Winter ’24 Mid-Season Round-Up, part 1

Really, this should have been started last week, when the earliest-starting series were first hitting episode 7s, but sometimes real life intrudes. Anyway, I have plenty of time this week and next for some extra writing, so let’s take a look at how a bevy of series this season that I’m not actively episode-reviewing are doing.

In all, I have somehow wound up staying mostly current with 23 series this season. A handful of others that I watched more than one episode of have fallen by the wayside; I likely won’t continue with Mashle: Magic and Muscle (mostly because I have just lost interest with its oddball gimmick) or My Instant Death Ability is Overpowered (because it’s just bad and seems to be poorly-adapted), but I am not ruling out watching more of The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash or The Strongest Tank’s Labyrinth Raid at some point, as both had potentially endearing qualities but simply lost out to volume overload. Because trying to cover them all at once would be burdensome, I am dividing them into two groups. This group are titles that are not getting episode reviews on Anime News Network, and the second group (which will constitute next week’s installment) will deal with my take on titles that are getting coverage.

Banished from The Hero’s Party s2

Rating So Far: B

The first season was an unexpectedly solid performer which tossed out some intriguing ideas about how the Blessing bestowed on everyone (and even monsters) could influence the individual, especially how it can be difficult to ignore the Blessing in some cases. This season continues to explore that, both by looking at how Ruti’s new Blessing checks her Hero Blessing, thus allowing her to choose her own path, and how the new Hero fanatically embraces Blessings and preaches a worrying level of determinism about them. The notion that someone may be going around artificially giving monsters extra Blessings also comes up. The series still has plenty of low-key charm and sexiness, and seeing Ruti acting more and more like a regular human being is welcome, but it’s building a good balance between plot and fantasy world slice-of-life. Animation limitations prevent it from being a top-tier performer (the most recent episode in particular had significant quality control issues), but it’s still among the better series this season.

Doctor Elise: The Royal Lady with the Lamp

Rating So Far: B-

I’d really like to rate this one higher, as its combination of double-isekai and time travel gimmicks provides for some interestingly different possibilities. Also, rather than having an OP ability, Elise simply has the medical knowledge of a trained 21st century physician, knowledge that’s a century and a half more advanced than what exists in the setting where she’s a potential future Empress. (But it might as well be an OP ability, since she can perform medical procedures that flabbergast the current medical community.). There’s also something very satisfying about seeing her struggle to avoid her fate by pursuing the new calling she discovered in her second life in modern Japan, rather than by just being a better future Empress. However, the series isn’t even trying to avoid over-dramatizing its medical procedures and is taking a very by-the-numbers approach to having Elise unwittingly win over the prince/future husband that she never really connected with the first time around. As a result, certain aspects of the series feel redundant in a season that also has the conceptually-similar 7th Time Loop. Mediocre technical merits also hamper the series some, but not to the point of denying the appeal of Elise as a strong female protagonist.

Fluffy Paradise

Rating So Far: C+

If I had to describe this series in one word, it would be “saccharine.” But what else would you expect from a series where the protagonist is an adult woman on the inside mostly embracing her little-girl-on-the-outside to spend her days hanging out with floofy animals and monsters – and if some of them happen to be Holy Beasts, dragons, or even goblins, so what? This is a much more cutesy, relaxing series than most other isekai, and it has to be accepted at that level in order to be tolerable. For those wanting more from a series, there are hints of bigger machinations and broader realities in the setting (and the underlying current of God seeking an evaluation of how humans treat non-humans still lingers in the background) and the series isn’t entirely ignoring how potentially strategic Nema’s capabilities are; it would definitely be more involving if it stressed the latter aspect more, though. Still, the series functions well enough as the kind of thing you might watch while eating breakfast to get your day started off right.

Hokkaido Girls are Super-Adorable!

Rating So Far: C+

Honestly, there’s not a lot to this one; it’s just a basic, slice-of-life harem series. The only distinguishing features so far are that it’s set in winter in Hokkaido and all of the girls are gyaru to some degree. The most recent episodes have introduced the third, slightly older girl, so we now have a busty blonde genki girl, a more subdued brunette who’s secretly a gamer, and the senpai with short, pale hair and possibly mixed blood. All are, of course, beautiful and have befriended protagonist Tsubasa. Each may also already have feelings for him to some degree, though there’s no full-blown romance yet. The series annoys some by having Tsubasa spend too much of his time being utterly flustered (but what boy his age wouldn’t be, with girls like these three around?), but the most recent episodes have shown that he has some tensions at home that are already causing conflict. The trio of ladies also have no shortage of sex appeal, though the series has largely avoided full-blown fan service so far. Worthwhile if you appreciate the genre, but unlikely to win over outsiders.

Ishura

Rating So Far: B+

If any series in this group is strongly crying out to be reviewed episode-by-episode, it’s this one. (I almost considered doing it myself.) The series took a big risk with an approach that could easily discourage many viewers: its first five episodes are a collection of mostly-disparate stories which each focus on one or two characters who are each going to play roles in a grand power struggle between an empire and an offshoot city-state. Each of these episodes gradually moves the overall timeline forward as characters start to converge, with paths finally crossing – and featured characters coming into open conflict with each other – starting with episode 6. (And episode 7 even provides the first death of a featured character.) The technical merits here are by far the strongest of any title in this group, the graphic content can occasionally be intense, and the plotting is as dense and intricate as any series airing this season. The wealth of angles it takes on the story can be both a blessing and a hindrance (in the sense that significant effort is required to keep track of all the moving pieces), but it certainly isn’t boring. This could wind up being the most under-appreciated title of the season.

Synduality: Noir s2

Rating So Far: B

The first season proved to be a competent mecha-like series with hints of a bigger picture, and the second half definitely explores that bigger picture further. We now have a more concrete idea about what Histoire is, what other forces are moving in this setting, and who’s really affiliated with what group, including one significant surprise reveal. Most importantly, these episodes spend considerable time exploring who and what Mystere is, how she’s related to Noir, and how both play crucial roles in this setting. All the familiar faces are also back from last season, and both of the last two episodes have ended with startling, game-changing developments. I still have some mixed feelings about the mecha action elements, but this series looks better than most and is certainly keeping things interesting.

Tales of Wedding Rings

Rating So Far: C

Some male protagonists wind up with harems by happenstance. In the case of protagonist Satou, though, the harem is by design, since he’s supposed to form a marriage-like bond with five Ring Princesses in order to access assorted elemental and light powers as the Ring King to fight off the encroaching baddies. By the time of this writing he’s added an elf, a beastwoman, and now a dragonoid to the human girl (and longtime childhood friend) that he started with, and one more is still to come. The problem is that Satou comes across as too pathetic to warrant all of these feminine beauties or be a threat to be feared; granted, this isn’t unusual for the genre, but in a fantasy setting where he has to do direct battle, it’s more damning. Let’s not even get started about how basic the plot is, how limp the writing is, or how weak the action animation and choreography are. The only things keeping the series afloat are that the female character designs are sufficiently sexy and the fan service does include some nudity. (It’s decidedly less prevalent than in Gushing Over Magical Girls but still present.)

The Foolish Angel Dances with the Devil

Rating: B-

I’m a little behind on this one, so this evaluation only covers through episode 6 (of 7). So far it’s combined traits of a supernatural romcom and an initially-antagonistic romcom, with the main variation being that the male and female leads are both supernatural entities, rather than one of them being an ordinary human dragged into a bigger world. We’re also seeing the story about equally from the perspectives of both Lily and Masatora, which is definitely more unusual but very welcome. The story takes a more serious turn in episode 6, but to that point it’s been a sometimes-funny, mostly-enjoyable exercise in them being catty towards each other while trying to deny that they are attracted to each other, all while occasionally sprinkling in bits of supernatural action. (It has some mild fan service elements, too, but this is, on the whole, a tame series.) The technical merits are actually decent, so the grade is more a reflection of how I’ve had trouble getting enthusiastic about this one despite continuing to follow it.

The Undead Unwanted Adventurer

Rating So Far: B-

This is another series that I find interesting enough that I want to rate it higher, but its workmanlike approach and CG skeletons just don’t inspire a lot of excitement. Still, it works to a degree with an interesting twist on the reincarnation concept: an adventurer who dies in a dungeon is animated as an undead, but with his mental faculties completely intact. As the story progresses, he’s able to evolve into higher undead forms by leveling up, to the point that he can somewhat pass for human as long as he keeps his face and skin hidden, and now he’s easily passed the plateau that he was stuck at for years as a human adventurer. There are vague hints of a bigger plot and a couple of mildly tantalizing mysteries afloat, but the series is also increasingly struggling with staying on-model on the artistic front. Not one of the season’s most thrilling fantasy series, but still worth a look.

Tsukimichi -Moonlit Fantasy s2

Rating So Far: B-

This first season of Tsukimichi was the pleasantly fun surprise of the Summer 2021 season. While its second season still has some crazy antics, it has shifted to a more story and setting-developed focus, including episodes spent focusing on the two isekai’d students from Makoto’s world that do have the Goddess’s stamp of approval and how Makoto’s actions have indirectly affected them. That does allow for some interesting developments, such as the first instance I can recall of a summoned high school student literally being seduced into his Hero role, and some new intrigues do come up as Makoto goes to a magic school and winds up being an instructor. However, that has come at the expense of some of the craziness. It’s still an entertaining series, just not as sharp as it was before.

That’s it for now. Come back next week for part 2!