Summer ’25 Mid-Season Report, part 2

See here for part 1 of the report

Kaiju No. 8 s2

Rating So Far: B

This has, so far, had less feature moments for Kafka, but that doesn’t mean it’s been short on big developments. Quite the contrary, in fact; No. 9 has uppedhis game even further as the main antagonist, and now it looks like Reno may be joining the club of the series’ top powers, too, as a result of help from an unexpected source. Seeing Kafka and Kikuru fight side-by-side was also quite satisfying. On the downside, Narumi’s comic side is more annoying than funny, especially the stupid “turf war” incident in the most recent episode, but the JAKDT seems to attract nutcases like that. While the series isn’t doing anything excitingly original as shonen action series go, it’s still proving to be a solid actioner.

My Dress-Up Darling

Rating So Far: A-

This is the highest-rated series of the season on ANN and in the top five on MAL, and not without good reason. The technical cosplay details are always a big draw, as is the very queer-positive way it portrays Gojo and Marin’s interactions with a crossplayer. I’m entirely watching the show for the Gojo/Marin relationship, though, and the series is an absolute winner on this front. Marin is absolutely adorable in the way she gushes over Gojo but still tries to deny that he’s effectively her boyfriend at this point, and Gojo seems to be coming a long way in building up the confidence he needs to feel worthy of standing beside Marin in senses other than just cosplay costume-making and support. While it’s not one of my top-priority views, it’s never failed to be a complete delight to watch.

Scooped Up by an S-Ranked Adventurer

Rating So Far: C-

In most respects this is a bog-standard fantasy story about a support mage who doesn’t appreciate how amazing his support magic actually is, even though everyone else can see it to the point of giving him a lot of credit for saving a town from monster hordes. (Or almost everyone else. The DPS-obsessed Hero can’t see it, either.) However, it stands out in one bad way: the new party Lloyd joins is supposedly S-ranked but seems startlingly underpowered without him for such a high ranking. Granted, that could just be a product of this world’s power curve being that low, but Yui’s party feels like it would be B-ranked at best in most other worlds. The costuming choices are also. . . interesting; Klum, the S-ranked party’s former white mage, looks like she’s wearing low-cut jeans over a one-piece swimsuit, while Yui is dressed more like a magical girl than a stereotypical swordswoman. At least the series is uniting most of its events so far under an ongoing plot, and the addition of the beastman princess Claire has some promise, but firmly mediocre artistic and technical merits help keep this one at or near the bottom of the titles I’m still following this season.

Sword of the Demon Hunter

Rating So Far: B+

Some fair complaints could probably be made about how slow this series is progressing, but its Edo-era character work has played out nicely, including the addition of an adoptive daughter for Jinya. Some major developments in the most recent episode and the inevitable approach of the chaos surrounding the beginning of the Meiji Restoration promise some bigger events going forward. Not seeing more of the present-time side of things is still a bit of a disappointment, but I am fully-invested in seeing where the rest of the prominent Edo-era characters go. (Especially Ofuu, who would make an ideal wife for Jinya even if neither of them has ever taken her father’s suggestions on that seriously.) Add to that respectable artistic and technical merits and more use of visual symbolism than probably any other series this season and it’s still a winner in my book.

The Rising of the Shield Hero s4

Rating So Far: B-

In fairness, the Siltvelt arc did finally explain the backstory of the tiger (or should I say half-tiger?) demihuman siblings and how they’re connected to the former Staff Hero, and it was satisfying to see Fohl finally coming into his own after playing second fiddle to his sister for so long. (Not that anything has changed too much on that front; Atla is still the star between the two.) But the whole Siltvelt affair suffered from a lack of storytelling urgency, and Naofumi’s regular insistences about moving ahead with the ship didn’t compensate for that. The story feels like it’s finally advancing now that the main group has gotten to Q’Ten Lo, and there are now clear signs that the real Emperor probably isn’t the culprit behind Raphtalia being hunted down; she may well be powerless herself. Still feels some like the story is in a holding pattern over the impending Phoenix appearance, but since Q’Ten Lo is clearly a matter that can’t wait, I’ll tolerate it.

The Water Magician

Rating So Far: C+

What series has its titular character uninvolved in an episode-long incident and major battle early in the series and then sidelines him until things get desperate in a second? To a certain extent that makes logical sense here, as Ryo is formally regarded as a rookie adventurer (and thus regarded as not strong enough for either mission), and he probably could have single-handedly handled the first issue, which the story doesn’t want at this point. Also, the series seems determined to set up Abel as a co-protagonist, but this isn’t his series. The action is low-mid-tier at best on its animation and battle choreography, too. On the plus side, Ryo’s battle against the akuma in episode 4 shows that there are foes on his level, and the elf Sera (who’s featured in the closer) is a very promising character. Overall, it has enough entertainment value to be worth watching if your schedule isn’t full, but it’s not a priority view.

There’s No Freaking Way I’ll Be Your Lover! Unless. . .

Rating So Far: B

Wow, this one is messed up, but in a (mostly) good way. By this point, introvert Renako is effectively the center of a yuri harem, with two girls openly dueling over her and a third in the friend group Renako has joined who’s also clearly falling for her even though she hasn’t admitted it yet. And despite Renako’s ardent insistence that she just wants to be friends with them, she’s clearly more romantically attracted to each of them than she wants to admit. Each of the would-be love interest also has her own issues, too, and it’s not out of the question that one of them (Satsuki) is more romantically attracted to another (Mai) than she cares to acknowledge. All of this has even gotten a bit racy at times, too, although the small doses of fan service are more incidental than one of the series’ driving elements. The series’ only weak point so far is its limitation to YouTube, though the originally-stated “one week only” availability does not seem to be the case.

Turkey! Time to Strike

Rating So Far: B+

The series’ title may be a bowling reference, and bowling is part of the series’ foundational concept, but the writing’s efforts to shoehorn bowling elements into every episode is actually the series’ weakest aspect at this point. The series hasn’t been content to just roll with the surprise twist of the time travel aspect figured in; it’s actually delved pretty deeply into character studies, with most of the girls getting focus episodes where their interactions with Sengoku-era counterparts bring some of their own securities out. It has also been surprisingly graphic; one scene where we hear a bandit being killed off-screen is easily one of the season’s most unnerving scenes from any series, and it does confront head-on the way values differ between the peaceful future and an era where life is more ephemeral. It also deals with practical issues that time travel series often overlook, since how a girl from the future might handle her period in a past world where modern means to manage it don’t exist. (Whether or not one character has achieved menarche is even a minor plot point.) In short, this would be a good series even without the bowling angle.

Uglymug, Epicfighter

Rating So Far: C+

This one did not at all start out good, but the gimmicky nature of Shigeru’s notes turns out to be merely establishing a baseline, as many of the others transported into this world – including at least two other members of Shigeru’s party – also have major-league issues which wind up giving them special abilities (though none anywhere near as drastic as Shigeru’s so far). And just like Shigeru can’t tear himself away from the party he was initially going to leave as he learns more about them and their issues, the viewers may also find themselves reluctant to step away. This is a world where those transported into it can vent their frustrations (if they approach it negatively) or be what they’ve dreamed of being (if they approach it positively), and there are certainly consequences for the negative path. The artistic and technical merits lean towards the lowest end of the scale for this season, but this one is gradually showing more meat and entertainment value than I would have expected. It may be getting a mediocre grade for now, but it’s trending upward.

Witch Watch

Rating So Far: B

The third quarter of the series has been a bit uneven, hence the slightly lower grade. On the plus side, an ongoing threat has materialized in the form of warlocks seeking Nico’s power, and the vampire Miharu makes a fine addition to her group of live-in protectors. I am also heartily behind the developing romance between Nemu and Keigo/Wolf and the series can, at times, still be really funny. The misses seem a bit more frequent, though, and not all of the stunts work; the series-within-a-series in episode 14 was overplayed and I’m not sure what the series was trying to accomplish with the outright musical number in episode 20 and the music playing over still shots for the last few minutes of the episode. Budget or time issues, perhaps? Still a quite entertaining series overall despite its flaws.

That’s it for this special edition. Watch for the Summer Season Wrap-Up probably during the last weekend in September.