Spring 2023 Preview Guide

Last Update: 11:15 p.m. Wednesday 4/19

Welcome to my seasonal Guide! (For the debut schedule, see here.) I expect to cover every full-episode series that will be debuting this season and several of the sequels, including Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear Punch!, Konosuba: An Explosion on This Wonderful World!, The Ancient Magus’ Bride, TONIKAWA, Demon Slayer, and the continuation of Mobile Suit Gundam: Witch From Mercury. I will not be covering Dr. Stone, Tokyo Mew Mew New, MIX, Sorcerous Stabber Orphen, Ranking of Kings, or Eden’s Zero sequels for certain, and probably not the sequels for In Another World With My Smartphone or Birdie Wing.

These previews will be listed in newest to oldest order, and this post will be updated multiple times per day on busier days. The latest-debuting title currently scheduled is Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts on 4/19, so I am expecting to end this season’s Preview Guide with that title.

Without further ado. . .

NOTE: Oshi no Ko is being covered in a separate full-length write-up, which can be found here.

Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts

Streams: Crunchyroll on Wednesdays

Rating: 3.5 of 5

Sariphi is a girl adopted and raised by a couple to be a substitute for their own daughter if/when the time for their village to contribute an annual sacrifice to the Beast King (as part of a peace treaty dating back a century) comes; her name even means “sacrifice.” She’s long known this and finds nothing scarier than the discovery of her adoptive parents’ intent, so being before the Beast King, and potentially getting eaten by him, doesn’t faze her at all. He is further dismayed by her cheery attitude and the way she seems able to see right through him. When she learns his biggest secret and regards it as a strength rather than a weakness, he decided to take her as his bride instead of his victim.

This fairy tale-styled manga adaptation may seem like a straight-up Beauty and the Beast iteration, but its defining twist and Sariphi’s backstory give it a little more meat than that. Even so, I don’t think this first episode would have worked so well without Sariphi’s unflappably chipper characterization. She seems to have decided to make the best of her situation; she didn’t have much of a life before, so why fear losing it? That makes her endearing on a level beyond just her carefully-calculated cuteness, and just as importantly, she’s the one person that the Beast King can’t cow with fear. She can be a support tohim in the way his other advisors and underling can’t. In all, the first episode lays a good foundation for their relationship going forward. It may move along too quickly to establish full emotional resonance, and certainly doesn’t offer much for wholly new ideas, but it looks to be a pleasant, entertaining addition to the season.

The Marginal Service

Streams: Crunchyroll on Tuesdays

Rating: 2.5 (of 5)

Cross Men in Black with an old-school sentai science team series and you more or less have what this one is. “Marginal Service” is the name for a newly-organized special unit tasked with dealing with cases involving “Borderlanders” (i.e., mythical and/or supernatural creatures), which have integrated into Japanese society and are, of course, more common than the public knows. A hotshot, riding-the-edge cop finds himself recruited after getting fired from the regular police force and has a somewhat rough introduction to the idea of dealing with Borderlanders. . . and then everyone on the team shows up in their color-coded outfits, which the protagonist will eventually have, too.

I’m not using character names here because I don’t think it matters. The only thing which distinguishes this one in any way from the horde of other “police the strangeness” series out there are those garish, almost anachronistic, and probably-intentionally-silly combat outfits, and that’s not enough. Run-of-the-mill technical merits, common archetypes for team members, and a fairly standard bad boy for a lead don’t add up to anything memorable. It’s not bad on execution, as the set-up does establish the MC and the situation pretty well, but little here encourages further vieweing.

Insomniacs After School

Streams: HIDIVE on Mondays

Rating: 4 ( of 5)

Ganta’s sleep cycle is so messed up that he cannot sleep at night but is perpetually sleepy and irritable during the day. Only a close friend knows about the issue, until he discovers a classmate – one Isaki – sleeping in the school’s supposedly-haunted observatory, and she has exactly the same problem that he does. As they nap together in the observatory and start going out on excursions overnight, a friendship gradually starts to form.

This is one of those simple, slice-of-life stories about two people with common problems connecting over those problems, and it couldn’t be much more endearing if it tried. Though the first episode is told entirely from Ganta’s viewpoint, both are effectively co-leads, and the interactions between them already feel more causal and natural than most anime pairings. This is supported by a light, gentle musical score and technical and artistic merits that are well above average, with even simple movements being well above average. There’s a minor red flag here about a possible future plot development, but overall this is a pleasant debut that I could easily see being one of the season’s understated gems.

Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke’s Mansion

Streams: Crunchyroll on Mondays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

NOTE: This episode is being true-simuldubbed in English, and this write-up is based on the dubbed version.

MCs winding up as characters in otome games has been a popular trend of late, and this one is only a minor variation on that: the female protagonist gets pushed off a building, presumably falling to her death, but instead awakes as Raeliana, the daughter of a nouveau riche Baron in a romance novel. But she’s only a minor character who’s fated to be poisoned to death by her fiance as a plot driver for the main story. Desperate to change her fate, she tries various methods to convince her fiance to break off the engagement (which he cannot afford to do because of his ulterior motives) before taking a longshot by offering to make a deal with the Duke (who will become the story’s male co-protagonist) based on her knowledge of what happens later in the story. And the Duke, for reasons of his own, seems inclined to play along.

As rote as all of this sounds for the genre, the execution here is decidedly above-average, and the English dub fully hits the mark. Raeliana’s determination is palpable and convincing, while the Duke is also immediately appreciable as a man who would be someone to be reckoned with even if he did not have position and minions at his disposable. While the artistry only impresses in some pretty background shots and the animation is among the weaker entries so far this season, the technical merits compensate for the limitations in subtle ways, like the Duke’s prying gaze. I don’t normally follow fare like this, but I will have to at least consider this one.

Dead Mount Death Play

Streams: Crunchyroll on Mondays

Rating: 4.5 (of 5)

Some of the best first episodes are one which achieve impact, which make you think, “damn, this is some cool shit and I want to see more.” That’s basically the case for this manga adaptation, which spins the tale of a necromancer called the Corpse God who’s dueling an heroic figure over the fate of a fantasy world. At the moment of his defeat, the Corpse God spins a reincarnation spell, which takes him out of his world and places him in the body of a 16-year-old boy in modern Tokyo named Shinomiya Polka, who has just had is throat slashed. While he’s still trying to get his bearings, the young woman who killed his new body shows up and tries to repeat the job. But chasing someone into a building used by the yakuza to dispose of bodies is probably not the best idea when the individual you’re chasing has the soul of an otherworldly Corpse God. . .

The success of this episode is all about the atmosphere it generates. The battle between the hero and the Corpse God – both of whom have Evil Eyes that allow them to see souls of the dead – is no light-vs.-darker struggle but one between different degrees of darkness, and it maintains that all throughout the dazzling battle using not-too-bad CG. When the Corpse God ends up in the new world, the brightness of the peaceful city streets contrasts sharply with the ugliness going on in the shadowy alleys and abandoned buildings, and the tension is ever-present as Polka tries to get away from the psychotic female assassin. The dark ambiance also collects convincingly as Polka takes his own turn at being a menace. The people behind the assassin look to have a real problem on their hands. The opener (played as a closer) also maintains the same tone, and an effective musical score contributes, too.

The possible twist here is that the Corpse God may not want to destroy humanity; he sees the peace of the modern world as desirable, and seems ready to fight for it. But will the hero figure out that he’s pulled a reverse-isekai and follow? The only thing that doesn’t fit well is the post-credits dose of humor, but it was actually somewhat funny. This one has plenty enough positives on the technical side, a good enough concept, and plenty enough good potential hooks to be a keeper.

Demon Slayer: Swordsmith Village arc

Streams: Sundays on Crunchyroll

Rating: 4 (of 5)

Two months pass after the climactic battle of the Entertainment District arc, and Tanjiro has finally awoken from his coma. As he rehabilitates, he learns that a new sword has not come in for him, so he is allowed to go to the highly-secretive Swordsmith Village, where all of the corps’ swords are made. There he encounters the Love Hashira, Mitsuri Kanroji, and Genya, a fellow Demon Slayer inductee, as well as seeing the Mist Hashira, and learns that the village has a secret weapon that might be worth hunting down while waiting for his swordsmith, who’s gone absent, to be found. Meanwhile, Muzan’s top five minions gather to experience his displeasure.

Demon Slayer is back, and this 49 minute episode (the same one released in theaters earlier this year) showcases all of the stle points and quirks the series has to offer, for better or worse. (Characters who were annoying before are still annoying, and the humor is still the same.) The first half focuses on introducing the remainder of the Top 5 demons serving Muzan who have not previously appeared and provides some new hints about what Muzan’s ultimate goals are. The second half shifts the focus to Tanjiro and moving him to the Swordsmith Village, which looks to be the focus of this arc. This time, two different Hashira look to be getting involved, and there’s a new mystery surrounding a vision Tanjiro had while comatose. Technical merits are still among the best for series action anime, so this is a promising start to the new season even if it doesn’t have any action to showcase.

Stella of the Theater: World Dai Star

Streams: Crunchyroll on Sundays

Rating: 3 of 5

This one is the anime branch of a multimedia project which has a mobile game coming out later this year, but its first episode feels every inch like the series is just going to be one long promo for the game, down even to building in a mechanic (called Sense) to rate the special acting ability of a character numerically. That’s not necessarily a problem, unless you’re expecting this one to amount to anything more than a very rote acting-focused variation on the traditional idol show format. The first episode shows almost no sign of amounting to anything more than that.

Everything from the basic premise to the characters feels so stereotypical. We have a lead girl who has talent but lacks confidence and just hasn’t found the right way to present herself in previous failed auditions. We have the out-of-town prodigy, too, as well as several girls with very standard quirks who are already part of the acting troupe that the MC wants to join. And we have the fateful audition where the MC winds up dazzling despite previous confidence issues, all because she decided to tackle the role handed to her like she imagined her best friend doing. (Why the best friend isn’t also auditioning is dodged around, since she’s clearly capable, but she is featured in the opener so presumably she will eventually. . . EDIT: or she might be a ghost, given that protagonist Kokona is shown talking to no one from another character’s POV in the last scene. If true, that adds a more interesting wrinkle to the series.) The artistic quality and technical merits are a little higher than normal here, but even so, this is unlikely to have much appeal to any not normally into idol-type shows.

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury ep 13

Streams: Crunchyroll on Sundays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

Episode 12 left off with pretty damn dramatic moment, and after a few months off, episode 13 continues by. . . just ignoring it. Or at least mostly so, anyway, as Suletta seems utterly unfazed by Miorine’s reaction to her. Indeed, it’s practically business as normal for her, as she has to win through a series of catch-up duels once Aeriel is rebuilt and does so in indomitable fashion. The stressors are entirely on other characters, especially Nika, who is increasingly troubled by the position she’s caught in. That only gets exacerbated when the two Gundam pilots who attacked the base last season show up at the school as part of an open house for incoming students, and they’re not above causing trouble while there. Meanwhile, Miorine is away, partly due to her father’s critical condition and partly due to questioning over the incident. In that capacity, she begins to learn about her father’s secret project: QuietZero.

This biggest issue that I had with the episode is how the two Earthian Gundam Pilots managed to get into a presumably-secured area like they did, but I’ll let that ride. G-Witch is back to deliver its regular doses of mecha action and intrigue, and this episode touches on all kinds of different angles from different parties. As the opener for the second half of the series, it serves it purpose well while also maintaining a consistent technical quality. Returning fans shouldn’t be too disappointed.

A Galaxy Next Door

Streams: Crunchyroll on Saturdays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

Budding manga artist Ichiro scrapes by in the absence of his dead parents by penning a manga and being a landloard in order to support his much-younger siblings. He’s in desperate need of an assistant to help keep on schedule, and that’s where the beautiful, elegant Shiori Goshiki comes into a picture. She’s a self-taught whiz at assistant work and stubborn enough in her own way not to allow Ichiro to do too much himself. But she also may not be as human as she looks.

The last part is the critical conceit of what is otherwise a fairly bland tale about manga creation. She’s referred to as a princes by people she’s shown leaving behind at the beginning, claims to be something called Star People, and something weird definitely happened to Ichiro when he touched an almost tail-like protrusion on her backside. How coy the series is going to be about explaining the details of that could be a big factor in how watchable the series is, as much of the rest of the first episode is absolutely predictable – i.e., the two are already on a trajectory for romance. There is some charm here, good artwork, and some developing chemistry, so I can just enough potential here to give it a minor recommendation.

Summoned to Another World for a Second Time

Streams: Crunchyroll on Saturdays

Rating: 2.5 (of 5)

In a slight twist on the standard isekai format, this one features a protagonist who has been called to a particular fantasy world before and returned, only to find himself summoned to that same world again – but this time he’s in a different body than before and with his classmates, including his sexy childhood friend. Five years have passed, and things which should have been settled during his first visit are percolating again, so he leaves his classmates behind (at least for now?) to try to confront the person he believes is behind the new war troubles.

Despite the twist, this one does not do much to stake out fresh genre ground. That the king wasn’t satisfied with the long-term results of what the hero did before is a little interesting, as is no one knowing who’s responsible for summoning the protagonist’s whole class this time, and at least the childhood friend is already showing that she’s going to quickly become competent. That there’s already people here who recognize the protagonist and are eager to work with him again is also a plus. However, the look of the series is rather drab, and not enough is going on here to make this series compelling. Might give it another episode or two to prove itself, but it’s looking forgettable at this point.

TONIKAWA: Over the Moon For You s2

Streams: Crunchyroll on Fridays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

I episode-reviewed the first season of TONIKAWA back when I was still writing for Anime News Network. See here if you’re interested in those, but the short version is that it was a pleasant, low-key romantic comedy which had its charms but was something I couldn’t much get excited about. Still, TONIKAWA‘s return is a welcome one, as despite being plot-lite, it did still carry some important, unresolved mysteries that this new season will hopefully deal with.

Since the first season’s Fall 2020 airing, a couple of OVAs have come out, one classified by Crunchyroll as episode 13 of the first season and the other classified as episode 0 of the second season. Both of those are par for the course for the first season; entertaining in the way that this series is, but nothing crucial. Rather than delve into the ongoing mysteries, the first episode of the new season goes in a different direction: bring up that, despite openers and advertising art, Nasa and Tsukasa have yet to have an actual wedding. Atypically, it’s something Nasa is more interested in (because he wants to see Tsukasa in an elaborate wedding dress) than the easily-embarrassed Tsukasa, who prefers simpler pleasures. Almost the entirety of the episode is about the central couple and those around them discussing their interest in a wedding and the practicalities and expenses of planning one. The episode ends with the idea being put on hold for now, since a lot of money would have to be built up first to make it happen, but I could see that becoming a recurring theme for the season.

After sagging a bit in one of the OVAs, the technical merits are back to normal, with the simpler but still attractive character designs being enhanced by some nice background shots. The new opener also, interesting, retains the style and beat of the original even though it’s a different song. Overall, this gets a solid recommendation for continuing fans, while newcomers are advised to go back and watch the first season first.

The Cafe Terrace and its Goddesses

Streams: Crunchyroll on Fridays

Rating: 3 (of 5)

When Hayato’s grandmother (his only family) dies, he returns to the beachside cafe she ran for the first time since a falling-out three years earlier, with the intent to tear it down and replace it with a more profitable parking lot. However, he discovers five sexy young women whom his grandmother considered family living there, and they do everything they can to convince him not to tear down the home that some of them cannot afford to leave.

We haven’t had a proper, dedicated fan service title yet this season, but based on the first episode of this manga adaptation, this one should fit that bill. It certainly does not disappoint on the character designs for the five young ladies (who all look to be college-age or slightly older), gives all of them some chance to show off their figures, and uses a camera with a distinct male eye, though the camera does not go out of its way to insert fan service. The personality range – the Meek One (who becomes the Uninhibited One when drunk), the Conniver, the Tsundere, the Cool Musician, and the Dumb Jock – is also pretty typical for a harem series, and the protagonist being a testy, money-minded guy gives this somewhat the feel of a dating sim, too. There’s nothing special about the set-up, but the combination of good visuals and just a little touch of convincing sentiment is just enough that you might not need to be a harem fan to appreciate this one. But we’ll see.

Mashle: Magic and Muscle

Streams: Crunchyroll on Fridays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

In a world where everyone has magic, Mash Burnedead has none. (In fact, that’s probably why he was abandoned by his parents as a babe.) He’s compensated it by developing an incredible physique, one strong enough that he can even use it to bat aside magical attacks. Upon seeing that, a flummoxed security officer offers Mash a deal: prove that he can get by at a magic school with those muscles and he and his adoptive father will be allowed to live in peace.

In other words, this manga adaptation is basically a cross between Black Clover and One Punch Man, with a set-up more similar to the former and a style and flavor more similar to the latter. So far, the combination works. The major concern here is that Mash does not have much of a personality, so he is going to have to play off others, but if he gets surrounded by a sufficient supporting cast then this could be a fun action romp.

Rokudo’s Bad Girls

Streams: Crunchyroll on Fridays

Rating: 2.5 (of 5)

Tosuke Rokudo and his two close friends are at the bottom of the food chain at his rough-and-tumble high school. That starts to change when he received a magic scroll from his deceased grandfather, which imprints a symbol on his forehead. From that point on, he starts attracting the affection of any “bad girl” who sees it. That becomes particularly important when the baddest and strongest of the bad girls, Ranna Himawari, shows up and is instantly taken with him.

If it wasn’t for the modern artistic sheen, this manga adaptation might have felt right at home 20 or even 25 years ago. So far, it’s a straightforward story which lays out its premise well and sets the stage for Tosuke to try to “man up,” though he hardly needs to with a force like R

Magical Destroyers

Streams: Crunchyroll on Fridays

Rating: WTF did I just watch

Jack-booted, smiley-faced masked thugs have come for otaku and all of their paraphernalia under the guise of “protection” and it’s up to Otaku Hero to rally otaku from across the spectrum – as well as three twisted, actual magical girls – to fight back against the oppression, even if that means big chunks of the city get turned into a wasteland in the process.

Or at least I think that’s what is going on here, as the debut episode barely puts any effort at all into explaining itself. It’s a full-blown exercise in absurdity, with a visual and storytelling style which borrows heavily from earlier fare like Kill la Kill and maybe Dead Leaves. I can say with certainty that Magical Girl Anarchy will catch on if anything from the series does, and the episode does not hesitate to throw in truly ridiculous examples of how otaku both prepare for a fight and actually fight. Maybe this chaos will amount to a fun series, but I will reserve judgment until I have seen another episode or two.

Too Cute Crisis

Streams: HIDIVE on Fridays

Rating: 2 (of 5)

An alien researcher is sent to Earth to evaluate if it should be cleansed or not. She makes the mistake of entering a cat cafe and winds up getting utterly overwhelmed by their cuteness. Then she discovers dogs, too, and things only get worse for her.

So far, that’s about all there is to this show, other than the suggestion that her revealing how cute these animals are to her compatriots could upset things on a cosmic scale. It’s a cute idea, and the series earns bonus points for scattering its closer with pictures of adorable cats, but so far the series really only has one operating joke – protagonist Liza flipping out over cute stuff – and that’s already getting old by the end of the episode. The cats (and dogs) look plenty cute, but otherwise the animation is mediocre at best, leaving little for the series to stand on beyond its not-insubstantial cute factor.

Otaku Elf

Streams: HIDIVE on Fridays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

In this manga adaptation, the recently-turned-16 Koito is now old enough to serve as miko at her family’s shrine, which has a 400-year-old history. That also means that she attends to the shrine’s resident deity, who’s actually an immortal elf named Elda who’s been around since the shrine’s founding. Much to Koito’s consternation, Elda is a recluse who, in recent years, has become enamored with stereotypical otaku interests, and she fails to understand why Elda is still so beloved by the community around her.

This is unquestionably a comedy series which every bit backs up its unsubtle title, and its light humor in a 4-koma-like style has its charms. However, underlying all of the antics is a spirit of sincerity and sentimentality, that that was key to the first episode winning me over. Koito simply isn’t old enough to appreciate the value of having a stable and eternal presence in one’s life that is actually real (rather than just spiritual), one that was there to appreciate your birth and will still be there to appreciate your passing decades later. Why wouldn’t someone want to keep such an existence content? Solid character designs – including a unique one for Elda as fantasy elves go (she’s very tall but not portrayed as willowy-thin) – and technical merits also help. This one looks like it could be a sweet little distraction and stands a real chance of making my view list for the season.

My One-Hit Kill Sister

Streams: Crunchyroll on Fridays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

High schooler Asahi is following a seemingly-typical isekai route: he gets hit by a truck, winds up in a fantasy world, and becomes an adventurer. (The slight twist here is that he’s actually comatose, not dead, so this is a John Carter-type situation.) The probably is that he has no special abilities. But he does have a doting big sister, and when she also appears in the fantasy world, she’s insanely powerful. But everyone thinks that he, and not his sister, is the one that’s powerful, and he lamely tries to cover that up rather than ‘fess up about it. Future problems await, especially since his sister’s Little Brother Complex is kicking into overdrive.

This isn’t actually the first isekai-type series to use an “MC is ordinary but accompanying relative is super-powerful” gimmick; see also 2019’s Do You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks? What it does have going for it is that the first episode is actually pretty funny. Sure, the smothering, lovey-dovey older sister is hardly an original – in fact, her single-minded attitude could get tiresome pretty quickly – but the first episode, at least, has just the right amount of frenetic energy and silly antics to work, and some of the heavy-lined animation flourishes are more than ordinary, too. Fridays are looking packed this season, but at least initially, this one looks watchable.

Opus.COLORs

Streams: Crunchyroll on Thursdays

Rating: 2 (of 5)

In this anime-original series, a new, virtual art form called Perception Art has arisen in recent years, to the point of a school being established to foster it. Two sons of the couple which was instrumental in establishing the art form have both made their way to the school, one as a Grader (who essentially produces the Perception Art) and the other as an Artist (who actually creates the art). Despite the elder brother not wanting anything to do with the younger, the two are teamed up for a major art competition against five other pairs.

This is not actually a male idol series, but it nonetheless gives off a very similar vibe and uses various male idol group musical pieces. The concept isn’t bad at all, but the time frame has advance incredulously fast; no way a school of such sophistication could have been established and developed that quickly. Nothing is yet explained about why the school is all-male, either; surely girls would get into this kind of art form, too. There are some potential hooks here, such as the implication that the elder brother won’t associated with the younger because the younger one reminds him of their parents’ demise, and the usual-looking suspects among the potential rivals. It also has some pretty, well-drawn character designs, too. However, the premise stands on shaky foundations, the content relies way too much on info-dumping, and in general, nothing here is compelling enough to draw much interest. The horde of bishonen guys is ultimate the main thing this debut has going for it, and that’s not enough.

Yuri is My Job!

Streams: Crunchyroll on Wednesdays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

Hime is cute, knows it, and milks it for all it’s worth, using her “perfect princess” act towards her ultimate goal of marrying into wealth. The problem comes when she meets her match at being manipulative and winds up being maneuvered into becoming a waitress at Cafe Liebe, a theme cafe where staff members act as characters from an elite girls school straight out of a shoujo manga. Though Hime can hold her own with her expertise at putting up a facade, she also throws things off-kilter by ad-libbing too much, leading an older girl whom Hime has become fascinated with to despise her behind the scenes.

This sounds like a thoroughly fun premise for a whimsical series, and the first episode absolutely captures that effect. It’s unclear at this point how much of what Cafe Liebe does is actually scripted, but the initial impression is that the waitresses just go with the flow (and what customers talk about online!) rather than plan something out. That leaves plenty of room for Hime, who eventually resolves herself to making the best of the situation she’s stuck in, to create havoc under the guise of playing the character of an ambitious newcomer. I can see all kinds of potential here, with the only significant detracting factor being its limited technical merits; the artistry has the soft, inviting feel one would expect from shoujo manga, but don’t expect much refinement. I’ll be sticking this one out for at least a couple more episodes.

The Legendary Hero is Dead?!

Streams: Crunchyroll on Thursdays

Rating: 2 (of 5)

Touka is an average, rather pathetic villager with a strange stocking fetish and no other redeeming values. . . except that he manages to accidentally kill legendary hero Sion with a pit trap set for a demon. Though he and his fellow villagers initially try to hide the incident by anonymously burying Sion’s body, Touka finds himself instead soul-swapped into the hero’s body, and so must take on the hero’s duties. The problem is that he doesn’t have enough mana to even maintain his rotting body, much less fight properly with the Sacred Sword.

I thought this was a pretty cool-sounding idea, so I was actually somewhat anticipating this one. Unfortunately, the first episode is the biggest disappointment so far this season. It uses a slapstick approach which delivers too many jokes that land flat and Touka is not even sympathetic as the MC, much less likable. None of the supporting cast are interesting, either, and technical merits are so-so at best. I might give the second episode another try if it’s a slow night, but I am not seeing much promise here.

The Ancient Magus’s Bride 2

Streams: Crunchyroll on Thursdays

Rating: 4 (of 5)

After a five-year gap, one of the most distinctive of all series about magic use has returned, and a welcome return it is! This new season will be adapting the Academy arc from the source material, which covers as much source material as the first season did but in one continuous arc rather than shorter stories linked together. Hence anime-only fans can expect the characters introduced here to be around on a regular basis for both cours (rather than popping in and out as they did during the first season).

The first episode is skipping some preliminary stories to get the action straight to the school, and that’s a correct choice; nearly everything that was skipped was additional world-building flavor rather than anything crucial. The first episode’s adaptation reminds us of all of the dangers and reassurances that Chise has been through while also bringing the new emphasis keenly into focus: now that Chise is getting more comfortable with herself, she needs to learn to deal with other people and learn things that Elias either can’t teach her or has neglected to do so. And a school full of alchemists, where nearly everyone has issues as big and deep-seeded as Chise’s own. That’s going to make this much more than just another stereotypical Magic School story, and a taste of that can be seen already in Chise’s initial encounters with Lucy Webster and Philomena (the girl who collapses in her arms at the end).

Perhaps most importantly, most of what made the first season great is back. Chise is still a developing character, Elias is still working to understand and adjust to humanity, all manner of neat and interesting creatures abound, and the style, tone, and artistic quality all return. This is a good start to the series I’m most likely to do weekly reviews for this season.

KamiKatsu: Working for God in a Godless World

Streams: Crunchyroll on Wednesdays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

Yukito is the heir to a questionable cult, but during a trial where his life is at risk, he finds himself transported to another world. But he doesn’t find the stereotypical isekai treatment. This world doesn’t have adventurers and he seemingly gets no special abilities, so he’s stuck working on a farm in a village. But there are other strange things about this setting, like no gods or sense of spirituality and some very dsytopian notions about governance and information control. When running afoul of that gets him and his new friends killed, the goddess that his father’s cult had prayed to finally appears to save the day.

I’m giving this one a bit higher rating than it deserves in a strictly qualitative sense because there are some very intriguing world-building ideas here amidst some silliness and monster CG that almost looks deliberately awful; people are expected to accept their deaths at appointed times, for instance, and anyone who fears that is branded an outsider and tucked away in an outlying village, for instance. That’s a pretty damn heavy concept to throw into a setting, and not the only out-there idea this setting has, either. Upsetting the normal isekai formula of the transferee going on quests and such also earns the debut points. But then Mitama, the goddess, shows up. If future episodes can survive her instantly-obnoxious behavior then this one has some potential on fronts other than technical merits. Will most likely be following this one.

KONOSUBA – An Explosion on This Wonderful World!

Streams: Crunchyroll on Wednesdays

Rating: 3 (of 5)

Anyone familiar with the KONOSUBA franchise doesn’t need to guess at the subject matter of this prequel: it explores the origins story of fan-favorite girl Megumin, the petite Crimson Demon mage who is the master of the awesomely-powerful Explosion spell but is rather useless otherwise. However, viewers do not necessarily have to be familiar with the franchise to be able to follow this first episode. Sure, having seen the main series and movie would make you familiar with the established Crimson Demon aesthetic, the poverty of Megumin’s family, and her future “rival” Yunyun, but none of that’s really necessary knowledge for appreciating a story about a smart girl who discovers her magical goal from a woman she apparently released on accident from some kind of seal. You just have to be able to appreciate that Crimson Demons in general have a screw or two loose.

As a piece of the established franchise, this episode lays a good groundwork for the story by establishing well how Megumin got enthralled with explosion magic and how her and Yunyun’s connection started developing into what it is in the main storyline. It even lays down a good mystery in the identity of the buxom mage who appears to be linked to some kind of dragon-like creature; no doubt that will be a recurring story element throughout the series. The technical merits are also solid. On the downside, this episode does not capture the invasive, biting humor of the original despite generally being on the lighter-hearted side. This could be a deliberate tonal choice, as this story seems to be taking itself more seriously, but we’ll see on that. Still, it’s inviting enough to be recommendable for any established franchise fan.

Skip and Loafer

Streams: Crunchyroll on Tuesdays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

Mitsumi is a transfer student from the boonies who’s quite confident in her studies and planning but a ball of anxiety prone to screw-ups otherwise. Sosuke is a handsome but lackadaisical guy short on motivation. A chance encounter on the way to school winds up working to both their benefits, laying the groundwork for friendship and possibly even eventual romance.

That’s the gist of this highly-anticipated manga adaptation, and I can somewhat see what all the fuss was about. The first episode pulls off a good mix of homey sentiment, humor, and significant character development in laying some of the groundwork for long-term developments, with Mitsumi gaining friendly stability from Sosuke and Sosuke being inspired by Mitsumi’s energy and intense focus. Not a big fan of the art style, but it is at least clean and consistent and gives Mitsumi some great expressions (as seen above). The opener, with its protagonist dancing with each other, is also neat. The problem – and it’s probably a personal one to me – is that nothing about the first episode really grabbed me; it just felt too ordinary. I can see this being on the watch lists for many, but it is unlikely to make mine.

I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in the Real World, Too

Streams: Crunchyroll on Tuesdays

Rating: 3 (of 5)

The set-up here is all too familiar: Yuuya is a self-admitted loser at life. He’s fat, bullied, and kicked out by parents who preferred his more ideal younger siblings. His only saving grace was a kindly grandfather who encouraged him to face adversity and still be kind and left Yuuya his house when he died. That proves more significant that Yuuya realizes when he discovers a secret room with a door to another world apparently ruled by game stats – a door which leads him into possession of a house filled with utterly broken items. But experimenting with those, and the experience and skills he gains as a result, lead to him being transformed into an Adonis in real life, too – a reality that he’s having every bit as hard a time of adjusting to as his classmates and younger siblings are.

Yeah, it’s a power fantasy to an almost absurd degree, with the minor twist that the protagonist can freely travel between worlds and convert items gained in the fantasy world into real-world money. What makes the difference here is that Yuuya’s physical transformation is away ahead of his mental one. He may be physically a stud now, but on the inside he’s still the same kid who’s long been bullied and a social outsider. If the series continues to run with this (somewhat like Mushoku Tensei did) then that might give this one at least a chance of standing out for some reason other than its ridiculous name. I’m only giving this one a middle grade for now – as the opener suggests all kinds of stereotypical elements on the horizon – but there is at least some potential her.

Kizuna no Allele

Streams: Crunchyroll on Mondays

Rating: 1.5 (of 5)

Man, it’s been a while since I have encountered a first episode that was as much of a chore to sit through as this one was. Essentially, this is a next-gen version of an idol show, one that focuses on up-and-coming virtual idols at a near-future school intended to foster such talent. Miracle is one such prospect, seeking to follow in the footsteps of Kizuna Ai, a virtual idol in the “real” world widely-regarded as being the first of her kind. In this setting, she’s gone missing after being the reigning champion of the realm for five straight years;(in the real world she’s on indefinite hiatus, so this may be intended as a clever parallel. That and the interesting name choice – an allele is an alternate form of a gene that arises by mutation, implying that someone’s going to be the next version of Kizuna Ai – are the only mildly intriguing bits about a debut that’s otherwise mostly by-the-numbers: chipper protagonist Miracle has a strange encounter, gets to perform (in CG) and gets to watch her idol perform a couple of times.

Of course, I’ll entirely admit that I am absolutely not the target audience for this. Maybe those more into idol shows will get more out of it.

Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear Punch!

Streams: Crunchyroll on Mondays

Rating: 3 (of 5)

The first season, back in 2020, is arguably the cutsiest of all of the “trapped in a game world” power fantasies as well as being one of the very few of that type to feature a female protagonist. Neither changes one bit in the first episode of its second season, both for better and worse.

I do recommend reviewing the first season before starting this one, as full familiarity with the established cast is assumed. There’s a brief fight with orcs connected to a quest involving a honey shortage, but otherwise the episode is all about Yuna going around visiting and getting a job to protect some noble children on an experiential trip. And really, that’s about it. It loads up with both bear-specific and general cutsiness, so if you’re not watching the series for that, you won’t find much that’s compelling here. Overall, a decent but unspectacular start to a second season.

alice gear aegis Expansion

Streams: HIDIVE on Mondays

Rating: 2 (of 5)

Alice Gear Aegis started in 2018 as a mobile game, with a console version being released in Japan in 2022 and just recently made available worldwide. (That too-coincidental timing raises the strong suspicion that this anime is intended as a cross-promotion for the game.) The game seems to be based on girls, called Actresses, who special equipment to fight off an alien menace called Vice, but the first episode is nowhere near as serious as that premise sounds. It is, instead, all about a girl (who seems to be an original character for the anime) named Nodoka who becomes enamored with prominent Actress Yotsuyu (who is one of the game characters) and seeks to become one herself. She goes through ups, downs, and major nosebleeds in a comical fashion until she passes the qualifying sync test – which is important, since before her being able to train up to that level was only theoretical. The problem is, her office is suspended indefinitely as soon as she’s certified.

“Show, not tell” is widely-regarded as desirable in anime, but this is one debut which could have stood to do a lot more telling, since the foundational premise is only vaguely referred to; the episode instead focuses almost entirely on cute girls being cute. Nodoka constantly getting nosbleeds over Yotsuyu gets tiresome pretty quick, which offsets which little this generic cast has going for it in personality. Given the style of presentation here, I suspect that the anime won’t ever bother to explain itself much and will just assume viewers are familiar with the game. That’s the main reason why I cannot recommend this series. Oh, and the “episode 0” listed on HIDIVE is actually an OVA from 2021. It won’t make any sense at this point, so wait until you’ve watched at least a few episodes before checking it out.

Heavenly Delusion

Streams: Hulu (U.S.)/Disney+ (most other countries)

Rating: 4.5 (of 5)

This manga adaptation wasn’t on my radar, either, but damned if it didn’t immediately earn a place on my viewing list for this coming season, despite requiring a Hulu subscription to watch legally. It’s just that well-made.

This is one of those series which doesn’t bother explaining itself at all; it expects viewers to intuit everything based on bits and pieces. At some point a decade or more in the past, an apocalyptic event called the Collapse occurred which wrecked much of the world and left many of those who survived to starve. The story splits between two very different settings: in the ruined lands, a young woman escorts a teen boy on a quest to find a place called Heaven, with old bandits and a man-eating, bird-like monster as potential threats, though they do also find some seemingly-genuine hospitality to. In the place that is presumably Heaven, children live, attend school, and play in a futuristic facility totally closed off from the outside world by walls and a ceiling; they’re not even sure an outside world exists. But one student gets curious about it after receiving a strange message about going there during a test.

All sorts of potentially interesting little details abound. The female “bodyguard” has a high-tech energy pistol, but she also has dreadful scars under her clothing. Their host also seems to have a history with a “Man-Eater,” but why did she spike their food? (Or did she?) How and why does the Heaven facility exist? The first episode throws out lots of threads like that to reel viewers in, and then stacks sterling visuals and top-rate animation (the fight scene with the bandits is eye-popping in its sustained fluidity) on top of that. If later episodes can maintain this level of quality then this one has the very real potential to be one of the season’s top titles.

My Home Hero

Streams: Crunchyroll on Sundays

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

This one is a bit unusual: an adaptation of a seinen crime thriller that is clearly aimed at mature audiences. The first episode lays out the story of Tetsuo Tosu, a middle-aged man who kills his young-adult daughter’s abusive boyfriend after overhearing that he’s either seriously injured or killed two young women before. The even bigger problem is that the boyfriend is yakuza, and they were aware that he was trying to follow the boyfriend earlier to learn more about it.. Thus begins the desperate story about how a man who’s not at all strong – not even slightly above ordinary – is going to survive this ugly situation and keep his wife (who’s all for covering up the crime to protect her daughter!) and daughter safe.

As crime thrillers go, it’s hard to imagine a much more compelling initial plot hook than this, and it’s easy to sympathize with Testsuo’s situation despite the fact that he does, indeed, deliberately kill someone. The moral vs. legal quandaries this situation raises will hopefully be dealt with as well. Technical merits aren’t bad and do work effectively to heighten tension without being too graphic. Crime thrillers are not my thing, and so I don’t expect to watch this, but for who do like such fare, this looks like a promising start.

My Clueless First Friend

Streams: Crunchyroll on Sundays

Rating: 4.5 (of 5)

Boy, did this one come out of left field! I was expecting a simple, cute comedy about a clueless transfer student befriending the class oddball, and it definitely is that. What I was not expecting was for it to also be one of the most emotionally affecting first episodes I’ve seen in quite some time.

That’s because a remarkably serious and frank look at elementary-aged bullying is mixed in with the more humorous moments – or to be more precise, it’s interwoven with it in a shockingly non-disruptive way. Gloomy Akane Nishimura is referred to as the “Grim Reaper” and is constantly teased about it and ostracized over it. She’s grown to accept that fate until newcomer Taiyo Takada arrives on the scene and utterly smashes all school norms by simply finding it really cool that she’s a Grim Reaper and that her “curse” could rub off on him if he befriends her. Nothing that Akane (who doesn’t want him to get treated the same way) or others say can dissuade him, and an attempt to tease him about it gets regarded as a positive by Taiyo. He’s treated as happy-go-lucky clueless about all of this, so he’s not even consciously trying to break a cycle of bullying, but that’s exactly what he’s doing, and his genuine good will about it is making Akane realize that she can openly have friends and doesn’t have to lie to her father about it anymore.

That’s a lot to pack in to a first episode of what’s ostensibly a comedy, and I can easily see the sensitivity with which it’s handled bringing some to tears. Cute designs and remarkably solid production values for what you’d expect to be a lower-budget production also help. This one is worth a look by all audiences.

The Aristocrat’s Otherworldly Adventure: Serving Gods Who Go Too Far

Streams: Crunchyroll on Sundays

Rating: 3 (of 5)

Shiina dies protecting to girls from a knife-wielding attacked in modern-day Japan. He wakes up to find himself in the body of Cain, the young third son of a major noble, in another world. At his baptism, the seven gods of the land visit him and give him protections so far beyond the norm that he doesn’t dare tell anyone about them. It appears the gods will need him that strong for some greater purpose in years to come. . .

If that sounds utterly generic, it absolutely is in execution, too. There are some minor details which distinguish this one a little: the frenetic pacing of the first episode and an art style and bright color scheme suggestive of the series being targeted towards younger audiences (though it is based on a light novel). The content is mostly light-hearted and the first episode does have both a strong cute factor and a certain energy to it which makes it watchable, but it’s going to have to do more than the first episode shows to stick out much in a crowded field.

The Dangers in My Heart

Streams: HIDIVE on Saturdays

Rating: 3 (of 5)

Middle schooler Kyotaro has an emo bent and sees himself as a creep, but he also finds himself more fascinated than he cares to admit with Anna, a tall, pretty classmate who’s even a legitimate magazine model. As he watches her, he notices some of Anna’s less-than-perfect quirks, but that only interests him more and spurs him to act in a somewhat protective fashion towards her.

The first episode left me on the fence about this manga adaptation. On the good side, it is genuinely funny at several points and is refreshingly frank and honest, including one part where one of Kyotaro’s classmates seeks to date a heavier-set girl and another part where it’s heavily implied that Kyotaro masturbated to Anna’s magazine photos. Anna’s quirks feel more natural than the manufactured-to-still-be-endearing ones anime normally uses, too. On the downside, a student who’s actively thinking about murdering classmates may be going a bit too far (especially for American fans), and the writing does not effectively play that off as just a joke. Also, as a teacher, the notion that students could just carry around box cutters in school like that really threw me; they would be confiscated on site in most American schools. But those are, admittedly, points that not everyone will be sensitive to. This has the makings of a better-than-average romantic comedy in the “boy fascinated by odd girl” trope, so I may give another episode or two a try.

My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999

Streams: Crunchyroll on Saturdays

Rating: 2.5 (of 5)

Akane is a college girl who got into an online game because of her boyfriend, only to have that boyfriend meet someone new in the game and thus dump Akane for the newcomer. To get revenge, Akane passes a famous pro player (whom she happens to bump into at an in-person event for the game) off as her new boyfriend, but is unsatisfied with the result. Then she wakes up with a hangover in that pro player’s apartment. . .

This adaptation of an award-winning manga falls on the romance-emphasizing side of the romantic comedy category, and is based partly on a premise that’s become increasingly common in the last couple of decades: dumping a boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse for someone met online. In that sense, Akane is a relatable character, and her actions certainly aren’t out of line for a jilted lover. However, that and focusing this on older characters is about all that I will give this series for credit. Yamada is entirely not credible; no one could succeed as a pro gamer while being that laconic or uncharismatic in nature, and the long-necked, shojo-styled character design he has is a type I despise. To like this show, you’re going to have to be able to at least tolerate him, and I don’t. This one is a no-go for me.

Hell’s Paradise

Streams: Crunchyroll on Saturdays

Rating: 4 (of 5)

This samurai-era manga adaptation was not on my radar at all coming into this season, but after a strong debut, it sure is now. It tells the tale of Gabimaru the Hollow, a ninja assassin who’s being executed for trying to leave his village. . . except he doesn’t die to conventional execution methods and he doesn’t even realize himself that he’s resisting it until a female executioner points it out to him. She also helps him realize what that reason is and gives him an opportunity to earn a pardon to achieve it: recover an Elixir of Life from an island where nobody has returned alive from before. And he’ll have to beat out other condemned criminals to do it.

Pretty basic set-up for crafting a story where a bunch of killers are competing for a prize, but what won me over here was the quality execution. The technical merits are strong, the visuals are properly pretty or ugly, the OP is special, and the careful use of visuals, coloring, and symbolism is somewhat reminiscent of 86. Gabimaru’s motivation is also suitably compelling, though he earns negative points for not figuring out something so important without help. The only reason I’m not grading this first episode a notch higher is because Gabimaru looks way too much like Bell Cranel (from the DanMachi franchise), and that was really throwing me off. It’s worth a look, even if you weren’t planning to check it out.