magica and decided that he could do that too but darker and betterer. The end result is a series that is just trying so hard to be grim and mature that it veers into comically bad forced storytelling. As an example, the bullies of the main character decide to escalate things to the level of getting a guy to rape her, and ladies and gents that’s just episode one. The characters in this show just ham it up hard and have facial convulsions that would make Kakegurui shake its head in shame. For an example, think of it like Mirai Nikki where the scenario is so ridiculous and yet the characters take it completely seriously. This is this animation studio’s first TV anime and also the director’s first TV anime, though he worked on a lot of bit roles and the series composer worked on the two most recent Ikuhara shows and Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru. At best this could be a guilty pleasure but otherwise I wouldn’t really recommend watching this.

 

Major 2nd

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Studio: NHK Enterprises

Director: Ayumu Watanabe

Script/Series composer: Kenji Konuta/Michihiro Tsuchiya

Source: Manga

Daigo is born as the son of Gorou, a father who is too great. What path will Daigo, who is burdened with great expectations, take in baseball?

Our protagonist wanted to be a pro baseball player but sucked at it and now in the future when he has given up on it people are trying to force him to play baseball again. Because in this universe baseball is everything. This is another one of those sports stories where it doesn’t do anything particularly wrong but still is rather unremarkable. There is a bit less on the sports formula due to the protagonists being familiar with the sport. Can’t say I am fond of the premise of forcing this kid back into baseball as I feel he has legitimate reasons for quitting. I mean if he continued to play he would be constantly compared to the skill of his father and the fact of the matter is that he isn’t that good and never will be. So yes, let him go off and find a new passion instead of forcing him back into his old one. Director previously did Mysterious Girlfriend X, Space Brothers and is oddly directing both baseball themed anime this season. We got a lot of script writers making me think this could be a 50 episode show. One of the script writers is in charge of three shows this season alone and the other listed here did ClassicaLoid. Anyway this is a passable sports show, nothing more.

 

Nil Admirari no Tenbin

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Studio: Zero-G

Director: Masahiro Takata

Script/Series composer: Tomoko Konparu

Source: Visual Novel

The Taishou era didn’t end in 15 years, but went on for another 25. In order to protect her waning family, a girl resolves to marry a man she doesn’t even know the name of. However, just before the marriage was to take place, the girl’s younger brother mysteriously committed suicide by self-immolation and was found holding an old book in his hands. Appearing before the bewildered young girl was the “Imperial Library Intelligence Asset Management Bureau,” more commonly referred to as “Fukurou.” According to these men, there exists “Maremono,” which are books that greatly affects its readers. On top of that, ever since the incident involving the girl’s younger brother, she unwittingly gains the ability to see “Auras” (the sentiments of the Maremono which manifest as bright lights and are usually invisible to humans). It was as though fate were trying to drag the young girl in its flames. And then, even though apprehensive, the girl chooses to venture outside her bird cage. Jealousy, hatred, scorn, compassion and love. What awaited the girl was the darkness of betrayal that had already begun to bewitchingly inlay the imperial capital. Toyed by and swayed within that darkness, will the young girl finally reach the truth after her struggles, or…?

It’s otome, therefore it’s crap. A prejudiced bias but dare tell me it isn’t true that every otome adaption has been bad. I have yet to see a good one, that’s for sure. And this honestly looks like the exact same thing as before. Plank for a protagonist that somehow gets all the boys after her. A series of archetypal males falling into the same old cliches. And an overly complicated backstory that ultimately means diddly squat. Director did nothing of worth and the series composer wrote a bunch of otome-like stuff. Zero expectations, only watch if you like this kind of thing.

 

Rokuhoudou Yotsuiro Biyori

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Studio: ZEXCS

Director: Tomomi Kamiya

Script/Series composer: Deko Akao

Source: Manga

Four men—Gure, Sui, Tokitaka, and Tsubaki—each help run a Japanese tea shop together called Rokuhoudou. When one visits the shop, they are greeted warmly, is served with tea, and are often helped with any problems they may have.

Hot guys in a tea shop, yep one look is enough to tell me that I am not the target demographic. Despite that the character designs seem rather bland and the premise isn’t all that interesting. I haven’t been able to check out the manga due to it being in Japanese only but from general image searches it seems this is a slice of life comedy of sorts. Director is new and the series composer has a body of work that makes them impossible to gauge. With a fair amount of certainty I can say this show likely won’t be missed or remembered by season’s end.

 

Saredo Tsumibito wa Ryuu to Odoru

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Studio: Seven Arcs

Director: Hirokazu Hanai

Script/Series composer: Takayo Ikami

Source: Light Novel

The series takes place in an alternate world, staged mostly in the city of Eridana, whose territory is half in the Tseberun Dragon Empire, and half in the Lapetodes Seven Cities Alliance. Each half is separated by the Orielal River. In this world, special abilities called spell formulas (咒式, jushiki) exist, which are essentially chemical reactions augmented through special weapons that cause a magic spell-like effect. These special weapons are called Magic Staff weapons, and are as varied as regular weapons are. Spell formulists use these spell formulas to fight with “Beasts of Abhorrent Form,” natural creatures that use spell formulas and pose a threat to humans, such as Dragons, Aions, or Enormes. The story focuses on the two main characters, Gaius Sorel and Gigina Ashley-Bufh, the only two employees of Spell Formulist dispatch office Ashley-Bufh & Sorel Co. They are met with a variety of requests from a variety of clients, all requiring the adept use of spell formulas.

No translation of the light novel so I’m working blind, but I have a feeling this might be one of those shows. The ones that make a lay of having some supernatural battle story but in reality it’s all about appealing to the fujoshis. The all-male cast certainly seems to confirm that. And boy just what are these names for the characters? The main character’s name is Gigina Jerde Dolk Melios Ashley Boeuf. The animation in the trailer isn’t too impressive either. Honestly expecting nothing from this one. Director worked on Azumanga Daioh, Trinity Seven and a Certain Magical Index. Series composer worked on Ikuhara shows Penguindrum and Yuri Kuma. I don’t know a lot about this but I feel that it’s not going to be worth your time.

 

Tokyo Ghoul:re

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Studio: Studio Pierrot

Director: Odahiro Watanabe

Script/Series composer: Chuuki Mikasano

Source: Manga

Two years have passed since the CCG’s raid on Anteiku. Although the atmosphere in Tokyo has changed drastically due to the increased influence of the CCG, ghouls continue to pose a problem as they have begun taking caution, especially the terrorist organization Aogiri Tree, who acknowledge the CCG’s growing threat to their existence. The creation of a special team, known as the Quinx Squad, may provide the CCG with the push they need to exterminate Tokyo’s unwanted residents. As humans who have undergone surgery in order to make use of the special abilities of ghouls, they participate in operations to eradicate the dangerous creatures. The leader of this group, Haise Sasaki, is a half-ghoul, half-human who has been trained by famed special class investigator, Kishou Arima. However, there’s more to this young man than meets the eye, as unknown memories claw at his mind, slowly reminding him of the person he used to be.

Just let it die Pierrot. You already destroyed any merit the original manga had with the previous two seasons and making another season based on the manga’s sequel isn’t going to fix that. To begin with, this is where Tokyo Ghoul really started to lose me when I was reading the manga. Out of nowhere it ends abruptly and does a soft reboot with brand new characters in the same setting, never again building the same intrigue it originally had and having to rely on referencing the old series to keep people’s interest. Director only previously directed something called Soul Buster and seeing as neither you nor I have heard of it I think it speaks to the quality of that particular show. Same series composer who worked on the previous two series and nothing else so we can be sure to see this butchered as well. Honestly just pass on this if you are a fan, there is no way your expectations will be met.

 

Uma Musume Pretty Derby

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Studio: P.A. Works

Director: Kei Oikawa

Script/Series composer: Akihiro Ishihara

Source: Video Game

The game’s concept begins with Uma Musume (Horse Girls), girls endowed with excellent running capability, and who aim to become top idols and compete in the national sports entertainment show “Twinkle Series.”

Cute girls be horses. Yeah this just doesn’t have anything new to offer besides the horse gimmick. Main character is an energetic idiot and you got the usual gathering of template heroines. Hoping the director focuses more on the other show he is directing this season (Hinamatsuri) which has much more potential. Series composer is the former director of the Idolm@ster game series and this is his first time writing for an anime. I have no remorse in telling you to skip this one unless you are looking for a cute girl fix even after the overabundance from last season.

 

Series I am middling on

 

Cutie Honey Universe

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Studio: Production Reed

Director: Akitoshi Yokoyama

Script/Series composer: Natsuko Takahashi

Source: Original

Honey Kisaragi appears to be an ordinary girl attending St. Chapel Academy, but in reality she’s the “Warrior of Love” Cutie Honey, a super-powered android created by Dr. Kisaragi. Honey and her allies investigate the evil schemes of Panther Claw, a criminal secret society, but Honey doesn’t realize that the leader of Panther Claw is already closer than she thinks…

Another Go Nagai adaption to commemorate his 50th anniversary as a manga artist and this one I have very little experience with. For the most part I think this is like a raunchier version of a magical girl show and I don’t know if this will be a update of the old story to fit modern conventions like Devilman Crybaby or a brand new thing entirely. Truthfully from my experience with Go Nagai works it seems that he is more famous for what he inspired, more than what he created. His works tend to be balls to the wall insane so for the most part it’s preferable to watch them for fun factor rather than any kind of storytelling excellence. So I believe that the deciding factor here is making this adaption as energetic and charming as possible. The director only previously directed PhotoKano and the series composer is all over the place in terms of quality. Some good, some great but quite a bit of bad. Recent efforts were “In another world with my smartphone”, “Renai Boukun” and “Hakyuu Houshin Engi” so staff-wise this doesn’t look good. But even then I think this would be a decent watch at best and not a hit of the season.

 

Boku no Hero Academia 3

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Studio: Bones

Director: Kenji Nagasaki

Script/Series composer: Yousuke Kuroda

Source: Manga

The third season of Boku no Hero Academia.

Mario: Arguably one of the most popular anime shows in recent years, this third season is highly anticipated by anime fans, and for good reason. Boku no Hero is one of the rare shows that hits the right balance between embracing its shounen tropes and having enough heart to stand tall on its own. Admittedly, the team here isn’t quite as enthusiastic about it as the masses, but if you already like the first two seasons, then you can expect great things here. The same staff returns to this season, so the quality will be consistent, and the upcoming Training Camp arc, along with the fight against the League of Villains, is considered one of Hero Academia’s most satisfying arcs in the manga. So hop on for the ride, guys.

 

Layton Mystery Tanteisha: Katori no Nazotoki File

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Studio: Lidenfilms

Director: Susumu Mitsunaka

Script/Series composer: Akihiro Hino

Source: Video Game

The story is set in London and follows Katrielle as she solves mysteries with her talking dog Sherl.

I played the first four Layton games and even bought the fifth only to never play it. Even watched that Professor Layton anime movie that came out and it wasn’t half bad. My main memories of the series were being interested in the story while losing all patience with the puzzles, and resorting to wild guesswork. Not sure what this new girl Katrielle is like, though it seems her game got decent enough reviews. I am cautious of an anime adaption however, as video games haven’t translated the best to this medium. Let us not be reminded of the Phoenix Wright anime. Seems we got a fifty episode run and from what I hear of the games this girl’s cases tend to be more episodic than having a ongoing plot. Even if executed well I have more of an attachment to the old characters than these brand new ones and I see this being more harmless fun than anything truly groundbreaking. We got the director of Haikyuu!! and the original writer of the games on the the staff. I say this could be fun for fans and maybe a decent watch for non-fans, but otherwise fairly forgettable.

 

Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu -Die Neue These- Kaikou

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Studio: Production I.G.

Director: Shunsuke Tada

Script/Series composer: Noboru Takagi

Source: Novel

In humanity’s distant future, two interstellar states—the monarchic Galactic Empire and the democratic Free Planets Alliance—are embroiled in a never-ending war. The story focuses on the exploits of rivals Reinhard von Müsel and Yang Wen Li as they rise to power and fame in the Galactic Empire and the Free Planets Alliance.

Legend of the Galactic Heroes, a series so revered that you ascend into a new area of anime godhood if you ever manage to complete it. Or at least the legend goes. As someone who actually has watched it let me give you the rundown. When I watched the first series I thought the space battles would be the highlights of the series and in a odd twist of fate they turned out to be the least entertaining parts. Instead it’s the politics and epic scope of the narrative that make this truly special. The real achievement of this is that it tells a story that sounds like actual history as it recounts events and people whose influence is no less iconic than people you would learn about in school. But therein lies the problem, as anime today doesn’t quite give the episode count needed to tells such grand protracted tales of humanity throughout the ages, so this series could really suffer for that. On top of which, while some may argue otherwise, LOTGH was very much a product of its time and when adapted into a more modern climate, flaws that were easily overlooked can become glaring issues. I am also not too keen on the new character designs, in particular Yang Wenli who was more middle aged in the old series and that matched his character. Whereas here he looks like he’s the same age as Reinhard despite being ten years older than him. From my guess this looks to be a more faithful adaptation of the original novels which could be a plus or negative depending on your perspective. On one hand, this will be a more abridged, better-animated version of the series, but it will be missing the extra episodes of the original that helped flesh out the world and give a sense of time progressing. Director worked on Kuroko no Basket and that’s about the only thing worth mentioning in his resume so that makes me wonder just why he was placed in charge of a fairly beloved classic? Series composer is also fairly odd as he did Baccano, Durarara, Tonari no Kaibutsu-ku and C: The Money of Soul and Possibility Control so yes, why is he doing this. He’s even handling Golden Kamui this season as well which makes me concerned that this might be a low effort cash grab of an adaption. I’m not sure how this one could turn out even if it’s adapted well, so rather than champion it I shall be cautiously optimistic.

 

Hisone to Maso-tan

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Studio: Bones

Director: Shinji Higuchi

Script/Series composer: Mari Okada

Source: Original

Straightforward and innocent Amakasu Hisone is a rookie self-defense official. She was struggling with the fact that she sometimes hurts people unintentionally by her innocent words and decided to join in Air Self-Defence, hoping to maintain a certain distance from people. This decision led her to a fateful encounter which profoundly changes her life. It was the dragon hidden in the base and it chose Hisone as his pilot. When it soared into the sky with Hisone, her fate as a dragon pilot was decided. It is said that dragons have a key to the future of the world…

Original series so there’s nothing to go off besides a PV and the staff. The PV honestly gives me the impression that this is going to be some cutesy slice of life thing or go the Made in Abyss route of having moe designs in a dark serious story. We got the director of Kiznaiver running the show but the main point here that can give us a decent idea for what we might be in for is the scriptwriter who is Mari Okada. You likely know her for Anohana, Toradora, Gundam Orphans, Wandering Son or Kiznaiver. Okada is someone who can promise potential and disaster by her inclusion. I do not deny that she can be a talented writer but she can also overblow melodrama in her works or lead them down the wrong path. You may think I am being harsh but remember that this is the person who did series composition for the cerebral trainwreck that is Mayoiga and wrote the rather lackluster Wixoss. Even her greatest achievements are arguably flawed. So really it’s up in the air as to whether this series will be good or not, and even if it starts good there is no promise it will remain so.

 

Megalo Box

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Studio: TMS Entertainment

Director: You Moriyama

Script/Series composer: Katsuhiko Manabe

Source: Original

JD (Junk Dog) participates in fixed boxing matches in an underground ring in order to live. Today, he enters the ring again, but he encounters a certain person. JD wants to take on a challenge that risks everything.

Another classic comeback with a sequel to Ashita no Joe. Or is it a spinoff? Does it have anything to do with it? Well it’s a boxing anime and out of all the sports I would say boxing is at least something I am interested in. I’ve never seen Ashita no Joe but I have heard good things and assume it’s somewhat like Hajime no Ippo. Except maybe more drama and manly energy to it. Both the director and series composer are new, though we have the original creators of Ashita no Joe on the staff. Overall it could be quite interesting and get me interested in watching Ashita no Joe.

 

Persona 5 The Animation

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Studio: A-1 Pictures

Director: Masashi Ishihama

Script/Series composer: Shinichi Inotsume

Source: Video Game

The official Twitter account for Atlus’ Persona franchise announced that the Persona 5 game is getting a television anime series by A-1 Pictures in 2018.

The Persona anime adaptions so far have been alright. Persona 4 the Animation was decent fun. The Persona 3 movies were actually good, at least concerning the first two movies I watched. Still, Persona is best experienced from the games themselves as there are factors which anime just can’t replicate. I have yet to play Persona 5, but I expect much the same here as I did in the others: a decent view of the games while not quite being as good as them. I myself will be stopping after watching the first episode because the game is on my backlog and I want to experience it through that…sometime in the future. (I mean jesus it’s pretty much a 90 hour game. Ain’t nobody got time for that.) We got the director of From the New World and the series composer did Gangsta, Hayate no Gotoku and Zettai Karen Children: The Unlimited. I say this one is more for fans of the game or those who don’t have time to play it.

 

Piano no Mori (TV)

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Studio: Fukushima Gainax

Director: N/A

Script/Series composer: Aki Itami

Source: Manga

A tranquil tale about two boys from very different upbringings. On one hand you have Kai, born as the son of a prostitute, who’s been playing the abandoned piano in the forest near his home ever since he was young. And on the other you have Syuhei, practically breast-fed by the piano as the son of a family of prestigious pianists. Yet it is their common bond with the piano that eventually intertwines their paths in life.

Seems there has already been a movie about this which makes me wonder if they plan on reusing footage. The manga is completed with 241 chapters so that means this certainly won’t be a full adaption. I read the first few chapters but it failed to capture my interest. Mostly was about schoolyard antics and kids playing piano. Again my tolerance for slice of life styled anime has been lowered significantly so others might get much more out of it. We got the series composer of Nijiiro Days and Aku no Hana. Anyway, this could be a fine watch for those interested, though the lack of info about the studio and director has me wondering if it will really air this season.

 

Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online

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Studio: Studio 3Hz

Director: Masayuki Sakoi

Script/Series composer: Yousuke Kuroda

Source: Light Novel

Kohiruimaki Karen is a 183-centimeter-tall college student who’s insecure about her height and is bad at dealing with people in the real world. She enters the world of Gun Gale Online with her avatar, Llenn, who is less than 150 centimeters tall and wears all pink. She meets a beautiful, brown-skinned female player who goes by Pitohui. They hit it off but one day Pitohui pressures her to participate in “Squad Jam”, a team Battle Royale variation of the Bullet of Bullets tournament.

It just won’t die and fade into memory now will it? Is this PUBG inspired? Though this series isn’t written by the original author of Sword Art Online. Only read the first three chapters of this one and it’s alright I suppose. I like the complex of a tall antisocial girl seeking out VR games in order to play as a small character. Without Kirito here there’s none of the harem plot armour crap either so that’s a plus. Guess the only real problem is the lack of stakes but it looks like something is brewing under the shadows to give the story some direction. Can’t say the director has done anything worth talking about unless you were a fan of Needless. Series composer is working on Hero Academia season 3 as well. Series composer’s work seems split between fanservice shows and some pretty good shows like Hellsing Ultimate and Requiem of the Phantom. I don’t think this show will be stirring up as much of a fuss as SAO did but it could be a good time waster for fans.

 

Shiyan Pin Jiating

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Studio: Big Firebird Cultural Media Co., Ltd.

Director: N/A

Script/Series composer: N/A

Source: Manga

A scientist couple has been arrested for conducting illegal studies, allegedly for performing genetic modification on five of their children. Youngest children, Dannis, is the only one who grew up as a normal human, and has become the only family member who has to tend to rest of the members and to try to find a medicine to turn them into normal humans again.

We have a Chinese-made anime and considering our previous experience with Chinese anime that would mean low expectations. Despite that I admit that the production quality of this show from the PV actually looks quite good. The premise seems like a fun slice of life with a supernatural twist despite how dark their past sounds. We got nothing as far as staff goes and this is the animation studio’s first TV anime with their only other two preview works being short web shows. I am curious about this one and hopefully this means a change with China’s general anime track record.

 

Tada-kun wa Koi wo Shinai

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Studio: Doga Kobo

Director: Mitsue Yamazaki

Script/Series composer: Yoshiki Nakamura

Source: Original

Mitsuyoshi Tada, a boy who has never known love, is taking pictures of the cherry blossoms in full bloom when he meets Teresa Wagner, a transfer student from Luxembourg. Upon arriving in Japan, she got lost, separated from her travel companion. Mitsuyoshi helps her and brings her to his grandfather’s coffee shop.

No source so I am working on first appearance and based on that I don’t see any major missteps here. It looks more focused on romance than slice of life which would be a blessing. Trailer animation looks good and cinematography seems spot on. Both the director and series composer worked on Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun. Overall seems rather promising.

Series I do look forward to

Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory

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Studio: Xebec

Director: Katsuchi Nakayama

Script/Series composer: Shoji Gatoh

Source: Light Novel

The third season of Full Metal Panic!

Back in the days of my anime youth I actually went and read to the end of the Full Metal Panic novels through what was a pretty terrible translation. Thankfully my memories of that readthrough have faded over time and I hope I can watch this series to its conclusion through this anime. That is of course if this anime intends to go to its finale. There are 12 main Full Metal Panic novels and so far 5 of them have been covered in anime form. The remaining 7 could potentially be covered with a two cour anime though more episodes would be ideal. The odd thing here is that this is the third studio to take to adapting this series with the first series being made by Gonzo, Fumoffu and Second raid by KyoAni and now we have Xebec who are primarily known for for their more fanservice driven works like To Love-Ru. I am rather conflicted by this but they have worked on mecha anime before with Fafner, Break Blade, Nadesico and some others. We got the original creator in doing series composer which is a nice trend in recent anime. Director is newer than I would have liked as he only directed the Planetarian OVA and movie as well as one episode of His and Her Circumstances. I am quite looking forward to this series and I am hoping they can do it justice as maybe I can finally see a genuine anime ending conclusively for a change of pace.

 

Golden Kamui

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Studio: Geno Studio

Director: Hitoshi Nanba

Script/Series composer: Noboru Takagi

Source: Manga

In the early twentieth century, Russo-Japanese War veteran Saichi “Immortal” Sugimoto scratches out a meager existence during the postwar gold rush in the wilderness of Hokkaido. When he stumbles across a map to a fortune in hidden Ainu gold, he sets off on a treacherous quest to find it. But Sugimoto is not the only interested party, and everyone who knows about the gold will kill to possess it! Faced with the harsh conditions of the northern wilderness, ruthless criminals and rogue Japanese soldiers, Sugimoto will need all his skills and luck—and the help of an Ainu girl named Asirpa—to survive.

Likely a contender for the most anticipated anime in this season and the manga does show why. This is certainly a story that grabs you from the start with two interesting main characters with a nice character dynamic. I have heard rumors that over time it becomes like a bit of a hunting manga rather than focusing on its core plot but I am not certain on how truthful that is. But if done well this will certainly catch people’s attention. Though this seems to be the second main work of a new studio who previously brought us Kokkoku. I would actually like to use Kokkoku as a guide to the animation quality we might receive but honestly I haven’t really finished it. We got the director of Gosick and Heroman. Series composer did Baccano, Durarara, Koi Kaze and Sankarea while he also appears to be working on the new LOTGH remake. I would say this should be on your radar if you are watching anime this season as no doubt it will end up near the top if done correctly.

 

Hinamatsuri

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Studio: feel.

Director: Kei Oikawa

Script/Series composer: Keiichirō Ōchi

Source: Manga

One night, a strange object falls on the head of Nitta, a member of the yakuza. Inside the box is a strange young girl named Hina. She has tremendous supernatural powers, and Nitta finds himself reluctantly taking her in. Her powers can come in handy for his yakuza business, but he also runs the risk of her using them on him! Not to mention, if she doesn’t use her powers, she will eventually go berserk and destroy everything around her. Nitta and Hina’s strange life together is just beginning…

If this adaption is done correctly this could be a comedy hit of the season. The manga is one of the few I consider to be very funny and while the story synopsis above makes it sound like there is more action involved, this is mainly a comedy. It’s slapstick comedy and my personal favorite chapters are the ones that focus on a girl called Hitomi who has a hilarious character arc throughout the series. Only question is just how far in the story they will get with a single cour as I really like the escalation of misunderstandings over the course of the story. Director previously directed Snafu and Outbreak Company which were pretty good. Series composer has only one show to speak of called Kiniro no Corda and wrote some episode scripts. If done right I highly recommend keeping an eye on this one.

 

Steins;Gate 0

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Studio: White Fox

Director: Kenichi Kawamura

Script/Series composer: Jukki Hanada

Source: Light Novel

An alternate ending to Steins;Gate that leads with the eccentric mad scientist Okabe, struggling to recover from a failed attempt at rescuing Kurisu. He decides to give up and abandons his lively scientist alter ego, in pursuit to forget the past. When all seems to be normal, he is seemingly pulled back into the past by meeting an acquaintance of Kurisu, who tells him that they have begun testing a device that stores the memory of a human and creates a simulation of them with their characteristics and personalities. Okabe begins testing and finds out that the simulation of Kurisu has brought back anguish and some new unexpected tragedies…

Not a sequel, nor a prequel but the rarest of things, a midquel. As the description says, this series takes place near the end of the original Steins;Gate where Okabe never attempts a second time to save Kurisu. Now I have only played the start of the game so far but I must say that it’s looking quite promising. That said, I do know this author of this work has a tendency of starting strong and then running his stories into the ground with stupid plot twists and just mind numbing levels of storytelling incompetence. So it’s my hope that White Fox’s staff can once again cut out the dumb aspects of the original story while keeping the things that work. We have the original series composer for the first series but sadly not the director as this director is newer that I would have liked. His previous experience amounts to Qualidea Code and SoniAni which isn’t confidence inspiring. From what I have played the story starts off slow but looks to have great potential and I feel that Steins;Gate fans will certainly be engaged. But considering the author’s inconsistency, I cannot guarantee that will remain the case as the series finishes its course.

 

Wotaku ni Koi wa Muzukashii

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Studio: A-1 Pictures

Director: Yoshimasa Hiraike

Script/Series composer: Yoshimasa Hiraike

Source: Manga

The story centers on the awkward romantic comedy between Narumi, a female office worker who hides her fujoshi lifestyle, and Hirotaka, a handsome and capable company man who is secretly a game otaku.

If 3D Kanojo is the idealised version of romance, Wotaku ni Koi wa Muzukashii (otherwise known as “Love is Hard for Otaku”) is the more realistic version of it. Even the manner in which they get together is relatively mundane compared to the bombastic showing of 3D Kanojo. And may I say thank god these two have the perfect relationship in this story. I am legitimately jealous of the connection these two have, basically their interests align so well that they have fantastic chemistry. Though this show is less of a romance and more a straight comedy and a pretty good one by my standards. Makes for a fun light-hearted show to sit back and relax to. Director is also the Series Composer which has me rather concerned as his only noteworthy outings are Amagami and Working, though that second one may help in this regard. Provided he can nail the comedy this show will be pretty good, and personally it’s one I am looking forward to.