2017 Winter Anime Season Preview

It’s that time of the year again. With snow on the ground and Christmas lights about but that’s not what we are here for. Anime be my bread and my wine, and my presents if luck be true. I am lamenting over not being able to get the Spice and Wolf Collector’s edition book. Living in Europe can be quite troublesome sometimes but hey at least I got a Fullmetal Alchemist Collector’s edition that has a replica of the gate which just looks beautiful. Who knows, maybe I might even get around to watching that stockpile of Blu-ray anime i have sitting in my room. After the steam backlog is done i will have time…hopefully. Moving on to what really matters, a new anime season is coming up and forgive me if this sounds uncharacteristic of me but this season is looking very promising. We got second seasons of great shows along with Trigger saving anime again and even some pretty interesting shows in the lineup. I got my eye of a few here and while we got the usual lineup of straight to trashcan anime, there’s quite a lot of good to make up for potential bad tidings to come. 2016 certainly ended on a ominous note.

Same rules apply as before. The poll below will be used to gauge what you readers want us writers to cover this season. Vote for as many shows as you like. In regards to opinions on most sequels, if you liked the previous season then by all means continue. As usual I have checked out every source I can find, read manga, light novels, played video games…If I can get my hands on it then I will look at it to get a better idea of what the anime can offer.

This poll is no longer accepting votes

What will you be watching this spring?

Once again thanks to Mario for gathering the images. With that let’s get this show on the road.

 

The sequels/prequels I don’t care about

Gintama(2017)

Reikenzan: Eichi e no Shikaku

Rewrite / 2nd Season Moon-Hen/Terra-Hen

SUPER LOVERS 2

Yowamushi Pedal: NEW GENERATION

Tales of Zestiria the X 2

 

Series I don’t look forward to

 

AKIBA’ S TRIP: THE ANIMATION


Studio: Gonzo

Director: Hiroshi Ikehata

Script/Series composer: Kazuho Hyodo

Akihabara, a broad-minded neighborhood where everyone from beginners to masters are welcomed. Even when you’re alone, if you go to Akiba, you’ll find someone who understands you. It’s a neighborhood where anything is possible, where anyone can do seemingly anything; a place where you can lay bare your body and soul. In this neighborhood of Akiba, which has everything including anime, games, maids, idols, secondhand parts, and cheap food, battles are fought against the “Bagurimono,” and a steadfast “boy meets girl” story begins!

Let it never be said that I am not through and to get an idea for what we are in for I bought Akibas’trip Undead and undressed on steam and played through it. Admittedly the story of this anime isn’t related to the story of this game as it’s the second game of the series and I see none of the characters in the promo art. But it does give me an idea of what we are in for. I was really surprised by how much the story of the game took itself seriously. The characters treat the whole idea of stripping vampires to expose them to the sun with a surprising amount of righteousness. However unlike Keijo which shines in not recognising the utter ridiculousness of it’s concept, Akibas’trip just becomes another supernatural battle story when it disregards the whole stripping aspect. It also feels like a tourism ad for Akihabara at times. In fact that description up there is more endorsement of Akihabara than saying anything meaningful about the show. I truly don’t expect much for this and having Gonzo at the helm doesn’t make me think this is going to change my expectations. Director is a newbie and the series composer worked on Relife and that’s about it.
Continue reading “2017 Winter Anime Season Preview”

2016 Fall Anime Season Preview

There are times when I think that time hates me. After all my work hours go by so slowly that one would think time has stopped. Yet my spare time flies by that I look at a clock and one minute later look again to see an hour has gone by. I barely feel this season even started and yet it’s already ending and we got a whole new lineup to see. I previously said the current season looked to be a rather weak one but it has brought a number of surprises. The question is whether that will happen again as this season is looking potentially weaker. The large amount of original shows certainly increases the chances of a number of hidden gems so you never really know until it’s over.

My usual method of checking out every bit of source material I could find didn’t fair too well this time due to the large amount of anime original and untranslated works. But if I could get my hands on it, I checked it out. This season we are doing something a bit different. My usual way of doing this has become a bit outdated not that we have a number of authors on the blog. So instead of the poll below being used to decide one of the shows I will cover, we will use the poll as a means of figuring out just what you want us to cover. Basically it will be more or less the same but the top pick may not be covered by yours truly. Feel free to vote for as many shows as you would like.

This poll is no longer accepting votes

What will you be watching this winter?

Once again thanks to Mario for gathering the images and the others for inputting their two cents on certain shows. Let us get started.

 

The sequels/prequels I don’t care about

12-Sai. Chiccha na Mune no Tokimeki 2

AJIN 2

Bubuki Buranki: Hoshi no Kyojin

BUNGOU STRAY DOGS 2

Cardfight!! Vanguard G Next

Digimon Universe: App Monsters

Haikyuu!!: Karasuno Koukou VS Shiratorizawa Gakuen Koukou

Hibike! Euphonium 2

Kaitou Joker 4

SHOW BY ROCK!! 2

Kidou Senshi Gundam: Tekketsu no Orphans 2

Uta no☆Prince-sama♪ Maji Love Legend Star

ViVid Strike!

 

Series I don’t look forward to

 

Bloodivores


 

60 years ago, a strange case of insomnia struck the population, forcing them to stay awake for more than a full week. The victims, completely sleep deprived, all went mad. To cure this illness, a new medicine was produced, but the side effects turned the patients into vampires. Humanity went to war against this new species and triumphed, but some of the vampires managed to survive. Born from a Human and a Vampire, the main character Mi Liu, “The Child of Hope”, is to represent the new hope that will connect the two species. Ringleader of a bank robbery, Mi Liu is arrested and transferred to a special prison of the National Defense Agency that monitors Vampires. Trying to break free with Anji, Mi Liu is attacked by strange monsters and he finds out that the prison location corresponds to the birthplace of Vampires, the old capital “Blue Town.” Why are Vampires trapped in Blue Town? What are those strange monsters attacking them? Our heroes must fight to solve those mysteries.

Studio: Creators in Pack TOKYO

What happens in the backstory of this show sounds much more interesting than the show itself. A world driven made by insomnia? That is actually a pretty interesting concept. But nope, it’s just backstory to justify vampires. Really gotta hand it to the scientists that somehow managed to turn people into vampires when trying to cure insomnia. Anyway we have no staff information and it might surprise some that this is an adaption of a Chinese web comic originally called Space-TIme Prisoner. Based on what little I read it’s really nothing to write home about. Fairly mediocre, much like The Outcast series airing in the summer season. I quite like that anime is being created of non-japanese works but I really wish they could pick something a little more worth it.
Continue reading “2016 Fall Anime Season Preview”