Last season's top 3

[neflight86]

It took me a bit longer to finish give up on the stragglers this season…

3. Honzuki no Gekokujou: Shisho ni Naru Tame ni wa Shudan wo Erandeiraremasen 2nd Season- Finally, we get to the subject of books and then… more obstacles- servants, class disparity, and other complications that were certainly more interesting than welcome in this “Dr. Stone for girls” show. It pulled some heart whenever it counted, and the off-model art sometimes actually made Mein look more sympathetic, in a weird way.

2. Tower of God- I’ll take shounen when I can get it, and while the storytelling is certainly of a different style than I’m used to, I will say that it evoked some of the better mental battle shounen memories of times past. Hopefully it gets a continuation.

1. Otome Game no Hametsu Flag shika Nai Akuyaku Reijou ni Tensei shiteshimatta…- This really shouldn’t be here, but the main character was actually cute enough in her wholesomeness to win me over. I like how she expected everyone to turn on her always, not as a manifestation of distrust, but because she felt it fated to be so… so her decency itself actually spared her passively from the fate of the evil game character (though that didn’t stop her from studying horticulture). She really was “#humblepopular” and a joy to watch, as were her less fleshed out companions.

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Turns out there’s a clause in my forum contract to give out some special awards…

Kakushigoto – “Standards have risen award”: Ten… fifteen years ago, I’m convinced this would have been a classic due to its watch-ability and a real lack of competition. The loli is cute, and the dad’s gag didn’t really get old, and I imagine there was plenty of creative space for jokes around the concept. But in 2020, however, I couldn’t find the drive to complete it… Truly an embarrassment of riches.

Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai? Tensai-tachi no Renai Zunousen gets both the “Voice Work Matters” and “Catchy OP” awards: I really do take special notice of the V actors in Kaguya; especially Prez and vice prez. You really gotta pull double duty to make monologues engaging when they are supporting jokes the audience sees coming a mile away, and they pull it off.

Gleipnir teases, in the most trashy way possible, the “glorious mess” award. As a euphemism on teenage relationships, this grimdark battle series is about as subtle as a train wreck… But its production (in the early episodes) makes it worth wading through teen non-drama as a vehicle for another death game with supernatural powers. Worth it for fans of the genre.

Nami yo Kiitekure gets the ‘adulting’ award: I suppose this is how it feels to recognize the act of growing up is more than just worrying about paying your bills- in developed countries, that isn’t the hard part, it is finding purpose and joy in the life you lead. That is what made Nami yo Kiitekure engaging to watch. Minare is fun to watch narrate herself through all of her existence because she really seems to be commentating from a place of emotional insecurity, and it works well off of the rest of the cast. Different, and worth a watch.

Yesterday wo Utatte picks up the “lowest stakes possible” award up off of the floor (5 second rule!): Pure romance series, aside form being relatively rare in anime, also face the challenge of engaging the audience with character interaction and growth alone. Both of those things take time or really strong, punchy writing. Thankfully, Yesterday invested a bit of both to keep a good balance of progression and character- this is the first series I thought I would drop, and yet it completed it.

Shachou, Battle no Jikan Desu! Gets the “backlog bait” award. This disposable story of destitute adventure guild revitalization in yet another fantasy world will be perfect to archive for watching when the world ends.

Princess Connect! Reive gets the reversed colored can of “Diet Konosuba” honors: It tastes kind of like Konosuba, but it isn’t… but I really like Konosuba, so I’ll try it anyway, and it was good enough, but I can taste the aspartame.

[neflight86]

Another season, another shift in life; time for the top 3!


3. Appare Ranman: P.A. Works doing what it does best with a little jank on the side. Pretty good characters prop up just about the least race-oriented racing series I’ve ever seen. A few ham-fisted plot elements intrude on the fun for a bit to force some arbitrary tension to prod Appare’s autism into new heights of emotional intelligence. Above average animation and a theme that resonates with me (American western) brought this into the top three of the season.


2. Houkago Teibou Nisshi: Cute girls doing what- fishing, you say? Can’t complain about much, really. As far as a breezy slice of life goes, this checks all of the boxes: cute girls explaining to my idiot self the appeal of a niche activity through the vicarious surrogate main character who just happens to be a girl. A few notable aspects include the sleazy president (unusual archetype in ‘cute’ anime), and the ‘failure’ of a drunken teacher/advisor. I’m surprised, but this being here isn’t surprising.


1. Yahari Ore: Really, I wasn’t sure if I would ever get to see the end of my favorite rom-com series, as I couldn’t gauge how popular it was in the large picture. I love 8-man as a character and feel like he’s done more to earn his harem than anyone else in anime. I loved the interaction, the banter, the developments, the talking in circles, and the vague metaphorical dialogue for all of the characters. I was truly ‘into’ this and looked forward to nothing more each week.


I was about to skip special awards, but the collar on my neck started beeping,so..

______________________

“Most wasted effort” award goes to Lapis: Re:lights: There are some genuinely good parts of another show that couldn’t get green-lit without stapling about fifteen idol girl character designs with it on display here. The stories are fun, the animation goes beyond what is needed to impress at (though I can still spot the CGI in dance sections, for the record), and even the character designs are almost memorable.


The “Quickest to Nope” award went to Maou Gakuen…: Overpowered story about some ‘random’ dude that is too cool for school and disrupts an established societal power structure while being above it all? And the girls all fall for him and wanna do… lewd things? I wish I could laugh or copy and paste my dismissal of this show from the last three seasons, but I’m just blank on these types of shows by now. It does not bode well for anime when what passes for excitement is what twist on a known trope might differentiate a new series.


The “backhanded apology” letter is sent to The God of High School: I called this a poor story due to the source format (Online Manhua), when I have since discovered that this may, in possibility, merely be a poor adaptation. 100+ chapters in 12 episodes, I’ve heard. Some things getting lost were inevitable, but I cannot say the gains were worth the sacrifice, as the second half of the show is just… a mess of nonsensical beatles, powerups, and more battles… I felt nothing for all of the flashy (but not noticeably good) animation on display. The storytelling felt a bit more shounen compared to ToG, which is a bit disappointing. I’m sure this won’t be the last webtoon adapted to anime, and I look forward to the next if only to see the formulas shaken up further.


The ‘kinda over it’ award it tossed to Re:Zero season 2: Re:Zero was a big deal in the Aniverse back in 2016, when subverting isekai hadn’t become its own trope quite yet. While I did largely like the first season, what we got in these 13 episodes simply didn’t advance the story enough to be satisfying on any level. Not even the witches. Watching Subaru screech every other episode when he is surprised that, yet again, bad things happen to him and the people he cares about which he has little control over except for his groundhog day powers is getting old fast. He is rapidly transitioning from tragic character to meme, and that’s a shame. The (vague) story itself is shaping up in such a way that I would like to visit it again when it is complete, as the weekly format does nothing to enhance my enjoyment for such a patently incomplete story.


The ‘coal or diamond’ award goes to Gibiate: A time travel tale of a legendary samurai (and ninja buddy) helping humanity fend off monster bugs in the post apocalyptic future is slightly less worn-out than most of what is on offer this season. Three episodes in, it looked like it could go either way in quality, but my gut decided to drop it due to no strong hook. Could be worth a watch?


“Wrong headspace” award goes to Deca-Dence: Something about this just rubbed me the wrong way and I interpreted it as pretentious, when it probably was not. The early twist didn’t excite, and that, possibly unfairly, soured me on continuing.


The “awakening” award was forced upon Uzaki-chan wa Asobitai: Upon the horizon, I see the dawn of a new type of rom-com; the ‘bully’ series, where a boy is endlessly tormented by an affectionate female cohort. Think “Takagi-kun” and ”Please don’t bully me, Nagatoro”... I’m starting to enjoy it more as a reversal of the power dynamic where the girl both sets the tone of the relationship and isn’t necessarily a tsundere. This was a bit more dynamic than Takagi-kun in that Uzaki doesn’t always get the last laugh- just like a one sided game is boring, one sided romance can be the same. I also have a special place in my heart for the weird voyeuristic interests of the coffee shop father/daughter.


The “missing link” jigsaw piece is for Monster Musume no Oisha-san: A pleasant in-between; not super lewd as monster girls (or interspecies reviewers, if you were in a certain kind of circle), nor innocuous “Interviews with Monster Girls”, Monster Musume explores fantasy races through the lens of medicine, and a bit of ecchi on the side. Complete fantasy, but interesting enough if you like semi-procedural medical mystery, as light as it could be...


Given recent events, anime output is certainly in a bit of a slump right now, but that’s good breathing room to look at some older series and backlog.

[neflight86]

Oh, goody! It’s time for the top three (and friends):

3. Sonyoku no Sigrdrifa: The latest entry in the long venerated ‘cute girls are the only ones who can fight monsters’ genre, Sigrdrifa owes its niche appeal by being somewhat authored/connected to the Re:Zero author. I can’t say it particularly felt like it, but the slice of life turning to trauma and tragedy with all of the naive bravado that could only hope to reach a fairly pubescent audience was familiar. Spice in some old timey planes with enough military dressing to act serious, and you have a passable story of struggle and hope that doesn’t overstay its welcome.


2. Akudama Drive: A story of super criminals being coerced into performing a heist against a nebulous government. I like that the story was willing to go in unpredictable directions for almost its entire duration. Flashy fights and above average production with attitude to spare. Recommended.


1. Munou no Nana: It’s about as close to Death Note in structure as we’ve come in the past ten or so years, and really benefits from a lack of competition in the ‘cat and mouse death game’ genre. Cliff hangers and clever developments marred slightly by animation that didn’t really heighten the experience, nonetheless I awaited nothing more each week.


I had a dream that... warned of cataclysm if I didn’t scrape together some… special awards for this season... Don’t blame me!


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Haikyuu!! To the Top is hereby awarded the ‘anti-hype’ award. I love this series; a solid 9 in my book… but I didn’t watch beyond four episodes this season. Why? Simply because I read the manga already and knew all of the major story beats coming up. Seeing where it (this season) ended, I was actually kind of surprised that they only got as far as they did. The manga (this story) emphasizes the concept of the journey being more important than the end goal itself, but that doesn’t hold true for me, it seems. Without the allure of the unknown, I simply couldn’t bring myself to devote time each week to shounen pacing… If I hadn’t read ahead, I’m sure I would have been glued to my seat, so take caution!


Assault Lily: Bouquet gets the spare ‘blank’ award: I really can’t remember much about Assault Lilly other than it was frilly…. Very, very, frilly. Another cute girl ensemble battle high school slightly elevated by some high energy battle animation, Assault Lily is about as disposable as modern anime can get. Oh, and the little brunette reporter girl’s novocaine addled voice grated me to no end.


Majo no Tabitabi gets the ‘modern Kino’ award: And that is not in a necessarily good way. Back in a time long past, when studios adapted thoughtful works that presented interesting ideas like Kino’s Travels, allowing the viewer to be exposed to assorted philosophical and moral dilemmas and situations, nostalgia had not yet set in and it probably wasn’t as good as I remember it being (didn’t even watch the recent remake)… It’s fine, and has some unique stories, but the overall aesthetic and lack of a central narrative wasn’t gripping enough to compel me to complete it.


The golden (unopened) tissue box goes to “Kamisama ni Natta hi” - There is a distinct art to the manufacture of sorrow or grief, and only a handful of ways to do it: You can create a tragedy, a strong sentiment, or, in KamiSama’s case, put in the effort to endear characters before ripping them apart. A little uneven, this is probably this author’s most down to earth story yet with actually low stakes that prevent audacious concepts from detracting the audience’s attention from the drama at hand.


100-man no Inochi no Ue ni Ore wa Tatte Iru wins the “woah- is this a dream?” award: Not compelling enough to actually demand my attention, but just weird enough to keep me watching, 100-man is a curious story of brute forcing unfair quests in a fairly mundane isekai way, but becomes more interesting once the cracks start appearing in the characters. None of the participant ‘heroes’ is a full, complete person in surprisingly a good way (for entertainment’s sake, at least). As we spend more time with them on their mundane quests that slowly spiral into larger things, a general uneasiness about what is going on that I won’t spoil (and frankly isn’t a twist per-say). Similar to watching someone try to keep their balance on a floating log, a queer spectacle, indeed.


Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle gets the “one and done” single use award: Hypnosis mic is entirely worth watching… a single episode of; no more and no less. To say the premise can support approximately 20 minutes of worthwhile content is an exacting, but true, statement. A new world order has rendered rap battling the only meaningful way to settle disputes, and rhythmic wars are breaking out in a way that only anime can do with a straight face. Not a native speaker, of course the lyrics are largely lost on me, but the beats and outlandish scenario gave me a smile for the pilot. I actually pity the production staff tasked with trying to keep this formula alive for another 11 episodes after having an entire 4 rap battles in the first episode… where no follow up could hope to match.


Iwa Kakeru! Sport Climbing Girls is hereby awarded the “going through the motions” award: I thought I hit rock bottom of the shounen sports genre simping with that sumo anime from a couple years back- but no… I also wasted four hours watching Sport Climbing Girls. Completely pedestrian, this tale of a nerd(gamer) turned pro athlete simply checked all of the boxes in the basic order: Introduction, rival, acclimation, growth, setback, and triumph… all in twelve episodes. Sprinkle some friendship and commentary in there somewhere and you’ve got a winner, for better or worse. I believe I’ve isolated the most compelling story beat that these shows offer, and it is the contemplation of talent versus hard work (obvious, I know), but how each of these shows handles it is a bit different. Some suggest all people with the drive to achieve can reach a level of mastery, where some say talent must be mixed with discipline and proper instruction, and other permutations, most of which include friendship somehow. Sport Climbing Girls largely sidesteps the issue by not focusing on the character’s interactions, as it is a non-contact sport- you versus the wall, and has a slightly different dynamic due to it, and really stretches to find tension as a result.


Maesetsu! gets the “silver pillow” award - Aggressively boring. Story about girls who want to be comedians, but aren’t particularly funny (canonicaly?). The jokes didn’t land and I didn’t care enough for the art to stick around.


Kami-tachi ni Hirowareta Otoko is awarded ‘bland toast’ slice: Fantasy isekai where the protagonist is granted broken level proficiency from local deities as repayment for their untimely death in another world. If I had copy pasted that from another (boring) series entry and linked it here, I could have saved us both some time.


Maou-jou de Oyasumi gets the “trivial pursuit” award: You’ve seen “crafting adventures” for boys (Dr. Stone), and for girls, (Ascendance of a Bookworm), but have you seen it for… the unemployed? A cozy romp featuring a ‘captured’ princess, having nothing better to do in the demon king’s castle, decides to up her sleeping accommodations by essentially having the run of the place arts and crafts style. Pretty light from a fantasy perspective, bordering on parody, the demon king’s army is treated more like put out relatives the princess is visiting than actual captors to very cute effect (I love the hedgehog demon). The princess’ single mindedness of enhancing her sleep and constant misunderstandings- based humor that threw more than a few twists in their punchlines were supremely entertaining for me.


Magatsu Wahrheit: Zuerst gets the “fair effort” award: Based on a mobile game, an anime being unbound by existing narrative is actually kind of exciting. After all, if any schmuck could have written the story, perhaps it will avoid the most well worn tropes of the ‘magical warring states’ genre (see below). Magatsu manages to half subvert what I expected from it, which is a miracle in and of itself. An unlikely kick off to an intertwined story caused by an act of kindness (none shall go unpunished) sees the reverse Immanuel (Innamuel) swept up in a rebellion/smugglers movement that is involved in an entire empire’s worth of intrigue with world rending consequences to follow. Too bad the production quality slipped on the toilet and fell in. This is one gnarly looking show at times; especially toward the latter half. The story and characters sort of make up for it, though, but top shelf entertainment this is not.


“Super Generic Army Fantasy” store brand award goes to Kimi to Boku no Saigo no Senjou: Two countries- one likes magic, one likes science, and they both like warring with each other except for the Romeo and Juliet main couple who just happen to be in affectation for each other (secretly, of course). There is even a neutral city called Neutral City where they can quasi-flirt in case the audience was afraid the scenario writer(s) were going to have to expend effort in constructing other contrivances to get them shared screen time. To its credit, it does try to start a few plot threads, but none of them have even remotely enough time to pan out and are simply a platform for hollow battles just in time to be both unresolved and uninteresting by season’s end. Does this story need another season or two? Certainly. Does it deserve another minute of your time? Of course not.


Not a bad season, all things considered. Sadly, I still haven’t watched the latest “Is it wrong to pick up girls in a dungeon” or “Golden Kamuy”, or I’m sure I would have had some things to say. Added to the backlog as Anime seasons wait for no man...

[MFauli]

I have entirely forgotten last season :/

That's also a statement, I guess.

[Ryllharu]

Winter 2021, in no particular order:

Mushoku Tensei - An isekai that actually focuses on personal character growth rather than being overpowered right from the start? The animation was really on point the entire season as well. It's a good balance between creating an actually compelling setting that our transplanted protagonist actually engages with (shocked dismay at the bloody deaths that everyone else casually dismisses as day to day occurrences for one...), individual growth of both the lead and the supporting cast, and treats them all as very human. It is probably a harem, but it sure doesn't feel like one. Everyone seems to have a specific level of drive and individuality.

Non Non Biyori Nonstop - Placing itself firmly at the peak of everyday slice of life comedy, the rural-centric series objectively may have the best comic timing of any anime in the last 20 years. Every joke and gag has a solid set up, every one of them given a chance to breathe. This is comedy directing and storyboarding at the peak of damn near every comedy genre and medium. The introspective and heartwarming moments are a bonus. It's relatable, the cast kills every episode and every scene.

Tatoeba Last Dungeon Mae no Mura no Shounen ga Joban no Machi de Kurasu Youna Monogatari - It shouldn't work, the premise is stupid, the plot over every episode predictable, but somehow, each one manages to be entertaining. It really sells on also handling comedy correctly, though the timing isn't quite perfect. Every gag is set up with a promise and a payoff, so they work really well. The characters sit right on the very edge of being annoying, but they never really cross that line.


Honorable mentions:
Horimiya - (Episodes 1 - 7 only) Some of the most natural romance you can find. The franchise unfortunately suffers from being drawn out far beyond when it should have been ended as a tightly written story. A trait it shares with other 'legendary' anime romance series, sadly.
Slime Tensei - While I did like this season quite a bit, the pacing really sucked. They frequently missed the mark on where the episodes were cut to land more powerful impacts on the story beats. The series deflated its own tension more often than not.

[Buffalobiian]

So eager Ryll, Non Non Biyori hadn't even finished airing when you posted that xD

Top 3:

Non Non Biyori.

Mushoku Tensei.

Attack on Titan Final Season (1st part).


It was actually kind of hard not mentioning Jujutsu Kaisen in the top 3, but while Jujutsu Kaisen is a well made Shonen with a good budget and soundtrack, AoT's twists placed it on top. Season stuff aside, if there's going to be a "Shows you missed that you should watch from the last decade", AoT would beat out JJK, so I guess that solves my ranking issue.

[KrayZ33]

So eager Ryll, Non Non Biyori hadn't even finished airing when you posted that xD

Top 3:

Non Non Biyori.

Mushoku Tensei.

Attack on Titan Final Season (1st part).


It was actually kind of hard not mentioning Jujutsu Kaisen in the top 3, but while Jujutsu Kaisen is a well made Shonen with a good budget and soundtrack, AoT's twists placed it on top. Season stuff aside, if there's going to be a "Shows you missed that you should watch from the last decade", AoT would beat out JJK, so I guess that solves my ranking issue.

technically, JJK is from 2020 anyway

With that in mind, I can't even name 3 series tbh.

Mushoku for sure.

but then... with a wide gap.

Kumoko and maybe Jaku-Chara.



ReZero was pretty horrible this season overall imho, it had some moments, but I'm starting to "hate" Subaru more and more each season (his character just doesn't fit with the theme of this show and his inability starts to annoy me now)
Slime isn't much more than a time-waster to me and I'm starting to put it in the same category as "smartphone"-isekai or that "I ate monsters to survive"-isekai.

[Buffalobiian]

technically, JJK is from 2020 anyway

Ryll and I, amongst others, have been counting shows when they end. Thus we're not including Kumoko since it's still going, and thus should not rate it until it's finished airing.

But to each their own.

[MFauli]

My Top3 based on what I was looking forward to the most each week:


1. Kumo desu-ga, nani ka (watching a cute spider grow stronger is the best. Could watch this for hours, just her grinding and shit)
2. Re: Zero Season 2 (spending an entire season in location was a bitch move, but the anime still knows how to go for the heart. Season 3 ASAP pls and let's get back Rem!)
3.Shingeki no Kyoujin (oh well, that would have been a lot more relaxed season had we known that there's gonna be a part 2, lol. As mentiioned in the main thread, some developments felt rushed, but it was still exciting to watch. Fuck that cliffhanger ,though)


Honorable mention: Beastars Season 2 (unfortunately, the season kinda lost me after it became apparent how stupid Legosi's decision not to tell anyone about Riz became. For a long time I thought that maybe there is no police in this world, but nah, there is. Dumbest move ever. And it lead to a questionable showdown).

[Ryllharu]

Guidelines:

- Only post complete seasons, the objective of this thread is to help users find good anime and not anime that has been good so far. If it was that awesome, you can post about it in the next season.

- There's no need for lengthly descriptions ( that's what we have ann, anidb and wikipedia for ) but do try to concisely describe what made that particular show worthy of entering your top 3

- There isn't any need for a specific order between the three you choose but make sure to make visible distinctions should you feel like adding some "honorable mentions"

- Should you be the first to post about a new season, make sure to mark what particular season you're posting about with the title of your post (eg. Spring 2009)

Note:

- As not to make a mess of things the purpose of this thread is to simply post your top 3, NOT to comment on other member's choices or on any other subjects.

For a reminder for what have always been the guidelines of this thread...

[neflight86]

Well, what did we have this season? A much harder time narrowing it down to three finalists, for one...

3. Mushoku Tensei: Isekai Ittara Honki Dasu: An above average production for a series I’ve enjoyed in manga format years ago. Some call it the daddy of the modern isekai, but to me it is just a more thoughtful isekai focusing on growth and the application of lessons learned. Much of Rudeus’ journey is steeped in actively avoiding squandering his new chance at life with all of his past regrets ingrained in him. Very entertaining, and more than a little pervy.

2. Jaku-Chara Tomozaki-kun: Get this- a highschool gamer, just like you or me (plus or minus 15 years), is socially awkward and gets training on talking to people by another gamer who happens to be a beautiful girl he goes to school with. Small world, huh? Setting aside the asinine premise as us anime viewers are oft expected to do, I really enjoyed seeing Tomozaki’s growth each week and his navigation of increasingly complex social interactions for the benefit of others. Not quite rom-com, and not quite coming of age story, Tomozaki should appeal to you if you enjoyed ‘less passionate’ couple dramedies like Rascal and Teen Rom Com Snafu.

1. Shingeki no Kyojin: The only thing more painful than this not actually being the final season of AoT is that it could have been. The gripping story shifted, once again, to territory unknown in the most intriguing way possible. My investment in the narrative and lore has been thoroughly paid off and I could want for nothing more each week.

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A fortune cookie told me to do some special awards or I would suffer from mild lower back pain...

The Wunderkind award is shared by Wonderegg Priority and Beastars (s2): Both of these barely missed top three status... the competition was that fierce. Showcasing two opposite strengths of Anime: high concept gorgeous animation in WeP, and societal commentary with the least egregious use of CG yet in Beastars. Both shows were delights to watch and only faltered in minor ways. Beastars continued to explore character development in interesting ways, but became a bit too mystical and sentimental for my liking during serious business, and Wonder Egg didn’t actually deliver much of a conclusion for how hard it seemed like it was trying to wrap up. Excellent shows, though, both.

The ‘knee scraper’ band-aid is presented to ‘Highrise Invasion’ Netflix strikes again by (under)funding another anime. This edgy take on the death game genre pits assorted folks against each other, mysterious ‘masks’, and their own suicidal tendencies to create/select a new ‘god’. I finished it, but the quality bar was so low that clearing it drew blood. The setting is somewhat unique in that all of the participants are trapped in skyscrapers connected by rope bridges and the supernatural is replaced by super-science-fiction-natural. It’s schlocky, but the fights and characters din’t behave like I was expecting, so the intrigue worked well enough to carry twelve episodes, and the ED is pretty catchy, too.

The ‘you really shouldn’t have’ award goes to Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken (s2): The jolly vibes of season one returned off the bat with more politicking and fun interactions at the onset of this season, though the animation took a slight dive. When this season’s full on battle/invasion arc took place, some tonal incongruities that bothered me, detailed in our very own discussion thread, cooled me on the finale. Still fun to watch, and still recommended.

The ‘better than the sum of its parts’ award is for ‘Tatoeba Last Dungeon Mae no Mura no Shounen ga Joban no Machi de Kurasu Youna Monogatari’: Mouthful title aside, this had every reason to be not good. Generic fantasy ‘adventure/power fantasy/harem’ series with low tension and an even lower animation budget meant that essentially all of the load bearing weight was put onto the writing… and it actually worked. Decent and above jokes littered the show with appropriate setup and pay off each episode. Your predilection to these kinds of disposable shows isn’t going to be challenged, but you may find it entertaining indeed.

The ‘over easy pre-beaten carton priority’ award is tossed by way of ‘Ura Sekai Picnic’ and ‘2.43 Seiin Koukou Danshi Volley Bu’. More victims of existing in the same world as national brands, these generic imitations didn’t have the chance to properly shine. Wonder Egg and Haikyuu are both tall hurdles to top (taller than 4.23 meters, anyway) and these just couldn’t keep my interest beyond two episodes, as the story beats felt familiar-yet-stale.

‘Most wasted talent’ goes to ‘Idolly Pride’: Not a particularly ambitious show, the main reason I watched each week was the spry and energetic performance scenes. A mixture of CG, fast pans, and cell art, there were some choice cuts here and I was thoroughly entertained by them enough to weather the bare-bones story that threaded them all together.

The ‘tuning fork’ award goes to ‘Soukou Musume Senki’: Mecha and other series designed to be merchandised are no strangers to out-there concepts and nonsensical stories cobbled together by unpassionate staff to meet a deadline. That’s par for the course, but the episodes here went from otaku isekai to muv-luv style attrition of war to hot springs to symbols of peace and noble sacrifice. I felt ‘Fate’ vibes somewhere in there, too... and it just couldn’t nail down a solid tone before I lost interest.

Curiosity killed the cat, but ‘Ore dake Haireru Kakushi Dungeon’ brought him back, and was thus awarded the ‘satisfaction’ prize: Sometimes, you know what you are getting into by the first boob-jiggle, and that is exactly what happened here. Characters and premise exist solely to facilitate lewd happenings, but the side characters and thoughtful mini stories, some of which don’t even involve the harem, gave it more of a soul than you should assume it has. The kicker though, is that the story is really and functionally complete by the end of episode 12. That’s all, folks! Nothing more to see here. All of the loose ends were tied up and it offers a clean break. I couldn’t ask for more.

The ‘buffet restraint’ award is in a to-go box for ‘Horimiya’: Cute feelsy romance with a distinctly forward couple that is a joy to watch, but somewhere after they start dating, the tension of the show drains and I don’t feel compelled to consume more, even though it is on offer. Like a transient from rom-com to sit-com?

The ‘effective advertising’ flyer goes to ‘Kemono Jihen’: The show wasn’t really anything special as it played out, but something about the finale, and the momentum it promised of the story moving forward got me strangely hyped to see/read what happens next. Most anime is made to promote its derived material, and few worked at that so well for me. Inugami being the smoothest Tanuki didn’t hurt, either.


The ‘wasted effort’ award goes to ‘EX-ARM’: I considered bringing the Golden Toilet out of retirement for this one, but EX-ARM commits the cardinal sin of being too boring to bring forth the effort to passionately dissect. You’ve seen the memes, you know that fans aren’t happy (rightfully so), and that this has confirmed my bias against CG anime in a way that makes me insufferably smug. Don’t waste your time. The most humanitarian thing we can do is limit the damage caused by exposure to the poor people who got this on their resumes. May they rest in peace...

The ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ papers go to ‘Kaifuku Jutsushi no Yarinaoshi’: What can I say about the rapey-est show I’ve ever seen? I couldn’t get past a few episodes in this revenge tale, but there was a lot of hate (and awkward titillation) in what I saw. I don’t know what or who this kind of cathartic outlet this is supposed to be for, but I don’t need it in my life and would caution you against it as well.

‘Loose ends’ frayed rope goes to ‘Dr.STONE STONE WARS’ The opposite of Boku no Hero, Dr. Stone got a full length first season, and a shortened second. In my eyes, this was really the conclusion that the first season needed, but would not fit the running of a two cour; three cour would have been perfect, but anime is planned years in advance, so that kind of pivoting isn’t really in the cards. The storytelling took a bit of a hit from the mid-arc start, but reached its conclusion appropriately. This should set up the next season in a much better place.

A good season. An embarrassment of riches.

[Ryllharu]

Spring 2021

Vivy: Fluorite Eye`s Song - A pretty clear candidate for anime of the season. One part Eve no Jikan, one part Violet Evergarden, a tablespoon of Your Name, and season with GitS:SAC to taste. Android idol premise with the action director of Attack on Titan, and damn do they pull it off. It has some really incredible action sequences, stellar music, and animation that knows when to conserve itself so it blends together nicely. The plot isn't anything particularly mindblowing, kind of a standard time-travel changing plot, it just happens to move linearly because Vivy is an android. But what it does do, it does very competently and executes flawlessly.
It is somewhat marred by peaking too soon. The best episodes by far are 3 & 4, with a trio later on being the second best arc. The ending, unfortunately falls below both of those arcs and just glides to the finale. Overall, I do strongly recommend it.

Ijiranaide, Nagatoro-san - What starts as a rather controversial "bullying" anime slowly reveals itself to be, as a prominent anime youtuber says, "actually wholesome as fuck." There's a depth to Nagatoro, both the anime and the character herself, that a lot of the other "teasing" genres never come close to hitting. It's superficial, or one of the infuriating "will they won't they" gravitate endlessly around each other until an abrupt ending series that often get mentioned alongside it. No, Nagatoro goes the next level: Steady character progression. The expressions are really varied and substantially detailed given the art style, going from 'tormenting mischief' to 'slyly unable to admit their own feelings even to themselves, but absolutely obvious to everyone in the vicinity'. Get past the first two episodes, and keep an eye out for the at first subtle, and then rather blatant character growth of Nagatoro and her senpai from segment to segment. There's a good natured desire for improvement across every episode. The series appears to start rather sour, but swiftly shifts to sweet.

86 - Eighty Six (side note: this series' stupid title makes it annoying hard to search for just about anywhere)
While their were other strong contenders, I feel that 86 deserves my third pick because it successfully turned itself around from mediocrity in its middle segments. I will also admit there was a fair amount of my personal bias towards that sentiment, until I learned that the author does absolutely nothing to hide her inspirations for the series: Muv-Luv, Screamers, and Code Geass Akito. It isn't derivative, it is intentional.
It manages to hit a lot of topics all at once, racism, hubris, self-destruction, the futility of war, the savagery of humankind, detachment, guilt, and all sorts of other great character development drama fodder. And it does all of them some degree of justice. There's definitely some cringey stuff here (the female lead's military uniform for one...) but I found myself very interested in more of the universe this series has to offer, and many more questions that came up and didn't get answered by the end of the first cour. The second resumes in Oct 2021.
The music is definitely weird. But that's Sawano Hiroyuki. You can immediately tell it is him, like Yuki Kajira, he has a very particular style. Some people like it. I used to, but don't anymore.

[David75]

Vivy, fully agree with Ryll. I needed a better closure episode. But I'm glad I watched that show.

Shadows House- Started a late thread for that one, I do not have much to add.

Seijo no Maryoku wa Bannou Desu- Probably from a soft josei dating game. Very relaxed atmosphere where our main character slowly wakes up to her feelings that happen to also be her main source of almost infinite magical power. Watching this feels like a nice walk in a parc, sunny but not too warm spring day.

[neflight86]

Another strong season filled with delights. It was… difficult to narrow it down to a top three.

3. Cestvs: The Roman Fighter: While there can be little doubt that Megalo Box is the superior show in most ways, the shounen tropes of Cestvs won me over in the end. Even with the jarring CG animation, I could not look away from the ever so slightly technical fisticuffs and slave-passions that drove the fighters. Much better than expected.

2. Mashiro no Oto: Something about tortured artists/artisans somehow hasn’t turned me off yet. I think it started with “March comes in like a Lion”... I enjoyed MC’s sluggish journey to ‘find his sound’, and the tournament arc at the end was much to my liking. Enjoying the music, too, didn’t hurt.

1. Odd Taxi: A sort of queer fascination gripped me for most of the run time of Odd Taxi. Seeing (and expecting) the various plot threads to slowly come together was satisfying, and Odokawa always felt just the right amount of ‘off’ to keep him squarely in the realm of ‘suspicious’ until the very end. The fun dialogue and cute twist at the end were really sold by the characters and each one seemed more memorable than they should be given the amount of screen time given. Highly recommended.

____________________

I’ll just toss these awards I found laying around over… here…

The “weird duality” award goes to “Mars Red” & “Jouran: The Princess of Snow and Blood”: Two early pre war era japanese vampire stories about covert kill squads airing in the same season? What is this, the new isekai? Both had their charms- Mars leaning on its plodding theatrical qualities, while Jouran was content with more bombastic spectacle, neither proved quite interesting enough to finish, but I was never a great fan of vampire fiction, anyway.

The ‘remission’ award goes to Megalo Box: Unlike the coach character, Megalo Box managed to survive its grim diagnosis- ‘sequel to original anime-itis’. The first, and presumably only season pretty much concluded all of the interesting plot elements, so what could this season hope to do? My modest expectations were blown away with more of what I forgot Megalow Box has going for it: heart. Picking up after the titular fight, the story follows Joe scraping by with bad decisions and the harm it has perpetuated on those he cares about. The entire season is about getting back up. Fitting for a boxing anime.

The “better than I thought” award goes to Kyuukyoku Shinka shita Full Dive RPG ga Genjitsu yori mo Kusoge Dattara: The running gags of the game being realistic in only the most annoying ways and the subsequent pariah status of the main character were more entertaining than I would have given credit for. The plot became more interesting as it went on, and I daresay the ending was somewhat satisfying.

The “Sacchrine Sweet” pink packet goes to “Seijo no Maryoku wa Bannou Desu”:
As far as isekai power fanatasy goes, this was pretty standard, with a strong side of ‘girly’. The interactions were fine, and the reverse harem not at all overbearing, so this was more of an easy watch in a ‘rabbit hill’ sort of ‘everyone gets along generally’ way. Like a nice tea; goes down easy and generally quenches the thirst.

The “robbed again” statement is being taken for “Thunderbolt Fantasy: Touri-ken Yuuki 3”: Probably should have been 1 or 2, this is not technically anime, so has been arbitrarily disqualified. Don’t let that stop you from watching. Wushu puppetry at its finest. The story and dialogue are both detailed and well considered. Largely a continuation of season two, the events of this season are not stand alone, and do seem to lead into future happenings. The hype is real, and so is the quality of Thunderbolt as an entertainment piece.

The “What am I doing here” blank stare is hereby granted to “Hige wo Soru. Soshite Joshikousei wo Hirou”: It must have been the discussions here on the forums, because, in hindsight, I’m not sure why I watched this… Niceguy McNothingburger randomly picks up a runaway highschool girl who has done lewd things for a place to stay, and is determined to set her straight… Que the most awkward of sexual advances and scorned flirting from the ‘other two’ options (same age and older) until the plot decides it’s time to wrap up this weak drama.

“License to Cruise” given to “Super Cub”: Ya know, for an advertisement, this was well put together. The main appeal of this to me was the kindred spirit of the girls (yes, this is of course a ‘cute girls do Super Cubs’ show) appreciating the open road, and the independence of self-travel. The chill, classical soundtrack, muted color tones, and mundanity of the quests kept the vibes juuuuuust right for me.

The “overbearing shadow” looms atop “Sentouin, Hakenshimasu!”: Yeah; Konosuba- I really liked that one. No so much since, though, but keep trying, Sensei!

The “mini capstone” goes to “Osananajimi ga Zettai ni Makenai Love Comedy”: It’s been this way for a short while, but I will choose to recognize this show as the point when I have noticed that romantic comedies are beginning to, as a standard, incorporate open affection as the default dynamic. No more spending all season sweating/blushing over ‘will they like me or won’t they?’ The characters love each other, and aren’t shy about it, and the story has to bend over backwards to keep them apart regardless, and stretch it does… The initial ‘hook’ of pretending to be lovers to get some nebulous revenge is quickly swept aside and Osananajimi flounders and flops around for the remainder of its runtime with the usual gamut of Harem Hijinks, beach episode and all…

The “both better and worse” award goes to “86–EIGHTY_SIX”: Designed to tug at heartstrings with all of the tricks that work best on viewers who haven’t watched much like this before- soft focus, sweeping vocalist tracks playing over credits… a competition to see who can die most tragically. It didn’t quite work on me, but the underlying premise is strong enough to carry my interest. Sci-fi horror of self aware AI taking on a humanity presumably too embattled with its own petty politics to effectively fend them off- good stuff, and I’m looking forward to season 2.

The ‘stroke check’ award is presented to “Seven Knights Revolution: Eiyuu no Keishousha”: I had to check if the heat got to me- I liked a mobile game adaptation. There’s about as much substance to this as a placebo medication, but it worked. Lively fight animation and a brisk pace that had a story to both tell and finish telling in one cour gave me my painfully generic fantasy action fix. Would I recommend it? About as much as a stroke.

The ‘eager to finish’ award is split between “Shakunetsu Kabaddi” and “Sayonara Watashi no Cramer”: I just assume I’ll like most sports stories nowadays. They are shounen adjacent enough even when they are not by the spirit of competition, that I tend to enjoy them. Cramer was very gentle, and I lost interest, but word has it that there is some real fun to be had with this girl’s soccer team, and I’m keen to binge it. Same goes for Kabbadi, though the thin-ness of Kabbadi (as a sport) makes it a real stretch to depict something that will retain my interest. I have to try though, because I watched that stupid sumo anime a couple years back, and this is easily better than that just a few episodes in…

My award for the ‘most unnecessary show’, while close this season, goes to “Slime Taoshite 300-nen, Shiranai Uchi ni Level Max ni Nattemashita”: Fluff, fluffy, fluff. Isekai wish fulfillment slice-of-life crap. Absolutely derivative with nary a single original idea, some bare minimum animation and a threadbare narrative that serves simply as a vehicle for yuri-adjacent pandering and low stakes battles. 7/10; would roll my eyes again.

The ‘gross’ award goes to “Ijiranaide, Nagatoro-san”: This season’s bullying fetish show has the titular character slapping sempai near-continuously both physically and verbally (grossgrossgross!) to break down the defenses set up to preserve his loner attitude. It’s cute and effective, and her delinquent friends round out the cast and dynamics well. Recommended.

The ‘grinding’ award goes to “Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka?“: Some people really liked the idea of a game player grinding their way to the top of the food chain, but I just saw more isekai and a slightly more interesting take on non-linear storytelling. The human conditions and politics were much better for me than the cave saga and subsequent demon lond ‘is-she-or-is-she-not’ faffing about. The animation also took a bit of a nose dive as it went on. Watchable, but not inspiring.

[neflight86]

Summer 2021

3. Boku no Hero S5: While this season undoubtedly felt the pressures of both being produced in a pandemic and having to shift between three contrasting story arcs (where the show begins to visibly crack a bit), this is still a net positive, and no doubt more of what its fans were wanting from another season of HeroAca. I am personally sanddened a bit by how the Redestro arc was ‘trimmed’ in service of time, I suppose, but that material would have much better served the story than, say, some of the slower team battles between class A and B at the beginning of the season. Still a fine watch, but some of the energy has been lost, which I expect to come back next season.

2. Kobayashi-san Chi no Maidragon S: KyotoAni does it again, with an incredibly, unnecessarily, over-animated slice of life iyashikei diddy. The cute character designs, expressions, and little movements were just joyous to watch through and through. Definitely a highlight of this (or really any) season. Only downside is a lack of core narrative, in place of the insipid will-they-wont-they faffing about romance conceit.

1. Heion Sedai no Idaten-tachi: Surprising, but this was much better than the thumbnail led me to expect. An genuinely interesting game of cat-and-mouse where deities, born of human desire, are charged with protecting humanity from demons that are recently infiltrating human society, but aren’t particularly good at it. They are actually kind of ambivalent about the whole thing, really, while the demons, certainly not paragons of virtue (fusing human babies in a surrogate womb to propagate their numbers) are actually largely inferior to the god’s power and take the role of ‘underdogs’ against a force that would see them wiped out. In a weird way, it kind of reminds me of the old show Basilisk, in that the two warring factions aren’t sympathetic, but their tactics and interaction really drive the show. That the animation is well done only helps. The non-ending is trash, so I can’t recommend it, but until then, it was a wild ride, and I looked forward to nothing more each week.

_________________________________
Some Special Awards can’t hurt at this point, right?

The ‘shelf of shame’ award goes to RE-MAIN: I have a problem. I love sport-shounen anime more than I should. I watch absolute garbo so long as it has plucky young atheletes competing against other high schools… So why couldn’t I get around to finishing this? Just like Watashi no Cramer last season, I just have it sitting there, waiting to be watched when I find the time.

The ‘old timer’ antique watch is presented to Tantei wa Mou, Shindeiru: Ten years ago, I probably would have finished this without a second thought: Spunky boy-girl duo, banter, and some action to boot… But now, the whole setup of ‘highschool kids taking on global evil organizations’ thing just feels so played out that it takes me out of the experience. I’m glad there are more anime than ever not about being in high school.

The ‘short bus season pass’ is given to Tokyo Revengers: Oh, Revengers… where to begin with you? Your first episode’s premise, the time travel to save a friend was truly strong enough to carry me though the thick and thin (mostly thin) of your run time. What you could have been… I blame the adaptation for sticking to closely to ‘moving manga’- playing it too safe with material that just didn’t translate well to animation. I said it in its thread, the pacing of dialogue and concurrent events (also known as ‘anime time’) can be painful in a 1:1 translation of manga. Setting aside how ridiculously large the gang population is in Tokyo (300+ for gangs we didn’t know about?), setting aside how worthless the main character was, setting aside just how eye-rolling the posturing became (“I’ll kill you” was said about 200 times per one actual death), setting aside just how annoying hearing Takemitchi imputently plead “Mikey-kun” over and over and OVER… makes my arms tired. Save yourself some frustration and read the manga instead if you like time travel stories navigated by very slow kids. I don’t know if I can ever forgive ‘gang referees’- I go cross eyed just thinking about it.

The ‘fridge back-wall throw-away’ Tupperware goes to Otome Game no Hametsu Flag shika Nai Akuyaku Reijou ni Tensei Shiteshimatta… X: The first season of this was pretty delightful, but it made the mistake of not being over when the tension and central conceit of the show was completed. MC avoided the flags and made friends in the silliest dense harem protag way possible. Fine. But why is there a second season? Like re-heated leftovers, sometimes it just isn’t as good the second time, and my patience ran out pretty early on when I realized this show was spinning its wheels to force drama and conflict via shoehorned in extra actors. I chose to quit while I could still remember that flavor from the first season.

The ‘mental gymnastics Gold Medal’ unquestionably goes to Kanojo mo Kanojo: Who’da thunk that because Japan hosted the Olympics this year, that they would pull out the stops like this? Polygamy is an unlikely proposition, and there was an acute salesmanship present in each of these characters that makes it possible. The level of misinterpretations mixed with mind-bending earnestness to enable the two girls to co-date the same guy would typically be handwaved in your dad’s harem anime. No so here. An inordinate amount of time was spent carefully building justifications and emotional/mental connections to justify the utterly bizarre relationship dynamics at play. The biggest credit I can give to Kanojo mo Kanojo is that it actually managed to keep the official girlfriend count at two, even when doubling that amount, practically speaking. What a Chad.

The ‘Maxis (Sim City)’ DLC goes to Genjitsu Shugi Yuusha no Oukoku Saikenki: Not a stand out by any stretch during the season, but this would probably be #4. So much fun and levity were present in the re-building of sustainability, and it kept the geopolitical complexity at just the right amount for my taste. The harem wasn’t even aped on enough to make other elements suffer. This is more of how I was hoping for a ‘modern person in an isekai’ to play out. That he was already planning to become a civil planner was a nice detail that justifies some of the ‘wisdom’ he effortlessly employed. Recommended.

The ‘inadvertent comedy goldmine’ pickaxe was pawned for Bokutachi no Remake: Some people have a very public distain for the essence of how Kyouya, as a character, was portrayed and found success via his time travel shenanigans, and reading those salty tears in its thread was a tongue-in-cheek delight. But for me, the real entertainment value of this greatest waste of time travel ever, was the ridiculous amounts of praise Kyouya got for breathing consistently and never giving up when it would be easier to… give up! There was talk about author insertion wish fulfillment, and if that is the case, the author should gain some self-awareness if for no other reason than so that they can be properly ashamed. The dialogue in this show… one part milk toast platitudes about not giving up when making art, one part saying things are difficult except when they’re not, and a sprinkling of having life altering conversations with people who are about to lose their future when you go back in time… Shakespeare this ain’t, and if/when you see that, it becomes a funny sort of self-parody.

The ‘classiest girls’ masquerade mask was mailed to Kageki Shoujo!!: Pure and straightforward is how I can best describe Kageki. Everything it wanted to say, it said, and the characters and stories were so much better for it. The stories were varied, tragic, and above all, interesting pieces of character building that just heightened the theatrical competition and time simply flew by. A quality product.

The ‘dead inside’ award goes to Uramichi Onii-san: I probably would have liked this a bit more back when I hated my job, but now I can relate in relative terms to making the best of being in an unappreciative workplace, especially a pseudo-creative one that involves answering children’s awkward questions in real time. There aren’t many parallels to this in anime, so I was certainly interested with just how they would play the ‘kill me now’ angle, but this show was surprisingly positive and hopeful at times, choosing to focus on the character dynamics of the children’s TV show cast as opposed to the outright misery of singing kids in costume songs on local television for a living. That was a wise choice, as the characters bounced off of each other well enough to carry the show and even managed to pull off some tender moments.

A ‘Moral implication’ questionnaire has been filled out for Seirei Gensouki: Unlike most isekai, Seirei choose to have an existing character be dually inhabited by the deceased spirit of a Japanese man; a fortune blessed enough to give anybody the easy life, right? Well, not quite. Though he does eventually become Mr. Gary Stu himself via the influence of the mighty Nisei man, the consciousness is never fully absorbed, leading to interesting questions of shared stewardship responsibilities, unreliable memories and narrator, the relationship between spirit and magic… Oh… he just goes to magic high school… and is discovered to be a prince of notJapan later on… nevermind. Checked out.

The ‘well it had to go somewhere’ shrug is awarded to Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken 2nd Season Part 2: I’m not sure what I’m getting out of watching this anymore. The dynamics aren’t interesting now that Rimuru is both OP and basically friends with all of the ½ dozen or so characters that could harm him. The development of Tempest is simply assumed to be progressing now instead of shown, and all we get to see are geographically fuzzy battles between characters we have seen off-and-on for the last season. Diplomacy has become black and white, and characters in the extending cast are seemingly given screen time to remind the audience they exist and what their relationships are to the main cast. There isn’t much left to explore, and the closest thing to an antagonist, Cromwell, shows no signs of expediting his eventual clash with Rimuru. Can you believe I even got tired of hearing 3-6 back to back ‘Rimuru-sama!’s an episode from his loyal retinue/cheer squad?

This season’s ‘down but not out’ award goes to Jahy-sama wa Kujikenai!: These come out once in a while: “What would happen if an overlord type villain had to adjust to powerless wage-slave modern Japan?” Well, pretty much the same thing that they’ve been doing since ‘The devil is a part timer’ aired many years ago, it turns out. Make friends and learn that there’s more to life than conquering the world. Like friendship and paying the rent (or not). That isn’t to say these can’t be entertaining, and this one certainly is, even if the animation is pretty sparse and the character design is pretty pedestrian.

A certain ‘Hairy Sausage’ has been taxidermized for Cheat Kusushi no Slow Life: Isekai ni Tsukurou Drugstore: Fluff. Pure isekai fluff with no transient substance except… that one visual gag of Noel’s tail going bald and the cutaway of that sad looking hairless appendage- a slap in the face to Moe that still makes me smile every time I picture it. At least I could take something away.

A season pass to the ‘Roller Coaster’ award goes to Meikyuu Black Company: This one was ups and downs, and difficult to determine how much I ultimately enjoyed it until after the finale. I’m still torn in that some weeks felt like a waste of time, spinning wheels in the mud, while other episodes were borderline brilliant as Ninomya pursued his goals in the most roundabout, lazy ways. Still undecided.

A whoopee cushion’s ‘slow flaccid fart’ is hereby wafted toward to Deatte 5 Byou de Battle: Three episodes in, I would have pegged this as a contender for #1 of the season, but as the story went on, the clever application of powers gave way to what felt like a convolution of arbitrary alliances and too many characters with not enough screen time to make any particularly vested, coupled with enough duplicated powers to feel lazy and the third trial’s battle being both less interesting and about ½ of the season, and my interest was largely drained by the end. Don’t get me started on the CG… what awful CG staring down off model cells… It’s a shame, because Whoopee cushions are usually more fun when they drag out a little…

Best OP and ED went to Idaten and Black Company, respectively. Super catchy and had the toe-a-tappin'

A pretty good season by my metrics. Here’s to the next!

[MFauli]

Very bad season, I don't have a top 3. Nefligh's posting above me was more entertaining than this entire season.

[Ryllharu]

Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon S2 - While certainly not quite as good as its first season overall in terms of gags and tone, this could very well be the best animated series all year. KyoAni throwing down the gauntlet to their peers in the industry that they will not let up a centimeter in exceling at what they do. Despite its relatively simple art, everything about this season is fantastically animated to a mind-blowing degree. There's films that have worse animation than this season. There are big budget series from top tier studios that don't quite hit this mark in terms of care and detail in movement. What it is is just inspiring.
The tone is much more somber, and more touching than the pervious. I assume some of this is based on the source material, but also suspect a large amount of it is tied to KyoAni's tragedy, which took many lives involved in the first season. This is a love letter to animation, a heartfelt expression of grief, and a desire to honor those legacies by pushing themselves harder.

Kageki Shoujo!! - A super strong entry for a number or reasons. The series is a expression of love for a staple of Japanese theater culture, the Takarazuka Grand Theater. They have Takarazuka veterans working the music, several acting as VAs in supporting roles (possibly some main ones too). They hired VAs with huge ranges and most of them can all sing at a professional level (quite a few do). The OP is fun, but the EDs were phenomenal with multiple variants. I couldn't pick a favorite. There's reasonable drama across the ensemble cast, heavy at times, but never dipping into melodrama. The directors made a smart decision with a cost-saver episode in the late middle of the series which, while disappointing, allowed the series to go out on a truly fantastic final episode that did the entire series justice. There's progression and growth and all interspersed with great timed comedy relief at strategic points. The whole thing feels like a stage performance.

Kanojo mo Kanojo - If Kageki Shoujo was how to do ensemble drama, and Maid Dragon was how to do a poignant message wrapped in slice of life comedy...Kanojo mo Kanojo was how to perfect farce. You'll know pretty much from the first half of the first episode if you'll like the entire season, or hate it and drop it. I loved it, in no part to how insanely serious it takes itself. The main trio are so honest, so earnest, so trusting, so stupid, and so hopelessly lacking in any self-awareness that you can't help but like them.
They're busy screaming confessions and pronouncing their mistakes to the whole world out in public while they're supposed to be keeping their situation a secret...and all the background characters are staring right at them, because of course you would if someone was acting like they do throughout the series. The series works in every way that it shouldn't because of a outstanding performance by the main cast, but the heaviest lifting is done by Sakura Ayane. She's the core to making this series work when it really shouldn't. I doubt I would have liked the manga, or at the least I would have dismissed it. The voice cast sells this series completely.
The art is simple, but crisp in character design. The animation team knew exactly what they were doing with its dual-style to emphasize and elevate the comedy at all the exact moments.
Plot wise, well, it's one of those premises where the setup should devolve into angst and melodrama, pain and heartbreak. Instead, they play it the exact opposite direction for laughs and it ends up being endearing. As the series progresses, you can recognize all the developments and moments where a drama series would go ugly, but instead it just works out rather nicely because none of them lie to each other. There's also gags that stretch across episodes and numerous callbacks that are honestly rare in most comedies.
Give it a shot. You'll know if you hate it or love it right away.

[Ryllharu]

Fall 2021

------------



Mieruko-chan - This was the series I looked forward to the most each week, and it has by far one of the best OPs all year (Kageki Shoujo still holds best ED for the year). A horror-comedy that is fundamentally about not judging things immediately from the way they look, or how you are interpreting their actions. Led by a top-tier performance from Amamiya Sora, take a very normal, but perhaps extraordinarily composed, high school girl and expose her the worst kind of supernatural horrors with absolutely no explanations on how to deal with it. It's sweet, it's touching, and it's funny. A number of people were thrown off by the ecchiness of the first few episodes, but that dies down rather quickly (and was faithfully representing the source material which started the same way before the author realized it was selling just fine without that).

Isekai Shokudou S2 - For what's essentially a foodgasm show, the fantasy world here is more fleshed out than the majority of fantasy isekai series out there. We know about all sorts of continents, cultures, politics, and a substantial amount of history of a world when we really only see minimal exposure to their daily lives outside of the restaurant. While you do have to mentally piece together all the tidbits we get of the Other World's layout and lore across the two seasons, the small inclusions that explain the other world is one of the things I love about the series. There are many "mainstay" isekai and fantasy series out that don't even have a 1/10th of the consistent worldbuilding that Isekai Shokudou has. It isn't a static one either, the geopolitics of the other world move in real time. The huge cast grows and changes along with every visit to the restaurant. But Aletta (demongirl part-time waitress) will always be my favorite.

Mushoku Tensei S2 - One that does come close to Isekai Shokudou's worldbuilding is this one! This season seemed more like a set up season for bigger events to come, and though it didn't quite have the depth of character development that the prior season had, the secondary and tertiary characters got their time to shine this season. The animation was top-tier and the performances were all stellar. The direction and pacing was a bit worse than the previous season, but that still puts it significantly higher in that regard than the majority of anime out there. It left me wanting more.

[MFauli]

1.) Ousama Ranking

Great adventure with lots of mystery and surprisingly good action scenes

2.) Mushoku Tensei

Just interesting to watch. Would be better with less ecchi shit.

3.) Kyoukai Senki

Babby's first mecha-anime, but it was a nice watch regardless

[neflight86]

Rounding out 2021:


3. Isekai Shokudou 2: I’m surprised this placed so high, but it maintained a steady pleasantness that kept me entertained every episode- a steady ‘hum’ of problem, food, problem solved. The world building, while very unnecessary, is appreciated and brought this above Assassin to make top three.


2. Mieruko-chan: The intrigue of ‘how the apparitions worked’ was never paid off, but the wait for it made this a must watch each week. Fan-service gave way to more complex ghost interactions, while the horror element remained relatively constant. I’m a bit cooled on this now in hindsight, but during the week-to-week this season this was a must watch.


1. Mushoku Tensei: Isekai Ittara Honki Dasu: Just all around good isekai that only stumbles for me by being a little too amrous for little narrative payoff. I always appreciated the ‘messy’ humanity of the character interactions, where no one knew the right answers always, and they clumsily navigated each other’s feelings and positions together. Animation was great and filtered to look like a long lost VHS tape, and I always enjoyed the meandering quest of the characters, even though the varied story beats were up and down in quality.


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My horoscope warned that, if I was going to do special awards, today was the day to do it:


The ‘P.A.(public announcement)’ award goes to “Shiroi Suna no Aquatope”: P.A Works follows the beat of their own drum since their inception, typically telling stories set in contemporary Japan with fleshed out characters and one or two shoehorned in conservation causes(shrug). That is what this wound up being. The first half, building to the inevitable fate of Gama-Gama housed the majority of tension that loomed over the happy go lucky life at the aquarium as Kokoro tried desperately to save it, only to fail. The second cour started to falter after a brief timeskip settled on petty office politics at the new aquarium driving conflict, and even that had to go by the wayside. Look, I’m all for people getting along, but then they need something else to do, and ‘chasing their dreams’ is about as boring a substitute as I can imagine. By the end, I was regretting investing the time; consider yourself warned.


“Kaizoku Oujo” gets this season’s ‘one and done’ award: Say, what do pirates and rap battles have in common? Don’t bother guessing, I’ll tell you. Like I said about Hypnosis Mic a few seasons back, this is worth exactly one episode. That first episode felt like it was a real piece of a quality anime- storyboarded by adults and everything. After that, the direction of the story, mystery, and characters slowly but surely take a steady decline. Mercifully sparing you the details, what should be a globe trotting romp for treasure and adventure winds up with burning ghosts, the British navy fighting ninjas, and an albino fairy girl hybrid raiding Noah’s ark. It sounds much more meme than it winds up being. I may never forgive Bones for (fake) killing off those gorgeous fem pirates halfway through the show…


The ‘edge’ award teeters off and smashes into the floor for “Selection Project”: Cute girls singing and competing on American/Japanese Idol, and the bonds that they foster along the way. Why are you still reading this? It was nearly just almost not boring enough to keep watching. The CG dancing didn’t help.


The lovey-dovey his and hers fine china goes to “Shin no Nakama ja Nai to Yuusha no Party o Oidasareta node, Henkyou de Slow Life Suru Koto ni Shimashita”: The blushing and courtship was ever present in this fantasy side story of two consenting adults shaking up while the world burns down… or doesn’t? The central premise of how the ‘hero’s party’ related to the fate of the world didn’t make much sense to me during the end segments when the infallibility of Red became clear, and he was begged to return to the party presumably to help save the world, but instead chose… the booty beside him. Some lazy world building only serves to distract from what should be a sweet romance story and undermines the decency of the main pair, who just want to pretend they’re married.


“Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru: Dai Mankai no Shou” gets the accidental stumble award: Perspective really can color your first impression of media. I watched the first episode of this and was honestly a little impressed because it seemed like some real machiavellian storytelling was on order with PTSD recovering magical girls (it’s anime, I’ll take what I can get) who were ‘drafted’ back into service once the evil thought defeated resurfaced, and they were just getting used to civilian life again! Good premise, and the storytelling referencing past battles and events really enriches my experience by forcing me to put together the pieces of the history- like piecing together a puzzle. I was pretty much on board, but then I learned that this was just the third season of an existing series… A series whose two previous seasons could be summarized succinctly before the first commercial break of the second episode, suggesting a dearth of content. My interest immediately deflated and I will always wonder if I would have enjoyed this series from the beginning.

The ‘one step behind’ footprint is awarded to “86” season 2: If not for production issues pushing the last two episodes back an entire season from now, this likely would have made top three. As is, it was a fun sci-fi diversion about battle hardened teenagers trying to sacrifice themselves to save the world. It is comical how often the characters are reminding each other that they shouldn’t seek out death- like a suicide support group driving spider tanks. The new enemies and their dynamics were fun and I like, overall, the scope of where the story is heading. This is a marathon, not a sprint.


“Senpai ga Uzai Kouhai no Hanashi” gets the ‘best op’ award: Really, this OP is full of life and made me excited for each episode. The series itself, while just mundane enough to prevent me from frothing at the mouth to see it, never made me regret sitting down for an episode. Sweet, fun character dynamics, two different couples with unique challenges, and a tsun-loli that was not annoying to me at all (that itself deserves an award)! Really good stuff for romance junkies.

“Tesla Note” is awarded the ‘omega bad’ jar of formaldehyde: In case you didn’t know, scholars have long debated the exact distinctions between the ‘golden toilet’, ‘waste of time’, and ‘omega bad’ anime awards. Fair enough, it can be nebulous, but let me assure you that this CG abomination most squarely fits into the ‘omega bad’ criterion, trademarked, of course. Look at one scene and embrace the cataracts your eyes hyper develop as a defense mechanism against the off model ‘2002 Newgrounds’ animation so bad that it could only have been birthed amidst a veritable storm of ameture planning, talent mismanagement, and a vacuum of funding/time. Ninjas. Tesla. CG. Trash.


“To Tsuki to Laika to Nosferatu” goes the ‘cactus’ plant; water sold separately- Vampire going to the moon- last time I watched a movie about that (VhD:Bloodlust), there was a bit less moe and a lot more blood… I got through about four episodes before I decided the cold shell of the vampire girl was cracking too slowly to put up with her prickly personality any further, especially when Niceguy Mc’MyOnlySinIsBeingTooPure is bending over backwards to give her the chance he lost by being too admirable or something. It’s a shame because I usually enjoy the non-American take on racism I get from anime as a more realist perspective that feels less preachy, but boring is boring, I’m afraid.


“Best unintentional comedy” plaque is slid across the ice to “Puraore! Pride of Orange”: Two things stuck out to me here in the few episodes I was able to get through: 1: The female ring manager and her male assistant have some strangely good chemistry and were fun to watch, and 2: Hear me out- the CG girls playing hockey can be hilarious when you see it in action. I’m talking meme-worthy moe faces superimposed on CG real life proportioned hockey suits. The jarring proportionality is the stuff of legend and cracked me up every time I saw it; I couldn't believe my eyes. Look it up yourself.


The ‘better than I remembered it’ certificate is for “Sekai Saikou no Ansatsusha, Isekai Kizoku ni Tensei Suru”: Edgy ‘seinen’ manga are usualy code for ‘shounen with boobies’, and I figured this was about the same when I read a couple chapters and dropped it a while back. The anime was far more entertaining, enough such that I wonder if the adaptation was actually masterful compared to its source? While I’m not about to pick the manga back up any time soon, I would welcome another season of this, as the premise and main character are both interesting. Magic guns don’t hurt, either.


“Megaton-kyuu Musashi” gets the ‘Toy commercial’ TV spot: The first few episodes of this were throwback fun with a troublemaker delinquent being harnessed to pilot a special mecha for humankind, and the moves and battles were imaginative, but the ‘sunrise’ art style and fairly thin story didn’t hook me long enough to start caring about the characters, and, like an advertisement, I had fun with the concept until it was replaced by the next glowing light on my screen.


This season’s ‘normie friendly’ award is presented to “Komi-san wa, Komyushou Desu”: As inoffensive as it gets, Komi is the latest exaggerated social anxiety disorder anime served up for our consumption. While labeled as ‘being unable to communicate’, Komi-san seems actually to simply be shy and not want attention, or is embarrassed by the sound of her own voice, as she communicates quite readily throughout the series- as far as I can tell- by physical ques, non-linguistic mouth sounds, and writing. I’ve lost the plot on what appeal there is supposed to be in watching someone struggle with something most people can do easily… I think it is simply a plot device to allow clover head MC to be relevant. It was cute, but not so cute to be a favorite in this genre.


“Takt Op. Destiny” gets a ‘stars and stripes’ T-Shirt: I really wanted to like this, as the premise of road trips harken back to Cowboy Bebop style episodic meandering, doubly so in the American midwest, but nope- not even the flashy action scenes (which got less visually polished as the episodes went on) could keep my interest in the flat main duo of Takt and his manic-pixie-dream-girl-cum-musical-battle-droid. It’s a shame too, as I even liked the ‘conductor’ theme and the other sassy sister girl, but simply felt myself dozing off after a while. So far, the best bet for decent anime set in America seems to be mob stories.


“Muv-Luv Alternative” invoked the ‘ptsd’ award for… me?: Muv-Luv Alternative, when I read the VNs all those years ago, were quite affecting, to put it mildly. Stories that swam around in my head for days, I may never forget the major beats… This adaptation still somehow managed to fail to get my attention- maybe because I already know what was happening, or maybe the pacing, or budget animation, I don’t know, but the fact of the matter is that this, by pedigree, should have been my #1 this season, and I didn’t even finish three episodes. Maybe trauma kept me at bay?


The ‘long road to nowhere’ sign goes to “Sakugan”: A lot to like here: father daughter journey, fun world setting, and some optimistic adventures tucked under a vague ‘where is it’ promised-land type premonition. It even had a great ED, but after about 9 episodes, I tired of the formula, maybe also of Gagumba being too dim for someone his age, and just forgot to finish it. I don’t feel like I missed much, and reports suggest the story didn’t conclude anyhow; sorry for the folks who toughed it out for that…(nomatterwhatyousaaaaaay♪)


“Orange is the new Jojo” goes to you-know-who: While not the most interesting thing that aired this season, it remained a constantly entertaining spectacle, though the viewer is mostly just along for the ride as the powers and fights use such fluid logic as to be rightly unpredictable by the audience. It’s the most Jojo thing since the last season of Jojo, and the female Jojo has roughly zero impact on how things play out, if anyone was wondering.


While probably not all bad shows, I cannot cobble together multiple sentences of interesting things to say about these dregs: Gyakuten Sekai no Denchi Shoujo (too much otaku but alt history was a fair concept), Saihate no Paladin (too much exposition without enough plot momentum), Shinka no Mi: Shiranai Uchi ni Kachigumi Jinsei (too much Zoo and not enough BO jokes), Muteking the Dancing Hero (too much boring; not enough dancing), and Shikizakura (too much CG).


Overall a weaker season with the top three not matching most in the last year if compared side-by-side, and over half the shows dropped. They can’t all be winners. See you in April.